Was it released too soon ? [compilation topic]

Elektron Gear Digitakt
#1

Elektron seem like some super clever humans. Can’t figure out why they’d release DT in such a beta state?

Seems very likely they knew about 90% the bugs but felt like a public release (without warning of issues) was the best way to squash them. But after repeatedly saying they were aiming for a new market area/new customers with DT this seems crazy in terms of intentionally giving people such a lame ‘first taste’ of Elektron?

I dont get it. Why release in such a rush? Surely most of these bugs were identified already by Cenk/HQ and should have been ironed out before shipping any units? Or customers at least warned. Feels kinda shady/dishonest with lack of respect for customers and their hard-earned cash?

I didn’t pre-order but I’d be pissed if I had. People seem very forgiving on here re Elektron but if it was another company and they’d just forked out £600+ for something that didn’t work I think it’d be a very different story. And one of the main reasons I’d be interested in DT is the separate tracks via OB, which isn’t even available yet and no doubt will bring more problems that we have to wait to evaluate. Just seems a very weird/self-important way to release a box?

They should have waited or at least been totally forthcoming about the issues throughout. It’s left a bad taste in my mouth and I haven’t even parted with any money… Feels like a negative thing to post but I feel like some trust/respect/enthusiasm has been taken advantage of. Not cool… Some kind of genuine explanation and public road map for DT (a la Pioneer/Akai) would be a good move to let customers back ‘inside’ after treating them so poorly…

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Digitakt 1.04 : Bug reports
Digitakt out now!
#2

How can anybody be actually surprised by the fact that Midi seems to have so much issues as they didn’t even have a working version for Cenk to show on Superbooth2017…? I was assuming the worse when they said it would be availible only a month after that. Still i pre-ordered because when :3lektron: hashes out these said issues DT will be the brain of my live-rig i’m sure of it.

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#3

I don’t think there has been any dishonesty here but, a roadmap of when common faults will be fixed would be useful (though a very un-Elektron type move!).

Elektron have mentioned a few times about plans in broad strokes - ie. new FX/sound boxes coming. A “just you wait and see!” kind of thing. I suspect they’re biting off just a little bit more than they can chew comfortably and are struggling to ramp up from their smaller scale “1 box every few years” approach that more or less ended once the A4 arrived. We’re all being subjective though.

Changes in the market (MPC Live being a huge change) would have had an influence too and who knows what kind of havoc FX rates are playing with Elektron. Both would likely have had an influence if a decision to release a little sooner was taken.

But, is it a stretch that the initial Digitakt user base is higher than that of the larger box launches? And following that logic, there would likely appear to be a larger number of issues? People naturally take to the internet to bring up faults. Perhaps Digitakt’s success just makes it look like there are more problems than usual.

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#4

First versions of hardware+firmware always have issues, no matter the company. Pre-ordering and early adoption are always somewhat dangerous. I’m waiting for a much further down the road revision of the hardware, and of course firmware.

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#6

You guys are crazy. There’s not going to be a DT mk2 lol.

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#8

So what is the Most stable Setup Mode if I want to use it live? To completely fortget Midi Setups and just Focus on the 8 Audio Tracks? Thought i could Play a live gig with it in 4 Weeks but for now i think is not a good idea to use it as Master Sequencer :confused:

#9

no chance. maybe as a toy while watching tv for now

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#11

Depends how you look at it/what you judge as acceptable.

Imagine if I was selling something on ebay (a sampler/midi sequencer for example…) and didn’t list problems that I KNEW about. Then you complained after receiving it that you couldn’t use half of it without crashes and I said ‘oh, I could maybe have mentioned that but I wasn’t sure if you’d be upset about that so I was just planning to pop round and fix it when I’ve figured out how to’…

If that wouldn’t make you complain to ebay saying that I’d been a dishonest seller then I have a bunch of stuff in my studio that I think you might be the ideal person for me to sell to :wink:

It’s fundamentally exactly the same, in term of ethics etc… Just seems like individuals are judged by their moral conduct while corporations are often just forgiven…

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#12

As a first time user I have to say that although I like the digitakt I feel more than a bit used by elektron, I understand teething issues but if you are a company that sells high end products you need to either release a working product or make your excuses and apologies to the customers when you dont. Other than long time elektron users I cant imagine anyone else had any reason to believe there were issues (other than unimplemented midi) with the beta box shown in the promo demos.
I want to keep mine but I hate gear stress and sticking keys and encoders that still are’nt right( occasionaly drifting 0.01 on their own) have got me weighing up whether a return would be the smartest decision, I hav’nt even tried to use midi yet as crashing seems too likely and that was a big part of my purchase.
Is it really the case that customers should expect to be the beta testers when they buy new products, its not something I have experienced elsewhere, maybe I am naive.

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#14

I do get that, but without knowing %ages it’s difficult to determine whether there is a genuine problem or not. My DT, for example, works fine other than a slightly stuck “15” - and that’s not something I’d expect called out on an Ebay sale! :wink: I see the DT launch as being very similar to the MPC launch (another I have had very little issue with).

If a significant %age of users are encountering problems then of course there is a wider issue but I’ve seen little widespread common issues/bugs around here that’s made me think “holy shit!”. The stuck/wrong buttons raised an eyebrow mind you but seems to be an easy enough fix.

Having said that, if I had a DT (and Live) that was crashing multiple times and sounded like shit then I’d be banging on about it around here big time!

#15

Yep the lack of communication by Elektron is pretty poor form and bad marketing imo.
With no comment on the current state and issues with the DT, you could rightly think the DT may never be 100% usable and stable.
Elektron need to be much more forthcoming and transparent in this department. Let your customers know what the hell is going on.
The customer deserves more information and feedback than what Elektron currently disclose, as we are paying customers not beta testers. Communication and transparency is paramount in business.
Step it up Elektron

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#17

Jeez so glad I didn’t take a leap of faith and buy this thing.
Sounds far from prime time. Time is too limited to mess about with buggy hardware and software. Friggin annoying to say the least

#18

If there ever is a dt2, I want the Ar pads as trigs. Would that even work? Like an sp-DT

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#19

Especially after yesterday
I feel like i bought the best instrument ever…

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#20

what do you mean by that?

#22

yes i now, i own one, but it still has a bug, its not perfect

#24

Purely speculation on my part, but I think the timing of the release of both the DT and the MPC Live at the same time played a part. If Elektron waited too long to release the DT, they might have potentially lost a significant number of sales to Akai.

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#25

It’s funny if you talk to some experienced people they all say that by this time Midi should have no complications it’s been around for decades and should be mastered, I don’t get it.

#26

I dont think they have been dishonest, but their communication regarding All aspects of DT has been pretty disgusting. You look after your customers first and foremost as without them you have no business.
maybe this is arrogance on Elektrons part as they have so many revered/amazing machines -they started believing their own hype?
People I think are forgiving and patient regarding new gear IF the company acknowledges the faults and perhaps communicates what it has in store for it. This too secret/need to know strategy is pretty poor when folk are shelling out their hard earned cash. It may well be a ‘budget’ elektron machine but £659 is not really a budget price is it.

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#27

I don’t think Elektron hoodwinked anyone and they have been far communicative. 1.02 was released a few days ago, so they are on the case. It was a box with lights at NAMM, OS wasn’t even written yet so in the amount of time, bugs are to be expected. If updates continue to come in quick as they are now, then this gonna be a gem. Wait and see.

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