OK I'm choosing to post here in Bit's thread as opposed to posting upstairs ...
I like Dave and I'm glad he started this thread .
 
First , real quick ...I picked up Mixcraft 7 Pro last year when it was on Sale .
Then I upgraded to Mixcraft 8 Pro about 4 or 6 months ago ...
I need to say that and get that out of the way because I was not under any emotional distress or panic to find a replacement DAW for SONAR 
 
Having said that I have found Mixcraft Pro 8 to be wonderful DAW that I d happen to enjoy working with ..
I am very happy I bought it and I treat it as it's own Entity / DAW
I do not claim to be an expert using it by any stretch , yet I do enjoy using this DAW ...
I have no affiliation w the company and my only hope is to post a few quick things here and there that I have found out using Mixcraft 8 ...did I mention before that I'm very happy w the program
 
 
Lets start here ,

kitekrazy1
No real browser that points to your own folders

With Mixcraft 7 that may have been the case . With Mixcraft 8 you can populate your Library / Media browser by hitting the + Add folder button . After  searching your HD for your chosen folders and media it is pretty simple to have the location saved ...
 

 
Audio Tracks have a built in Chromatic Tuner . To access the tuner you Arm the track and then hit the tuning fork icon ...

As simple as it is I love having a Chromatic Tuner readily available to keep my Guitars and Bass in tune  ...
 
Instrument / Midi tracks have the ability to stack synths on the chosen track ....
I happen to like this option because I can stack synths to make interesting layers , also it makes it super easy to audition the various synth sounds and patches on the fly as the song is playing   
( BTW Reaper also does this )
In this picture I am running 3 synths . The little check box under where it says instruments determines what is running ...check the box the synth runs , uncheck the box the synth is out ...
One can control the respective volumes of the synth from the GUI of the synth itself when running multiple instances of synths .

 
The Editor under the sounds tab is very easy to work with . When you double click an audio clip it will look like this .

When you engage the Melodyne tab it will open up to this view

The Melodyne integration is so simple and deep even a dummy like me can use it 
 
The Performance Panel in my pic is not populated w clips since I'm trying to show a couple of Mixcraft 8 features real fast over here ...everything I'm showing pic wise in this thread are quick screen shots I have taken as I write this post ...

For those of you that have or have used Ableton Live , P 5 or use SONAR's Matrix view , you may find this feature to be a welcome addition ...
It is much easier to use than The SONAR Matrix View and it reminds me of a cross between P 5 and Ableton Live .
In my case I liked it so much that I started using it over P5 since Mixcraft 8 is 64 bit ...
I also have Ableton Live 9 intro ...I'm not saying this is better than Ableton Live 9 , What  I am saying is  in my case I have gotten very decent results using Mixcraft 8 as a poor mans Ableton Live style DAW ...for me to bump up my version of Live to standard would cost me close to $ 300 ....I know they are having a Sale ...the thing is I have been able to squeeze a lot of mileage out of the Performance Panel that comes with Mixcraft 8 ....
as all things in life YMMV .
 
The Omni sampler is pretty nice IMHO. In this pic I took a whole musical phrase and converted/ mapped them it into musical slices ...
Using Midi I rearranged a few notes around to come up with a variation....funny thing is I like the variation better than the source material ..

 
I hope someone gets something out of this post . Happy day after Thanks giving .
 
all the best,
 
Kenny
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Thanks, Kenny. Good stuff.
 
If you don't mind sharing, what is it about the Performance  Panel or Mixcraft itself that you like better than Ableton? Is it just easier to use?

Thanks Kenny, useful information.
 
I am trying the demo of Mixcraft and I am finding it quite nice albeit I understand the comments from reginaldStjohn. It has come a long way since I tried version 5 but it's not as deep as Splat. Then again I might be missing something as I am only on day 2 of the demo.
 
Is it possible to do the equivalent of the CTRL-SHIFT drag thing in Sonar to stretch/shrink audio? I use this a lot to fine tune alignment of doubled tracks as VocalSync usually doesn't work as well as I would like.
 
I was also unable to find a way to route the output of a MIDI track to Harmony Evo inserted on an Audio track or to change an existing instrument track to not play an instrument but send its MIDI to a different track. Also I noticed that the drop down to enable MIDI input on the Harmony Evo (HE) UI is missing (there's no way I can see to select it). However, when I play my MIDI keyboard with the audio track selected HE does its thing and generates harmonies. 
 
The demo also did not pick up my full version of Melodyne Editor so it does not appear on the audio editor menu bar as shown in Kenny's post above or in the manual. 
 
I think that I have pretty much decided to stick with SPlat for now and pass on Mixcraft. I already have backups in place when I need them...Studio One Pro 3, Cubase Elements 9 (upgrade to 9.5 is £17) and Reaper. 

telecharge
Thanks, Kenny. Good stuff.
 
If you don't mind sharing, what is it about the Performance  Panel or Mixcraft itself that you like better than Ableton? Is it just easier to use?

 
Cool Beans telecharge .
 
My reference about Mixcraft was that it has a decent Performance Panel that I definitely like much better than SPlats Matrix View ...
I was an early adapter of Project 5 ( 2006 ) and I still to this day think that Project 5  runs rings around what they did with SONAR's Matrix view and P 5 style of integration ...
On one hand SONAR contains much of what P5 had ...the devs ported over much ...the thing they did not port over was the simplicity and ease of the P 5 workflow   
 
Having said that let me go w Ableton Live first ...
I have Live 9 intro . I happen to think that Ableton Live is a fantastic program ...for me to bump up to Live Standard the general upgrade price would come in at around $350 unless it was on Sale ...
I can currently bump up my Live version up to Standard since Ableton is having a sale ...for $ 250 ish I can get that and when Live 10 comes out I will also be able to get that as a courtesy since Ableton is offering this deal currently.
Long before the recent news of Gibson dropping Cakewalk I can admit to have being tempted ..This deal is still on the table and I am actually considering it because I will get Live 10 when it is available ...
One of the things I do not care about in Live is it is an either or w the views ...
example ...
Either

Or

 
Not a combination of both .
 
Mixcraft on the other hand will allow me to keep both views in sight ...the performance section including the track view ...once again I'm winging it w the pic ...the performance panel is not populated ...

the performance panel can collapse w one click so I can see my session

 
Now that might not sound like such a big deal but I came up using P 5 ...Project 5 was that simple ....
The workflow was and still is astoundingly fast  as it would be for a seasoned Live user 
 
BTW , I would post comparison screen shots of Project 5 . I would then have to swap computers to do that ...
 
Now do I think that Mixcraft 8 Pro is better than Ableton Live ...
No I wont say that but I can say that Mixcraft Pro 8 packs some very heavy tools under the hood ....all for very little money ....
The time I have spent using Mixcraft eased the pain of not having a full version of Live and I was very great full that I could get that type of workflow back w out having to spend big coin ...at least Mixcraft afforded me that  
 
In any case , I'm only here to share my experience , strength , and brain damage with you guys ....
My only real pay off here is to be hanging out w you guys in this thread and putting out a little info ....
As I said before I had picked up Mixcraft a while back and I enjoy using it ...speaking strictly for myself , I certainly feel I got more than what I paid for 
 
time for the $64,000 dollar question
Do I think that  Mixcraft 8 Pro is better than SONAR SPlat ? Honestly speaking I won't say that it is ...
We all have different needs & creative musical out looks & workflows ...one size don't fit all ...
Please remember I started using Mixcraft 7 and 8 at a time when SPlat seemed to be here for good ....
I was not under duress , I bought it because I wanted it ...I'm happy I did ...
The people from A.../ Mixcraft don't even know that I am a Mixcraft user or who the eff I am
Also To be perfectly honest , there were many things about SPlat that were overly complicated for no apparent reason that  I could justify ...In Truth , I have been looking to break away from SPlat for a long time ...
BTW I don't mean this in a negative way ....SPlat is more that I will ever need ...I always felt that I was totally behind the eight ball when it came to SPlats constantly changing learning curve ... 
If you have ever heard me play you will know that I have put in the years &  hours on my guitar even if you don't like my playing or music .
I don't always want to have to climb a Mt Everest sized learning curve just to to be able to record my guitar playing and music . It became a tug of War ...I spent more time working on learning SPlat than I did playing my guitar and creating music during a lot of my musical time ...so in that sense , for me personally I have loved my experiences using some of the simpler DAWs that are out there ...I love Mixcraft 8 Pro , I'm gonna continue using it &  when ever I play something I dig ..if I feel I want to take it to the next level I will export my dry tracks and create a SONAR Project ...I'm very used to treating my music as if I was collaborating w other people that use other DAW's
Heck some of my best musical collab mates are all figments of my imagination  
 
nice talking w you ...I do remember you asking me when I was going through a rough time if it involved way too many choices ...Yes that plays into it largely to a degree . 
 
all the best ,
 
Kenny
 

More than Sonar, I will miss the kind people of this forum that take some much time from their day, and be so helpful. Thank you Kenny, you are one of the best! I like Mixcraft a lot. I am going to try and use Sonar for as long as I can, but I am glad to know that I would also be happy using Mixcraft. 

Nice write-ups Kenny

Thanks Kenny. I have always appreciated your thorough explanations!

ZincTrumpet
Thanks Kenny, useful information.
 
I am trying the demo of Mixcraft and I am finding it quite nice albeit I understand the comments from reginaldStjohn. It has come a long way since I tried version 5 but it's not as deep as Splat. Then again I might be missing something as I am only on day 2 of the demo.
 
Is it possible to do the equivalent of the CTRL-SHIFT drag thing in Sonar to stretch/shrink audio? I use this a lot to fine tune alignment of doubled tracks as VocalSync usually doesn't work as well as I would like.
 
I was also unable to find a way to route the output of a MIDI track to Harmony Evo inserted on an Audio track or to change an existing instrument track to not play an instrument but send its MIDI to a different track. Also I noticed that the drop down to enable MIDI input on the Harmony Evo (HE) UI is missing (there's no way I can see to select it). However, when I play my MIDI keyboard with the audio track selected HE does its thing and generates harmonies. 
 
The demo also did not pick up my full version of Melodyne Editor so it does not appear on the audio editor menu bar as shown in Kenny's post above or in the manual. 
 
I think that I have pretty much decided to stick with SPlat for now and pass on Mixcraft. I already have backups in place when I need them...Studio One Pro 3, Cubase Elements 9 (upgrade to 9.5 is £17) and Reaper. 

Hi Zinc Trumpet ,
 
I will answer what little bit I can ...
Yes , I get it it ,  leaving SONAR would be a tough one .
In all fairness a few hours trying out a demo , means theres only so much info about a new DAW that can be digested in such a small amount of time  ....
 
Yes you can Time stretch the audio using the exact method you mentioned ...in my screen captures there was a little double hand that is not showing ....
Yes, using Ctrl shift works just like in SONAR
 
first pic un-stretched audio

second pic , stretched audio , in this case the audio plays at a slower tempo 

third pic , shrunk audio , notice the time line  ...audio plays faster

 
If you are on a Mixcraft 8 demo , I have no idea if it will allow you to incorporate your melodyne or not ..
sorry I just don't know ...the Mixcraft forum may have the answer to that ....good luck
 
BTW, thanks for the kind words
 
Kenny
 
PS , Reapers time stretch ability while keeping pitch is with out equal 

bwbalint
Thanks Kenny. I have always appreciated your thorough explanations!

+1 You da man, Kenny!

Hey Kenny, I tried the Mixcraft demo earlier this year, on your recommendation.  I do see where you are coming from.
 
I got Project 5 back in the day, when it first launched, like you did.  I also had a full version of Ableton Live, but for the same reasons you point out, that 'either/or' Live interface never really jived with me.
 
After Cakewalk killed off P5, and moved a few features into Sonar, never really saw the Sonar Matrix View as having the same workflow as P5 with the Groove Matrix.  Pulling that view away from the linear track timeline is just not very inspirational for me.
 
One thing I observed last year after watching a Bitwig video, it had seemed that their devs were also on the same page as P5 was, by putting their clip launcher alongside the linear track arrangement timeline, instead of doing it like Live on a separate view.
 
So yes, in that sense Mixcraft also has a much more familiar layout. Plus the media browser is very good, and combining that with the Performance Panel, you have a great workflow for working with loops or clips.
 
I think Mixcraft would make a solid choice, especially as a secondary DAW, for sketching out song ideas.