Which version of SONAR for my computer illiterate buddy

I use Producer 8.5.3 but my friend wants me to fix him up with a SONAR system. He took one look at mine and was totally confused. Is there a SONAR version that is a little more beginner friendly but still has enough bells and whistles to allow him to make decent music on? A version with instruments and effects but not so technically unfriendly to the amateur user?

Thanks for any advise. I have only used the pro stuff so I am not very familiar with the other SONAR products.

Djjhart is correct. Get 8.5.3 Producer or Studio and learn it. There are so many resources out right now, that it makes learning sonar easy.
Cj

Speaking as someone not all that computer savy, the non-music-making parts of this whole thing are the most daunting. What I mean are things like loading software and sound cards and audio interfaces and latency and bad power supplies and problem plugins...That sort of thing. These types of issues will be that same no matter what version of Sonar your friend tries. The actual Sonar stuff is not all that hard to figure out, read about or get forum advice about...Which leads me to say that having a good forum to turn to might play into the decision making process. Also, you don't NEED to use every feature in Sonar. I read about stuff all the time in the forums that cause me to say to myself "Hey - I didn't know I could do that!". 

Cakewalk Pro Audio???

nprime

daveny5


None. If you are computer illiterate, you will struggle with Sonar. Get something else, like a cassette recorder.

Seriously, if you don't know computers and Windows, don't know how to plug in a microphone, never used a tape recorder, or don't know how to hookup speakers, you will be miserable using Sonar.

That is the correct answer.

+1
 
The above didn't even mention audio interfaces, midi, USB or anything that users at a "Producer's" level would need to know just to understand what is going on.
 
Brian

Weren't we all computer and software illiterate at one time? And some still are... J/K...LOL  I say get producer and jump right in and start learning about this new world of digital recording
Cj

Just get 8.5.3 producer and pay me 50/hour to teach you. Youll be a champ!

Just get one of the Home Studio products... or even Music Creator 5, which you can download for $35 (or buy the boxed version for additional content). Gives you a basic DAW environment with some FX and instruments   
 
+1

I know it's not Sonar so don't shoot me, but having used Presonus Studio one it struck me as a DAW aimed at non tech-savvy people.  Easy to set up and use, and it's lack of features wouldn't be a draw back for someone learning from scratch.

I would get the tutorial video, especially if it's only a couple of quid. Most DAWs follow a similar path but I wouldn't call any of them intuitive. Getting set up is the most unintuitive part of any DAW but thankfully most companies have tried to make this as painful as possible by offering very little guidance. This is changing, albeit slowly.

DAWs are about concepts. Once you get the concept of each part then it's not too bad. Set up. Ins and Outs. Audio. Midi. Tracks. Busses. Mixing and the million other things you need to know.

He'll soon get the hang of it. To me, the worst part is just getting it all to work. There's more variables than grains of sand.

Sonar 8.5.3 will do beginner level work. Your freind hasn't gotten past the first look at the GUI. He would have the same problem with Home Studio or Music Creator. This is a user intensive art. Meaning you have to learn it in steps no matter what version you get. And then there is the computer connection. He will have to learn how to make it work in the computer, so he will have to learn a bit about the computer also.
Then there's the interface equipment. He will have to learn how equipment hooks up to computer, converters, etc.
He wants you to "hook him up", which means, he wants a plug and play recording system that doesn't require any additional learning.
Not gonna happen.

I started out w/ Guitar Studio 2. 

I knew sweet nothing about computers and midi back then - I was more of an analog tape sort of guy - my expertise w/ computers was strictly limited to typing texts on the old Mac Plus.

Got the PC and Guitar Studio - and read the whole manual from cover to cover twice before I even installed the software. Granted I read fast, but, still, that (taking time to read the manual) is one of the best investments I have ever made. It still pays off to this day.

A few months later I upgraded to Pro Audio.  Though things were a bit more sophisticated, the basic concept remained the same, and even better, most of the time, they translated whenever I demo'ed or worked w/ other audio applications, from Cubase, to Logic to Pro Tools. Point being that, no matter the GUI, the basic core principles are usually the same for the most part - even more within the Cakewalk products range - and your buddy will have to learn that stuff eventually. 

Of course, over the years, I've learned a lot more about building and maintaining computers than I initially intended to, but that good old manual that Cakewalk put together was pretty much the starting point of it all, and provided me w/ the tools and the basic language I needed to get used to in order to learn more.

Bristol_Jonesey


If he's that computer illiterate then surely the only way to go is to buy a pre-configured DAW from one of the reputable guys who frequent this forum.

Ayt least he'll be able to just switch it on and start learning Sonar, without having to worry about the technical side of Windows, PC's, hardware etc.

And in the event of a problem, he'll also have access to dedicated support who will talk him through all the necessary steps to resolving it.

+100,000,01

That's the best way to start off, because even someone who has good computer knowledge but is new to setting up a DAW will find it a little tricky; installing, drivers, software, settings. 

Won't matter if he is using Sonar Producer or Home Studio or Studio One, there is a learning curve with all DAW's and to be honest Sonar's setup is one of the most logical and simple to do once you get past the basics (getting started - Please see thread; 'Get Started' - video tutorials).

As Bristol said;  Get someone who is a reputable DAW builder (include purchase of audio-interface and software (Sonar) in the deal)!!

He gets a custom built computer, tweaked for optimal music production, installation of drivers, configure (settings), install software (SONAR), configure (settings), test, retest, everything running rock solid. Oh yeah baby :)

That way, all he has to do when it arrives on his doorstep is to plug in the audio interface, turn it all on and he's ready to start recording right away.  Can't get much more easier than that. 

* I also strongly recommend he gets to know all the settings (don't touch, just take notes), and watch the video tutorials, and do a clone backup of the whole PC before diving in.

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