Leadfoot

chamlin
What are your thoughts on DrumCore? Same "real drummer" feel with great flexibility, but stuck in limbo on the way to v4 (64-bit) ever since SonomaWireworks acquired it and has tried to rework v4 from scratch — endless beta, with pre-paid people upset due to delivery being around 14 months late. (Sonoma acquired Discrete too in 2009).

I have Kitcore and absolutely love it, especially the Matt Cameron kitpack. But I got BFD3 for Christmas last year and have been using that pretty exclusively. I would like to upgrade Kitcore, though. The main reason I got BFD3 is I was tired of using jBridge just to be able to use Kitcore. And we all know how long we've been waiting for Kitcore and Drumcore to be updated to 64 bit. I just got tired of waiting for Sonoma to get their head out of their rears.

 I had Drumcore deluxe and removed all traces of it and Kitcore.  I don't want to buy an upgrade to use 64 bit.  EZ Drummer, AD, SSD and loops work fine for me. 

Drone7
I'm of the honest opinion that overall Addictive Drums II sounds better than both Superior Drummer and BFD. IMO Cakewalk has made the right decision. And also, look at it this way, apart from real-life and real-time dynamics of a real drummer (which every drum replacement is at a loss for) if someone can't make convincing fill-drums with Addictive Drummer II, then something's very wrong.
 
Compared to my days with a Roland D50 and D20 and later the Roland XP80 and a Korg Trinity, the samples we have to work with these days are a dream come true, very high-quality and convincing, it simply can't get any better. Even the current Yamaha Motif XF and Korg Kronos don't have anything that sound as good as this, so you tell me; some people are just spoiled these days. Herbie Hancock or Midnight Star never had access to these samples we have today, but that didn't stop them...
 
I make EDM-Pop music, but there are times when i like to incorporate some realistic drum sounds for a break-down beat, and Addictive Drummer II will do me just fine.   
 
I've got an opposite complaint to the OP, i want Cakewalk to give us a version III of the PSYN softsynth and a version II of Pentagon and add a dedicated EDM Drum-Machine.

 Those are becoming a dime a dozen.  Use Rapture, DP or Z3ta instead.
 

At $150 (or $199 after the sale), Cake ain't likely paying too much for AD2 and the libraries.  Most of these cross-software items are to get you into AD, or Overloud, etc. so they can sell you upgrades and/or sell you their next generation item.  Cake has intimated that a lot of time/money went into the website stuff.  There are a few new toys, but most of the work done seems to be on the non-sexy innards and smoothing the interface.  Which is fine.
 
But to complain that you have a program that costs more than SONAR and the included "freebee" doesn't match up, well, that is just kinda silly.  REmatrix is a lot better than REmatrix solo, but I ain't complaining that SOLO doesn't compare to Altiverb.  AD2 is a good program and you can get good results with it.  Is it John Bonham - of course not.  But upgrading to AD2 for a fraction of $150 - that is a good deal. 
 
@

AT

but I ain't complaining that SOLO doesn't compare to Altiverb. 

Not sure how you came to that conclusion. REmatrix Solo shares the same IR Convolutions from the full version, which are second to none. REmatrix Solo in contrast to the full version is merely a top-flight Convolution Reverb unit, it just doesn't have the multi-aspect feature that it's big brother has to allow full-blown customization and sculpting. Other than that, it is definitely top-tier in it's own right. Take a listen and then dare to tell me different. Just saying.

This is Great. Open discussion.  But don't get me wrong here. My deal is this.. in my over 30 years in sales retail/management, in electronic & professional gear - NOTHING is free. Sonar has to pay ADII money to allow us as members to choose $300 or so worth of their product, and when there is a cost we the consumers get to pay it.
 
Jeff you are right in we are not all the same, so why do we ALL have to take drums? Also remember Sonar lets you keep whatever is added so new people buying in get the 3 ADII packs now.
 
Jeff I'll use your currency, for my example, alway nice to talk to someone from the other side of the globe.
 
SONAR Platinum MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL Program:
Membership renewal price Platinum $79.00
Membership renewal special bonus offers for $100.00
Choose 1 from: 3 ADII Drum pks
                       3 Sound Libraries for D Pro
                       3 Sound Libraries for Rapture
                       X# of Prochannel effect plug-ins 
                       The complete sound library for the Cakewalk Sound Player
or my Fav
 
The Grand Slam - ALL of the above for $579. plus 1 bonus selection from supplied list, monthly payments avail.
 
or
 
I don't need any extras just update my Platinum DAW for $79.00
 
Sonar has started a membership program, let's tell them what we as members would like to from them, and now is the time because it gives us at least 6 months (based on my past experiences) before the programs start to get set in stone.
 
Myself I want Sonar to be the BEST Recording/Mastering DAW Period. Not a reseller of other's software.
 
Sonar are U listening.
 
WiLLi & MMX3P

kitekrazy1

Drone7
I've got an opposite complaint to the OP, i want Cakewalk to give us a version III of the PSYN softsynth and a version II of Pentagon and add a dedicated EDM Drum-Machine.

 Those are becoming a dime a dozen. Use Rapture, DP or Z3ta instead.
 

 
I don't like Rapture, it's years old and the soundsets are average at best. Dimension Pro is well-overdue for an update (the sounds are sub-par and archaic) and i already have Z3TA+ II but that alone can't carry a track.
 
A version III update of PSYN and a version II update of Pentagon I would really help Sonar cement itself as a premium world-class DAW, and that's what i thought Cakewalk was aiming for.
It's good to clean-out old cobwebs and put a spring-clean into the situation without neglecting any aspects or tools of a DAW. I hope Cakewalk will realize this.
Sonar is still not considered the go-to DAW among 90% of producers, and there's a reason for that. Every element and detail has to be taken care of. Cakewalk can't just cater to traditional Rock bands and acoustic players without expecting the majority to frown at Sonar. Cakewalk must not rest on its laurels just yet, they have some work to do.
But actually only a few minor things need taking care of, then many more producers will lift an eyebrow toward Sonar, and i reckon overhauled upgraded versions of Pentagon I and PSYN II combined with a dedicated high-performance Arp and adding a dedicated EDM Drum Machine will definitely make many more producers sit-up and take notice. Value for money is still a magnet by anyone's standards, and EDM producers make-up a 'huge' percentage of producers these days, so i hope Cakewalk realize this. If it's all about market share and making a profit, then cater to every level of producer and the majority of producers will take notice. Value-add combined with 'Quality, not quantity' is what it's all about...
 
And Cakewalk, one more thing... if and when you upgrade the sounds, i say never ever use compressed sounds (MP3/AAC/OGG-VORBIS - the very mention of those makes me shudder), that would be ludicrous. Only uncompressed 16-24bit WAV files. Preserve the integrity of our songs and our output, i beg of you.   
 

I also agree with the "less extras/samples and more functionality" with upgrades. As far as partnerships, I think CW and FXpansion's Geist would be an excellent benefit to all SONAR users as it fills many feature requests that hit the forums on occasion:

1. Sampling ("what you hear") via the Geist's "Spitter" utility.
2. Elegant slicing/pad assignments, layering, FX embedded into the Geist engine.
3. Time stretching.
4. Incredibly powerful Step Sequencer (allowing for 1024 samples to be individually fired per Geist instance).

A fully integrated version of Geist for SONAR would immediately close a lot of these gaps (and far exceed user expectations for step sequencer/drumming needs).

Just because you like Geist that doesn't mean we need it. That pet like of yours is for you, not for us. I don't see why Cakewalk should expend time and money for your arbitrary whim. This Geist is a toy plugin, not a universal plugin applicable to all users, it will not benefit the large majority of users in any way. Sonar already has Drop Zone for samples, ample effects and a competent grid sequencer, I don't see anything about Geist that might be universally useful to all Sonar users. It is a third-party extra type of plugin. If you want it then go buy it yourself, this is not what i deem relevant. We need solid basics relevant to the majority.

The SS internal to SONAR is the only part of the program I can continually crash given enough time, so it is pretty universal (unless someone works with audio only). My post above was simply a suggestion, but thank you for your opinion of what "you deem relevant."

What the hell is SS? Have we got mind-readers written on our stupid foreheads have we??? Geezzz. I'll take a guess and assume it means Sonar Sampler, but really, stop being lazy man, it's pretty hard to interpret such an acronym. I say again, if you want Geist then go get it, we don't need it. I will reiterate, your suggestion is merely your own want, it is not relevant to the majority of users, so why expect Cakewalk to even entertain such a wish?