Join us for user interviews and get the chance to shape the future of sound!

The_Shank_416

Hi Neda -

I'm enthusiastic about and appreciate the opportunity to provide input.

I'm a very committed NI user, as part of my creative process and live performances.

Piano/keys are my main instrument, but I also play guitar, bass, horns, and drums. I've done everything from recording, producing, studio sessions, musical direction, and live performances across a wide variety of genres, for 30+ years.

My home studio includes a variety of hardware synths (Moog, Roland, Korea, etc both vintage/analog and digital) and with an advanced in-the-box set up with Logic Pro X as my main DAW, and centered around a NI S88 MK2. I have both instrument and effect plug-ins from all the main players in the ecosystem (NI, Arturia, Spectrasonics, Roland, Korg, Cherry Audio, UJAM, Uhe, Waves, etc...) and large sample libraries plus subs to online libraries like Splice, LoopCloud, etc.

For NI in particular, I use Komplete 14 (regular upgrading since 12), Komplete Kontrol, and a variety of Play and F/X plugins, GuitarRig, Maschine, etc. Covers everything except your DJ products.

I'm very well balanced between technical/programming knowledge and musical ability and musicianship.

Happy to share more, if helpful.

darshie76

You can count me in if could help.

My workflow is not exactly standard, as I use multiple DAWs and multiple products (NI Komplete plus Arturia and so on) and I also use hardware mixed with DAWs, depending on what I need.

Have been in the music creation and composition since 1990, although I would not identify myself as expert, as I do not produce for others; I just make music and that's it.

As far as hardware, beside synths and grooveboxes, I own a M32 and a Maschine Mikro. I use also midi controllers from other companies, so I got a bit of everything in my setup

psemme

Hello - long time NI user. Also a software developer. Would be happy to share my feedback and opinions.

Intertaynr Que.

Yes Let's resolves some issues Please Been a Native since 2002 or 2003 as a DJ Producer Sound Designer enthuses.

Shed Maa

I would like be involved. I know many have more experience with NI. I can give a newbie viewpoint. I have A49 and the Mikro. I use NI products within Maschine Software, MPC Software and Studio One.

dafingaz

New user to Kontakt (maybe a few years now). I remember only having a few Kontakt instruments around 2020/2021 and now have hundreds.

In addition to doing product demos, beta testing, and reviews, I'm also a trailer music composer and music producer focusing on sync.

Everything I make has some instance of Kontakt. Other than using more of the epic stuff ot NI instruments (Arkhis, or any of the "light" stuff, "action" series, cremona, etc), the usual suspects for me on the 3rd party side are Spitfire Audio, KeepForest, and Heavyocity (among many others).

Happy to hop on a chat to discuss more.

Thanks for the opportunity!

marzzz

Still waiting for the NI S88 MK3 that I ordered in September from Sweetwater...

RPTVRR

Making loops on my maschine mikro, Komplete S49 and importing them into my DAW is part of my everyday, have a couple tweaks that could help make the process much more seamless <3

FREQ ISO

Hello I am willing to talk to you about the new version of battery. What it should be and definitely what it should not be. I have alotta ideas about what direction NI should be going with it. I have been a NI user for about 5 years former metapop user. I do many different styles. More geared for the more technical aspects of music and not a beat maker looper kinda guy. Thx for your consideration

dragsquares

Very long-time user. Kontakt is a part of my orchestral template - how could it not be? I compose for film and animation, and have toured (using NI software) with a huge band.

Something that’s missing from the hardware lineup is an 88-key synth-action keyboard. Piano is not the only reason to have 88 keys, and weighted keys with other VI’s is just not that necessary.

Since Kontakt is a staple - I’ve made a lot of instruments with it, some single-use and some long-term - I’d like to see the process of true legato (not simulated) instrument creation made more accessible. In fact, more pre-scripted but empty instruments that come with a roadmap for samples and naming conventions so that one could record all assets, place them in a folder and point a new instrument at them would be very useful.

Direct control without Komplete Kontrol if it doesn’t exist already would be terrific.

Communication between a DAW and Kontakt regarding articulation mapping would be incredible. On the fly would be terrific but also customizable per instrument would be even better.

I’d like to see more modeled instrument approaches, more micro-sampled instruments (smaller waveforms that can be crossfaded continuously for “infinite” dynamics), and perhaps in keeping with this idea, a “caterpillar” instrument oriented at reproducing acoustic instruments that has a section for various onsets that are time scalable, a section for various sustains and a section for releases that are also time scalable along with overlays for breath noise/ bow rosin and intensity, key clicks, pick noise and so on. And I would also like to see more and better use of IR’s for body resonances and room mic perspectives, and perhaps similar tech to what’s used in Unreal Engine for swarming behaviors to model ensemble behavior with rules for time and tuning broadness/tightness.

And I know that the market is largely DJ/“producers”, but I’d like to see more instruments that you make that ask something of a player - and not just a toy that lets one wiggle a finger to get some unmusical effect, but something meant to be analogous to the instruments being played. Including a bowing/ harp gliss/ fingerboard surface (overlays on a touch pad?) would be useful for anyone.

Last, I vote for you not to jump on the AI bandwagon - don’t give people more excuses not to play or listen or drive their music, or reduce them to just choosing the generated thing they like best instead of having great tools that respond when used. Don’t take away young users’ chance to learn and become more than they imagined. I imagine it sells, but it’s not going to help music. Do we really need to facilitate the output of people who don’t have any aptitude for coming up with ideas?

Always happy to talk with developers.

Franklyspoken01

Kontakt 5 was my first introduction to NI. Totally overwhelming BUT it provided a huge learning curve and now I use every product in NI arsenal to create film music, music albums and collaborate with other musicians. As a professional musician and educator these products have been a staple over lots of years. I’ve used kontakt in high school classes and instructing others. The focus I think, for new NI products is to engage new musicians AND pro’s at deeper levels, but differentiated. How? Good question get it right and you’re off! All personal thoughts of course. Thanks for the products.

Super8boy

If there s one thing NI can do with Maschine is better integration with other DAWs.

instead of having to create templates and routing my outputs to Ableton manually, imagine if Maschine and Ableton live talked to each other in a smart way… I d use my MK3 hardware more than my Push 3 for eat making.

same thing if Kontrol S MK3 brought back Maschine integration. I hadn’t used that feature much but I didn’t mean I wanted it out…

Super8boy

https://community.native-instruments.com/discussion/comment/125431#Comment_125431

Fluid Pitch really has some excellent ideas, as does Scaler2.

why not R&D (Rip off and Duplicate) some of that and engineer something unique a la NI with the Kontrol S MK3 play assist mode?

so much potential

Lowkus

I've been buying NI products since before Komplete existed. Unfortunately when NI disallowed registration of older products (and my CPU died forcing me to build a new computer) I lost access to a decade of custom presets I'd built. I became jaded and distrustful of NI business behavior. I've decided to build my own audio plugins in the future to compete against NI, so although I have many ideas to improve your software it is not in my best interest to give you that information. But here is a free tip... when your company kills off software (pro-53, b4ii, absynth, kore, etc.) you are effectively pissing off your users as well as negating the income from those products; if your company wants to be profitable then it should upgrade old software to new versions to continue generating profit and also to make users happy.

IanTrader

Should have also mentioned - I have a couple of ideas how to improve software accessibility which should be relatively easy, quick and inexpensive. Although I am not a programmer :-)

Ian