Since my temporary departure in the beginning of 2015 ( due to a move and much higher expenses ) ,  Cakewalk has rolled out quite a few new features since X3 . A number of the monthly updates  I've seen you roll out have me putting my unusually large dog to shame when it comes to which one of us can leave a bigger drool pool on the brand new carpet ….
 
Cakewalk , you sure haven't made it easy for me to sit this one out ( upgrading from X3 ) 
 
I'm back online now after 6 months w out home internet connection and I'm thinking about upgrading from X3 …
 
I see now that the current min spec listed to run the latest version of SONAR is listed as "at least an I 5 " on the systems requirement page ….
Did I get shut out because I have an I3 w 6 gigs of ram running W 8 64 bit ? 
X3 runs fine on this machine , yet the truth is , I have always considered my lap top to be a "placeholder " machine 
that one goes out to the big C ….
 
is my I 3 too far under spec to run the new SONAR ? 
 
thank you in advance , 
 
Kenny

Try the demo http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Try-SONAR#start
They recommend a minimum of an i5 but your machine may work just fine.

scook
Try the demo http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Try-SONAR#start
They recommend a minimum of an i5 but your machine may work just fine.

thank you scook , 
 
I always find your posting here on the forum very helpful .
 
Yes the demo must be somewhat recent , during the bulk of my trips to library to use the internet I saw talk about users on the forum asking Cake to put one out …now that it's out thats cool ….
 
I suspect that my machine may be able to run the current SONAR …even if it way only enough to learn how to use all the new features . 
The current sale Cakewalk is running has me tempted to bypass the demo all together . Yet , I do admit to felling conflicted on what to do . I'm not much of a computer tech guy . 
In a best case scenario , I would still have to play catch up and it is very likely that I would probably have a full plate just getting used to all the new ways Cakewalk has changed the way they do things ….CC , monthly updates …I missed out on all that …LOL 
Luckily I still have some time to figure this one out  . 
 
thank you for helping me out , 
 
Kenny

Try the demo for sure, but if you were reasonably happy with the way X3 runs on your current machine, then I'd say Platinum will run the same.
The demo is from the Foxboro release so it's only back one version. Current is Gloucester.

Every month there's something better added and just a few more bugs get squashed.

Have a look at all the stuff included and what's planned for the near future. Heaps of links on this page

http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Whats-New

As a guitar player you're going to like all the Craig Anderton stuff that really targets us with sims, loops and fx. Some really useful stuff to help you get good sounds very quickly.

Enjoy yourself Kenny.

mudgel
Try the demo for sure, but if you were reasonably happy with the way X3 runs on your current machine, then I'd say Platinum will run the same.
The demo is from the Foxboro release so it's only back one version. Current is Gloucester.

Every month there's something better added and just a few more bugs get squashed.

Have a look at all the stuff included and what's planned for the near future. Heaps of links on this page

http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Whats-New

As a guitar player you're going to like all the Craig Anderton stuff that really targets us with sims, loops and fx. Some really useful stuff to help you get good sounds very quickly.

Enjoy yourself Kenny.

Hello Mike V , 
 
thank you for posting your thoughts on my question .
 
Yes , I have had a decent experience running X3 on my current lap top ….
 
I think I get by because I do not need the same type of horsepower as another forum member who may have clients and be running SONAR as a core program that they have chosen as their primary DAW to use and to host many of the ultra high end software packages ( plugs , synths ..and gizmo's ) that are available nowadays….
I can live w it for now and I work around it the best I can . 
 
Honestly , I'm very happy with the core program of SONAR , I wound up adding a few things here and there along the way from  The Cakewalk store and all my third party stuff is tried tested and true for both PC and Mac .
 
Yeah , I have looked at what Cakewalk has been rolling out with the monthly features , there is a few I really want ….
this is  a big reason why I want to upgrade . 
 
You are the second person to mention the demo ….I think I need to find out more about it …
 
this question goes out to the general forum 
Is the SONAR demo a demo I have to uninstall when I buy the program so I can install the fully working program or is the SONAR demo a demo that will become unlocked and become a fully functioning non restricted program when I buy it and register it ?
 
have a good one ,
 
Kenny
 

I have no problem running Platinum with 60 tracks and bunches of plugins, soft synths. 
 
My Phenom 945 scores 3732 on cpubenchmark.net.  An I3 at 3.4ghz scores 4793.  So I'd say you are OK.
Intel Core i3-4130 @ 3.40GHz 4,793

kennywtelejazz
Is the SONAR demo a demo I have to uninstall when I buy the program so I can install the fully working program or is the SONAR demo a demo that will become unlocked and become a fully functioning non restricted program when I buy it and register it ?

No idea about uninstall.
 
http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Try-SONAR#start
 
"SONAR demo versions include all essential SONAR functions with no time limit, but won't allow you to export or save projects. Additional instruments, effects, and content will be included in the paid versions once you purchase. All demo versions will include monthly updates (just like the paid versions) so you can try out the latest updates as soon as they are available."

GregGraves
I have no problem running Platinum with 60 tracks and bunches of plugins, soft synths. 
 
My Phenom 945 scores 3732 on cpubenchmark.net.  An I3 at 3.4ghz scores 4793.  So I'd say you are OK.
Intel Core i3-4130 @ 3.40GHz 4,793

Hello Greg , your post sounds encouraging too me . thank you for taking the time to share 
 
Kenny

kennywtelejazz
 
Is the SONAR demo a demo I have to uninstall when I buy the program so I can install the fully working program or is the SONAR demo a demo that will become unlocked and become a fully functioning non restricted program when I buy it and register it ?
 

Not having worked with the demo, I can't directly answer this but I will say the Command Center makes it easy to uninstall (it is a menu option). The upgrade is not that large if you keep X3 on the PC. Here is a breakdown of what you need to create a complete installation if X3 Producer is left on the machine http://forum.cakewalk.com/FindPost/3264981

Doktor Avalanche

kennywtelejazz
Is the SONAR demo a demo I have to uninstall when I buy the program so I can install the fully working program or is the SONAR demo a demo that will become unlocked and become a fully functioning non restricted program when I buy it and register it ?

No idea about uninstall.
 
http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Try-SONAR#start
 
"SONAR demo versions include all essential SONAR functions with no time limit, but won't allow you to export or save projects. Additional instruments, effects, and content will be included in the paid versions once you purchase. All demo versions will include monthly updates (just like the paid versions) so you can try out the latest updates as soon as they are available."

Hello Doktor Avalanche ,
 
it is nice to talk with you again and a big thank you for taking the time to offer your help .
 
I wound up getting the answer in the demo sticky … I would have to uninstall the demo once I pulled the trigger and did an official upgrade….
That in itself ( having to uninstall ) is probably not a bad thing , but it is not an approach I feel comfortable doing .
 
My whole thing is everything is working as it should be in X3 as far as I can tell .lol  
 
A hardware change is out the question at this moment due to tight finances . I think I may need to formulate a working plan that fits my current situation on how to approach this upgrade with out getting too caught up w all the changes that it will take to accomplish it.
 
all the best, 
 
Kenny