Bristol_Jonesey
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/23 12:06:11
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This is my first ever DAW Was going to go down the Steinberg route, but after reading many articles on the Internet eventually decided on SONAR. Seems like I chose well  Really impressed with: All of it Things I am craving: More time to read the damned manuals - better knowledge/understanding - but I'm getting there.
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SXSURFER
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/23 16:20:07
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Sorry this came from another of my post, but realized it belonged here.
I've liked Cakewalk from day one and always came back to it off and on. The win 3.1 version is what I cut my teeth on.
Here's the deal...
I gave up on computers for music a few years ago...CRASH@#$%^ nuff said, not easy to do, as I am a midi guy and a computer nerd. Fast forward a few years, moved onto dedicated music computer based systems, namely the Tascam SX-1le, Akai DPS 16, MPC 4000, etc. I even went back to the ATARI and Cubase, as this system is very reliable (though, not bug free). I stuck with hardware synths, samplers, drum machines etc. For the record, I am still actively using these items. However, (here's where Sonar 6 and now 7.0.1 come in)...
I have chosen to give computers (namely PC and MAC, though more PC than Mac) another go, not just the PC, but mainly SONAR! Why my sudden change of heart, SONAR is beyond incredible. Yeah, I said it, absolutely an incredible bit of kit. Well, truth be told, Arturia is the biggest culprit in my going back to SONAR. See, I, like most sequencer owning musicians, have an addiction to gear, synthesizer gear, modular analogue synth gear. Therefore, I seen the Arturia Moog Modular V and had to have it. Hence the need for a PC or MAC and a host sequencer. I had SONAR 2.0 packed away and thought this was the easiest, and cheapest way to use MMV. Well, it wasn’t long before I seen SONAR 6.0 this year and again HAD TO HAVE IT hahahahah. Because Sonar 2.0 was very reliable and was, actually fun to use, the investment into 6.0 was an easy decision. Now with 7.0, my laptop is at Sweetwater as we speak, getting tweaked and being loaded with 7.0.1. To sweeten the set-up, I’m having my Novation SL 25 ReMOTE set-up as the main controller.
The thing that pushed me back into using Sonar is the fact that softsynths and midi data can be turned into audio directly, no recording, just convert. This alone made me a true believer (Stan Lee says it best).
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Mike Fisher
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/23 16:21:37
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JASON_GRAY
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/25 16:31:33
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I am looking forward to getting my upgrade to sonar7 from 6 producers edition ( boxed version), allthough i aint produced a full track yet, i have been experimenting, i have also used ableton live since version 4, and becuase of this good but lazy learning i am finding it hard to arrange in sonar 6, a lot more fiddly, despite trying to understand this snap to grid, i am still having problems lineing up audio and midi clips, basic i know. but in live the grid is their and also easy to change and drop clips to the nearest time line, in sonar it just wont line up as i want, then this remove silence adds some confusion when shifting audio and midi clips, obviousley it is something i aint doing wright despite many'many hours and days etc , but my point being in live its a doddle, so this has been my downfall/offput. i first purchased sonar 6 thinking i could use the instruments in live amongst other temptations sonar had to offer, but many are dxi so , my plan backfired, i tried live as rewire slave , but not sure if it is for the best, confusing my learning advancements in sonar with this. but off what i do know is: sonar rocks, I prefer the look, and i feel a lot more confident with sonars preformance in quality, it feels like a pro studio and it is, i get really excited with it for most parts, its just this editing comparision after useing live i cant take too it, i will not give up until i suceed mind you. and the step sequencer in the plugin form is just what i need, to help me on my way untill i can master the formentioned, all the plugin additions and mastering suite too, and what first grabbed my attention with soanr 6 was the audio quality, so i was happy to copy my tracks from live to sonar for the final mix and mastering stage i noticed a difference with plugin quality straight away. i am hooked, sonar keeps pulling me back to learn it methods, roll on to some future hits. what i would like to ask, is their any other method of card payment ie debit card etc, or payapl etc, as i can not get use of a credit card so i can upgrade online to 7, as i want to get my hands on this sometime from next wednesday. or
post edited by JASON_GRAY - 2007/10/25 16:48:16
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Hawky
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/25 17:12:00
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I switched from Cubase to SONAR around 1998? However, I will be switching to something else real quick if someone from SONAR doesn't respond to this "motorboating" issue very soon. I have sent emails, talked to phone support, cussed and discussed this on the forum. Wake up! http://forum.cakewalk.com/tm.asp?m=1166968&mpage=1&key= ORIGINAL: sqye
.
i switched from pro audio 9 back around the turn of the millenium...
.
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JASON_GRAY
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/26 05:58:03
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ORIGINAL: JASON_GRAY
I am looking forward to getting my upgrade to sonar7 from 6 producers edition ( boxed version), allthough i aint produced a full track yet, i have been experimenting,
i have also used ableton live since version 4, and becuase of this good but lazy learning i am finding it hard to arrange in sonar 6, a lot more fiddly, despite trying to understand this snap to grid, i am still having problems lineing up audio and midi clips, basic i know.
but in live the grid is their and also easy to change and drop clips to the nearest time line, in sonar it just wont line up as i want, then this remove silence adds some confusion when shifting audio and midi clips, obviousley it is something i aint doing wright despite many'many hours and days etc , but my point being in live its a doddle, so this has been my downfall/offput.
i first purchased sonar 6 thinking i could use the instruments in live amongst other temptations sonar had to offer, but many are dxi so , my plan backfired, i tried live as rewire slave , but not sure if it is for the best, confusing my learning advancements in sonar with this.
but off what i do know is: sonar rocks, I prefer the look, and i feel a lot more confident with sonars preformance in quality, it feels like a pro studio and it is,
i get really excited with it for most parts, its just this editing comparision after useing live i cant take too it, i will not give up until i suceed mind you.
and the step sequencer in the plugin form is just what i need, to help me on my way untill i can master the formentioned,
all the plugin additions and mastering suite too, and what first grabbed my attention with soanr 6 was the audio quality, so i was happy to copy my tracks from live to sonar for the final mix and mastering stage i noticed a difference with plugin quality straight away.
i am hooked, sonar keeps pulling me back to learn it methods, roll on to some future hits.
what i would like to ask, is their any other method of card payment ie debit card etc, or payapl etc, as i can not get use of a credit card so i can upgrade online to 7, as i want to get my hands on this sometime from next wednesday.
or
saying all this and the bit about editing and not being able to move my audio accurately enough, i have just discovered how easy the snap to grid is to use, at last. quite simpily i was not applying snap to grid, becuase i thought it was just for time stretching samples etc, but i realise now it actually snaps your moved or added piece of audio to the nearest timeline, its funny how simple solutions can sometimes stare you right in the face. i have also read here via other members stating that if you know what you are doing as a producer you should not have any problems switching and finding your way around a new daw, but this is not tha case, it does help, but it does not help you locate the right tools and what they are called if daw has chose its own name for said proscess, so for me its more where to find the right tools for the right job within Sonar. i am getting their  one now added to my learning, and many more to go
post edited by JASON_GRAY - 2007/10/26 06:00:16
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PhilMul
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/26 14:18:27
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I am a musician and have been using Sequencers since the early 80s. Sequencers like Opcode... ughhhh, E-Logic...riddled with problems, Logic 5 on the MAC... I hate the MAC. Why can't I use my delete key to delete a character? MOTU... is good company but their software is too difficult to work with. The GUI was designed by an engineer for an engineer. Nuendo on my PC... it crashed half the time it was initializing and then it almost always crashed right when I was in the middle of a project. I could never get anything serious going with Cubase or Nuendo although I liked their GUI. I was always skeptical about buying any product from a company called “Cakewalkâ€. It was kind of a joke with musicians in the New York area in the 80s. Quite frankly, Cakewalk’s product offerings back then looked terrible… although I never had a chance to try them (perhaps too bad for me!)
Needless to say, I finally bit the bullet a few weeks ago and bought Sonar 7 Producer Edition. I have been using it for about 3 weeks now and all I can say is WOW! It is almost everything I have always dreamed of in a sequencer. I am currently scoring the music and sound effects for a children’s audio book. I have already created 48 tracks (20% midi and 81% audio). I am using a dual core 3.2Mhz PC with SATA drives, two Muse Receptors for the orchestra and Ivory, twin 24†monitors, Yamaha 10SM monitors, and an RME Fireface 800. I am also the following soft synths: Z3tA+ ( a great synth), Atmosphere, Kontakt, B4II, OP-X Pro, Real Guitar and Rapture LE. I have tried everything thing I can to get this puppy to crash, but it just won't let me down. I love the GUI. Sonar 7 seems to anticipate my every move and reacts accordingly. I purchased a video tutorial and spent some time with it and really got a jump start, but I also found that the Sonar tutorials were excellent and demonstrated most functions in a very friendly way.
Sonar 7 has quickly become my dream synth/sequencer/mastering studio. I don't think I could live without it knowing what I know now. Just a great job Cakewalk, you hit the ball out of the park with Sonar 7!
Phil Sonar X1 Producer, Live 8 Dual core 3Ghz PC - 2T Hard Disk - 2 X 26" monitors - XP Pro SP3 RME Fireface 800, MOTU MTP AV Muse Receptor 2 Pro, SpeakEasy Leslie Kurzweil Midiboard, Tyros 4, Roland FR-7X Yamaha NS10Ms
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GMGM
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/26 21:42:53
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15 years ago I used tape. 10 years ago, it was ADAT. 5 years ago - Pro Tools LE. I'd been interested in a more fully featured DAW for some time, and decided to watch various forums. I've been watching forums, and reading reviews ever since jumping into the DAW world. I found Pro Tools to be absolutely idiot proof. No instructions necessary even for deep audio/MIDI editing. I wanted a laptop based DAW, and I knew that Pro Tools LE was an easy place to start - but it wouldn't work unless you use Digi hardware (what a pain). I was curious about Sonar 4 after reading positive reviews from Craig Anderton (his endorsement speaks volumes to me). At first, I found it too be too cumbersome (I definitely needed the book). This led me to neglect Sonar in favor of Pro Tools simplicity. It wasn't until Sonar 6 PE came out that I decided to commit to switching. I built a new PC around Sonar 6 PE. I finally forced myself to learn it. It immediately occurred to me that either I was an idiot for not seeing how easy it was to use, or there were significant improvements to the interface since v4. Even though I just switched to v6 over summer '07, I couldn't resist the features added to V7.
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JerkTheTerrible
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/27 23:19:35
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I Started out with a Fostex VF 160 but it was too confusing for me cuz I was 16 and only knew how to work my Boss DR 202 with the black and orange pads, haha . After I got bored with that I went to Reason 2.5 and then 3, but I switched over to FL Studio 5 PE because of VST support. I had a producer I was working with that used Cubase 3 for one of my songs and I didn't really like and I was looking though a Future Music magazine and saw an add for Sonar 3 PE. I really liked the look of it and remembered Cakewalk from a recording I did at my uncle's house on Guitar Tracks 1 so I had him get it. Test drove it on 4 songs and he fell in love with it as did I cuz he made me sound great though Sonar so I was sold on the program since then. Now it's been a few years and I've got into production seriously and want to make a career out of it and I had been using FL Studio S PE for the last year or so with SampleTank 2 XL and a few other VST's . I also have Pro Tools M Powered, but I quit using a week after I bought it because I couldnt have as many pulgins running as I wanted so it's collected dust but then the week I decide to play around with it along with NI Battery 2 and some sample Cakewalk drops Sonar 7!!!! HOLLY ****!!!! sorry... but you guys blew me away with all you brought to the table. Then to top it off you had the competitive offer thing, oh yea you know I upgraded from Pro Tools M Powered 7 to Sonar 7 Studio Edition for my birthday this month and it was because of all the VST plugins you gave me with it I love RaptureLE and plan to upgrade and I also love Audiosnap. So thank you Cakewalk you guys gave me tools that I will never grow out of with version 7 I would like to see a better Session Drummer though, I mean in the quantize presets you have the MPCake??? why not a drum machine with pads??? you know like the FPC cuz that thing is super easy to use and map out across the mixer and thats what I would love to see the most other than that it's perfect!!!!!
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ivanSC
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/10/31 12:52:55
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ORIGINAL: ivanSC
Well sort of. Been using Amiga 1200 with Bars n Pipes Pro for donkey`s years & still do, in with a Fostex Standalone hard disk recorder.
Over the years I tried all the PC main contenders & it wasnt till Sonar 3 came out that I saw something approaching the ease of use of BPP.
I now have Producer 6, but STILL not converted to recording in the box. Mostly I use Sonar to master down to CD, which may seem like overkill, but I still don`t entirely trust my audio to a computer which runs anything produced by Microsoft.
Vista? Puh-LEEZ! Maybe if it ever gets to SP2 or 3.
As an update, I recently decided I needed another audio interface so I could work on my music in France when I am there. Initially bought an M Audio Fast Track USB, thinking it would be convenient and lured by the promise of trying out Pro Tools for free - only time I have ever actually run it myself was on one of the very first systems in Nashville back in 1980something. Man it sucks! So did the interface & I now have a Emu 0404 to go with my 1212m and of course a nice shiny new SonarLE to go with versions 3 5 & 6 Producer that I already own! Fast becoming a Sonar Stronghold....
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pythonusr
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/01 19:08:55
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I recently decided to switch over, after using Audacity / FL Studio 6 for the past few years. I've been upset by the lack of a lack of recording function in FL, so I looked into the benefits of SONAR over FL 7, which pretty much outweighed the benefits of FL over SONAR. So I decided to purchase it.
I'm pretty much 100% satisfied by the project, minus the small error message that my audio card isn't supported or is in use (could this be iTunes causing the problem?).
Pros: Amazing interface, great piano roll, great MIDI detection and reaction time. I also love the amount of features that it has over FL. You can't even compare FL to this application.
Cons: I fear the learning curve of this application will be steep when I actually try to use it. Can someone correct me? Please? Hah.
Anyways, great application, I'm loving what I've seen of it in the three hours that I've spent with it already.
-- Alex.
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time4abreak
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/01 21:53:03
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Well, I tried to remember all of the sequencers that I've used from the beginning. Please forgive my inaccuracies of version to date, but I'm pretty much guessing at anything over 5 years ago. Voyetra Sequencer Plus 2 PCDOS 1985
Twelve Tone Cakewalk 2 PCDOS 1986
Passport Designs Mastertracks Pro 4 Atari 1987
Passport Designs Mastertracks Pro 4 Mac 1988
Big Noise Cadenza PCDOS 1990
Passport Designs Mastertracks Pro 4 Mac 1991
Cakewalk Pro Audio 1 Win3.1 1991
Big Noise SeqMax Win3.1 1992
Cakewalk Pro Audio 3 Win3.1 1994
Cakewalk Pro Audio 5 Win95 1996
Cakewalk Pro Audio 7 Win98 1999
Cubase 3 PC Win 98 1999
Cubase 4 PC Win 98 2000
Cubase 4 MAC Mac OS9 2001
MOTU Digital Performer 3 Mac OS9 2001
MOTU Digital Performer 4 Mac OSX 2003
Cakewalk Sonar 3 PE WinXP 2003
Cakewalk Sonar 4 PE WinXP 2004
Samplitude 6 2496 WinXP 2005
Samplitude 8 Classic WinXP 2006
Cakewalk Sonar 5 PE WinXP 2006
MOTU Digital Performer 5 Mac OSX 2007
Sony Acid Pro 6 WinXP 2007
Samplitude 9 SE WinXP 2007
Cakewalk Sonar 6 SE WinXP 2007
Cakewalk Sonar 7 SE WinXP 2007 I might as well mention it, but I did work in several studios running Pro Tools (around 1997-99) and Logic (around 2000-01). I guess I'm just too damn curious every time a new version comes out. (No matter who makes it) What a waste of money..... LC If I'm on the PC, Sonar is the choice. If I'm on the Mac, then Digital Performer is the one. And luckily I'm not letting Samplitude 10 or Logic 8 tempt me.... 
post edited by time4abreak - 2007/11/01 22:12:47
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sharkboy
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/02 22:32:39
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I started doing digital audio back in the mid 90s. In school they used macs running performa and sound tools (pre Pro-Tools). The macs where very slow and difficult to use. At the same time I started studing programming languages like C++, Perl, VB and CGI programming. All of this was done on a PC. For a home PC I got my first screaming 33Mhz 486. A friend told me about Cakewalk so I gave a try. I was suprised how much easier it was then Performa and loved the C like scripting langauge it had to extend it's capibilities. After college I had less time for music and did most of my composing using a portastudio 488 mkII and my Yamaha SY85. Recently I decided to try to get back into the frey and built a new PC with an Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 gigs of Ram and the Creative X-Fi Elite Pro. I set it up as Duel boot Win XP 32 and Vista Ultimate 64-bit. At the time, no vendors had anything supporting Vista 64 so I installed Cubase LE that came with my sound card. I found this unusable. I then purchaced Music Creator. I was amazed at what features where in this $30 toy program. It blew the doors of Cubase. When I heard that the new Sonar supporting Vista 64 and saw the feature set I was I knew I had to have it. I will be posting my latest and greatest on my online music collaboration website MyOnlineBand.com Please stop by and check it out.
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donholmes@comcast.ne
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/04 08:48:59
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I bought the DOS version of Cakewalk back in 1987, but never used it. Ended up using MasterTracks, which I loved. But they went out of business, then got bought, and the software never got upgraded to be stable with Win2000 or XP, and of course, it didn't do audio. I had always upgraded my Cakewalk over the years, just didn't use it, till I gave up on MasterTracks. I used to like to drop notes onto the staff notation in MasterTracks, which would sound the tone of the note as you move the note over different staff points before letting go. You can't do that with Sonar, so now I have to use a midi keyboard to enter notes.
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rdolmat
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/04 10:58:17
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Cakewalk for Dos, Cakewalk for Win 3.1, Cakewalk Pro, Logic 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, Samplitude, Cubase 1, 2, 3, 4 and finally Sonar 7 Holy cow...I'm SOOOOOOO glad I left Cubase hell...(in fact, they banned me from their forum because I was 'too negative' with my problems and complaints about paying over $1000 for being a beta tester..don't get me started!). Wow...I feel almost guilty for getting all these WICKED things with Sonar 7 (v-vocal, audiosnap, Z3ta+, Dimension LE, Vintage etc...). That would NEVER happen with Steinberg. You'd be lucky to even get a simple bug fix... Perhaps I shouldn't feel guilty...and just get used to being treated like a real customer. I love Cakewalk again! Sorry I ever left you... PS: oh yeah...one thing I love about Cakewalk, is that they ADD new features to upgrade WITHOUT taking out features you've been using for years...(unlike Steinberg, where you can upgrade from SX 3 to 4 and realize they took out 4 really important tools that you've been using for years without telling you before you pay $300 to upgrade: ie: DirectX support, Patch changes on tracks, standard fxb preset handling, etc..) PPS: don't get me started!
post edited by rdolmat - 2007/11/04 11:59:26
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JeffK2
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/06 00:57:14
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My first sequencer was the Kawai Q-80 which I bought back in 1988-89. I am not a great Pianist so I really enjoyed being able to do As many takes as it took to get it right. STEP TIME was awesome!! I also Sequenced using the Ensoniq Mirage. I bought a PC and a friend of mine suggested Cakewalk. I dont think it had Audio, just sequencer... Well If it did have audio I never used it. I remember having problems with it (not sure if it was cakewalk or the PC.. probably both). I then was convinced to try Logic / micrologic as a Beta tester. That had audio and it worked fairly well (Those worked on a PC back then). I remember purchasing Cakewalk again after I spent all my money on Samplers (sheez that was alot of money). I am not sure, but I think I last remember Cakewalk 8. I had been making great music using Logic or Cakewalk for many years... THEN CAME MY DEMISE... LOGIC 7.0 and PRO TOOLS. I never used a MAc before, but I had friends who told me EVERYONE is going to Logic. I bought in to the hype and spent my $1000 for logic and like $4000 for all the Protools stuff and a G4 Mac. Well suddenly I became a slave to "Hotkeys" and configurations that I dont even think Logic knew they had, constant conflicts, and the dreaded Black and White pinwheel (Mac Crash symbol). I became frustrated with the Mac / Logic that I felt like my creativity was gone. I just though I am getting older and I just cant do it anymore. I went to Dark side and became a Club Dj. No longer creating the music, but playing it. I am not saying that DJs dont have talent.. I am just saying for me Creating it made more money that Playing it. After a year of hearing about Nuendo, Sonar, and Cubase I was VERY ready top get back to a PC where I was comfortable. I remembered how much I got done with Cakewalk back in the 90s and thought I would give Sonar a try. I saw a demo of someone syncing AUDIO Tracks to MIDI tracks and I was SOLD. I have had SOnar for a bout 3 weeks now and I AM BACK to creating music!! I am creating music instead of learning how to use the software. It is VERY easy to use right out of the box. Just like to Old Cakewalk Programs of the 90s ONLY more powerful. ALSO now that I am here the FORUMS are awesome. Excellent resource. I had a question and I had 8 answers in less than 2 hours. I no longer create music for money, but I really enjoy using Sonar and will NEVER leave you again.
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TedDavid
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/06 16:17:45
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I used Cakewalk Home Studio starting back in the late 1990s, up through version 2002. My main use for it was producing audio versions of arrangements I created in the notation/sequencer program Encore in order that the musicians in my band could get some idea in rehearsal of what the arrangement should sound like. I used it occasionally to add real instrumental tracks over top of (say) the MIDI rhythm section - solos, real horns, etc. I started selling arrangements on the web and wasn't satisfied with the MIDI renditions - even though I have some reasonable H/W synth modules. So I started thinking about how to create better sounding replicas: sound fonts or samples, better software synths, better mixing and effects - anything to attract more customers. At the same time, I needed to support more external modules than my Tascam US-428 H/W would without constantly repatching I/Os, and I also wanted DAW S/W that would allow me to control the DAW via a H/W control surface. When I visited the Cakewalk site and went through the Sonar videos, my mind was made up about the DAW application to buy. I really liked all the features and was already familiar with that part of the interface that Home Studio used. It also supported H/W control by the M-Audio ProjectMix IO, which my choice of interfacing more audio inputs and could also be interfaced to MOTU's MIDIexpress XT, which gave me more MIDI inputs.
I am still learning to use this new setup, all of which I have only recently acquired, but am very pleased that the learning curve for Sonar 7 has been fairly easy. I am also pleased with the audio results that I now achieve relative to the fairly primitive and "synthetic" sounds I was getting before. All in all, Sonar is well worth the money I spent to upgrade.
TDinDC
Computer: ASUS Strriker Extreme MOBO, Pentium Quad Core 2.4GHz Processor, Windows 7 64bit, 8 GB RAM, HD for recording: 10K RPM RAID Level 5 set, 300GB Interfaces: M-Audio Project Mix IO, MIDISport 4X4, novation ReMOTE 25 SL MIDI: Korg X5DR, Korg NX5R, Roland Handsonic10 Audio: Alesis M1 Active Mk2, Yorkville NX55, Samson C-Control speaker control matrix.
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robapol
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/06 20:02:32
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I've been on and off into music for a while. I'm not that talented at either composing or playing, yet despite this I still get drawn into doing more. Started off with a Fostex 4 track recorder, then in around 2002 (I think) I bought Sonar 1 XL and haven't looked back since! For a hobbiest like me, Sonar really helps me explore and create music, even to the point where I hear what I write and to me I go wow! There I am without a musical bone in my body and I'm actually producing music! Without Sonar my music as it is now would never have been possible. My latest shortish 2 minute track is called ( Pondering) - Its still work in progress, but to be honest I'm astonished. I don't know what I'm doing (most of the time) and whilst it is no where near a professional musicians standard (they might wish to put in ear defenders) it is still something that I can take some pride in. Thank you Cakewalk for making my rambling into a muso's world so much easier. RobP
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mavafas7
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/08 17:13:26
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I started with a Atari then a pc using Cubasis. Well what I can say is that the crunch came when support from Steinberg for Cubasis became non real. I have been looking a Sonar since version 3.0 through this forum and another reviews etc... The time has come that I can have a pc that can use Sonar so Sonar PE 7 it is. If only I could use the rewire with Reason and Sonar in a 64bit o/s. I really like it on my xp32, it works beautifully. Thanks Cakewalk Peter.P.
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bezonline
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/15 15:56:43
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My story is somewhat similar to SteveJL's. I was running Steinberg Pro-24 on an Atari 1040-ST up until the time that I left England in 1991. I found the Pro-24/Atari combo to be horribly unstable. It felt more like playing an arcade game - I would have to rush through my project from creation, to midi recording, to recording onto 8 track tape in one session, as it was only a question of time before my system would crash and I would get those stupid infuriating bomb symbols on the screen (game over - thanks for playing!). Fast forward several years, now living in the U.S. and I picked up a copy of Pro Audio 9. I appreciated the stability over my last setup. A couple of years after that, I bought Sonar 2.0; I loved the easy learning curve (I was considering Logic at that time, but heard that it had a horrendous learning curve), customizable layouts and general workflow. I just purchased and installed Sonar 7 PE to get better VSTs/EQ/mastering and better control surface support. Looks great, although I haven't had time to dive into it fully yet (i'm looking forward to playing with audiosnap). I also appreciate Cakewalk's use of the "honor system" - no fancy dongles, etc. The forum also seems to be a great informational resource to learn and share; I like the idea also that Cakewalk has free instructional videos and a presence on YouTube, Myspace, etc., and that they have remained a stable presence in our market for so long. Keep up the good work - now you can have your Cake and eat it too 
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rm5700@optonline.net
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/15 17:56:50
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I used Master Tracks Pro on the Atari ST back in the late 80's while in college... they had a music course there which used that program. I didn't buy into anything for use at home till way later, the late 90's actually. I bought Guitar Tracks, (might have been GT2... can't remember!) but a while later I heard you could upgrade to Sonar for a certain amount of $$. I received Sonar 4 Studio in the mail soon after , & now I have Sonar Studio 5. Hopefully soon I'll get 7. Great support, great program, & I really like these forums which are very helpful.
Sonar X3 Producer, Toxic Biohazard IV, Rayblaster, Minimonsta, OP-X Pro II, kHS ONE, Melodyne Editor, Saurus, ElectraX, LuSH-101, Gladiator 2, Rapture, Dimension Pro, Wusikstation 7, Nemesis, impOSCar2, Sampletank2xl, SonikSynth2, Battery 3, M-Audio Oxygene 25 and Audiophile 2496 http://soundcloud.com/examigan
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norwalk
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/15 21:16:15
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well, seems like its been a long time since some one posted in this topic, but i will try to keep with the thread, anyways. The only DAW i have used was since i found electronic music was Fl . i started with 4, now im using 6, but at this point, its taking on my nerves . you cannot rely on anything from that DAW i dont know how many people still uses Fl. the audio is horrible. anyways. im finally moving. i tried to use ableton once. but i couldnt figure how to use it. even with manuals... l o l ... im trying this DAW hope it works good .. and i dont know from where to start also
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junkflesh
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/11/23 16:44:17
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i switched from cubase4 because it sucks! from the moment i got it, it was impossible to operate in.
work flow nonexsitent, the people over at the forums were absolutely mean as hell, if you were some one like me, {no degree in computers} you were made fun of, and or just made to feel inadequate.
i learned more in one month in sonar then i did in the two years on cubase
i will never switch again!
junkflesh,
aka. digger stone
SONAR 8.5.3 STUDIO/DELL e520 /2.13 DUEL CORE/4GIGS DDR2 RAM/360 GIG SATA HD @ 7200/ 500 GIG SATA HD @7200 RPM {SLAVE}/emu 1616m pci/windows 7 ULTIMATE x64 I DON'T SUFFER FROM MENTAL ILLNESS, I HAVE A REALLY GOOD TIME WITH IT! http://www2.mixposure.com/DiggerStone/
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musec07
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/07 03:18:01
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I switched to SONAR because...
I've always liked the Cakewalk mindset as to layout, quality of recording, etc...
I bought Cakewalk when it was a brand new concept hailed by PC magazine...
I used various versions through Pro Audio 9 when I finally gave up trying workarounds to help PA9 and Windoze think alike.
Things would go awry at the touch of a button often causing huge project delays...
Over time I found a combination of Cool Edit (now Audition 3), ACID Pro, FL Studio to have a combined production punch that made money for me...
I tried a demo of SONAR 3... it still had audio interface problems and GREAT GOD... all those "buttons"....
No interest until SONAR 6 came out...
I had SONAR 6 installed on the "junior" production station... I loved the look and feel.. I was simply overwhelmed with learning curves...
so I played with SONAR while still using my BIG 3 to make money...
After a lot of hand holding from a friend well versed in SONAR I decided to install the program on the main workstation....
It kept getting used albeit on non professional projects...
I just upgraded to SONAR 7... I started using all the new features "right out of the box"...
right now I'm working on a commercial music bed using the step sequencer, DimPro, Rapture, zeta3... EZ drummer and live instruments...
Maybe it's just me... the overall sound of this project using SONAR 7 is brighter, crisper and the workflow is somehow "better"...
SOON... Sonar 7 will be my main production platform for broadcast audio and video production.
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admin@djnevoc.com
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/09 13:36:32
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ORIGINAL: Russell.Whaley
I started recording music with Adobe Audition 1.5 ....
Cheers,
Russ
I started using the same program as a Radio DJ and I still use it to cut commercials. Awesome and Simple. I just started using Cake 7.0 Yesterday, because as I remix music it gets harder and harder to make tracks that don't float in Adobe. I noticed a buddy of mine using Cake and he said he liked it. So I'm giving it a shot. One thing I;ve noticed is that the videos included with the software are NOT "NEWBIE" friendly. Alot of the menus that your experts use are easily pulled up because there screens are customized... not in the default view. Also alot of terms and tricks are thrown around as if I've already used this program for years. Im sure I'll get the hang of it eventually but these are my thought after only using it for a day.
When I spin the Record.... You shake the Booty! Gateway MX6128 (1.5ghz Intel Celeron & 1GB Ram) - TTM57SL v1.8.1 RC1 - 2 CDJ-800MK2 - 2 KRK ROKIT 8" - Behringer Shark DSP110 - GXL2200 Mic - Akai MPD16 - Roland DR-880
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chiorb2
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/11 01:43:06
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I starte using cakewalk in 1987 and upgraded to cakewalk 6 for windows. I stoped using cakewalk when I purchased a firepod with Cubase LE.
LE worked but I missed some of the features I had with cakewalk. The ability to score. I also had Cakewalks Orchestrator which I crossgraded to Siblius. With cake walk I could use the score feature and if I need a more elaborate scoring I used Seblius. with Cubase LE I had to use Sibelius save it as a midi file and open it in cubase. what a hassle.
I was looking at upgrading cubase when I saw the offer for Sonar 7 Sudio and jumped on it.
The only disapointment I have is the installlation on only one computer. I use a laptop with the Firpod for remotes. then transfer that to a desktop PC atached to several synths. I also have a all in one computer that I use for internet and whatever as ideas pop up. so that is 3 computers.
Sibelius allows several computers for me alone to use.
Other than that I like Sonar.
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tarsier
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/11 09:27:58
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ORIGINAL: chiorb2
The only disapointment I have is the installlation on only one computer. I use a laptop with the Firpod for remotes. then transfer that to a desktop PC atached to several synths. I also have a all in one computer that I use for internet and whatever as ideas pop up. so that is 3 computers.
You can install Sonar on multiple machines as long as you only use it on one machine at a time.
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Infinite5ths
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/11 09:35:14
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ORIGINAL: tarsier
ORIGINAL: chiorb2
The only disapointment I have is the installlation on only one computer. I use a laptop with the Firpod for remotes. then transfer that to a desktop PC atached to several synths. I also have a all in one computer that I use for internet and whatever as ideas pop up. so that is 3 computers.
You can install Sonar on multiple machines as long as you only use it on one machine at a time.
This is absolutely true. Here is my documentation of this info, taken from a phone call to Cakewalk customer service: EULA Questions Answered by Cakewalk
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Danny Danzi
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/14 07:47:52
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Why I swtiched to Sonar:
I started on a Fostex 4-track cassette machine years ago. Upgraded to a Tascam 1/4 all in one reel system with 8 channel mixing board. From there I bought a 16 track-1 inch Tascam reel to reel with a 20x8 board from a friend. I used this for quite some time and then of course had to bump up to 24 track 2 inch. But none of these had auto-punch and it really was becoming a nightmare. I can still remember holding long sustained notes on my guitar while trying to press play/record at the same time to punch in right. LOL!! Or trying to punch in drums instrument at a time. Total nightmare that I don't miss to be honest. One day, I was in Staples and was checking out software. I saw this Cakewalk program (version 3 I believe) that sounded pretty cool. It was on floppy disk's at that time, and I loaded it up but never really messed with it much as to me it was a totally new learning curve that somewhat intimidated me.
One day a friend called me and was bragging about Cakewalk. I told him I had it too and wasn't crazy about how all this stuff was coming at me each time I opened the program and was happy with my tape stuff. He laughed at me and said "let me come over dude...by the time I leave, you'll never want to use that tape machine again!" He came over, showed me how to really use Cake, we hooked up some SMPTE as well so I could still use my tape machine along with Cake, and the rest as they say...is history. I still have my tape machines but they rarely see any action these days. Kinda taking up room but they look nice when I take the covers off them and fire them up. LOL!! God, I remember when we couldn't use effects in real time with Cakewalk. Constant "previews" and you didn't get much preview time. Cluttered newsgroups for help through outlook express at the time, and posts by members that were more entertaining than a live concert. Hahaha! Ah the goodl ole days...we sure have come a long way with this stuff. To be honest, I'm so content with Sonar 5-7 and all the gear I have, I'd be a happy man if nothing else came out after. The user group here on this forum is better than actual tech support at times because they are so vast and live this program, they don't just "use it". So my thanks to Cakewalk for where we are now and for giving us this forum...which kills the old newsgroup thing I used to use! :) For any die hard tape users still out there that are weary of taking this plunge, do it and don't look back. Once you get the learning curve down and experience what you can really do, you'll most likely lose your wife, your kids, your job and everything else in your life because it's just too darned addictive and challenging...not to mention with the right pc, nearly limit-less!
My Site Fractal Audio Endorsed Artist & Beta Tester
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ssimlai
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RE: Did you switch to SONAR? Tell us your story.
2007/12/17 00:51:04
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ORIGINAL: xianex@email.com
Switched From Voyetra's Digital Orchestrator Pro to Sonar 3.1.1
The Smartest thing I've done musically in my life.
I primarily switched to master my first album. . . PLUGINS! I love them so much I could marry them.
Afterward the entire interface and the flexibility thereof made me sonar religious!
I've tried other DAW's and nothing comes close. Even Compared to Pro-Tools Sonar Kills because of it's simplicity, non-intrusive behavior on system resources, and everything I need or want to do with it is right in my face. I love not 'having' to memorize shortcuts and drilling through crryptic icons and overloaded menus to get to special functions like the mixer, piano roll, etc . . .
I just wish Normalize was a right-click function on a track instead of being in a menu.
But that's trivial compared to all the other benefits.
woohoo!
Dapper D
Voyetra Dear friend, I am in a similar situation as you have been in the past. The only sequencer that I have any experience with is Digital Orchestrator Pro from Voyetra. And now suddenly I have landed up with a licence of Sonar 5 Producer (sorry no money so cannot upgrade any further). I fear a major learning curve from DOP to Sonar. Could you therefore please tell me as to how you learnt using Sonar and how much time you took? I have seen some courses available but again they cost a hell of a lot of money. And having used DOP for about 6 years, I thought it better to go alone. It would be great hearing from you.
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