jpaul
Thanks all, that's all very helpful. I'll likely upgrade before the end of August.
 
Is the license still only for one install? I.e., if we want to ever take it on the road, we can only install on a laptop (no laptop + desktop but limited to 1 session-at-a-time license like Adobe?)

Not so... It never was. It's perfectly legit to install on multiple machines as long as you're the only one using it and only using one machine at any given time...

Hey jpaul - just wanted to throw another vote in for "do it".  I just came from a similar spot where I haven't really used my DAW in a while and had X3 Producer.  Since I was able to see the additions over the past 2.5 years since I updated last, I found enough value in that for the lifetime update to be worthwhile.  Now I look forward to the additional changes that will come down the road.  A few things that stuck out for me:
 
TH3 Cakewalk Edition, Application themes (color), fixes and performance improvements, Melodyne improvements (that don't work for me at the moment due to a Celomony issue), the free Addictive Drums kits (even though I have a very capable Roland e-drum kit (in my profile pic), the additional synths like updated Lounge Lizard, the Analog Session synth, new things (I think) in the ProChannel, and others.
 
I have been playing around with the new version for the last week and I've not yet even touched a bunch of stuff - still trying to get back "into it".
 
Hope that helps push you down the road to new inspiration like it has me.

I KNOW you would favor Platinum over X3.

 
I certainly don't prefer Platinum, because of these bugs which exist in Platinum but not earlier versions:
 
1) http://forum.cakewalk.com/Piano-Roll-grey-and-white-gridlines-get-misaligned-Sonar-Premium-m3357021.aspx
 
2) http://forum.cakewalk.com/Piano-Roll-Show-all-or-some-note-velocities-if-no-or-some-notes-selected-m3403432.aspx
 
You might want to wait until those bugs (and any other Platinum-specific bugs that have been reported on the forum) are fixed.  As of 1 June, Cakewalk is allegedly focusing on making existing customers happy, which means adding back customisation and fixing bugs.  If I were you I would wait a bit to see if they follow through with that.  Don't wait too long, though, as the lifetime updates offer goes away 31 August.
 
So my suggestion is: wait until mid-August before deciding whether to purchase Platinum.  There should be an update or two between now and then.  Keep a close eye on the forum, to see if bug fixes and customisation are indeed being prioritised.  If they are, then get Platinum.  If, on the other hand, Cakewalk continues to pump out new features (which are marketing bullet points) rather than fixing existing features (which does not aid marketing), then you might want to consider another DAW.
 
In other words, give Cakewalk 2 months to follow through with their pledge to fix problems.  Give them time to prove or disprove whether their pledge to improve the robustness and customisability of their products is legitimate or just lip service.

Having upgraded from X2... b? I have to say I couldn't wait any longer. This has been one of the best and most memorable update experiences of my 25+ year career in music technology! :)
 
Thank you Cakewalk!!
 

Moogfan
Having upgraded from X2... b? I have to say I couldn't wait any longer. This has been one of the best and most memorable update experiences of my 25+ year career in music technology! :)
 
Thank you Cakewalk!!
 

You make a great point moogfan. I too would say that I have not seen any production software come as far as Sonar has in the past 18 months.