APC Mini - can't switch banks - FIX IT !!!!!

[Buleriachk]

We're up to Beta 3. I STILL can't believe that some idiot in marketing/engineering is letting this important feature slide....

[Buleriachk]

The new beta 9.2b4 STILL hasn't fixed this. Shame on Akai/Ableton for this stupidity.

[S4racen]

I don't know why you're expecting this to happen, the change of the details on the website to exclude it should indicate it's not going to happen...?

Cheers
D

[Buleriachk]

I don't know why you're expecting this to happen, the change of the details on the website to exclude it should indicate it's not going to happen...?

Cheers
D

I'm expecting it to happen because this stupidity can only last so long...
But it is true that I could be wrong....

Nevertheless, I will continue to point out the sheer idiocy of this design decision (especially in portable clip launching devices for Ableton that arrange their matrices like their flagship controllers). Especially since I own both the APC Mini and the APC Key 25, and purchased them specifically for launching clips.

Why, do you have a dog in this fight?

[S4racen]

Why, do you have a dog in this fight?

Nope, just the amount of energy you've given this you could have fixed it yourself by now, there only seems a couple of people joining your fight as well which isn't likely to make much of a change....

Cheers
D

[Buleriachk]

Why, do you have a dog in this fight?

Nope, just the amount of energy you've given this you could have fixed it yourself by now, there only seems a couple of people joining your fight as well which isn't likely to make much of a change....

Cheers
D

I'm doing what I can; Rome wasn't built in a day.
(Sheesh, how long did it take us to get a frickin' tuner?)

q - how many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb?
a - Only one, but the light bulb has to really want to change...

q - how many users does it take to make Akai/Live correct a really stupid and easily correctable design error?
a - only one, but Akai/Live has to really want to correct the really stupid and easily correctable design error.

(And if it wasn't a design error, it is a really stupid marketing decision .. and maintaining it is even worse).
So I soldier on.......

(as far as programming it myself, I'm 74 and don't have time to reverse engineer what they did with the Python code, although I know how it is screwed up. It is better for me either just to use my Launchpad for portability - and the Launchpad pro when it becomes available, and eat my investment in the Mini and Key 25 - I wouldn't sell them without making the flaw clear to a buyer, and I can't imagine a buyer purchasing it for anything money that would recoup my investment in any way that makes sense.

I'm just amazed that Akai/Ableton are perpetuating this charade, and am kind of interested to see if they are going to keep it up as long as I am alive.... I'll only stop when t/s informs me that the issue is a hardware limitation, and can't be done in Python... and I believe them....

By now, I'm not even sure I would accept a refund for both units; it is more a question of principle. The units were misrepresented, in spirit if not in actuality (their marketing literature don't mention this very obvious "gotcha".

[Buleriachk]

The Ableton/Akai decision to omit bank switching ("Session Overview") from the APC Mini and APC Key 25, effectively incapacitating them for anyone who organizes his session in banks.

Dumbest design/marketing decision ever (the devices would be incredibly useful with Session Overview) for their fundamental application - clip launching.

And the worst (unethical) thing about it is that this deficiency is not mentioned anywhere in their marketing literature. (Most knowledgeable users would look at a session matrix incorporated in a device supported by Ableton and would automatically assume you can switch by banks like their flagship controllers (Push, APC40), and even Launchpad. You only find out about it by a single sentence buried in the Live Users Guide.

(Well, ok, and my dedication to inform the world about this unadvertised lack of such an important fundamental feature .

In a Session Oriented (matrix) device, the capability to switch banks is automatically assumed by anyone who knows how these devices should be used, and the one line sentence in the Live manual alerting the purchaser to this is simply unconscionable.... the failing should be listed on the box and in the advertising literature so the prospective buyer is clear about this most important lack of functionality.

If it is conceptualized as a device for beginners who may not be sophisticated enough to want more than one bank, then the advertising literature/product description should be crystal clear about that, with these limitations clearly printed on the box and in the ads (including reviews).

[beatz01]

You should see a psychologist or something.Honestly, is there something like a Tom syndrome making the rounds lately ?

Like, if you bought an APC Mini, why don't you just sell it and be rid of it ?!

Why keep on bitching and bitching and bitching ?

Really, get a life.

[Buleriachk]

Read Section 28.3 in the Live Users' manual for those that may not be aware of this issue and are considering purchasing the APC Mini or the APC Key 25.

(and of course, keep reading and continuing to whine and complain about my whining and complaining

You should see a psychologist or something.Honestly, is there something like a Tom syndrome making the rounds lately ?

Like, if you bought an APC Mini, why don't you just sell it and be rid of it ?!

Why keep on bitching and bitching and bitching ?

Really, get a life.

And again, thank you for helping me keep this important subject alive in the hope that Ableton/Akai will someday correct the problem. Stay tuned....

(I would only accept a complete refund for both devices from Akai/Ableton, since I purchased them under false expectations (sin of omission); these limitations should be made clear before purchase. But this is more fun (you never know who is under the log until you turn it over), and I really would like the issue to be corrected, so I don't have to purchase a Launchpad Pro (which DOES have Session Overview according to my sources at Novation).)

I organize my session banks by time signature, scale, and key, and I grant that this may not be understood by those that are not musicians...

[midiscripts]

The devices would be incredibly useful with Session Overview

You may find this free script useful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uriX6qaw72M

It's an implementation of session overview for APC Mini