Possible return from exile (self-imposed)?

Well.. haven't been around here in a while.. Had a "difference of opinion" on the direction Cakewalk took with the X series coming from 8.5.3 which I still like and use ..after trying PT, Reaper and currently demoing Cubase 7.
 
From a distance.. I kind of kept my ear to the ground regarding the X-series as I thought it would take a few versions to "cook it up" a bit better.. A friend and colleague of mine put a bug in my ear that I might want to check out X3 as he (like me) was in a self imposed exile but.. says he is a fan of X3.. That is saying something as he was more disappointed (and vocal about it) than i was! I have been looking at some of the videos and I have to say .. It looks pretty cool.. been perusing the forum for the last couple of days and I also think it seems a whole lot better than those days when X1 first appeared.. painful  
 
Couple of questions and/or concerns maybe someone can answer to an "old timer" stuck in the past :)
 
I work in the Console view a lot - Has it improved.. can you still only view 2 sends at a time?
Been reading about UAD compatibility issues - is this resolved with the recent patches?
MCU integration - Has this gotten better?.. Still stuck on physical faders :)
The real biggie for me - Automation - Lots of automation has always been an issue for me since S5 - is this better now?
 
Some things that I didn't get at first but now I think I are pretty cool - Spotlight/Multidock .. I get it now :)
Prochannel - maybe not crazy about the implementation but I do like what it brings to the table
Color Customization..finally!!
 
Anyway - Before I go the X3 way just checking.  I got the upgrade special for X2 for $49.00. Not very stable for me but I don't want to make a decision based on that as I am moving to 64 bit host..told ya .. I am a Dino! 
 
I use a lot of hardware compressors, eq and reverbs in my studio and I still say that Sonar's External Insert integration is the best of any daw I have tried and that includes PT and C7 from what I can tell and hence why I still work with 8.5 to this day. Cubase seems cool but I don't want to have to go down that road if I don't have to..
 
Curious to hear - Would love to "come home"
 
 Peace

I have been looking to upgrade to Sonar X-3b also.  In fact I will be upgrading tomorrow.  I too have been watching and reading posts on this website. Most are saying that this version of Sonar is the most stable yet.  I have not had a lot of problems with X-2, but I wanted to make sure that I was not going to upgrade to a nightmare.  I also look at this upgrade like this:  It is only $149.00.  It is not a great deal of money compared to buying a $3,500.00 hardware synth and hating it.   If I don't like it, I can always just launch X-2.  The grass seems to always be greener on the other side and there is a tendancy to want to try a lot of other DAWS.   If you read other forums, you will see that no matter what DAW someone is discussing, some people always have negative things to say about it.  At this point I really don't want to switch to another DAW.  Learning another DAW along with the $$ involved is not something I want to do.  Sonar X-2 does what I need it to do and does it well.   I like Sonar, and learning it well and there is really no reason to change.

I jumped ship to Cubase 7, but ONLY for it's video handling and it's cross platform compatibility (I score to pic). If you already have the dongle (which I assume since you are running the demo), C7 is worth a serious look. If X3 is as stable as X2a, you can't go wrong either. If X3c pulls it's act together for use fim composers, C7 might end up back on my bookshelf.

D K
Cool.. I am intrigued ..and hopeful.. to say the least... I'll see what others have to say as well as reading more..no hasty decisions for me at this point as I am stable and working well
 
..on a different note .. I am seeing lots of "old heads" around here .. looks like there may be more than a few "exiles" looking back over their shoulder.. That is a very good thing in my opinion :)
 
 

Totally agree. All were missed. Its a lot like the prodigal son returning. But its always good to see old friends. 

+1 to Sycraft
 
There was a nice post a while ago where someone had commented to essentially "learn a DAW and continue learning." Nothing is perfect, so you will always run into things that you do not expect, appreciate, or understand, as well as find things you want to see. From my personal experience, X3b has been very stable and many of the features in the X series are impressive (I only had 7 pro prior to X1).
 
In all honesty, one of the biggest reasons I have been loyal to SONAR for so long is this forum and its members. I am not a professional, and even when I ask the most rudimentary (i.e. stupid) question, real professionals will answer them.
 

Yes this forum really shines (by a vast majority of time) on the helpfulness of peer to peer networking.
 
On the 'X' series: They have all been stable for me. I did have some issues but they were largely my misunderstanding. Once I solved it I was always good to go. Fortunately the problems were fairly easy to solve and when I couldn't solve them there was always this forum.
 
On the sends AFAIK it is still stuck on 2. The issues with UAD that I recall were solved some months back although to be fair I have stopped using UAD. Can't comment on MCU. I think the change in automation editing going from pre 'X' series to 'X' are largely (though not entirely) one of having to relearn or understand how it is supposed to work. I haven't been having problems of late although in X1 I was going batty for a week or so.
 
I'm in a position where I use other DAWs (Cubase for its video, Live for sketching out ideas) but I can say that Sonar is 'still the one' for me.
 
I would recommend waiting for Cakewalk providing a demo version of X3 and then taking it for spin. Personally I think you'll like it.
 
Regards,