One of the great things I enjoy about Sonar is when I need to do something that I haven't done before, I know there's a fair chance that Sonar will be able to do it, I just have to find out how. I'm a firm believer that Cakewalk has one of the best manuals going, and the forum here is also of great value.
The only real advice I have for the OP is to persevere with attempting to find what you need within Sonar itself, or come here, pose a question, and see if someone can help you. I think I would find it more difficult trying to pick up a new DAW and starting from scratch, although I'm sure there are features on other DAW's that would be handy at times.
I do like the idea of starting threads about plugins, or instruments, to get other's ideas on their uses. I'm sure if you did a search you would find a lot of the information you are looking for already posted.
 
I too am a long time user of Cakewalk products, from Pro Audio 9, and enjoy the challenge of finding and using new features, so for me it's a part of the fun of whole music adventure.