That's great, Fran.

Finally, Sweetwater shiped my Code 61 today, but I couldn't wait, as the demo version of VIP 3.0 expires tomorrow. I was able to buy a small controller on eBay and had the seller email me the serial number. With it, I was able to activate VIP 3.0.

Don't you just love how VIP 3.0 shows all the patches of your VST plugins? You can also download plugin maps on the internet. I have been asking Akai to create a platform where users can upload and download maps. VIP 3.0 loads sounds so quick! Another killer feature is smooth sound transition; how sound patches change without the previous sound being cut off. This is a must feature for me, but oddly these days only just a few keyboards like the Kronos and the Roland FA-06/8 have this feature.

Great support from Akai, too. There is online chatting. I was chatting with someone, and he said he will have an expert call me. Someone called me right away while I was chatting with someone else!!! The guy on the phone was indeed a VIP expert. He went out of his way to help me out.

I even use 32 bit plug-ins in the 64 bit VIP 3.0 by using a bridge app called jBridge. I wanted to use the discontinued 32 Hypersonic 2. It works fine, but I have to make sure I open VIP 3.0 as administrator.