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Yeah, this is all very disheartening to hear. I recently had to reactivate my Flavor Pro and OP plugin and had hoped it was just a fluke/glitch. After reading a bunch on the MPC forums, it seems most people believe this is intentional behaviour and I agree with the masses: total BS!
It definitely pushes me to return to the high seas and plundering if you know what I mean. It seems there is a small group of folks who are in this area and I recently found some info on SSH-capable versions of MPC Firmware.
I have no issues paying the initial tolls but if my āstandalone Hardwareā needs to check in to function, Iām not happy. The whole reason I buy hardware is to avoid these issues and Akai has never openly mentioned this policy.
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I have had my mpc unconnected to Internet for four months and my plug ins still work.
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I had the wi-fi turned off on my Live 2. And after about 2 weeks (maybe a month) my plug-ins became de-activated until I turned my wifi back on. I have had the paid plug-ins for about 2 months. I now leave my wi-fi on-it makes me suspect that this is less to do with stopping piracy and more to endless tracking of how you use a device (endlessly sent back with your wifi on).
I agree with the above poster that when I buy a standalone device that it needs to be standalone.
Can I use this device at a gig? Wi-fi goes down or it cannot check registration for some reason-then the gig goes down.
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@Kja and @music-cabin
If you go to the MPC forums, this is exactly the dichotomy of responses.
Some say no issues at all but many say deactivation happens all the time.
There are debates on whether itās firmware related (older vs newer) or if itās just a bug.
I havenāt written to Akai personally but some claim to have and not been given any response so far.
Another user on the forum claims to have SSHād into the MPC and found a signature file that requires check in after a set time. They also claim to have ācrackedā the plugins to stop this but was prevented from sharing further due to forum compliance.
At this point, I donāt know what to believe but Iām inclined towards Akai being data hungry as that is the standard for all software related companies it seems these days.
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Grody!
Better bring a cell hotspot to the next gig! For those that need ethernet also grab an extender and a ethernet cable.
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I had to go trouble shooting last night with an Ableton projectā¦ there was something not right about the mix that I couldnāt work outā¦ turns out that Iād used Flavor Pro in a couple of places and on a keys buss, and it had deactivated itself.
Real amateur BS move from Akai/Air this. Hope they come to their senses and fix it.
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I hope you all are sending a quite lengthy correspondence to Akaiās tech support about this!
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Not mine, saw this while browsing github. Canāt say if it works or not. https://github.com/RedHate/AIR-Plugin-Patcher
Exactly this.
If Akai pushes us into needing Internet access for permission to use the plugins or firmware on the hardware we purchased for standalone use, it literally renders it useless to me.
I donāt need that stress or hassle when Iām on the road for gigs. Never mind the principle of it all.
I didnāt rent an instrument, I bought it.
Cheers!
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Akai should have never gone this paid plugin road: You need to have proper security in place to have licenses issued, and to make sure itās not easy to crack.
Next to that you need to manage these licenses online with each account, keep an online shop where you can sell plugins, keep track of activations etc.
And have a daemon running on the MPC which uses CPU and memory not available for useful things.
What happens when Akai changes the license validation and youāre running an older firmware? Are you forced to upgrade? What if they just quit or go bankrupt? Then all these plugins do not work anymore.
And I highly doubt if selling these plugins is lucrative: All the infrastructure needed for licenses selling / validation is not for free and MPC sales could rise drastically when these plugins are all for free.
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iāve bought most of the new plugins. theyāre great value for the money. looking forward to the Juno one too. hopefully 3.0 smooths out the authentication issues
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I just got off with Akai support. Very nice gent actually.
He confirmed that they implemented this new ācheck inā policy for all their paid plugins recently. I told him my thoughts and concerns and he was totally understanding. Iāve formally put in a request to end this completely stupid and useless practice.
I think the only real way to effect change though is for us all to make a stink. Iāve already written several online sites to cover this in a piece of some sort and will continue to do so.
Maybe a petition of some kind is also in order.
This may sound a bit preachy but this is some straight up anti Consumer Rights shit that must be killed immediately. Waves backed off their idiocy, I imagine we can get Akai to do so too.
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Anybody have some contacts at sites like Synthtopia? Wider publicity of this new ācheck inā policy, and itās implications especially for people who want to play live, would be just the negative sort of publicity that is likely to force change.
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Is Dan Gill still Senior Product Manager for Akai?
If so, I have a direct line to himā¦
Cheers!
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I actually submitted a request to synthtopia to cover it. Crossing my fingers
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Akaiās new ācheck-inā policy for paid plugins:
Hi Dan,
Iām just writing to file an official grievance with regards to this new policy by Akai.
I donāt understand whatās to be gained on your end, from inconveniencing your customers like this, by requiring them to periodically reactivate plugins that were purchased outright, to be used autonomously.
Frankly, I donāt see how itās any of Akaiās business when or where I use these plugins. Akai sold me a product, and I expect it to work. Moreover, I purchased a standalone hardware sampler, to be used as an instrument, live onstage.
Let me be perfectly clearā¦ If I ever lose money because I canāt deliver on a contract, due to the willful and premeditated deactivation of my MPCās plugins or firmware, youāll be hearing from me in a legal context. Akai has no right to sabotage the functionality of the instrument that I paid for; especially when itās offline.
I strongly suggest that Akai remove this timeout mechanism from their plugins immediately.
Please pass this message along to whomever it may concern.
Thank you in advance for you time and consideration in this matter.
Message sent. Letās hope itās received.
Cheers!
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Iām not sure if this will be remotely effective but I did spend 10 minutes creating this petition. Please sign it and share it as much as possible. I for one will not purchase another thing from Akai or Air as long as this policy is in place.
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Here is a copy of my exchange with Akai support. As you can see, I didnāt technically file the feedback myself but the rep did on my behalf:
Technical Support
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What can we help you with today? Be sure to include the name of your product or software youāre using. Include as many details as you can.
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MPC LIVE 2, issue with plugins deactivating
Support Bot
Iām sure we can help with that 
- Please wait while I connect you with an expert from our team.
James
Hi Sean, Iād be happy to help.
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Hi James, Iām just trying to understand why my plugins keep deactivating after several weeks. I donāt like to keep my MPC Live 2 connected to WIFI in order to extend the battery
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Do my purchased plugins need to ācheck inā on a regular basis for some reason?
James
It will occasionally require a login to update the activation. Is the time zone set to UTC in the settings of your MPC?
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It is.
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That is a bit concerning though. I donāt understand the need for check in. What happens 10 years down the road when this product is no longer supported?
James
Iām not aware of an exact timeframe for the standalone MPC to check in on the activations, but with some of our other license managers itās every 90 days.
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Okay, well I did some forum research to see if it was a bug and most were not sure if it was a bug or by design. Iāll let folks know but I must say, Iām quite displeased to hear that as iām sure they will be. I canāt see myself buying any more products for a hardware device that need this type of check in
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feels more like a subscription than what it should be, i.e. I should own the plugin as I did pay for it
James
Itās a relatively newer system that weāve implemented for activations, so it could change. I will submit a feature request because your concerns are definitely understandable. The developers are always happy to get feedback to improve the product.
- That would be great. Please do so. I absolutely love this thing and I also love the plugins I have purchased but I canāt imagine going to play a show and scrambling last minute to find wifi if my plugins deactivate.
James
I totally get that. Iāll put the request in. Itās productive feedback for sure.
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Do you have any other questions for today?
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Thanks James, all set. Have a good day
James
You too, thank you!
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