My biggest issue with Maschine is that NI is still primarily a software company primarily making plugins.
The latest generation Maschine controller hardware is great and the sampling and drum machine workflows are excellent, making the setup feel like a standalone hardware instrument.
However, where things started to break down for me was when you want to create your own sounds (or even edit existing ones) using NI’s instruments. You can argue aesthetics and UI design, but in general instruments such as FM8, Massive, Monark, Prism, etc. are friendly, straightforward, and easy to use when you’re in front of a computer with a big display, keyboard and mouse.
Even though Maschine has two big displays with 8 soft buttons above, and 8 encoders below, parameters for anything but what’s built-in into Maschine is displayed as an endless list of—often abbreviated—VST parameter names. This includes the NI instruments I just mentioned above, which are incidentally the ones included with Maschine+. None of these use the displays for anything but labels and numerical values and apparently no effort has been made to organise parameters in logical groups, create additional macro controls, or any other effort to translate these to what the Mk3 Maschine could potentially offer.
As far as I can see, this hasn’t changed in the +.
I’ll challenge that - for Ni’s own synths and anything with NKS support (either official or third party created NKS), the macro controls are usually very logically laid out and grouped by appropriate synth section (osc, filter, effects, lfo, etc). I find editing params using maschine controls very efficient.
Peter Kirn has added some info in the comments section of the CDM article - too busy to update the article I guess. Scroll back up to holdmybeers’ post or scroll down to see the article again:
“figure it is a customized embedded Linux, running on a quad core ARM of some kind. Exact ARM specs I don’t know.”
"quad-core ARM, afaik, not x86.
Boot time is basically instantaneous from what I saw in the demo. I’ll have hands-on impressions in a few days"
This is a bummer:
“But you can’t yet run Reaktor patches or Reaktor Blocks on Maschine+, which I’m sure is something people are dreaming of.”
This is cool:
“As I understand it, you can use custom FM8 patches”
(For me) this is too DAW like but with some limitations that arguably a DAW does not have, I don’t think we have seen a single product yet that allows the immediacy of standalone hardware, that does not want to be a kind of less powerful DAW.
It seems like they all go too far in the DAW direction - zillions of built in sounds, zillions of options, long boot up times etc. Lack of immediacy and too many menus and options, might just as well use a DAW IMHO.
BUT, I’ll counter this by saying that my desires and requirements for a #dawless box are possibly very different from most peoples, I just want something simple and direct, not a DAW in sheep clothing.
I hope it will make some people very happy, though probably not Octatrack users
Another thing I found intriguing is why did they first cancel this project, and then decide to release it after all?
Additionally, (and not to sound like a wapo reporter but…) I’ve been told in DMs by someone familiar with both companies that a majority of the people at NI who worked on this project earlier (pre-cancellation) have been hired by Ableton and have been working there for about one year now.
Another reason I am eager to see how Ableton responds.
Not most OT users, but I could certainly see how a very well produced live set could be comprised of only the M+ for composition and sound sources and OT for performative effects and transitions.
I almost pulled the trigger on a MK3 earlier this year but after trying Maschine software out, found myself preferring the M32 + Komplete Kontrol in Ableton solution better for computer based work. If it weren’t for that preference, I might be first in line to use that combo.
Maschine feels like the right balance to me - very little menu diving, a lot of muscle memory/quick shortcuts all over the place - similar somewhat to Elektron boxes. It has that immediacy of DAW less for me (which the MPC line has less of, mainly because of the touch screen).
Probably a lot to come in between today and february 2021. Namm and all things like that. I guess the better time would be March/April to pull the trigger on whatever this could be. (at least to me - no way i buy something before)
I agree completely. It’s why I sold the MK3. The plugins in the Akai Force still have some GUI issues, but it does feel more intuitive with better use of screen space. Not to mention touch screen and associated knobs.
