Any updates on the upcoming Mac version of Sonar?

It's about time for me to update my PC and interface. Are there any updates on the Mac version of Sonar? Personally I would like to ru a Mac instead of a PC and if I knew we could expect that version in the next few months, I would hold off building a new PC.

Thanks,

Joe

The grim,

I know! Ha. But I am curious if anyone has any recent info.

Joe

Promidi,
 
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.  I certainly don't want to switch to the Mac version and deal with them working out bugs for a long while.  Was hoping that Cakewalk would mention some type of timeline but I understand that is hard to do.
 
I will stick with PC for the time being.
 
Thanks
 
Joe

tlw
If you want to use a Mac generally but still use Sonar, then a Mac configured to dual-boot MacOS and Windows using Apple's boot camp Windows drivers seems to work well enough. Though a native Mac version of Sonar would definitely be appreciated.

 Now this  ^^^^ is what I suggest as well.
Its an Alpha version. So anyone expecting to do any serious work might be in for a surprise.
Now what is the Alpha version is like ?... I have no clue.
 
All I do know.. is this:
http://forum.cakewalk.com/FindPost/3587493
 

Alex Westner [Cakewalk]
We'll announce something soon - within the next couple of weeks.

Based on several colleagues experience, if you buy a new Mac now, when (if) Cakewalk release a version for Mac (I mean the release, not an alpha), this Mac will be outdated. So you will need a new one. And so, it is safe to build a new PC and enjoy Sonar right now
 
How I have calculated that? Simple! It will be at least 1 year since the Alpha  was announced till that Alpha is published. So you can expect 1 year from the first Alpha till the first release. Apple has 1 year warranty and till you take extra AppleCare, the probability the device is in garbage after 1 year and 1 month is far from zero.

I wonder how many ports they can strip from the new one with people still praising their design decisions.

Sanderxpander
I wonder how many ports they can strip from the new one with people still praising their design decisions.

All of them.
 
Apple will invent the (real) mind meld.

Anderton
I just wrote a column for Pro Sound News and researched what's happening with Apple and the Mac Pro. There will supposedly be a line of "pro" iMacs later this year, but this seems to be a reaction to the Surface Studio, and there's some concern that Apple sees "pro" as "prosumer." There's no touch screen or anything like Microsoft's dial. I also don't think any Pro Tools users will be running HDX systems on them, although that's just a hunch.
 
New Mac Pros aren't supposed to happen until next year, and details are not forthcoming. Meanwhile, the current generation of Mac Pros is two or three generations behind what's happening with Windows machines. As of today, you can spend a lot less for a Windows machine that does a lot more.
 
Yes, the SONAR Alpha will be released soon...but it will be released into an environment where some pro audio people are really starting to wonder if their future involves a switch to Windows. 

I don't know about "many" but a big name studio close to here runs ProTools HDX on their trashbin MacPro with one of those ridiculous Thunderbolt PCI things. The guy was really proud of his system too (truth be told it's a kick ass studio with a modern SSL4000 desk and a crapload of A-list outboard) but he didn't seem particularly computer savvy. He just bought the latest most expensive Apple available at the time and had someone set it up for him, trusting that that would be best.

azslow3
Based on several colleagues experience, if you buy a new Mac now, when (if) Cakewalk release a version for Mac (I mean the release, not an alpha), this Mac will be outdated. So you will need a new one. And so, it is safe to build a new PC and enjoy Sonar right now
 
How I have calculated that? Simple! It will be at least 1 year since the Alpha  was announced till that Alpha is published. So you can expect 1 year from the first Alpha till the first release. Apple has 1 year warranty and till you take extra AppleCare, the probability the device is in garbage after 1 year and 1 month is far from zero.

Sorry, but this is unhelpful.
 
1. There is no indication of when a Sonar Mac version will be made public. Nor what is meant by an alpha version in this context. In my view if Cakewalk were to release an industry typical alpha version, complete with lots of missing functions, stuff that's there but doesn't work yet and a huge bug list it would be a disaster. Such a version would be trashed so badly in forums that it would undermine any later, better versions. I don't work for Cakewalk but I'd be surprised if they weren't thinking along those lines. This, I suspect, is something Cakewalk know they can't afford to get wrong, to the point they'd be better off dropping the product than releasing a flawed version.
 
That might be why an anticipated release date was published then no mention afterwards. Personally I'd much prefer Cakewalk to get it right than release a rushed build and suffer the inevitable hit to their reputation.
 
2. Any PC built today will be "outdated" by the day after tomorrow. Same for any tablet, phone, car....
 
3. Macs are not "in garbage" after one year. Nor are they so outdated after one year as to be useless and unable to run newly released software. People tend to run Macs for a few years before replacing them, and there are some very old Macs still doing useful things. Modern personal computers went past the point where regularly and frequently updating hardware was pretty much a requirement a few years ago now. Thunderbolt, USB improvements and the rise of affordable SSDs aside a state of the art PC or Mac isn't that different in real-world capability from one that's a few years old.
 
An honest appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of the two platforms is useful, while a PC/Mac "religious war" is a waste of time for all concerned. Some of us use both. And on the forum of a company looking to have a foot in both camps, so to speak, a "religious war" and misinformation about either platform is not exactly going to create a welcoming environment or enamour anyone to Cakewalk products.

Anderton
I just wrote a column for Pro Sound News and researched what's happening with Apple and the Mac Pro. There will supposedly be a line of "pro" iMacs later this year, but this seems to be a reaction to the Surface Studio, and there's some concern that Apple sees "pro" as "prosumer." There's no touch screen or anything like Microsoft's dial. I also don't think any Pro Tools users will be running HDX systems on them, although that's just a hunch.
 

I've wondered for quite a while why Apple haven't either updated or quietly dropped the current Mac Pro model in the same way they quietly dropped their non-Retina and very expensive Thunderbolt display last year.
 
It's certainly not a particularly good computer for most studio use, the high end iMacs with a faster i7 cpu and PCI SSDs are far better. Ditto photograph processing and pretty much any job that benefits more from cpu speed than 6, 8 or more physical cores and multiple gpus. I guess once you've called something your "flagship product" it's a bit difficult to abandon it even if it's no longer the optimum thing for the job it does.
 
As for touch screens, it has been argued by some that there already is an Apple multi-touch screen that works quite well with Macs - it's called an iPad >:-) OK, I'm being a bit tongue in cheek, but a combination of Logic Remote and an Apple force-capable touch pad is pretty effective.
 

Anderton
New Mac Pros aren't supposed to happen until next year, and details are not forthcoming. Meanwhile, the current generation of Mac Pros is two or three generations behind what's happening with Windows machines. As of today, you can spend a lot less for a Windows machine that does a lot more.
 
Yes, the SONAR Alpha will be released soon...but it will be released into an environment where some pro audio people are really starting to wonder if their future involves a switch to Windows.
 

 
I think that's been the case for a few years, maybe prompted as much as anything by the state of software in the semi-pro/amateur DAW market where PCs are common because they're used for lots of other things like graphically intensive games etc. as well. Most people simply can't afford to own multiple computers of any kind, and if you're a gamer Windows wins hands down simply because the vast majority of games are Windows-only.
 
To my mind, other than gaming, it boils down partly to which operating system you prefer and are used to, partly budget and partly the different total computing environments MS and Apple have adopted. Apple have a huge advantage over MS in the tablets/phones market and iOS integrates with Macs very well indeed. So there's a "compete package" approach that's harder to replicate using Windows. Though that may be a stronger factor outside the peculiarities of the dedicated pro-audio market of course.
 
A Unix-style system still has advantages in a multi-user environment, and the accounts of problems created by the very frequent Win10 updates that appear on this and many other forums are hardly an advert for MS. Apple tend to only issue an update that breaks some hardware driver models once a year....