Official Release OS Date

[Arrobb]

Hello guys,
I've waited 10 months after the petition has been put on line.
Now, I understand you are a "small" company, I understand there is some problems that never will be solved,
I understand the difficulties about the programming of that machine, I understand that every year DSI works on different and new instruments, but 10 months are not a couple of week.
The tempest has a cost not for everyone, and personally I was forced to renounce to holidays and other crap for that.
Now I don't want a perfect drum machine, and if you've solved the majority of problems that the petition asks, it's enough.
Please, not another beta release, I'm asking for an official and stable release of  the Tempest as soon as possible. Thank you.

[Stoss]

Carson... a plan and a timetable would be nice. Honestly... none of us wants to start another petition.

[Morgenspaziergang]

Good post.

Im still on the pre-beta shipped OS. Been watching on the sidelines of the progress which has been great, but will wait for the stable version.

[BTS.WRKNG]

I've been wondering about this, too, whether I missed some announcement about Roger Linn throwing in the towel on this effort or what happened...? I know that he was putting in lots of his personal time and that he also has a company to run but in my semi-frequent visits it seems like things went from 'active!' to just 'stalled out' somehow.

So it seems that I didn't miss anything — or that these others posting above me did, as well — and while I've been using Tempest on the latest beta I, too, am wondering whether there's a plan and/or timeline for addressing remaining bugs and turning this into a final, stable official release. Any info appreciated!

[John the Savage]

I've been wondering about this, too, whether I missed some announcement about Roger Linn throwing in the towel on this effort or what happened...? I know that he was putting in lots of his personal time and that he also has a company to run but in my semi-frequent visits it seems like things went from 'active!' to just 'stalled out' somehow.

So it seems that I didn't miss anything — or that these others posting above me did, as well — and while I've been using Tempest on the latest beta I, too, am wondering whether there's a plan and/or timeline for addressing remaining bugs and turning this into a final, stable official release. Any info appreciated!

Hey folks,

I wish I could say something to lift your spirits, but really I'm just as frustrated as the rest of you.  If it's any consolation, I still touch base with Roger Linn every couple weeks, and do my best to keep the Tempest's OS in the foreground; but the truth is that DSI has once again shifted resources (and by resources I mean their one and only programmer) to other products.  As I'm sure you're all aware, they just announced two new synths at NAMM, never mind that some of their other, equally complex, operating systems have also been somewhat neglected over the years... Ahem!

Anyway, I've sent an email to Roger Linn with a link to this thread, and asked if he could at least comment on the Tempest's status.  I can tell you that LinnStrument keeps the man busy, and that he is as much at the mercy of Dave Smith's priorities as the rest of us.

My best advice to y'all is to keep kicking and screaming (as diplomatically as possible of course).  I have kept the bug-list concise and up-to-date in the beta thread, and every bug on it has been tested and confirmed by myself, Roger Linn, and the DSI team; so I invite you to run with it: re-post it, make some noise, update the petition... Whatever it takes!

In the meantime, try not to despair.  We are setting a new precedent here after all, or attempting to anyway, for consumer rights in an era of being at the mercy of half-baked products and the software that runs them, which we cannot fix ourselves.  Not gonna come easy it seems... No surprise there I suppose.  Wish I had more pull, and some better news for you.  Keep fighting the good fight...

Cheers!

[onesnzeros]

Is there any chance the OS could ever be released as open source?
The community here is awesome, I'm sure there's a few people out there who'd be happy to help!
I think a move like this would really do wonders for everyone involved.

I could be wrong, but I'm sensing that Dave is maybe not the easiest guy to convince?

There really are a few things about the Tempest that i just can't believe haven't been included.
man, i love the synth, and this forum, but damn. $2999 (AU). One would assume a certain level of support?
or should the 'boutique' tag come with inverted expectations?

[muleskinner]

Predictably it's all gone quiet since Roger's been too busy with the LinnStrument to keep stirring things up.

DSI on their own, sadly, are useless and I'm still in the 'never buy another product from them' camp despite loving most things about the Tempest. Dave Smith just doesn't seem to 'get' the importance of continuing firmware development.

Still - at least we're in a better state than we were. An awful lot of progress has been made thanks to John, Roger and others.

[bozo]

Predictably it's all gone quiet since Roger's been too busy with the LinnStrument to keep stirring things up.

DSI on their own, sadly, are useless and I'm still in the 'never buy another product from them' camp despite loving most things about the Tempest. Dave Smith just doesn't seem to 'get' the importance of continuing firmware development.

Still - at least we're in a better state than we were. An awful lot of progress has been made thanks to John, Roger and others.

+1 on every point

[idm]

Not finishing this beta would be the ultimate finger to the community of people who have put in the time to test and report. Let's hope they are not letting this slip...

Having said that, the current beta seems stable, works great, and no major workflow killing bugs.

[Stoss]

Maybe Pioneer needs to step up to the plate and put some programming muscle behind all of the unfinished DSI operating systems. I mean... they've gone and put Dave Smith's name on some of their gear now. To a not so small few, that is just more products that cannot be recommended without a serious warning about lack of development follow through.

I'm interested in hearing from Roger Linn, because he's awesome and has always had great things to say in regards to this ongoing saga... but... we need to hear from DSI. We need to know the plan.

Thanks in advance for keeping your commitments to your paid-in-full clients.

[tigerstylin]

I have had several friends over the last year or so ask me about DSI synthesizers.  I am glad to say, that based on this unbelievably poor experience with the Tempest alone, I have been able to redirect them elsewhere.  Simply showing them the petition was enough to scare most of them away.

The fact that Roger Linn and John the Savage have had to step up to do customer service and support for Dave Smith Instruments, and we've never heard a word out of Dave Smith, is disgusting on a level I could not effectively capture in a single forum post.

[dslsynth]

As someone who have been following DSI for years now I can say that the delicate topic of software updates have been a theme for a very long time and usually so for good reason. The best thing one could wish for is DSI maintaining their existing products more and better than they currently do.

However, the way they run their software department currently is that they either develop new products or maintain existing products. With NAMM recently done they are most likely still working on the finishing polish on their newly announced products and have quite likely been working on them for months. That is the main reason for temporary stalled Tempest OS maintenance.

Also, this is not the first year where frustrated Tempest users have been voicing their impatience with current efforts right around/after NAMM: "All these new products and why nothing for us!?".

I have no intent of defending DSI as they better stand up for their own decisions. However the very least I can do as a long time community member with a moderator role as well is to try and explain how thing currently work. Me not impressed. But this is how that machinery behaves.

[matteoviti]

....and the conclusion is that we have to remain with this os?No more releases?

It's sad to see new products on the way and no support for the old ones.I own a tempest and a Pro 2 and i use them a lot and i would like to see improvements on those machines instead many new products.

[natrixgli]

....and the conclusion is that we have to remain with this os?No more releases?

I could see how one would infer that from a forum post with no official statement for a whole week. 

(especially from a company that has staunchly maintained for years that they do things based on their own internal schedule regardless of how much people post on forums. Or sign petitions.)

[John the Savage]

....and the conclusion is that we have to remain with this os?No more releases?

I could see how one would infer that from a forum post with no official statement for a whole week. 

(especially from a company that has staunchly maintained for years that they do things based on their own internal schedule regardless of how much people post on forums. Or sign petitions.)

And yet the fact remains that signing the petition, spreading the word online, and contacting Roger Linn had a direct and positive influence on Tempest development.  You of all people should be thankful for our efforts, natrixgli, considering that you were literally the first person to download the new beta when it dropped.  But hey, thanks for the reality check, man.  I mean, it's a wonder we've made it this far, what with the odds we're facing...

Cheers!

[timbo74]

....and the conclusion is that we have to remain with this os?No more releases?

I could see how one would infer that from a forum post with no official statement for a whole week. 

(especially from a company that has staunchly maintained for years that they do things based on their own internal schedule regardless of how much people post on forums. Or sign petitions.)

And yet the fact remains that signing the petition, spreading the word online, and contacting Roger Linn had a direct and positive influence on Tempest development.  You of all people should be thankful for our efforts, natrixgli, considering that you were literally the first person to download the new beta when it dropped.  But hey, thanks for the reality check, man.  I mean, it's a wonder we've made it this far, what with the odds we're facing...

Cheers!

I am sure Roger said on this forum before departing temporarily/possibly longer to promote Linnstrument that...

1) He wanted to fix some remaining issues that were still pending with Tempest! (Given the go ahead from DSI!)
2) How long is a piece of string with what we all may want Tempest to possibly be or to have the facilty to do! (ie: 8 track external sequencer ect !)

So in a nutshell, I can appreciate that it's very difficult to appease everyone but as one early adopting Tempest owner I still would hope that the major issues that are still able to be feasibly fixed on Tempest be done so before the sun sets into the horizon of this current and future classic!!

Thanks!

[idm]

....and the conclusion is that we have to remain with this os?No more releases?

I could see how one would infer that from a forum post with no official statement for a whole week. 

(especially from a company that has staunchly maintained for years that they do things based on their own internal schedule regardless of how much people post on forums. Or sign petitions.)

And yet the fact remains that signing the petition, spreading the word online, and contacting Roger Linn had a direct and positive influence on Tempest development.  You of all people should be thankful for our efforts, natrixgli, considering that you were literally the first person to download the new beta when it dropped.  But hey, thanks for the reality check, man.  I mean, it's a wonder we've made it this far, what with the odds we're facing...

Cheers!

I am sure Roger said on this forum before departing temporarily/possibly longer to promote Linnstrument that...

1) He wanted to fix some remaining issues that were still pending with Tempest! (Given the go ahead from DSI!)
2) How long is a piece of string with what we all may want Tempest to possibly be or to have the facilty to do! (ie: 8 track external sequencer ect !)

So in a nutshell, I can appreciate that it's very difficult to appease everyone but as one early adopting Tempest owner I still would hope that the major issues that are still able to be feasibly fixed on Tempest be done so before the sun sets into the horizon of this current and future classic!!

Thanks!

We probably have to wait a little until the NAMM madness has toned down a little.

May I ask though what these remaining major issues are? Haven't been able to find one so far. Only minor issues (which are still issues, but no deal breakers).

[tigerstylin]

We probably have to wait a little until the NAMM madness has toned down a little.

May I ask though what these remaining major issues are? Haven't been able to find one so far. Only minor issues (which are still issues, but no deal breakers).
[/quote]

We have already waited for the NAMM madness to tone down a little.... in 2016... and in 2015 before that....

I'll be completely honest and say that I do not currently experience any major issues with my own workflow on the Tempest. However, that was not the case before Roger Linn and John the Savage had dedicated a pretty significant amount of time to push to have stuff fixed that had been sitting on a community bug list for well over a year.

If there was some kind of arrangement for these two wonderful gentlemen to be financially compensated for their time, then I would be perfectly willing to revise this statement and my take on the situation, however, from where I am sitting, Dave Smith Instruments is run by someone who is completely comfortable with allowing other people to do their work for them.

People had to waste time testing and documenting bugs.
People had to waste time requesting updates, over, and over, and over.
People had to waste time starting a petition.
People had to waste time signing a petition.
Specific people (Roger and John) had to waste time convincing DSI to do something.
People had to waste more time testing, and documenting more bugs.
I still waste time checking this forum for a final update that may never come.

Dave Smith has never taken the time to respond in even a single forum post (unless I missed this somewhere).

No transparency.  No accountability.  No more of my money on DSI products.

[idm]

So, in short, there's no major flaws in the current beta that you know of. I understand the frustration from the last couple of years but this current beta works pretty well and the reason I finally bought a Tempest was because of this beta. It would be nice if it got to an official release  and I cannot say I disagree with your statements, but enjoy the Tempest for what it is now, finally. It's awesome.

[matteoviti]

I will surely buy something else from DSI because i think they make super sounding stuff.
At the same time i would like to have an official release of my Tempest ,not because i've paid it many euros, but because there's the chance to make it.
At this point the chance to release a newer OS is covered by the release of new products, so taking in consideration i have another piece of DSI gear what i have to expect?I have to make a petition once again?I have to send many mails to DSI support?I have to write here many words regarding DSI products?Maybe....

But i have ,like everyone of you, an own life made of other things and i would like to see a company do its things properly.