Totally. They need to get a grip and realise who they are before they ruin themselves. No one here wants software as a service etc - we bought into Elektron gear and continue to do so because of the unique thing they do so well.
They misunderstand this basic tenet at their peril. Sadly happens to companies all too often when too much money gets involvedā¦
Yeah, the words of Dataline resonates in my head a lot. 50% of my current gear is Elektron stuff, planing to increase that number with at least an A4, maybe a DN too. I use it, because it DOES NOT need a computer. Because I can make just with some boxes. Because they are deep, always will have some mysteries in them and inspire me to make music. Yes, those boxes and their business-model is a little āoutdatedā because I paid a whole lot of money for each box and just own it after that.
I donāt want as a service features in my music gear. I donāt want software and apps. I could live without Overbridge, I would like to have every of those machines to have simple multitrack audio over USB for ease of use, but I really like the big boxes as they are. Sure, I had fun with the Model series, but at the end, I am using only the big boxes currently, and I have a little fear currently, that the A4 might be the last big box to buy from Elektron, because everything night sounds awful from what we know currently (that is not muchā¦) 
Makes me sad.
To me it looks like this company is about to be sold to ā¦ company like Korg. Not to Roland, Novation - too many crossover products. Could be to some software giant. The toll of the pandemic starts to creep in I am afradidā¦
yes or sold to a Private Equity which is even worse
Perhaps thats why a lot of guys leaving Electron?
Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps.
Well, that wasnāt news I was hoping for on a Sunday morning.
The eternal optimist in me is hoping that Elektron wonāt change too much, but time will tell.
Software as a service has zero interest for me, so I hope that this wonāt be the focus going forward.
What does it say? (I donāt have LinkedIn account)
The new CEO of Elektron doesnāt have a soul is what it says. All of his positions have been with software/internet tech companies.
Not sure if he knows what a drum machine is.
Just to add a slightly different perspective ā¦ thereās a lot of hysteria going on here. Perhaps a changing of the guard and / or new investment could help drive some positive change. Elektron has long felt like a company that needs greater resources and I think there are definitely improvements that could be made.
If you heart something, does it mean you agree? Blink once for yes, twice for no.
Iām not a music instrument sales exec but not sure that COVIDās had the affect youāre attributing to it.
Anecdotally, all the music stores I buy from (in Australia and overseas) have had one of their best years because most of the people who represent their core repeat business (i.e. music hobbyists with a bit of disposable income) have been stuck at home for various extended periods over the past 18 months.
FYI you can quite easily find business info on āElektron Music Machines MAV ABā with a search online.
I hope Iām not wrong but I think you are all freaking out over nothing. I canāt think of a single company in music thatās figured out software services and recurring revenue for physical devices.
Yeah I think that to go from a predominantly hardware product lineup to a predominately SAAS company is a big leap, unlikely to have any appeal to investors or consumers.
After all a large percentage of Elektron users donāt primarily use computers for music making, and a large percentage of those that use computers for music have little interest in Elektron products, of course there are those that do both but I suspect those are the smallest segment of the 3.
Also AFAICS Elektron are amongst the most well regarded hardware sequencer manufacturers, a reputation built over years, to not see the āUSPā in that would be pretty unlikely.
Most likely is a Roland Cloud type thing I think.
He does seem quite competent. With a background in media and arts, he seems like a good fit. And the business experience can probably be used to keep Elektron profitable, and able to exist for a long time while taking care of and support all the users.
/thomas
