Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
A decade ago, we came up with a system in good faith to give our customers the best price possible based on what Cakewalk products they already owned. But as we developed new products and updates over the years, and the number of upgrade pricing paths multiplied, our system became more confusing to customers and became less helpful. Now it’s time to simplify! Are you new to SONAR?You’re not alone—more and more musicians are discovering why SONAR is becoming the choice of pros. SONAR’s innovations delivered every month, range from unique features like the adaptive User Interface known as “Lenses,” to many other exclusive highlights such as having a Drum Replacer built-in on every track. We believe your tools should never compromise your creativity—and SONAR’s ongoing evolution opens up new creative possibilities every month. When you buy SONAR, either from our online store or from your favorite retailer, you own the product outright – enjoy! As a new SONAR owner, you’ll get 12 months of free updates from Cakewalk, including bug fixes as well as brand new features. When you shop from the Cakewalk online store, we also give you the option to rent-to-own SONAR with monthly payments. After 12 payments, you own the product. Upgrading SONAR to a more advanced editionStarting May 1, 2017, if you want to upgrade your copy of SONAR to a more advanced edition, you simply pay the difference in the current price. - If you own SONAR Home Studio, upgrade to SONAR Artist, Professional or Platinum for $49.99 off the regular price.
- If you own SONAR Artist, upgrade to SONAR Professional or Platinum for $99.99 off the regular price.
- If you own SONAR Professional, upgrade to SONAR Platinum for $199.99 off the regular price.
- We will no longer offer discounts for any other editions of SONAR or from other Cakewalk products.
Stay current with SONARCakewalk’s unique approach to updating technology monthly has revolutionized SONAR. New and old SONAR users alike have seen the DAW materialize into a modern and inspiring system—combining all the benefits of analog warmth with intuitive digital workflow. From unique tools such as Drum Replacer, VocalSync and Console Emulation that save time and enhance sonic quality, to serious workflow enhancements such as Patch Points, Aux Tracks and Mix Recall; the new SONAR gives you so many options to express and capitalize on your musical creativity. After your first 12 months of free updates on your new purchase of SONAR, you can buy another 12 months of updates for at least 50% off the regular price of SONAR. Or, if you signed up for the rent-to-own plan, just continue to pay monthly for at least 50% off your regular monthly rate. This new pricing model will go into effect on May 1, 2017. SONAR never expiresAs a SONAR owner, if you choose not to update, don’t worry — SONAR never expires. Period. You can keep enjoying it as you have been – you just won’t receive anymore updates.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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pfossi
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 15:54:41
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I assume updates will continue for lifetime Platinum owners?
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 16:01:30
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☄ Helpfulby Skyline_UK 2017/03/13 16:17:27
pfossi
I assume updates will continue for lifetime Platinum owners?
Yes, if you own SONAR Platinum with Lifetime Updates, you'll just keep on getting them!
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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InstrEd
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 16:12:03
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Welcome back aboard Alex. 
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dreamist
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 16:13:46
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What about X3 Producer owners? Will they no longer be able to upgrade?
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paulo
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 16:16:43
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Fuming to commence in 10.......9..........8..........7.........
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 16:21:07
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☄ Helpfulby Seth Kellogg [Cakewalk] 2017/03/13 16:51:12
dreamist
What about X3 Producer owners? Will they no longer be able to upgrade?
Any customer can upgrade at any time, but starting May 1, 2017 we'll no longer offer special discounts to customers on older versions of SONAR, including X3 Producer.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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JesDes
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:03:51
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I haven't updated Platinum since my rolling updates expired last February, will my update renewal price still be $199.99 when I decide to update in the future?
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:07:42
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☄ Helpfulby Seth Kellogg [Cakewalk] 2017/03/13 21:12:44
JesDes
I haven't updated Platinum since my rolling updates expired last February, will my update renewal price still be $199.99 when I decide to update in the future?
New prices won't go into effect until May 1, 2017, so you have about 6 weeks to upgrade with your current discount. After that, the renewal price for SONAR Platinum would be at least 50% off the regular price of $499.99. So the renewal price would be as high as $249.99. We said " at least 50% off" because we still expect to run price promotions from time-to-time.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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JesDes
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:12:56
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Ah ok, good to know! Thank you.
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pwalpwal
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:14:31
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how will this affect steam editions?
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carlosigls
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:22:36
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250$ for a year? I'm out.
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rmfegley
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:26:42
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I don't understand how this will effect current monthly subscriptions. I signed up for them (upgrading from X3) in February 2016 at $14.99 a month and made my twelfth payment in Jan 2017. My subscription has continued at the same rate. What will be my rate in May, if I continue my subscription? The full price monthly plan is $49.99 (?) I believe. Does this mean my rate will increase to $24.99 in May (50% off full monthly rate)?
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:42:39
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☄ Helpfulby rmfegley 2017/03/13 17:50:48
rmfegley
I don't understand how this will effect current monthly subscriptions. I signed up for them (upgrading from X3) in February 2016 at $14.99 a month and made my twelfth payment in Jan 2017. My subscription has continued at the same rate. What will be my rate in May, if I continue my subscription? The full price monthly plan is $49.99 (?) I believe. Does this mean my rate will increase to $24.99 in May (50% off full monthly rate)?
That's a great question. If you're a SONAR Owner, paying monthly, you'll continue to pay your current rate. In your case, you completed your first 12 months to become an official Owner - congrats - and it looks like you got in on a promotion for $14.99/month. So, you'll continue to pay that rate beyond the May 1, 2017 date.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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rmfegley
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 17:51:07
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Great, thanks for the info!
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Slugbaby
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 18:01:53
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carlosigls
250$ for a year? I'm out.
I think that $250 gives you lifetime updates. If it doesn't, it's crazy.
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slartabartfast
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 18:23:45
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bitman
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scook
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 18:55:28
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Slugbaby
I think that $250 gives you lifetime updates. If it doesn't, it's crazy.
Platinum with lifetime updates was available from May 2016 though December 2016 and is no longer available. Effective May 2017 the annual renewal is at least 50% off the regular price. One thing not spelled out in the new pricing policy is the affect on renewal pricing, if a user allows their membership to expire.
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Brian Walton
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:00:29
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Slugbaby
carlosigls
250$ for a year? I'm out.
I think that $250 gives you lifetime updates. If it doesn't, it's crazy.
It doesn't. But his post also clearly indicates it is the absolute most someone would have to pay for an upgrade from Old Platinum to New Platinum, and that periodic discounts from that level would be expected. And to think many people questioned the value of Lifetime updates previously offered. 
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BlixYZ
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:12:12
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I have paid for every version since PA9. Still, I feel guilty having lifetime updates.
Will you be tempting me with add-ons and whatnot?
another thought:
I know that the industry is always changing and that price models have evolved, but frequent changes are a bad idea. I hope that Cakewalk has settled into a model it can live with for at least 5 years.
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Brian Walton
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:36:16
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BlixYZ
I have paid for every version since PA9. Still, I feel guilty having lifetime updates.
Will you be tempting me with add-ons and whatnot?
another thought:
I know that the industry is always changing and that price models have evolved, but frequent changes are a bad idea. I hope that Cakewalk has settled into a model it can live with for at least 5 years.
The new proposed model seems like basically what they have done for a while to me. Slightly higher full blow retail rate on the top tier, but it is already noted they will have discounts of some kind periodically. The only thing that seems to be going away is the ability to upgrade from say Sonar 5 Producer to Sonar Platinum for less than $200. After they offered that very deal for lifetime updates for 6 months to users that were even nearly 20 years out of date, I don't see how anyone could fault them for taking away the obsolete to new upgrade path going forward. I could understand X3 users not feeling the need to upgrade, as it is a modern and very capable platform, but anyone running anything older than that really should have considered the upgrade when it was offered. To keep the pay model going I'm curious what is in the oven for new features, since the last 5 months have been pretty heavily focused on fixes and enhancements to existing sets. I'd imagine the non-lifers that are forking out the money every month will want some sizzle on the steak to keep going. Hopefully they are sending a message out to current users (and not just the forum sticky) of the price change so people can go ahead and think about what to do if they are on a legacy version currently.
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:40:02
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scook
Slugbaby
I think that $250 gives you lifetime updates. If it doesn't, it's crazy.
Platinum with lifetime updates was available from May 2016 though December 2016 and is no longer available. Effective May 2017 the annual renewal is at least 50% off the regular price. One thing not spelled out in the new pricing policy is the affect on renewal pricing, if a user allows their membership to expire.
We also need to retrain everyone away from thinking about "annuals" or "memberships" - we don't really have a subscription model. If you own SONAR, you own SONAR. You can buy 12 months of updates at any time for at least 50% off the regular price. If your 12 months run out, you still own SONAR and you keep what you have. You can buy another 12 months at the 50%+ discount rate, or you can wait a while, enjoy what you have, and then buy another 12 months later on down the road, still at that 50%+ discount rate, because you are a SONAR Owner.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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Paul P
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:40:57
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Alex Westner [Cakewalk]
Or, if you signed up for the rent-to-own plan...
And here I thought is was a membership.
Sonar Platinum [2017.10], Win7U x64 sp1, Xeon E5-1620 3.6 GHz, Asus P9X79WS, 16 GB ECC, 128gb SSD, HD7950, Mackie Blackjack
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:45:13
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☄ Helpfulby Seth Kellogg [Cakewalk] 2017/03/13 22:12:23
BlixYZ
I have paid for every version since PA9. Still, I feel guilty having lifetime updates.
Will you be tempting me with add-ons and whatnot?
another thought:
I know that the industry is always changing and that price models have evolved, but frequent changes are a bad idea. I hope that Cakewalk has settled into a model it can live with for at least 5 years.
I agree with you - frequent changes lead to instability. But, we haven't actually changed that much with this announcement. The biggest change is in our upgrade & renewal pricing model - which is a model we've had for over 10 years. Everything else in our announcement is simply a clarification of what we're already been doing since we started our monthly update program.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:48:16
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☄ Helpfulby Seth Kellogg [Cakewalk] 2017/03/13 22:12:26
Brian Walton
BlixYZ
I have paid for every version since PA9. Still, I feel guilty having lifetime updates.
Will you be tempting me with add-ons and whatnot?
another thought:
I know that the industry is always changing and that price models have evolved, but frequent changes are a bad idea. I hope that Cakewalk has settled into a model it can live with for at least 5 years.
The new proposed model seems like basically what they have done for a while to me.
Slightly higher full blow retail rate on the top tier, but it is already noted they will have discounts of some kind periodically. The only thing that seems to be going away is the ability to upgrade from say Sonar 5 Producer to Sonar Platinum for less than $200.
After they offered that very deal for lifetime updates for 6 months to users that were even nearly 20 years out of date, I don't see how anyone could fault them for taking away the obsolete to new upgrade path going forward. I could understand X3 users not feeling the need to upgrade, as it is a modern and very capable platform, but anyone running anything older than that really should have considered the upgrade when it was offered.
To keep the pay model going I'm curious what is in the oven for new features, since the last 5 months have been pretty heavily focused on fixes and enhancements to existing sets. I'd imagine the non-lifers that are forking out the money every month will want some sizzle on the steak to keep going.
Hopefully they are sending a message out to current users (and not just the forum sticky) of the price change so people can go ahead and think about what to do if they are on a legacy version currently.
Thanks Brian. All well said. We emailed all of our SONAR customers today, and we will continue to run our campaign to make sure everyone is aware of these changes - allowing everyone to make a decision if they'd like to upgrade before May 1st.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:53:54
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So i pay for Sonar Professional Monthly what will be my new price. I'm not 12 months in yet to my subscription.
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:55:02
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☄ Helpfulby Seth Kellogg [Cakewalk] 2017/03/13 22:12:28
stuartjmoran@hotmail.com
So i pay for Sonar Professional Monthly what will be my new price. I'm not 12 months in yet to my subscription.
If you've already signed up for monthly pricing, or if you sign up between now and April 30th, your rates won't change.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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chuckebaby
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:55:09
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Is there any possibility of ever bringing back "Lifetime updates" ?
I know a few friends that missed the offer and would like to take advantage of it.
I know some might not agree with it (because it was a special offer / limited time) but it would really help those users and also bring in more sales.
Windows 8.1 X64 Sonar Platinum x64 Custom built: Asrock z97 1150 - Intel I7 4790k - 16GB corsair DDR3 1600 - PNY SSD 220GBFocusrite Saffire 18I8 - Mackie Control
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Re: Cakewalk Announces Simpler SONAR Prices
2017/03/13 19:57:15
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☄ Helpfulby Seth Kellogg [Cakewalk] 2017/03/13 22:12:31
chuckebaby
Is there any possibility of ever bringing back "Lifetime updates" ?
I know a few friends that missed the offer and would like to take advantage of it.
I know some might not agree with it (because it was a special offer / limited time) but it would really help those users and also bring in more sales.
Possible, but not likely. We ran the offer for 6 months, which is quite a long time.
Alex Westner VP Product Strategy & Innovation
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