willif
Sonar has only advertised to Drummers for 2 years in a row, as such you alienate the other band members, don't make it 3 years in a row.

Don't forget that non-drummers use drum programs precisely because they'e not drummers. 
 
Also in Platinum update aside from general technical improvements and new features:
 
12 CA-X guitar amps
4 CA-X bass amps
VocalSync for vocalists
MIDI improvements for keyboard players
 
This page highlights various SONAR features that are specific to:
 
Songwriting
Guitar
Vocals
Drums
Mixing
Production
 

I agree with Craig... Why would a real drummer care about a drum VST to that level? It is more an enticement to non-drummers to fill a gap in production.

willif
This was never about which drum system is better, it is about having a choice in Platinum 2 (or whatever they call it) to not offer 3 more sets of drum kits on renewal as the big come on. I don't see any comments from Guitarists saying they bought Sonar for Addictive Drums II, and Guitarists are the largest group of musicians in the world period. I've seen comments that the company knows, Well the only thing companies know is how to make the maximum profit for the shareholders, and when they don't, guess what? ALL of US who join get to pay more on renewal, so far it just $50.00/year more, than renewal has been in the last 5 years, or they could pull something like this -  (eg. TARGET - (USA), decided to come to Canada a couple of years ago promising 20,000 jobs, I thought their numbers were unrealistic at the time, now as of May 2015, TARGET is CLOSING ALL of its stores in Canada leaving vacant holes in malls all across Canada and 20,000 UN-Employed people, they didn't make as much 'Profit' as the shareholders wanted.)
 
Having worked with some very large companies (lastly - Lloyd's London) and have many years experience. I've spent over 17 years in electronics retail/management prior, and many of those years doing Advertising, with another 3 years in commercial Television production. When you want market share you need to advertise to ALL members of the music Group - ALL 5 categories -

Drummers/Percussionists, Guitarists, Vocalists, Keys, & Technicians/Producers.

You offer a choice of 1 of the options, this would give Sonar demographics on who is using their software. It's called marketing, Sonar has only advertised to Drummers for 2 years in a row, as such you alienate the other band members, don't make it 3 years in a row.
 
Sonar had a perfect opportunity to do this when they decided to launch a brand new idea of membership, and then make a loyal vibrant membership that they would listen to for suggestions. Instead they tell us that we ALL get the same and if we don't like it leave??
 
If there is one thing that this entry proves is we are ALL DIFFERENT, and some choices at renewal would much more conducive to getting members to renew. 
 
That is what this is all about, the suggesting I gave were just that - suggestions, to get you members to think, and there were many other good suggestions made here as well. Thats what membership is about, sending good ideas to the company so they can make the software even better for All and allow for individualization.
 
Willi & MMX3P

Lay off the drugs, son.

Diatribes are an essential part of discourse.
But it is way important for to have a context relevant to reality for the arguments to be met with understanding and acceptance.
 
New users want lots of stuff.
 
The cost of Sonar has not kept up with inflation for the past 20 years. So we have all been getting a deal.  $200 to renew the most important application we use? Laundry costs more. Gasoline costs more.  and so on.
 
Do you need to be enticed with "free" add on stuff for everything you buy and use?
 
Did you refuse to buy your latest computer because it had a bundle of stuff you will never use?
 
Did you not buy the sofa because it included a side table you did not want?
 
The cost of Sonar is a true fraction of a percent of what any of us spends during a year for lots of stuff we really do not need. 
 
 
 
 

The AD2 incentive was a BIG factor for me in getting the Platinum upgrade and I'm very happy I did this. I'm also a guitarist that likes to have "ready to go drums".......it  fits my workflow well. Platinum also has a lot of enhancements (under the hood) that give me a peace of mind in having a very stable software.
 
As stated above, there's soooo much money spent on useless things we don't really use.....this is simply a no brainer. 

For me there is nothing better than Addictive Drums for my productions. I can always find the perfect drums to construct my drum tracks and the results are exceptional.
 
Blackie

First of all, huge shout out to all the folks talking about Frankenmuth on this thread!  My wife and I are both from Michigan, and her family is VERY German, so we end up there all the time when we're back visiting from Boston.  Weird little town.
 
I'm also a drummer, and I see the advantage of bundling some kind of drum VST with your product (even though I already had Superior Drummer 2, which I prefer for most applications, AD2 is a nice change of pace for some projects).  It makes it a more complete production environment, in the same way that a drummer like me was excited to have Dimension and all of the other VST's that came with Sonar that help me fill out my music (because no one except drummers wants to listen to solely drum and percussion based mega-tracks/arrangements... much to the shame of the human race) :)
 
And AD is a great addition.  At times when I'm writing, I'll even just pull over a couple of the MIDI beats to pull something together quickly (when I don't want to fire up my whole drum rig, or it's late and I don't want to risk the wrath of my wife for being noisy).  And if the VST's you're looking for (<waves hand> These are not the VST's you are looking for) aren't part of the package, then go buy the one's you want (like I did with Superior 2).  People's tastes and needs are so individual it would be impossible, as well as ridiculously expensive, for Cakewalk to cater to the professional end of everyone's wishlist.  What they have done instead is provide an AMAZING base product, that's stable and chock full of functionality, and enhanced it with some extras/goodies so you have the tools in your toolbox that you need.  And it's such an amazing value for what it is, if you want a killer piano VST that isn't included... use some of the saving from buying Sonar instead of one of it's competitors and put it towards the goodies you need to perfect your music.
 
Sorry for the rant... this is the thread where we rant, right?  :)
 
 

Magermania
(<waves hand> These are not the VST's you are looking for)

Cultural literacy at its best.
 
I went to High School in Frankenmuth during the late 60's. That was a place that experienced Future Shock during that time. Vietnam on Color TV, The Beatles, hippies, pot comes to little Bavaria,....
 
It was a great time for music in Michigan, Got to see/hear Alice, Bob, Dick, Ted, MC5,... many times.
 
A slightly older dude took a couple of us high school guys all over the state to play at parties.
 
Is it really 2015?
 

Can this thread become any more meandering? Yes! We could start discussing recipes. I have a good one for salmon.

If you cook salmon as well as you cook up effects-chains, then you should definitely post it here (or included it as a custom insert for the February update).  :)