A few weeks ago I learned how to use Preferences > Customization > Display > Base Octave for Pitches to make notes display at the correct octave.  Today when I wanted to change a Kick drum from C2 to B1, which are right beside each other on the keyboard, the B1 is displayed as Cb2.  No one ever refers to B as Cb, lol.  So I'm wondering two things:
 
1. Why in the world is it doing that? (first time it's happened)
2. How do I make it right?

Pretty much everybody refers to B as Cb in the keys of Gb and Cb. Not saying that is your problem but what is the key signature for that track?

What key is the piece in?

It's a MIDI track, and for drum notes I've never in 20+ years of MIDI programming seen the Kick drum note labeled as Cb.  It's either C2 or B1 (depending on the octave setting).  The song is in C, so in any case the note should be called B.
 
 

It sounds like the changes you made in preferences are forcing the note to be named Cb. If you undo your changes does it return to being a B?

jyoung60
The song is in C ...

Yes, but is Sonar in C ?  Main menu ->  Views / "Meters/Key"
 

Paul P
Yes, but is Sonar in C ?  Main menu ->  Views / "Meters/Key"

Ahaaa!  That was the culprit!  And I learned another new thing about Sonar. :-D
 
Is this something the MIDI file might have done?  It's not one that I created, but I also don't see any SysEx in it. And to my knowledge I've done nothing to change that setting (maybe hitting a shortcut by mistake?)

jyoung60
...Is this something the MIDI file might have done?  It's not one that I created, but I also don't see any SysEx in it...

 
This wouldn't surprise me. Imported midi files often seem to do weird and unexpected things.

It's all to do with the limitations of presenting notes on the traditional stave, where 11 pitches are competing for 7 positions, and the way the key signature is used to settle the contention. This means that, depending upon the key signature is use, A natural can be rendered as A or G double-sharp (conventionally notated as G followed by a stylised x) or B double-flat (conventionally notated with two flat signs). To complicate matters slightly, Sonar only allocates 1 character space for the spelling, so the pitch typically known as A 4, say, is rendered as A 4 or Gx4 or B"4 depending upon the key signature in force at that point, except in the Staff view where they are rendered pretty much as a "real" musician's manuscript would do it.
 
Too much information, did you say?

ChristopherM
It's all to do with the limitations of presenting notes on the traditional stave, where 11 pitches are competing for 7 positions, and the way the key signature is used to settle the contention. This means that, depending upon the key signature is use, A natural can be rendered as A or G double-sharp (conventionally notated as G followed by a stylised x) or B double-flat (conventionally notated with two flat signs). To complicate matters slightly, Sonar only allocates 1 character space for the spelling, so the pitch typically known as A 4, say, is rendered as A 4 or Gx4 or B"4 depending upon the key signature in force at that point, except in the Staff view where they are rendered pretty much as a "real" musician's manuscript would do it.
 
Too much information, did you say?

I'm familiar with music theory (despite my sightly errant remark about no one referring to B as Cb - that was just a generalization).  The issue was resolved when Paul P showed me how to change the settings in Sonar to make it right.