Subject:Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Posted by: Spectralis

Date:3/11/2008 7:09:20 AM

I'd like to know whether Sony is working on an upgrade to ACID Pro 6. It's been nearly 18 months since ACID Pro 6 was released. As a musician it is frustrating to see other companies improve their hosts while ACID falls behind. Other DAWS have been upgraded with a range of new features. Isn't it time this happened to ACID Pro so that we can take advantage of new technology or is Sony letting ACID fade away forever? I think we have a right to know so that we can decide what to do in the future.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:3/11/2008 10:11:26 AM

good point -- right now i just feed acid loops that i make in fl studio

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: buckaroo

Date:3/11/2008 11:18:20 AM

Exactly what I was thinking!!!

I've moved over to Mac since Acid 6 and am waiting for Acid 7 just to see if they can tempt me back...

I have been using Ableton which is great, and am thinking of going down the Macbook Pro route (so i can still run windows/Acid if needs be), but its getting a little tired now....

Lets see if Acid 7 changes anything?

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: alltheseworlds

Date:3/11/2008 3:05:29 PM

SonyPCH (the ever-helpful Peter) has plainly said that there will be an AP7. There's even a hint that it may be currently in beta test mode. The lack of some of the hard core regulars around here might be further evidence of that too.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: djchad

Date:3/13/2008 6:09:34 PM

I sure hope so. I was dormant from my music production (i currently only have Acid Pro 4). I also am running Windows Vista on all my machines. I do have a full version of XP if I wanted to run a dual boot environment. I simply love Vista too much to 1) waiste space, 2) buy 6.0 when 7.0 is suppose to be around the corner (and Vista compatible, and finally 3) Acid Pro 4.0 will run on Vista if you just stick to the basics. :)

Given Music Studio 7 just came out, I am going to assume its big brother, Pro 7.0 is around the corner with features worth the wait.

From what I understand, most people have success running 6.0 on Vista.... so that has made it so tempting, especially with the current 25% off the upgrade (making it $138!!!) promotion right now.... to just buy upgrade NOW.

I do know that I called Sony Software Sales the other day. I explained I could run XP in dual boot in order to get 6.0 working in a supported mode. They recommended I wait for 7.0 if I was not in a major hurry. He told me he had not seen any pre-release memos in the office; however that does not mean they are not working. I tend to think if Sales is telling you to wait vs making a sale right then and there... something has to be close to production date!

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:3/15/2008 6:09:27 PM

hopefully -- the Sony Creative Software team is gonna make it worth, right now competition is steep.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: J Psycle

Date:3/15/2008 9:45:53 PM

Dude, if Sony wants any more of my money, they are going to have to make Acid Pro 7 drastically improved and STABLE. I havn't used Acid Pro 6 in awhile now, mainly because even in version 6D, I still can't get it running to my satisfaction as far as not being buggy and crashy, and just too many basic feature omissions that I just can't deal with anymore (mainly in MIDI handling and not even a simple count-in feature). It's never been quite as stable as I once had it I think way back at version 4 or one of the version 5 revisions.

In the meantime, I've moved on to Ableton Live 6, and then have recently purchased Live 7, and it never ceases to blow my mind at how incredibly intuitive and inventive it is. Generally very stable, and I think it sounds better, and has features that AP6 does not that I no longer think I could do without. The only edge I give Acid over other DAWs these days is the way it handles plugin windows and chains, and I like the mousewheel zoom. Otherwise it is simply not competive to something like Live anymore. So if Sony somehow manages to make something that's stable from the get go (version 6 was damn near just F'ing broken until version B), has a count-in feature, better MIDI editing, super flexible sample and REX2 handling, and more, I might be tempted back, otherwise I'm pretty much officialy in the Ableton camp now.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: alltheseworlds

Date:3/15/2008 10:57:58 PM

Well, horses for courses I suppose. I tried Ableton and found it much like FL Studio in that it's great fun to doodle in, but I could never seem to move on from little fragments. AP seems to encourage me to put together an entire song and it's lack of clutter and marginally-useful controls helps me work fast. Overall the fantastic choice in hosts these days should mean there's something for every brain-type :-)

djchad: Acid Studio 7 is really the "lite" version of AcidPro 6 so I wouldn't read anything into that.

But be assured Sony has said AP7 is on the way.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: Cheye

Date:3/16/2008 1:09:28 PM

Well, I happen to love AP 6 for the ease of use compared with Abbleton Live, Cubase and other apps. I'm able to keep the creative flow going and love the way it looks and feels. However, one huge problem. This AP 6 is very unstable for me. Yes, I know there are many factors with regards to stability and I have been trying to tweak my system getting very good help from people on this forum who have given me many work arounds to bugs and issues related to AP 6. One huge problem is the way the UAD 1 works in acid. With Cubase and Appleton Live I experience no problems at all, so is it my system or is it an unstable AP 6? In AP 6 using the UAD card I get crackling when UAD is about 66 % and non in the other apps. Also, quite often when I go to remove UAD plugs it crashes the system, but not in the other apps I have. Yes, I have tried all the latency adjustments and other excellent info poeple on this forum have given me, but crash, crash, crash with the UAD. In closing I would really like to see a new AP 7 with a much more stable core with mininal issues. I want to be able to use the great UAD plugs since they are amazing! I just want to be able to use this great app(AP 6 or 7) to complete projects and move away from this frustration. Sony must realize that poeple will get sick of instability and move on. Let's get AP working properly with high stability with most other apps and plugs. Come on Sony you can do it!

Cheye

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: jumbuk

Date:3/16/2008 4:58:47 PM

Interesting comments. I haven't had stability issues, but I can imagine these are frustrating for anyone that has them.

I use Cubase a lot for recording projects and MIDI, but Acid is faster for loop-based work. I have tried Ableton, and I admire what they have done, but it doesn't suit my personal work style. AP is still the app that I feel most comfortable in, where I rarely have to scratch my head to remember "how do I do that?".

From the comments here, it sounds like the main thing Sony needs to do is to issue a more stable version of AP6 rather than an upgrade with new bells and whistles (and more bugs to go with them). Sure, there are a few things we would all like to see (mainly around bussing options and a new FX package), but the basic application still provides most of what we all need to make music. Perhaps it is time for Sony to decide to stop making AP more and more complicated just to leapfrog the competition, and to concentrate on supporting a mature and stable flagship application?

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:3/16/2008 5:39:01 PM

JUMBUK says:

"but Acid is faster for loop-based work"

Exactly why I continue to use versins ver 4.0f and acid 6.0d because for bringing in loops, applying grooves and mixing it is easy and very nice to work with.

But I guess it has a lot to do with personal preference, I amalways talking about FL Studio as an amazing prototyping environment, while maybe ACID / REAPER / Pro-tools re great finalizing and production environments.

The bottom line is they really have to make it solid to bring back a strong sense of commitment to their userbase, right now I doubt their position in the market, because everyone I meet says Reason, Abelton, Cubase, Sonar before they even mention ACID.

I ask them:

Since your work is dependent on the processing of loops whether original or manipulated from source material if they realize that ACID could handle that stuff perfectly?

and they say:

yeah but no one uses ACID.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: jumbuk

Date:3/16/2008 6:36:49 PM

"The bottom line is they really have to make it solid to bring back a strong sense of commitment to their userbase,"

- Well, it IS solid for me - I don't know what proportion of the user base has issues with it. If the forum is any indication, there are only a handful of users that have problems.

"and they say:

yeah but no one uses ACID."

- Who cares? I'm happy to be unfashionable.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: stuffedspacedog

Date:3/16/2008 7:59:29 PM

I've tried almost every host going and have no plans to move from AP. AP's interface works like my mind works, and does everything I want it to, I have only had occasional stability issues since v4, hurrah!

For future development, I hope that Sony can focus on the creative aspects of AP perhaps new creative ways to visualise and organise audio samples, otherwise there is the risk that the difference between Acid and other hosts diminishes over time, and the program becomes bloated and unwieldly.

I don't use any of Acid's bundled effects and use other programs for mastering... so for me Acid is all about the ease of organising and playing with ideas. From a performance perspective, the only persistent issue I've had with Acid is the rather lackluster audio engine (compared with Cubase, Samplitude etc), but this is easily overcome in the mastering process anyway.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:3/17/2008 6:53:52 AM

Why has Sony Neglected to allow rex file support?

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:3/17/2008 7:17:19 AM

Keep in mind that no forum behavior can also be indication of users just not caring to express issues, since the cost of trying other daws is minimal, hardware is basically universal today and if you have the will a "manual" you can just about use any DAW and get great results.

Just looking at Computer Music and Future Music magazines which I read with devotion it is clear that there are strong capabilities in other DAWS which sport wonderful features that I think ACID just does not offer.

1. REX File support
2. Chromatic mapping of transient regions to keys
3. Multi-Lane Midi editing
4. Arrange editor
5. Logical project folder manager
6. Copy and paste automation profiles
7. Highhlight a region and consolidate the audio
8. Drive the groove from MIDI data
9. Internal Synths
10. Better internal effects... reverb, stereo tools, compressors etc.

Come on you know we deserve these features, and they can do it because they have great engineers and this stuff is not off the wall.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: alltheseworlds

Date:3/17/2008 3:51:48 PM

As hosts have matured most of them have suffered from bloat. And once they go down that path of adding ever more specialized and esoteric functions, obsessed users seem to demand ever-more specialization.

I'm hoping Sony go for a completely different approach: maintain the elegant simplicity of Acid and concentrate on workflow and ergonomics.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:3/17/2008 6:59:49 PM

which is why I continue to use acid 4.0f

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: thenoizzbox

Date:3/22/2008 6:15:28 AM

> 3. Multi-Lane Midi editing
> 4. Arrange editor

I'm curious to know what you mean exactly by these two requests. Did you send them as official enhancement requests to Sony with details?

MIDI is often touted as Acid's weakest area and there is indeed room for improvement (especially when it comed to detailed notses/events editing) but it gets the job done for me and fits with the way I work. I really do not miss Sonar's complexity in that area.

Lately I've been using Reaper as AP6 doesn't work well on my Vista machine and when I'm in Reaper, I sorely miss Acid's inline MIDI editing which was one of the best additions to version 6 for me. But Reaper works better in other areas and I'm starting to like it a lot too.

I really can't wait to see what Acid Pro 7 brings to the table.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: stuffedspacedog

Date:3/23/2008 8:09:18 AM

I'm starting to enjoy Reaper a whole lot also, essentially a more flexible and open alternative to Acid, keeping the best of Acid's workflow and commands, but with weaker MIDI editing. I'm also looking forward to AP7, but I feel this time I may not purchase it as soon as it's available.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: tascolas

Date:4/16/2008 6:07:55 PM

The only advantage of AbletonLive over Acid would be the instant midi learn function for VST fx & instruments and the ability to play and jam with it as if it was a sampler also loading rex files. Having a midi controller like Novation which has the instant midi learn built in and a sampler plug which is my case scenario ,makes Ableton look like an oversized DJ app which in my sense is exactly what it is. I wouldn't care less for rex files as they compressed to death and overall they lack the sonic clarity of wav files. And even for these,there's Stylus RMX can help expand the palette.
I know what u 'll say - all these for doing what Live does out of the box? Well , i can't imagine a desktop musician/producer/dj without a midi controller and some vst plugs. Got it?
As owner of a professional recording facility i also own among others CubaseSX4 and Sonar 7. Sonar has got the "preview at project tempo" finally and both it and Cubase work well for audio/multitrack recorders and to this point they both have an advantage over Acid in terms of mutitrack console/editing functions and external control & interactivity with various 3d party hardware. As being a songwriter and remixer though, i can't think of another soft more inspiring and more streamlined than Acid. It helps me get the job done almost 10 yrs now.The only outsider i have hi hopes for is Reaper which reminded me of Acid1 strangely (installer is 3.8mb lol) . Reaper is the fastest audio/midi app around and trust me i 've tried (or own them) all extensively. Of course it should be called Ripper instead of Reaper as its a complete Acid ripoff ,but then again, the end user wouln't care less 'bout it. Reaper is relatively new at v.2 and we ' ll just have to see how it evolves. Knowing of course that the ever inventive Winamp author is behind it, gives some assurance for the near future at least.
Acid doesn't lack composition tools. It lacks proper multitrack tools and needs some midi bugs worked out. Stability ,compatibilty with various plugs, external control and syncing are issues too. But all this i ve mentioned a dozen times in quite older posts,so i just hope Sony doesn't f**k up with AP7 what has started with AP6. Cheers all and s'ry for the long post.
PS: Overall my post is not geared towards music enthusiasts and amateurs. My view is from the pro side of the biz and thats where it stays so plz forgive me if my Acid solution( with novation keyboard and stylus rmx) is more expensive than your Live one, but then again its much much better :-)) .
In the end u always get what u paid for ...

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: mista k

Date:4/17/2008 12:10:45 PM

Well this debate of Acid Pro 7 has been going on in this forum for many many months.
Why doesn't sony just give us a ballpark date on when to expect 7 or updates??????

Do they really think it's more detrimental to loyal base to specifiy a time range and not hit it. Rather, have them think they are being ignored and leave us to ponder on the idea that there may never be a true acid 7? Should we move on now?

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: guitacid

Date:4/20/2008 6:08:00 PM

I'm still using Acid Pro3! haha...

It was my first foray into software multitrack recording. I made a fantastic decision. If i had bought something else i may not have been as productive as i could be. I love it for it's simplicity. As a compositional tool it rocks. I'm not a fulltime engineer/producer. Just a work alone guitar player who finds creating music incredibly fulfilling. Acid has helped me not hindered me.

But i am looking forward to updating. I hope that Sony retains one of the core triumphs of Acid...elegant simplicity with powerful functionality.

Come on Sony...jump in and keep us informed.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:4/23/2008 10:11:42 AM

they did acid 4.0f

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: JohnnyRoy

Date:4/24/2008 7:39:14 AM

> Why doesn't sony just give us a ballpark date on when to expect 7 or updates??????

Sony has never pre-announced a date ever (even when they were Sonic Foundry). The problem with releasing dates is that if they are too far, out people et mad... if you miss them, people get mad... if you don't give any date, people get mad. So either way, people will be mad. ;-) Of course if you announce a date and meet it everyone is happy but why tempt fate? I wouldn't expect a date from Sony. They just don't do it.

~jr

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: JohnnyRoy

Date:4/24/2008 7:45:25 AM

> But i am looking forward to updating. I hope that Sony retains one of the core triumphs of Acid...elegant simplicity with powerful functionality.

I'm with you. For me... the biggest attribute of ACID is elegant simplicity with powerful functionality. With all the new functions that came in 4, 5 & 6, they have never lost sight of that goal. If the past is any indication, I expect that ACID Pro 7.0 will be the same way. When people suggest new features, Peter is always replying with "yes... but how should it fit into the ACID paradigm?" Sony is very mindful of this.

~jr

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: DKeenum

Date:4/24/2008 8:03:37 PM

"elegant simplicity "

I think that is my favorite aspect of Acid Pro, and I expect that Sony will keep that. I hope they do.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: barleycorn

Date:4/25/2008 1:14:29 PM

> Sony has never pre-announced a date ever (even when they were Sonic Foundry)

This is not true (and I don't know why this myth persists). ACID Pro 6 was announced two and a half months (74 days) in advance (see Sony Announces Major ACID Pro Software Upgrade).

DVD Architect 5 has been announced in advance...

Even if it were true, it doesn't mean it would be clever: sometimes it might be sensible to keep one's counsel, sometimes (for example, if there's a perception a product is moribund) some publicity might perhaps be profitable...

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: Weevil

Date:4/26/2008 6:32:44 AM

They only announce just prior to release. Other than that nothing.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: pwppch

Date:4/26/2008 6:37:26 PM

I actually forgot that we were showing the beta of ACID 6 at NAMM in 2006.

I guess the best thing I can say is that we might announce before the release by 2 1/2 months.

I cannot tell you if or when that pre-announcement may happen.

There is still no official news on release dates or specifics about a future version of ACID.

Peter

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: guitacid

Date:4/26/2008 10:07:25 PM

Thanks for chiming in Peter. I think we all appreciate that Sony HQ are interested in what their user community thinks.

AP users are confident of seeing AP7 materialise it's just that they maybe a bit anxious that their wish list functionality isn't included. In terms of added functionality I'm happy to be guided by the pro level users here. They know better than I.

I like AP. I get results. Quickly.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: zycore

Date:4/29/2008 11:52:11 AM

I would also like to know. It would be nice to see some Windows Vista 64 suport as well. I would buy Sony products if they would only suport it with patches and updates. The only reason I have not upgraded to Acid 6.0 is because it dose not list Vista as being suported

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: thenoizzbox

Date:4/29/2008 12:52:09 PM

Indeed. Acid Pro 6 is not supported on Vista (let alone Vista 64... which is my OS as well).

No patches for AP6 or any prior versions of Acid will be released at this point so we're all eagerly awaiting Acid Pro 7 which is coming but we do not know when.

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: kbruff

Date:5/1/2008 8:47:18 AM

i hope they were smart enough to include rex file support

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: alltheseworlds

Date:5/1/2008 6:11:14 PM

I am getting sick of receiving Sony emails with absolutely no news in them of any consequence....

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: guitacid

Date:5/4/2008 8:24:55 PM

I nearly forgot some functionality i'd like in AP7. Unless it already exists it would be very handy to have a guitar tuner in AP. Yer I know...boring! But ultra convenient.

Another handy tool would be a feature called Auto Alternative Arrangement. A user already can define sections of an arrangement. AP should be able to generate an alternative arrangement(s) thereby giving a user a fresh perspective. Keep or discard a new arrangement? It's up to you. Would save heaps of time. Leave that feature on overnight. Come back in the morning with fresh ears and maybe your project has taken a different path.

The 124th AES convention is on in Amsterdam in mid May. Maybe Sony might use that to announce something. Hey Sony?

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: Cheye

Date:5/8/2008 6:40:46 PM

Perhaps an update for 6d would be in order?

I'd like to see the ability to drag any event to a track and a mute tool would be nice.

my 2 cents

Cheye

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: mista k

Date:5/14/2008 7:47:42 PM

"There is still no official news on release dates or specifics about a future version of ACID. "



Or Specifics "about" a future version?
Does this sound like they haven't been working on it to anyone??

Subject:RE: Has ACID Pro Been Forgotten?

Reply by: pwppch

Date:5/14/2008 9:14:11 PM

Or Specifics "about" a future version?
Does this sound like they haven't been working on it to anyone??

This would be a bad assumption to make and rumor to start.

Peter