http://www.elektronauts.com/t/interest-check-separate-outs-mod/2012 
AK is not meant to replace the A4. Itās for keyboardists that actually play the keys. Just like so many companies have done time and time again, theyāve essentially offered a āfull unitā and a ārack mountā unit of the same synth. I think it was very wise of Elektron to offer a product for the more āclassically trainedā musicians to get into. For some, theyāll need the keys. For others, theyāll need the portability.
I also doubt theyāve held back on releasing updates in order to trick people into ā¦doing something? I think the story may well be that Elektron, being a small company that needs to create profits to survive, is not only continually refining the products they already have, but also need to be creating new offerings at the same time. Too much work and not enough people means that things donāt roll out as slickly as they would if they were coming from a giant company. Updates get pushed back because responding to market demand/opportunity (analog synths are all the rage right now) is priority number one, especially in a tough global economy. Running a small niche company can be VERY ātouch and goā.
God forbid I have an opinion and I express it. Suddenly I am complainer despite having owned Elektron gear for over 7 years and at one point owned every single one of the 4 machines they have made that are still available today and I have been nothing but supporter of the company. I have an Octatrack with a jenky headphone output which they have not been able to fix with two attempts, an A4 with chipped ass paint from simple studio use. Complain about that? Nope. I am not complainer. But I will certainly express my opinion when I feel I have laid down $1.2 K on a device that does not have what I consider to be a huge functionality deficit compared to essentially the same device release 1 year later.
I never said it was meant to replace the A4. I said that I think the multiple outputs was a purposeful omission meant to help create demand for the AK but that added functionality is huge, at least as huge as the addition of keys and joystick. I could not make an educated choice as to what to which to buy because the way they choose to roll out these products. Honestly, i would have waited for the individual outs.
I understand your frustration, no doubt, I think everyone does. My Monomachine power connection is janky as fuck, and if i barely bump it, itās power OFF! Itās a known issue I believe. But at the same time, the MnM is the most crazy cool machine Iāve ever owned!
I donāt think anyone is calling you a ācomplainerā. People are just offering a different point of view so maybe you wonāt feel so āburntā. Nobodyās coming down on you for NOT being a cool-aid drinking fanboy
I agree with this 100%. I think they should have rolled the A4 and AK out at the same time.
I think the detail of your annoyance and suspicions are all reasonable and this is the place to get it out, iāve no issue with the moaning, iām just trying to help without sounding patronising that thereās no point in being frustrated, you are entitled and it helps to get it out, by getting it out i thought a bit of my view on levity might help, get it out, but one thingās for sure, nothing is gonna change, so iād make peace with it and try to make peace with these comments -you donāt strike me as a moaner all iām sayinā is that this is spilled milk - nothingās gonna change it - who knows what they had in mind, even if we know, it changes nothing - i doubt they were holding back, my opinion
trust me, an A4 with a decent external keyboard will be 99.9% of an AK at a price that would be less - a joystick is just two cc controls, thereās nothing that canāt be duplicated - we just donāt get the turbo bass fine tuning - and it will be fine tuning, the major factor is the oscillators which will be the same - we both get filter resonance enhancement to spice the 1st filter a bit
iām getting worried that lack of individual outs isnāt bothering me, iām in a group of 1, am i missing something, i can do it on plenty of my gear !
#rhetorical
Regarding the CV outs being used as audio. Most MOTU audio interfaces have DC-coupled I/O and can be used to control a modular via CV when used with Expert Sleepersās Silent Way software, and clearly they do audio.
I donāt know if the hardware design of the A4 will allow this, of course, but that might mean itās possible for Elektron to update it.
yep - i use the audio out of my motu for this purpose - this raises an interesting point with the A4 platform though - where would elektron stand if you forgot your outs were set to cv (up to +/-10V) and you wasted some external gear by feeding it something vastly hotter than an audio signal - itās all a bit risky potentially (no pun intended)
What treally gets me is that it seems to be industry-wide. not just Elektron.
Just an opinion but I think at the very least a minimum of 6 outputs not including main outs on any pro electronic musical instrument.
I was worried the new machine was going to be an Octatrack MKII with multiple outs like the Machinedrum that alone would be worth an upgrade to me, though the loss on the used market to upgrade would have hurt. ( Though I wouldnāt be surprised if Elektron released a combination Octatrack/Machinedrum/A4)
Best we can do is work with what we have ( not matter what we do there will always be a next best thing)
i understand the frustration but i donāt think thereās no evil doing hereā¦ a lot of people complained about the lack of outputs, it was a deal breaker for meā¦ well elektron listened and added themā¦ can you really blame them? that being said the A4 did feel a little rushed outā¦ no poly, hidden +drive & paint issuesā¦
I agree that another four individual outs on the A4 would have been practical (and I only recently bought the A4) but knowing this is part of the AK doesnāt leave me feeling burned at all. I knew the specs when I bought it.
Personally I wouldnāt have bought the AK even if I had held off a little longer for itās release because I am not sure itās really worth the extra cost when you consider other options already available out there. Fill in your own blanks on that one but I am not talking about something made by Elektron obviously.
The A4 is a very unique product and itās limitations are also part of what makes it so special. Itās a cliche, but working with limitations forces you to be more creative too and this is a far healthier way to approach the subject of the AK vs A4.
Donāt feel burned - Your A4 is awesome and itās about to get an impressive update too.
Thanks for acknowledging that I am not a baseless complainer. Aside from being able to multi-track. I cannot imagine how powerful the A4 would be if I could route the different voice through different gear, filters, distortions, and so on. It could be four different synths. I was fine with it as it is because it is still great kit.
Damn that first page is a joke!! A real free for all where everyone wants to throw the boot in on one unarmed guy with an opinion. Some people here should learn how to back the fuck off when a points been made!! thoroughly already!! Iām sure the rest of you repeating the same thing over and over did nothing to change anyoneās mind. Seriously Close to bullying.
Kinda Puts me off posting anything.
One things for sure as I see it tension has been running real high since this ālaunch partyā and I realy think it would be a much needed splash of cool water if elektron released the update on Friday rather than dragging it out like this.
Not in any way relevant to the discussion here, but it has always helped me when my stash has run out and Iāve had a stressful day.
For some reason I was expecting to get Rickrolled - this is kind of where the mood in here has got to me I guess.
Wellā¦ with the 10% off the A4 atm, the AK costs about 30% more, you get 4 voices, keys and individual outs. However if you spent only 25% more than the AK, you could get two A4ās, 8 voices,8 sequencer tracks, 2 stereo or 4 mono outs and double the fx and CV tracks!
That doesnāt seem at all fair to AK owners, does it!? 
WORD!! Iāve only got the second volume. Cheers.
I brought the A4 only 3 weeks ago knowing the specs and Iām loving it. I have always ben one of those people that wanted individual outs and thought I would miss having them but Iām actually really liking not having them, Itās making me use the A4 in a different way compared to the way I use other synths, A more of a poly rhythmic device or layered pad machine. The only gripe I had was the lack of memory for saving sounds because I was filling it up even after the first week and now this new update is fixing that so I couldnāt be happier.