How do we get Yamaha to do better beta testing?

[Fred Smith]

I'm discouraged.

I have 1457 text files that took hundreds of hours to create. All of them are useless under V2.0, because the text is too small for the audience to read, even though I'm using the largest supported font. I've had to revert to 1.41 to keep them usable.

I know how long it took because Yamaha changed the fonts when going from Tyros to Genos. But at least this was a defensible change, as the Genos was new. I don't see the font change in 2.0 as defensible.

While some people have said this will likely be fixed in a 2.01 update, I'm scared to death that others will start using the new fonts, and be upset when Yamaha changes them. So who is Yamaha going to please -- the newbies or the oldies?

All of this could have been avoided with decent beta testing. From the simple errors reported in this forum, it's hard to believe they did any beta testing at all.

How do we get them to start?

Fred

[Graham UK]

Fred. This happens with all products, manufacturers let the buyers pay for an item then wait for us do free testing.

Volunteer to be a BETA TESTER...worth a try with Yamaha !!!

[Fred Smith]

Fred. This happens with all products, manufacturers let the buyers pay for an item then wait for us do free testing.

Volunteer to be a BETA TESTER...worth a try with Yamaha !!!

Yes, I realize software releases are different than they used to be. They had to do more robust testing when updates had to be distributed on floppy disks. Now, with everything being downloadable, the testing isn't as rigorous because updates are easier to distribute.

But my point is I don't see Yamaha doing any beta testing. They certainly do alpha testing -- which is debugging in a factory environment. But I don't see evidence they're using giggers as testers, as anyone in a real world environment would have seen some of the bugs we're experiencing.

Cheers,
Fred

[ton37]

An action that everyone, individually, should do is to report his / her complaint directly to Yamaha. Be persistent if your complaints are not handled correctly or if you do not receive a response. The dealers also have their responsibility in this. That's just: consumer law!It is no different than when you buy a product that has technical defects or (hidden) defects. In 2019 that seems logical, right? 

Based on the complaints, it is possible that Yamaha will gradually realize that they will not be able to ignore their clientele. The first steps have already been taken, now they must start the next steps. A beta tester model could be one of the options here?

Customers are entitled to more transparency...

[Lee Batchelor]

Excellent topic, Fred. I agree that the 2.0 update seems to be best suited for a brand new Genos right out of the box. Any customizations you have made are in serious jeopardy.

In hindsight, I never update any device for at least three months. Heck, I'm still using 1.4 because I'm gigging a lot and can't afford any screwups! I wait until all the horror stories have been addressed. I know that does you no good, but I agree that it's time to increase the volume on the squeaky wheel. Contact Yamaha directly and complain, if that's even possible! I've never seen any decent support systems in Canada that lead you right to the Yamaha Help desk. I've always had to go through the dealer network.