[A6] News from Alesis

[Susan Baird]

Hi all,

I've just heard back from Alesis. I discussed marketing and support 
with them and asked a few technical questions. Most of their answers 
are in caps.


First let me share with you one an email I received from John 
Grandinetti. He is the person I have been speaking with at Alesis. He 
is a very nice and conscientious person and did exactly what he said he 
would do which I really appreciate. All of my correspondence with him 
has been very positive.


> Dear Susan:
>
> Anytime a customer of ours reports that he or she have experienced 
> less than satisfactory results from either our products or support 
> staff, we want to hear about it, and so before I get to the specific 
> points, I’d like to thank you for contacting us and passing along the 
> information on your experience. 
>
> As I may have mentioned in a previous message, Alesis came under new 
> ownership a little over a couple years ago.  Since then, I’m pleased 
> to report that the product line has grown, reliability is at an 
> all-time high and what we hear from the field is generally positive. 
>  But let me say right now that I realize this doesn’t mean much to 
> anyone who’s encountered something on the contrary.  So I apologize 
> for any trouble and inconvenience you have received.
>
> Under the new ownership of a Rhode Island-based businessman (who also 
> owns Numark Industries, the world leader in the design and manufacture 
> of high quality and innovative products for the dance music 
> marketplace), the Alesis tech support dept was moved from our Los 
> Angeles offices to the corporate facility in Cumberland, RI.  This 
> meant that the RI-based tech support staff, while totally 
> knowledgeable about the Numark product line, had to learn all about 
> Alesis, which is a fairly technologically-advanced and sophisticated 
> product line; i.e. a steep learning curve.  Currently, you should be 
> able to get professional and knowledgeable information and support 
> from our customer service dept.
>
> The best way to get an answer on a tough question would be to send an 
> email to Robert Ray at rray at numark.com.
>
> Our keyboard dept does its best to follow the forums, but it’s a 
> time-consuming situation.  That said, if you see a particular question 
> or comment posted on the forum that you feel needs our attention, 
> please feel free to forward it to Robert in Rhode Island.  It would be 
> great to have a Web presence support person who can troll the forums 
> and info sites full time and maintain the Alesis image on the WWW.  
> Mike Peake used to do this for us. 
>
> As far as OS upgrades for the A6 are concerned, there are no plans for 
> any more upgrades at this time.
>
> Thank you again for your interest in our products and continued 
> support.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> John Grandinetti
> Alesis-Numark



..........
I requested that Alesis post  code404 on their web site so that new 
people could find the forum. Their answer:

 From Alesis: CODE404 HAS BEEN AROUND FROM THE VERY BEGINNING AND WE HAVE
NEVER POSTED A LINK.  NO REASON AS TO WHY.
..........

..........
I also requested that they post the vendor mentioned frequently here 
regarding RAM cards. Their answer:

 From Alesis: AS CARD MEMORY VENDORS CHANGE OFTEN, IT IS DIFFICULT TO 
MAINTAIN THOSE
LINKS.  HOWEVER, WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF APPOINTING A 
WEBMASTER,
WHICH WILL HELP IN THIS REGARD.
..........

..........
I asked them why they didn't have an A6 demo on their web site. 
****There is more to this and I'll post it at the end.****
  Their reply:

 From Alesis: WE SHOULD HAVE A DEMO ON OUR WEBSITE!  (PLEASE SEE
FOLLOWING EMAILS, WHICH WILL BE COMING TO YOU SHORTLY.)
..........

..........
I suggested that they hire Brian to create more original sounds to put 
on their web site. Their reply and kudos to Brian:

 From Alesis: WE TOO THINK HIGHLY OF BRIAN KEHEW, AN EXCELLENT PROGRAMMER
AND SYNTH CLINICIAN.  IN FACT, ONE OF OUR KEYBOARD SPECIALISTS HAD LUNCH
WITH BRIAN RECENTLY.  POSTING MORE SOUNDS ON OUR WEBSITE WOULD NO DOUBT
BE WONDERFUL.  IT'S A MATTER OF TIME AND EXPENSE.  REST ASSURED IT IS
TOP PRIOTITY.
..........

..........
I told them how much everyone loves the Andromeda. Their reply:

 From Alesis:  WHILE WE TAKE GREAT PRIDE IN OUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE
KEYBOARD AND SYNTHESIER MARKETS, ALESIS AS A COMPANY IS A MUCH, MUCH
SMALLER FIRM THAN EITHER KORG AND YAMAHA, BOTH OF WHICH ARE TREMEMDOUS
IS SIZE COMPARED TO ALESIS, WITH RESOURECES THAT TOWER OVER OURS.  THAT
SAID, WE ARE EXTREMELY PROUD WHEN OUR PRODUCTS ARE CONSIDERED ON A PAR,
OR IN THE CASE OF THE A6, CONSIDERED SUPERIOR BY MANY KEYBOARD
PROFESSIONALS AND ENTHUSIASTS.  THIS, AND WONDERFUL SUPPORT FROM
CUSTOMERS, GIVES US GREAT MOTIVATION TO CONTINUE DOING ALL WE
CAN TO DESIGN AND MANUFACTURE INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS.
..........

..........
I addressed Robert's issue about sending mixes via sysex. Their reply:

 From Alesis: WHETHER OR NOT THE MIX IS SENT OUT WITH THE PROGRAMS IS NOT
REALLY THE ISSUE.  THE PROBLEM IS THAT OUR SUPPORT DEPT IS SAYING ONE
THING AND OUR DOCUMENTATION IS SAYING ANOTHER.  PLEASE CONSIDER THIS
EMAIL AS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE SITUATION.  WE WILL CHECK TO SEE IF THE
PDF NEEDS TO BE UPDATED.
..........

..........
I also addressed this question:

how many banks I should expect to be allotted when
choosing Programs only (SB1). Mike Peake has said
that being allotted 2 Program Banks is normal behavior
for a 512k card and that a program Bank is 300800 bytes
and a Mix Bank is 151040 bytes. I'm not quite sure how
300800 x 2 which is 601600 fits on a 512 k card.
(If 1k = 1000 bytes, then 512k=512000 bytes, right?)

Their reply:

 From Alesis: 1k ACTUALLY EQUALS 1,024 BYTES, BUT THAT'S STILL ONLY
524,288 TOTAL, MEANING THIS MERITS SOME FURTHER INVESTIGATION.
..........

..........

I also addressed the issue people were having with Alesis and Emagic. 
"but it would cost both
companies only a very small effort to help people who are willing to do
the job by themself"

Their reply: From Alesis: PERHAPS ALESIS SHOULD FACILITATE AND EMPOWER
CUSTOMERS TO SOLVE THEIR OWN PROBLEMS.
..........

..........
Regarding: "it's sad that alesis also doesn't give free the
tools for third party developers or the user platform to work on the os
themself."

Their reply: From Alesis: WE ARE UNABLE TO PROVIDE DETAILS ON OUR 
SOURCE CODE, WHICH
CONTAINS VALUABLE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTIES AND TRADE INFORMATION.
..........

..........
Regarding an A6 demo: If anyone here would like to submit a demo of the 
A6 for Alesis to use on their web site, here are the guidelines.

 From Alesis:

> Below is the reply from our keyboard products/technical specialist:
>
> Please feel free to submit any demos, under the following criteria:
>
> Should generally be under 2 minutes in length.

> Should feature the demoed product exclusively, or at least prominently 
> with liner notes on the other gear used.

> Should show off as many different sounds and features as possible 
> while still remaining a cohesive and interesting musical piece.

> The posting of any A6 demo on the website with composer credit would 
> be at the sole discretion of Alesis management.

> If any demo is posted, we would be unable to post any links for the 
> composer. 
>
> All submissions become the non-exclusive property of Alesis.  We 
> should be able to post it, use it in a product, or otherwise 
> distribute it as we see fit, free of charge.  Meanwhile, the demo 
> writer can still use the piece on his/her own album, sell it to other 
> companies, or otherwise distribute it as he/she sees fit 
> simultaneously.
>
> Please send the demos to my attention and I will forward them to the 
> appropriate person here at Alesis.
>
> John Grandinetti <jgrandinetti at alesis.com>
..........

Note: As of April 1st, John will be working exclusively on the Numark 
end and someone else will be handling the Alesis end so we will have to 
find out who to send demos to after that.
..........

..........
My personal opinion: Although no OS upgrade is planned at this time, I 
think we can still gather an upgrade wish list and present it again at 
a later and perhaps more appropriate date. If it becomes clear that it 
is really necessary and important, I believe we can persuade them.

Another personal opinion: I think we should use Robert Ray if and when 
a question can't be answered here. It's nice to have someone that is 
available to answer tough questions so I wouldn't want to dilute that.


That's all folks.

Regards,
Sioux