I 'm finding out a very interesting thing about SONAR . It really works great at cleaning up some of the musical messes of songs I've made while using other fully featured name brand DAW's ...(both on PC and Mac ...)
Folks I kid you not,
 
Kenny
 
 

I started of using some sony product that was in my local music store, I found it be very complicated and trying to get information or help was a no go.
 
I bought X1 essential not doing any research on it and picked up the basics with in an 1 hour or so. I have since upgraded each time a new version has come out and must say this is the most stable version I have used.
 
Many of my friends that are also musicians have used it and some are now fellow cakewalk users as they find it easy to use and enjoy the easy work flow.
 
Not only should we be giving the bakers a well deserved pat on the back but also out fellow forum members for making this forum a brilliant source of information and a welcoming place to ask any questions.

Been using Sonar as my sole DAW for years. Started with Home Studio 2002, and am now running Platinum. I can't imagine using something else. I did try Reaper, but didn't like it at all. Most, if not all, of my musical peers use Apple-based DAWs (Logic, Cubase, Reaper etc.), but I love Sonar, warts and all. I find I can just get things done.

Anderton
 
Hey, well at least it's better than the days when people would advertise their "Pro Tools Studio!" and when the clients were gone, quietly transfer the files over to SONAR for mixing and editing...

That cuts to the quick of the "problem." Everyone who can afford the extra words in a yellow pages ad for their studio will try to get "Pro Tools" in there somehow. Has anyone seen a "Sonar studio" advertised? I would hate to see Cakewalk squander resources on advertising their product to try to displace Pro Tools in that market. Advertising simply will not work. In the past week I have seen (or fast forwarded over) hundreds of TV and print ads for various automobiles. I can not remember a single one for Rolls Royce. Has anyone here never heard of Rolls Royce?
 
"Pro Tools is the professional DAW" is a meme, not a slogan. Like "global warming is a hoax," it does not have to survive critical evaluation to influence people. The wannabe Dr. Dres out there who think they are ready for the leap from Fruity Loops to the Big Machine and have enough money for the trip are not likely to move to Sonar, even though it might fit them better. They dream that while sweeping the floor in a two thousand dollar an hour studio, the Big Man Producer will have a stroke and the band will sit them down at the console in front of a Pro Tools installation so that they can save the album. The kids who fork out thirty grand for tuition at a Music College are not going to be happy when the text and materials list requires them to buy Sonar for their production classes for similar, but less nakedly expressed, reasons. 
 
Word of mouth is probably not going to move a lot of Sonar, because the user base consists largely of nerds with bedroom studios who do not talk to anyone anyway. Anyone who is a secret user of Sonar, as in your example, is not likely to tell Billboard about it in an interview. 
 
Do not get me wrong. I have looked enough to know that, for what I do, Sonar is a far better choice than Pro Tools. I expect it would be for many owners and users of other DAW's as well. But the question is about why such an excellent product has such a limited presence in the public mind. I do not think that "problem" is something Cakewalk can solve with money.
 
 

I'm a prominent field recorder in my circle. I imagine this true for many of us. Several people I know have bought or upgraded their sonar software just to be able to work with my projects of their bands after I was done.

Some of them got attached.

Many of them just watch as we peer-mix. It sells itself when in the hands of a super user.

That said, when they buy sonar, I don't ship with it. They find themselves without a dedicated engineer who has rack gear and a nice Mic locker.

I've been touting the wonderfullness of Cakewalk products since the 80s. Did a brief stint trying to use ProTools around 2005-2007. Only because I moved my studio out of my home and tried getting more people in as clients and thought we should be more compatible because all we got from potential clients was, "You got Pro Tools?"
Boy, was that ever a foray into "Painintheassville." Multiple issues with Pro Tools. So much so that I sent a letter into EQ Mag in response to an article about Pro Tools and got the attention of the guys at Cakewalk. They appreciated it.
 
Anyway, I'm really hoping Gibson appreciates the quality product they have and that they continue the exemplary work on it along with the responsive customer support. Thanks!

cowboydan
Sonar has come a long way with the Sonar X line up to the Platinum version. Along the way have won a few rewards for accomplishment. I think that Sonar is one of the best DAWs, if not the best DAW. 
It seems that after all these accomplishments that more people would know about Sonar, but it seems that the message has not been getting out. When I say that I use Sonar as my Daw of choice, they all give me a funny look. They say what kind of Daw is that? Who makes it? 
After all this time you would think that Sonar should be at least up in the top three.
I was wondering what everyone on the forum thinks about that?
Curiosity killed the cat , but here goes.

 
I think that there are some very simple reasons as to why Sonar doesn't have the popularity that some other DAWs have.  The main reason is Sonar's marketing and promotion.  This is not meant to be a criticism of Cakewalks marketing department at all because I'm referring Sonar's free marketing and promotion that comes from it's users.  I know that may sound crazy,  but just bear with me for a moment....
 
If someone were interested in buying a DAW for the first time,  what would they do?  In today's world most people would go online and maybe Google it.  After reading through various websites and reviews they may come to a somewhat informed conclusion and decision,  but when they get tired of reading,  and they may actually want to see their possible choice in action,  they'll probably head over to youtube.   If you were to go to youtube right now,  and search for the term "Sonar"  the first page of search results will be videos about "Sound Navigation and Ranging".  There are a few results about Cakewalk's Sonar,  but most of those results are actually videos that are made by Cakewalk themselves.  There's not much in the way of Sonar users posting videos of them using Sonar.  If you actually do a search for "Cakewalk Sonar" you get a different set of results,  but they are all pretty much tutorials and reviews.   You don't really see any videos of average users having fun making music with Sonar.
 
If you were to do a search on youtube for Ableton Live,  Maschine,  Bitwig, Reason,  or Fruity Loops,  you're going to get a lot of the same tutorials and reviews that you would get in a search for Sonar,  but you'll also see a ton of videos by average bedroom producers and musicians using those products.   This lends itself to new potential users and musicians,  especially young kids.  If a young musician were to go online and see a video of another young kid in his bedroom making music with DAW X,   that kid will identify with that in a way that he won't from seeing a manufacturer's promotional video.  If you really think about it,  when you look at a promotional video from Cakewalk,  it seems as if the video itself is solely focused in on Cakewalk's already loyal fanbase.   
 
That's the main reason why I feel Sonar isn't as popular as it could be or deserves to be.  That's also the reason why I feel as though Cakewalk's fanbase is as loyal as it is.  It's sort of a double edged sword.  

I'm not trying to start an argument,  and I didn't want to offend anybody.  I could be 100% wrong.  This is just my $.02.

Word of mouth is very powerful - spread the word about SONAR!

Gibson could help in the marketing department.  They have a fair amount of clout.  But if you go to gibson.com, there isn't anything about Sonar anywhere.  About Cakewalk, there's nothing on the front page, you have to go to Products/Pro Audio.  Then all there is, is this confusing text  :
 
Cakewalk is the leading developer of powerful and thoughtfully designed products for the modern musician. These products include award-winning digital audio workstations and innovative virtual instruments.
 
If it's for musicians, put it on the front page with the other instruments.
 
Millions of musicians worldwide—including Grammy® and Emmy®-winning producers, composers, sound designers, and engineers—use Cakewalk products daily to produce audio for the professional music, film, broadcast, and video game industries.
 
Millions ?  Really ?
 

Sometimes a brand name becomes the name of the actual product:  Kleenex = Tissues,   Band-Aid = Bandages,
Auto-Tune = Pitch Correction, and for the most part  Pro Tools = DAW / Sequencer software.

I've been using Cakewalk/Sonar since the beginning.  I've tried other software, sometimes for a day, sometimes for a month, but I always come back to Sonar.  I know there might be some advantages using ProTools, but feature for feature, I think you get more bang for your buck with Cakewalk products.   Plus, I've always used a PC, never a Mac.
I think it's whatever you become used to.  And what products have the better UI, which in turn makes the learning curve easier.   I tried out Fruity-Loops (FL Studio) once.  I literally just opened up the program, took one look at the UI and then closed it and uninstalled the demo.  I went right back to Sonar, and said "Ahhhh, I'm home!"