Presonus ruffling feathers with their latest update.

[Chi-Individual]

From the comments I’ve read so far the consensus is: Not only is this update a PAID update, not upgrade, but their new synth that they’ve added to their already lackluster line up is going to be available via subscription only. And tunecore being added when they’re under a microscope about deleting songs seems to be a strange move as well.

I have V6.5 just to have Dolby Atmos access and didn’t plan to upgrade further anytime soon so it doesn’t affect me as Reason is still my main DAW. But what say you who use S1 as your primary DAW? Is this as bad as Bitwig as some are saying or not that big a deal?

[DaveyG]

It's not a paid update for anyone who is already on V6.x. Look in your Presonus account.
But, yes, adding a synth to the subscription but not the perpetual licence has put a few noses out of joint. The synth isn't that great but it sets a precedent for the subscription to diverge further from the perpetual.

The other interesting thing they've done is renamed their annual subscription "Hybrid" and it now comes with a perpetual licence for whatever the latest version is whilst you subscribe and you get to keep that licence if you cancel the sub, so you can always open and edit anything you have created even if you no longer pay the sub. The sting in the tail is that the perpetual licence is not upgradable so when the next version lands you have to buy it outright or restart the sub. I guess that makes it a bit similar to the Bitwig upgrade plan. It's going to cause some pain for people who didn't notice those weasel words.

Studio One is my main DAW but much of my work is still done in V4.5, some 4 years old now. I do have a V6 licence but I sometimes collaborate with someone who does not and almost everything they have added since V4.5 is of no interest or use to me. The only exception is the lyrics track, which is right up my street. Everything else is about playing live or Dolby Atmos, or spatial this and that, or more customisation.

V7 will probably land Q3/Q4 this year so I'll take a look at what's new then but, tbh, if I had to stick with V4.5 forever I'd be happy.

[mimidancer]

I understand why people value perpetual licenses. But everything in life is ephemeral. Your OS and your computer is not perpetual. Chances are after some time what you own today will not run on modern systems. I use Studio One when I am recording all live things. I hate that you cannot switch time from BPM to minutes and seconds. It hurts my OCD for it not to match the bpm in reason. Otherwise, I would use reason to record every project. In Studio One I miss the SSL console. I have not upgraded my live or my studio one for some time. Should I? Oh and keep in mind that life is ephemeral. you will be much happier once you accept this.

[avasopht]

I understand why people value perpetual licenses. But everything in life is ephemeral. Your OS and your computer is not perpetual. Chances are after some time what you own today will not run on modern systems. I use Studio One when I am recording all live things. I hate that you cannot switch time from BPM to minutes and seconds. It hurts my OCD for it not to match the bpm in reason. Otherwise, I would use reason to record every project. In Studio One I miss the SSL console. I have not upgraded my live or my studio one for some time. Should I? Oh and keep in mind that life is ephemeral. you will be much happier once you accept this.

Whether life is fleeting or not, we're talking about ongoing costs here, not mere philosophy.



I know far too many musicians who used the same system for 10+ years. It works. It does what they need. And that's that.

This is a shame because it makes what could be an awesome thing not so awesome.



I could understand a radical pricing strategy in the last desperate attempt of a fledgling company facing insolvency.

But the push to trap wallets always has a bad taste to it.



This is not graphic design. Most people are not making their income from music, so the success of Adobe's subscription will not translate so easily.



Damn these out-of-touch MBA suits ruining everything.

[Chi-Individual]

It's not a paid update for anyone who is already on V6.x. Look in your Presonus account.

Sorry for misspeaking. The comment section was such a dumpster fire with many saying it was a paid update. I should’ve known to check for myself lol. I think I was more confused at the synth for subs only.

[DaveyG]

It's not a paid update for anyone who is already on V6.x. Look in your Presonus account.

Sorry for misspeaking. The comment section was such a dumpster fire with many saying it was a paid update. I should’ve known to check for myself lol. I think I was more confused at the synth for subs only.

I don't know if you follow the official Presonus forums but the Studio One Product Manager has already had to step in and defend the subs thing. As is usual with Product Managers he conveniently ignores many of the points and focuses on what he wants you to hear.

Linky: https://forums.presonus.com/viewtopic.p ... 52#p316152

The angst will continue but the world will keep turning.

[Chi-Individual]

I don't know if you follow the official Presonus forums but the Studio One Product Manager has already had to step in and defend the subs thing. As is usual with Product Managers he conveniently ignores many of the points and focuses on what he wants you to hear.

Linky: https://forums.presonus.com/viewtopic.p ... 52#p316152

The angst will continue but the world will keep turning.

This is sounding “Bitwig-ish”. Will this be the next company to make a bad move then retract due to user outrage? I think it would’ve made more sense to make it a for purchase add on. Still may’ve pissed off some but at least it would’ve been understood as a business move. They’ll probably end up doing that in the end anyway.

[DaveyG]

This is sounding “Bitwig-ish”. Will this be the next company to make a bad move then retract due to user outrage? I think it would’ve made more sense to make it a for purchase add on. Still may’ve pissed off some but at least it would’ve been understood as a business move. They’ll probably end up doing that in the end anyway.

It seems it's more controversial than that. They've actually removed add-ons from the shop so that perpetual licence holders can no longer buy them but those things are included in the subscription. I'm not sure if the outrage is enough for Presonus to retract anything though. The Studio One crowd are a fairly conservative bunch on the whole and that forum is quite heavily moderated.

[Chi-Individual]

It seems it's more controversial than that . They've actually removed add-ons from the shop so that perpetual licence holders can no longer buy them but those things are included in the subscription.

I was not aware of this. Thanks for informing me. I thought it was bad not including the multi-sample loader for their sampler. So if they’re now removing other items from the shop no need for me to spend more money with them in the coming future. But I have noticed that some S1 users are lunatic due hards like FL users joke

[madmacman]

It‘s even worse: With the update they did break VST things, telling „we improved compatibility“, and have the cuzpe to let the plugin developers do the cleanup stuff.

And a bunch of newly introduced bugs. I cannot help but feel the updates are rushed more and more.

It‘s been 5 years since I switched from Reason to Studio One (I think 4.1 was my first version) and I was very productive with it. But I don‘t like the new direction it takes. But subscriptions seem to be on the rise. Even Logic has started a subscription for its iPad version.

I should give up on DAW‘s and use hardware sequencers only.

[EdGrip]

Fuck all this digital landlordism bullshit, honestly.

[mimidancer]

I understand why people value perpetual licenses. But everything in life is ephemeral. Your OS and your computer is not perpetual. Chances are after some time what you own today will not run on modern systems. I use Studio One when I am recording all live things. I hate that you cannot switch time from BPM to minutes and seconds. It hurts my OCD for it not to match the bpm in reason. Otherwise, I would use reason to record every project. In Studio One I miss the SSL console. I have not upgraded my live or my studio one for some time. Should I? Oh and keep in mind that life is ephemeral. you will be much happier once you accept this.

Whether life is fleeting or not, we're talking about ongoing costs here, not mere philosophy.



I know far too many musicians who used the same system for 10+ years. It works. It does what they need. And that's that.

This is a shame because it makes what could be an awesome thing not so awesome.



I could understand a radical pricing strategy in the last desperate attempt of a fledgling company facing insolvency.

But the push to trap wallets always has a bad taste to it.



This is not graphic design. Most people are not making their income from music, so the success of Adobe's subscription will not translate so easily.



Damn these out-of-touch MBA suits ruining everything.

I get not wanting to pay. Nothing is stopping you from using the current version for as long as your PC works. SO be like me and don't upgrade. As I said it is not my primary DAW. I like to use it when I don't want to record on a grid mostly for my violin and marimba stuff. If Reason had an option to turn off the grid and record to time I would not use studio one. On the plus, you can fold your track into a folder on studio one. That seems to be a big deal around this board. TO echo back to your point of view, I quit using Mac PCs because i got tired of them obsoleting OSs. So I do feel ya.

[PhillipOrdonez]

Fuck all this digital landlordism bullshit, honestly.

Yeah! Down with this shitty techno-feudalism! 🪧

[mimidancer]

Fuck all this digital landlordism bullshit, honestly.

Yeah! Down with this shitty techno-feudalism! 🪧

I am pretty sure Viceroy Nute Gunray is in charge of Product development at Presonus.