Hi,
 
old time Cakewalk user.
 
trying out Sonar Artist. Looks good.
 
i've been having trouble with "cheaper" open-source DAWS - wanted to try the tried-and-true again.
 
I just want to make sure the intermittent hissing with the Demo is because it is the Demo.
 
i'm a little gun-shy at this point with software.
Running Quad Core I7, 1tb SSD, 16gb ram, Win 8.1
Scarlett 18i8 interface.
 
thanks!

Instead of playing the demo why not record something audio and leave some quiet space. 
Then try inserting a soft synth etc. 
I've never loaded the demos but possibly they were not recorded very well. 
There should be no hiss coming from any DAW. that's not even possible really. The hiss can only be from the audio signal chain. A DAW only records what is input. And it doesn't even have anything to do with most of that. Your audio interface and the drivers do the real work. 
Plug ins could certainly add noise but I've never had that experience with any of the stuff that comes with Cakewalk when used properly. 
 

i wasn't playing the demo.
it was just sitting idle.
i went ahead and started a subscription.
 
looks really good. what i did record was a snap and sounded great.
 
i will post after activation.

I don't know much about the Sonar demo, but I have had a couple of VST plugins revert to demo mode that create an intermittent hiss. It nearly drove me to madness until I tracked it down! If you are using any plugins, see if they are in demo mode and if taking them out gets rid of the interference.

Oh so sounds like the hiss was coming from your audio engine being activated. When you load Sonar the Audio engine starts and if your system is up loud, ya, there can be a hiss. Depends on the audio interface, usb, monitors, grounding ,,, a lot of things. 

oh, i see the misunderstanding.
i meant the TRIAL version - not just a demo song, if that's what you thought.
 

ok.
 
just got the real deal loaded.
works great.
 
had to have been just a trial annoyance thing with the hiss.
MAN!
 
i have been struggling with other DAWS. Sonar sure has come a long way.
sounds fantastic!
 
love the new interface too.
 
thanks for bearing with me.
 

tenfoot
 but I have had a couple of VST plugins revert to demo mode that create an intermittent hiss.

I was thinking this as well.  I know some Meldaproduction plugins will produce intermittent white noise if they lapse to demo mode