Anderton

John
I have tried many other general purpose apps for controlling Sonar and none of them are worth the hassle. 

What about Lemur?

Well I never heard of it. I said I tried many but not all. Don't you know I'm always the last to know! 

This is an interesting thread! I am currently using TouchOSC on an Android tablet. I threw together a rather simple UI I use to control EW Hollywood Orchestra and the Sonar transport (and a few other things like zoom):

 
It isn't perfect, but it works pretty well for me. I do wish Sonar supported OSC. That way I could have Sonar update the app so things that toggle on and off would always be in the proper state.
 
As far as connectivity goes, TouchOSC has it's own endpoint client which has worked flawlessly for me. I've used rptMidi with Xotopad and that has worked well too, but it was a bit of a pain to get set up. TouchDAW doesn't provide exactly what I need. The most important feature for me is CC control. The transport and other controls are just a convenience so I don't need to reach for the mouse or keyboard. I know this is a different use case from many or most other users but thought I would throw it out as an option.
 
That said, a dedicated Sonar app would be something I would be interested in. And as I said before, I'd like to see Sonar support OSC.
 
Dave

John
No Paul. After using the Studio One remote for Windows and touch its clear to me that an app designed for the job is the proper way to do this.  In the picture I posted I only showed one screen. There are others that control all sorts of things. From sends to FX to in and outs. It has very little to no documentation yet its very intuitive and easy to use. Only an app that is thoughtfully created to do the single job of remotely controlling a powerful DAW is going to do the job properly. That is what Studio One Remote is. 
 
I have tried many other general purpose apps for controlling Sonar and none of them are worth the hassle. 

I agree entirely with John on this. Once you have used a remote on a piece of software or device that has it's control protocols well implemented you realise how incredibly useful this can be.
 

Anderton

John
I have tried many other general purpose apps for controlling Sonar and none of them are worth the hassle. 

What about Lemur?

Lemur is certainly as close as you are going to come. It is a superb piece of software written by some very creative programmers, but here's the rub. There is only one template for Sonar, and even it seems to have stopped development a couple of years ago (I think it was designed for X2). It has great integration of basic things like transport and fader control and seems to have the connection problems that plagued other platforms reasonably sorted. That said, through no fault of it's own, it stops well short of working completely, as does every controller ever written/designed for Sonar. You cant, for example, access any parameters beyond the first pro channel  module inserted on any track. Even the manual for Sonars Lemur template states that the reason for the shortcomings is not Lemur - it is the control implementation in Sonar. It doesn't matter how good the software sending the messages is if the software receiving them receiving can't use them. Studio One was written from the ground up only a few years ago when remote control of apps and devices was in full swing. Sonar has been developed over a much longer period. I am only guessing, but I suspect it may be a massive job to rewrite its control.  It is certainly an area of growing interest though that I imagine the bakers are well aware of. Once you have used software or hardware that does this well it is hard to forget.
 
On the other side of the fence, something like the introduction of the Pro Chanell or patch points and aux tracks would completely mess with anything that might have worked up to that point . I certainly wouldn't trade those for remote control. I suspect Sonars control issues have been around a little longer than that though:)

tenfoot
I agree entirely with John on this. Once you have used a remote on a piece of software or device that has it's control protocols well implemented you realise how incredibly useful this can be.

 
What could be more useful than having complete Sonar at your work position ?

Paul P

tenfoot
I agree entirely with John on this. Once you have used a remote on a piece of software or device that has it's control protocols well implemented you realise how incredibly useful this can be.

 
What could be more useful than having complete Sonar at your work position ?

Control apps go way beyond just walking away from the mixing position Paul,  though in many circumstances this is a very handy thing to do.  They are about customisation and controlling your work flow. A lot of people also use Sonar outside of the studio.  I wrote a lengthy post about the use of remote apps in live performance previously so I won't bang on  again.  I predict that one day in the future when you are sitting in your studio surrounded by bespoke little screens of controls that you have designed you will laugh at your last post Paul :) 

DRanck
This is an interesting thread! I am currently using TouchOSC on an Android tablet. I threw together a rather simple UI I use to control EW Hollywood Orchestra and the Sonar transport (and a few other things like zoom):

 
 
 

Great job Dave! A good example of one of the best assets of remote control; the ability to have our own performance and editing preferences right where we need them - and off the screen!

John

Anderton

John
I have tried many other general purpose apps for controlling Sonar and none of them are worth the hassle. 

What about Lemur?

Well I never heard of it. I said I tried many but not all. Don't you know I'm always the last to know! 

So I was only second last? A vast improvement on my usual position!

Obviously, I completely agree with Bruce. Its an eye opener to work seamlessly with an app so designed to interface with your DAW in a simple and at the same time deep level that other solutions become more annoyances than useful. 
 
I can see that its possible to create a universal app dedicated to controlling a DAW remotely but I believe an app meant to work with a specific DAW will be the best solution. One point that I think is not clear.  What was really fantastic about using the Studio One Remote app besides its instant response is that I did nothing to connect it. It found SO3 on its own. If there is no connection to use it goes into demo mode to show how it works.
 
This sort of simplicity is due to it being dedicated to work in one way with one DAW. It is not meant to be a universal controller for all DAWs. Nor is it for remote controlling a desktop. It just works.     

Summarizing and clarifying a few comments earlier in this thread:
 
V-Control Pro is still free and runs on an iPad.  It is stable and controls the transport and arming tracks very well.
 
V-Control Pro 2 is, as mentioned, a yearly subscription and requires iLok.  One reason for getting it is that it includes V-Console that runs on an iPhone, again for transport and arming control.  The website lists DAWs that are supported and SONAR is not currently one of them (it is planned).  However, I spent some time communicating with their Support and was able to get V-Console to work fine with SONAR on the iPhone.  The problem is the settings would not save, so I'm still waiting for the supported version that can be loaded once.
 
Each of these apps is a specially-designed screen to provide control of SONAR (or some other DAW) and as such are easy to see and use.  The few times I've experimented with remote control of the PC, the screen is so hard to read and so difficult to select individual items that I find it useless.
 
I also am a former user of the Frontier Design Tranzport, a nifty device in its day that was abandoned, software-wise.  The app approach on an iPad is so superior to the Tranzport that I abandoned the Tranzport long before the company abandoned me.
 

riojazz
Summarizing and clarifying a few comments earlier in this thread:
 
V-Control Pro is still free and runs on an iPad.  It is stable and controls the transport and arming tracks very well.
 
V-Control Pro 2 is, as mentioned, a yearly subscription and requires iLok.  One reason for getting it is that it includes V-Console that runs on an iPhone, again for transport and arming control.  The website lists DAWs that are supported and SONAR is not currently one of them (it is planned).  However, I spent some time communicating with their Support and was able to get V-Console to work fine with SONAR on the iPhone.  The problem is the settings would not save, so I'm still waiting for the supported version that can be loaded once.
 

V control pales when compared to Lemur IMHO. One off cost of $25, completely customisable and works flawlessly on either Android or IOS. Also has templates to control most anything.