We are all here because we love VCV. I think we are mostly confused, not upset. I am glad to see the devs explaining their thought process here. The issue is not the decision but how it was rolled out and explained. Please use us as a sounding board.
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Yeah indeed. As long as the non-subscription options remain intact in the future (and there aren’t exclusive features in the sub version that you can’t get otherwise), I guess all is well. Only issue is concern that that may not be the case. If that’s all good then good luck to the team!
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So as a dev that has only free modules currently. How does this work? If I produce some paid modules, then how does the subscription get distributed to devs? What if some dev just makes a bunch of junky paid modules to spam up the library, do they really get a chunk of the pie?
Otherwise, I think it’s cool that VCV+ would be in a sort of ‘club’ where they have access to all the same modules and can share patches. It solves one of the problems of the pro modules, in that it’s hard to share the patches with anyone else.
I think it’s a really cool idea, and yah nobody is being forced to get VCV+ so I’m also confused what all the anger is about as well…
Also the 7-day return would let people preview modules before they buy them, which is good!
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Because too often we’ve seen software gone subscription-only. For example, you cannot buy Photoshop these days, you have to subscribe to it.
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I assume VCV and the dev have to mutually agree to inclusion in the program. As to how revenue is shared, I haven’t a clue.
Indeed. I’ve a fair few ‘premium’ modules I’d not have bought had I the option to try them first.
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photoshop never had a fully featured free version, nor have its code base open sourced.
theres a lot of “what if, what about…” in this topic… I think given vcv history, and frankly generosity, a little bit of good faith should be applied. it was explained in the first post… subscription would not replace existing offering, it was supplemental.
sure, if that proves to be not the case in the future, then for sure, raise your pitchforks 
Im not into subscriptions, but I can see why it can be good for some.
I can also see that perhaps it could potentially provide a bit of financial security to vcv (company) which is a good thing, since even free users are reliant on the software being supported, updated and servers are kept running.
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No, but the point I was trying to make is that Rack might be going the way of subscription only (except for the free version).
Again, we’ve seen programs going the way of subscription-only. It is not a pretty sight. Those of us who bought Pro might be able to keep on using it, but newer users might not be able to buy it. Yeah, you can buy Pro at the time being, but there might come a time when you can’t.
I’m not against the company making money, but I don’t think this is the way to go. As someone else wrote above, you have an official forum - it’s not hard to create a poll saying “would you be into a subscription model of Rack?” and wait for the outcome to gauge the costumer base’s thoughts.
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If I were the VCV developer there is no way I would bother with such a poll. All it will tell you is whats already obvious, that lots of people like to moan about subscription services. The best way to judge the more important thing, which is how many people will be happy to take advantage of such a service, is to offer it and then see how many subscriptions you actually get.
My attitude would be different if we were seriously discussing a scenario where other, non-subscription options for buying premium modules etc were being removed. Then of course I would say that all users should be listened to and consulted properly before such a move. But thats not whats happening here and just because a couple of notable corporations made this unpopular move in the past doesnt mean that people should make assumptions about such an unhappy future every time someone decides to offer subscription options in addition to traditional purchase options.
Taking the above into account, my advice to any developer going down the subscription route is to only take note of hostile user reactions if you ever come to consider removing non-subscription options. Dont let the negative reactions put you off from offering subscriptions in addition to other options, but do take the time where feasible to reassure people that the rug is not going to be pulled from under their feet when it comes to traditional purchases in future, thats all you can reasonably do.
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I think offering a subscription is good for those that want to give VCV Rack Pro a go for a while and trial a whole bunch of modules before committing to a purchase.
I would also like that for those that already have VCV Rack Pro that the same “subscription checking” mechanism could also be re-used as a “trial for a few days” mechanism, so people can try out premium modules before purchase without going through the horribleness of signing up for some subscription and then having to cancel it immediately.
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I’m of the belief that a company should be able to offer whatever “variations on a theme” they see fit for their continued sustainability, as long as it doesn’t undermine their commitments to their entire customer base. It is understandable that most users here are concerned that VCV would go the all-or-nothing route of say Adobe. Waves tried that a few months back and it created a tsunami of backlash from nearly everyone, and the fervor of that backlash made the wrong kind of waves across much of the music industry. Avid has flirted with similar disasters and thankfully they have (mostly) listened to their user base regarding subscription options versus perpetual licensing.
In today’s world it really does make sense to offer both traditional license sales as well as subscription based offerings. Both models have their benefits for specific needs. For my part I hate subscriptions as much as anyone else, and with the exception of Slate/SSL/Harrison and MacProVideo, I don’t have any subscriptions as I try to purchase perpetual licenses and just upgrade those as needed.
But to play the Devil’s Advocate here, what if the reverse situation were happening with VCV? Let’s imagine that they initially were a subscription-only company but now they were wanting to offer traditional perpetual licenses as well. The fear then would be that the subscription model would soon be phased out and long-term subscribers would be forced to give up the software that they love if they were unwilling (or unable) to spend a lot more $$$ upfront in spite of being loyal supporters in the past.
The only suitable and reasonable solution for VCV is to simply offer both avenues while being mindful not to alienate either camp in the process. Easier said than done perhaps, but if VCV wants to do the legwork (and deal with the potential headaches and growing pains) of expanding their user base by offering additional options for customers, then I hope they succeed marvelously at all of it. And if they are successful in creating new avenue streams in this way then that only helps the rest of the user base in the long run as it will help keep the business of VCV healthy.
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VCV+ doesn’t really make sense as a way to demo a premium module unless you want to try a few of them, considering the price of 1 month of VCV+ ($29) is greater than the purchase price of the majority of premium modules.
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wait a moment: You speak about one thing, but it´s in fact two: __the price !_…thats the second part of the story. (generally speaking)
in short: The point with subscriptions is the price tag ! The other point, everybody who trys it, trys also to milk. so, the two are now coupled in our minds. (again: generally speaking vs. subs)
any perception here, comes from there
Can I refund my entire account?
I just wanted to subscribe, but it seems to be only possible with credit card or cash app and from the US. At least I cannot change the country to Germany. Is this a bug, which will be corrected or is it intentionally?
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Bad deal given its cost over time. It’s cheaper to buy the premium stuff I really want.
Okay, so this VCVplus thing is kind of paid demo. Well… innovative in business terms indeed.
I ain’t reading all that,
I would just still like to know why it should cost me $150 - now or over 7 months* - for Compressor and/or Convolver, the only “premium” stuff left I’d like to have (* in which case I’d never own those).
(edited to add “stuff left”, because I’ve bought a whole bunch over time)
I also do not understand why the VCV FX modules only are bundled with VCV Pro and are not available as a separate bundle 
because in VCV standalone I would need FX much more than running VCV as VST inside a DAW (assuming that all major DAWs come with some FX devices).
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Keep the the option, you are releasing the vcv rack system using an opensource license which is an excellent guarantee that the investment in learning vcv rack will forever be protected. There are even clones with other branding so nobody should be afraid of being abandoned.
The significance of the “opencore” model might escape some of the nervous commentators and maybe this could have its own page that one could refer to for an introduction to vcv racks use of this model.
I would not spent time on vcv rack if it was “freeware” which I suspect many of the users of the free version think of it as. There are significant differences between an opensource application that is available for zero dollars and a proprietary program that is available for zero dollars.
I have two accounts and I have one with proprietary modules but I primarily use the other one that only have opensource modules as I am somewhat allergic to keeping track of software licenses but I do plan to invest in the pro version at some stage and with VCV rack + I can experiment with proprietary modules and see what proprietary modules would make it to the prospective pro install.
VCV rack + is an easy way for me to experiment with the proprietary side of the equation and a fun way for me to donate some money to the project. I love opensource but the software does not make itself and developers need food and shelter to so do not deviate from the course.
Perheps if vcv + was advertised not as a subscription but as a budget friendly way of trying out participating proprietary modules for the pro version nerves would calm. Thanks for making vcv rack it is a continuous source of joy.
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