Ableton Forum

Breaks Dude wrote:Well this is the reason a lot of people just say "screw it" and install a cracked version ..........."

Exactly! And to be honest I think most serious producers will at some point in their life start buying the products they really like. I started up with a cracked version of Live, and have now bought my second upgrade to live 8.

I do not understand the logic behind restricting third party sales. Makes no sense at all. The person who made the analogy of selling a used car is correct. It's really stingy behavior IMO.[/quote wrote:
I agree - if I bought a used car I may buy a new car from the company if I'm happy with them, at a later time. this is especially true for software-companies since they will probably spend some of their time making new products ect - again ableton is a good example, now selling MAX for live and probably getting some cut from the APC40's too...

[quote=I don't have any experience with Spectrasonics products - although I was looking to buy a copy of Omnisphere for myself - but this kind of thing scares me, especially with an investment that large ($479 US).

Someone here should send their marketing department a link to this thread.

Definitely. That being said, I did get my products transferred free of charge after more than a year of waiting. But I can't sell them since they were bought second hand (including Trilian, a price won at NAMM that had never been used before - I was the first to register it but they freezed my account when I attempted to get RMX transferred). Well - I had already uninstalled Trilian and haven't reinstalled it yet. Spectrasonics: take a look at the tread, make proper apologies, and take a look at possible ways to earn more from existing customers instead of having to live off of new ones all the time...

How can Spectrasonics know if you bought the software from someone vs. just wrote it down if you found someone's copy while in their studio? If the seller you bought it from is legit then transferring the ownership is completely realistic. I own a Powercore system and if any of the users I sold my licenses were like the person who started this thread I would have a bad feedback record as the only way to transfer the license is put in a support "request" to transfer the ownership and wait until they email both me and the buyer that it's been done; this has taken over a week on more than 1 occasion.... that's just the way it goes in the real world... flame me all you want, that's the only protection plan most software manufacturers have in place as there is no way they can verify the previous owner sold the software without hearing it straight from them....
Personally I find that it's easily understandable from their perspective.

People who use cracked software can complain all they want but I've been writing music since the mid 80s and I remember many years where there was No such thing as finding a cracked version of software - If I wanted something I had to WORK my A$$ OFF all summer and save for a particular keyboard, effect or anything else I wanted.

I DID purchase and own a legit copy of RMX and I would Highly recommend their software. It is absolutely top notch level quality. I don't own Omnisphere yet but will very soon, it is easily the coolest soft synth I've demo'd yet...

If you bought the software from a legit seller than all you have to do is be patient. If you bought it on Ebay then it is YOUR responsibility to make sure the seller has a solid longterm record of positive sales. Ebay is full of scammers and you need to do all of your homework before buying, or you will be "taken".

dnbhallifax wrote:How can Spectrasonics know if you bought the software from someone vs. just wrote it down if you found someone's copy while in their studio? If the seller you bought it from is legit then transferring the ownership is completely realistic. I own a Powercore system and if any of the users I sold my licenses were like the person who started this thread I would have a bad feedback record as the only way to transfer the license is put in a support "request" to transfer the ownership and wait until they email both me and the buyer that it's been done; this has taken over a week on more than 1 occasion.... that's just the way it goes in the real world... flame me all you want, that's the only protection plan most software manufacturers have in place as there is no way they can verify the previous owner sold the software without hearing it straight from them....
Personally I find that it's easily understandable from their perspective.

People who use cracked software can complain all they want but I've been writing music since the mid 80s and I remember many years where there was No such thing as finding a cracked version of software - If I wanted something I had to WORK my A$$ OFF all summer and save for a particular keyboard, effect or anything else I wanted.

I DID purchase and own a legit copy of RMX and I would Highly recommend their software. It is absolutely top notch level quality. I don't own Omnisphere yet but will very soon, it is easily the coolest soft synth I've demo'd yet...

If you bought the software from a legit seller than all you have to do is be patient. If you bought it on Ebay then it is YOUR responsibility to make sure the seller has a solid longterm record of positive sales. Ebay is full of scammers and you need to do all of your homework before buying, or you will be "taken".

First of all: I'm not complaining about cracked software - I'm complaining about a company who seems to be oblivious to their own customers needs and wishes. I'm also saying that problems like the ones Spectrasonics have brought me into is one of the reasons why so many people prefer to use cracked versions (I was agreeing with another poster). I don't know, maybe Spectrasonics will earn more money on this post than they would if I didn't post it - since it's kind of saying "buy the product directly from Spectrasonics" or your f@cked. Anyway, 750 people has read the post so far, and to be honest I don't think it's the best marketing-campaign they've ever had. Their products may be ok, in my opinion they use too much CPU (and since multitimbral instruments normally can't be frozen thats a big setback in itself).

Apart from that I have a couple of issues with your post:

1. Yes you would definitely have a bad feedback-score. You obviously haven't really read my posts, waiting a week is one thing, waiting OVER A YEAR is far from acceptable (everyone with a brain understands this). If the company you sell for didn't transfer licences for a year, you as the middle-man wouldn't deserve anything better than the worst feedback.

2. I DID also buy a legit product, just as you boast that you have. The difference is that I bought mine second hand. Spectrasonics DID NOT mention anything about not being able to transfer under the product-details of one of the products I bought, or having to pay for it.

3. As you say the world is changing: I happen to be one of those who likes to buy a used car/keyboard/software instead of a new car etc - yeah man - I like to save money because I'm not filthy rich. I think it's OK that the developers sell updates of their products to the customers who have bought second hand and in general for the really big updates, like Native Instruments does with KONTAKT. If I had stolen a copy like in your example, Spectrasonics would have found out about it.


PS: how can a Toyota service-man know if you bought the car from a legit person, or if you stole it and forged the papers?

This is an older thread but its been revived into my view so i'll post my 2p worth...

I own Omnisphere and in fact had 2 copies (one wound up as a spare and I have just sold this but it was unopened, unused and still in the plastic). It's a pain when you have a bad experience with something and it shatters your perception. Of course for many users, such as me, who have had a great experience I would say that your warning is not so much for people to not buy Spectrasonics products, rather be extremely vigilant when purchasing second hand software.

I love finding a bargain too but when it comes to software I always get 100% conformation from the seller and company before buying. The seller should have detailed\known what was involved for the sale of the product.

I do agree though that Spectrasonics as a company are a little weird

Not sure what their angle is but they have no formal forum or simple way to get product support, You need to crawl around user hosted forums, Yahoo groups and try emails. It's hard to talk with other users direct and it may be because they just don't want to deal with the public.

The products are great and I have never got so many sounds so quickly into productions, it's just the management of the company needs some work.

buyer beware

For the record I've never sold a piece of software to someone else. I just think the policy is stingy and doesn't help them. Ableton lets people transfer licenses and they seem to be doing just fine.

+2947393 to OP.

Thankfully, I successfully sold my copy of Omnisphere, but it's not as easy as it looks. Not only do you have to pay 50 dollars to this cheap-ass company, but you also have to wait for f***ing ever for these lazy-asses to initiate a license transfer (4 months to be exact). I will never buy a Spectrasonics product ever again. Period.

I can understand the feelings of those caught out buying second hand software like this. I have twice ended up with NFR software off Ebay that I couldn't register. Neither time it was declared by the seller ( and I asked the second seller outright in advance) but both refunded my money immediately I challenged them on it.

In Spectrasonics defence, I bought a second hand copy of Atmosphere and their support was very good. I was aware of the transfer requirements fortunately and contacted them in advance. They advised me when the transfer fee had been paid and soon after the licence was transferred to me. And when I had problems installing the software, they sent me a dvd with an updated installer free of charge. The transfer itself took less than a week for me aand they pushed it through on a Friday night so I had it for the weekend. I was expecting longer from what I had heard but I know they have said they would try and speed transfers up.

I suppose this is almost off-topic, but I would
(1) never buy second-hand software, and
(2) never buy anything through eBay.

I used to be an eBay user, and the rip-off and/or disaster figures are way too high.

I don't have much sympathy here.. Software is buyer beware, not matter from who. It's up to you to read and understand the user licensing and terms of resale, if there are any.

There are many cool companies to by software from that have cool resale policies. Traditionally, Spectrasonics has had the most draconian policy to date, but it seems like they're willing to be flexible, which is a huge improvement.

I'd talk to your seller about negotiating with spectrasonics or ask for your money back.

dude, ....who ever is selling it to you got something out of it (resampled all the sounds...copy'd the program somehow to be able to use and then sell...who knows).

Software is different than regular physical objects. Its not the companies fault, Its yours... for paying however much you paid. or for not doing your homework before buying the dam thing lol.

If you contacted spectrosnics before hand then you would have learned there policy, .....I dont even understand this post lol.

"Dont buy from spectrasonics!!"" arghh lol.

....why??? there software/soundbanks stand in a class of there own. There Designs are frigin amazing. Are you kidding me

RMX // Trilian // Omnisphere!!! out of this world

Eric Pershing of Spectrasonics is my favorite developer based on his products, industry contribution, passion and his down to earth charisma while demonstrating the possibilities of synthesis.

I've had nothing but prompt and friendly service when needed.

TheOscillator wrote:Eric Pershing of Spectrasonics is my favorite developer based on his products, industry contribution, passion and his down to earth charisma while demonstrating the possibilities of synthesis.

I've had nothing but prompt and friendly service when needed.

My view on this is that because Spectrasonics are quite happy to remove cheaper second hand licenses from the market place with their NFR policy, they are actually encouraging piracy.

Not everyone can afford new software, however everyone is affected by their advertising and peer pressure from sites such as KVR (that site is one big advert), so for anyone with a NFR policy should be aware that such actions are a driving force behind the trade in bootleg software.

I will never buy Spectrasonics stuff.