EASTWEST is currently offering two promotions.
Buy-One-Get-One-Free promotion of select instruments as seen above, and The Complete Composers Collection 3 Pro as seen below.



From now until November 30, 2014
ALL Products Require a PACE iLok2 Security Key
- See more at: SoundsOnline

 

stupid ilok. i wish steven wilson had done his ghostwriter package on kontakt. it's the only thing on eastwest that i would really love to have.

 

Yet another prime example of a company not listening to its customers. How many reminders do they need to realize iLok is a piece of garbage? It's like they put up stuff which they never test.

 

i noticed here in general , people are hating iLok only , because its not cracked and they can´t get it for free !

"ALL Products Require a PACE iLok2 Security Key" is false , because it can be activated on iLok1 dongles !

 

I was wondering when EASTWEST will be out of business...

 

If they continue with ilok, probably very soon.

That's true. But People here generally tend to hate all kind of dongles in general (syncrosoft, codemeter, ilok,) not only ilok. I'm sure you already know the disadvantages of being forced to dongles.

Ilok is usually more named, because it has a bigger customer base and more companies are using it than the rest.

 

sorry zeus , but definetly wrong !

they sell there software and people needs to buy it (because its not cracked and don´t want the next time) if they want or need it and there are many pro user which uses their software !

and from me congrats to East West that there software are not cracked since near 8 years , the programmers have done a very good job !

 

I'll play devil's advocate here. More possibilities of that happening due to bad playback engine, bugs, high system demands and slow updates and their general "user fault" behavior and shady practises than due to iLok... If that was the case maybe they would have already closed down after all these years. For me, they have some of the best samples and do some great sampling. If you mind the iLok (are afraid, don't want dongles, don't want to pay for it...) or any of the above you can avoid them but you may also be losing some good samples or useful tools. Whether you like it or not, it is a way to protect both the company's and the client's investment. The best would be a decent protection and convenience (which is subjective). Then, there are also those who don't mind it and find it convenient for its portability.

iLok usage could be a reason why they have constant offers running.

I'm torn because I dislike everything else but love the samples.

I watched the videos he made a few months back but overall, it seemed to be kinda limited (a bit like The Dark Side). I expected more. I'm not sure it's worth it. But generally, I quite like his stuff.

 

EASTWEST isn't the only company with good samples. Spitfire Audio, CineSamples, Orchestral Tools, AudioBro, Cinematic Strings have good samples too and they don't force people to use a dongle.

 

Not quite. The problem with iLok is that it just plain simply doesn't work. A $45 purchase of a dongle needing kernel extension (which might be backdoored/have bugs and thus cause system instability) and with a typical lifespan about 1 month is a waste of money. It's not even covered by warranty and you have to pay to get your licences transferred. The only way how to ensure stable run is to purchase "zero downtime" warranty for $250 + $45 for another dongle.
Eats up power, one USB slot, musician's patience and money = iLok is scam.
Dongles overall are not bright idea, but Syncrosoft ones actually work. *yes*

Also EWQL requires you to purchase one license for EVERY PC you want to use with their products (and it's just $400/machine for existing customers)
Heck, one can build i7-quad for $400, and here you'd spend it on a parking ticket. Meh

 

I said "for me" and I didn't say they're the only ones making good samples and that I'm torn (with the negatives possibly outweighing the positives). Nobody's forcing you to do anything. There are many other alternatives, like you pointed out (many of which I also like a lot). Choose what you like and be happy. *yes*

PS Tbh, I also wondered when it would be they'd close down or be driven to change but apparently something works in keeping them afloat.

 

Have any of you used any EastWest product? If so, thoughts? I've heard and seen the demos, but I would love to hear from someone with hands-on experience.

 

Yes, but only the older Kompakt/Kontakt version of RA, Symphonic Choirs and SO.
Sound is great out of the box, but feels too 'polished' and doesn't sit well in mix.

 

OR people know that iLok is worthless as a protection scheme and takes up a precious USB slot to do a single thing, as I've said in a previous post; if they are so concerned with piracy integrate the plugins into useful hardware that will off load some of the processing from the CPU/GPU. Also you basically called anyone that doesnt like the iLok scheme a crook and thief, pretty judgy IMO...