ICONS Future

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YamenFahham

YamenFahham

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I’ve been hoping for years that Fractal Audio would release a plugin, so ICONS was a really nice surprise.

That said, I’m curious about the future of the plugin. Is the goal for it to eventually match the hardware in terms of full functionality and deep parameter control, or will it remain a more streamlined version?

Also, will it be possible in the future to share presets both ways between ICONS and the hardware?

When I was using Helix Native before moving to Fractal, I loved being able to build a Helix Native preset in the studio and then transfer it straight to the hardware for live use. If that kind of integration becomes possible with Fractal, it would honestly make the ecosystem unbeatable.
 
FractalAudio said:
Given piracy issues an "Axe-Fx" Native is unlikely.

Blame the pirates.
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That’s unfortunate.

Do you think developing an Axe-Fx Native that only works for verified hardware owners would be technically feasible or worth considering? For example, requiring the hardware to be connected or linked for authorization, maybe using some form of hardware authentication or serial number verification tied to the unit.

I’m not sure how feasible that would be, but if something like that is technically possible, piracy might no longer be such a limitation, and this might be another good reason to own the hardware for potential new customers.
 
YamenFahham said:
That’s unfortunate.

Do you think developing an Axe-Fx Native that only works for verified hardware owners would be technically feasible or worth considering? For example, requiring the hardware to be connected or linked for authorization, maybe using some form of hardware authentication or serial number verification tied to the unit.

I’m not sure how feasible that would be, but if something like that is technically possible, piracy might no longer be such a limitation, and this might be another good reason to own the hardware for potential new customers.
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They'd crack that.
 
I imagine not, that would be encrypted or in an inaccessible format. Problem is it totally devalues the product. It seems any software is crackable these days.
 
I'm really bummed out that any piracy would target fractal. Cliff and the gang have been generous beyond belief, and deserve every sale they get. I'm not a plugin user but it still bums me out. I seriously hope fractal put some sort of limits in there, and that nobody can reverse engineer their amazing products
 
Hardware is really the way to go. Like how PS5 is able to maintain software integrity by ensuring that the games are only access through a console.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the Icons stopped at Fullerton due to the state of piracy. But if we have some sort of a hardware interface and you buy the packs, that might be interesting.
 
support FAS stance on this. crackers will find a way. if there's a way to put protection on, there's a way to take it off. In an ideal world having the AxeFX as a plugin, and moving it between hardware for touring/gigging and studio is a superb idea, just cannot see that ever working. I seem to remember years ago when I was programming for the ZX81/ZX Spectrum and later Amiga500/1200 the debate about software piracy came to the conclusion that the only way to beat piracy fully was to offer the software for less than the price of a floppy disk.

How's that for a business model. lol.
 
Unfortunate turn of events.

I don’t know enough about security to fathom workarounds aside from architecture. Apple did well to not have their software running elsewhere until the instruction set was ported to x86. The second they went intel the nut was cracked.
 
And what does this mean, no future ICONS updates? If every plugin developer stopped at just one plugin after their first hack, the plugin industry would've died. No one is afraid of hackers these days.
 
I'm confused about recent related posts also - I mustv missed something: Was Fractal Icons hacked already? If yes, will this result in a change of strategy? Despite hacking, there must be a viable market within the realm of honest people who: won't touch shady downloads, and/or who prefer to pay to avoid various possible trouble, and/or who get that (da!) sustained work requires compensation, and/or have some respect for others' work they value?
 
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I'm not knowledgeable about software security. Is it reasonable to assume your software won't be hacked, even with iLok? Most comments seem to imply it's a foregone conclusion that any plugin will be hacked no matter what you do. Maybe some developers just price it in, that although some are fine to steal work, most will want to use it honestly?
 
State of Epicicity said:
I'm not knowledgeable about software security. Is it reasonable to assume your software won't be hacked, even with iLok? Most comments seem to imply it's a foregone conclusion that any plugin will be hacked no matter what you do. Maybe some developers just price it in, that although some are fine to steal work, most will want to use it honestly?
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It’s reasonable to assume all software will be cracked.

There’s an interesting phenomenon of people buying the full version of the cracked software they like though. Not 100%, but a sizeable selection of them. A lot of them that would not have bought it otherwise.

Not saying that I support piracy, just offering the perspective that it isn’t all doom and gloom.
 
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