I am watching videos, learning Sonar, and I have a confession to make. I DO NOT make music with synths. It seems to be anti-DAW to not get all wrapped up in all those crazy sounds. I like guitars and simple kbds, like a b3 or a Roland. So I just invested in EZkeys, as the EZ stuff(EZD2)  I can "get"...AD2, not so much!
 
It is very  hard to find a video that just drags and edits loops without all the rigamarole(sp?)  my spell checker thought I was trying to say oleo maragarine!
 
 
 
It seems I am in the minority around these parts. /slight rant

Are you kidding? This forum is dominated by guitarists and people who prefer keyboard intruments that are considered less modern. You will find plenty of like minds here. I'm not sure when it became chique to be a minority, but it is possible that on these forums you may be in the majority. At the very least you are well represented.

Pardon me but... what in the bloody feck are you talking about?!
 
Plenty of resources for what you do. That's how I learned. I already pointed you to some good ones in the other thread and you dismissed them. If you are doing straight audio then you just need to learn the basics of tracking and editing. Plenty of vids on that. If you are looping stuff... you just drag the stuff in where you want and drag it out.
 
Chillax, ask your questions. You will be pointed in the right direction.
 
If you are having that hard of a time work through the tuts at the start of the Reference Guide and a huge chunk of your questions will be answered.
 
Cheers.

I get so happy everytime I hear music with real organic instruments on the radio.
Eventually people will appreciate it again growing up with metronome kicks and pinball game blipping sounds.
 
So stay on it, it will be all modern sounding soon....one can hope....
 

Although I use sample libraries and external synths for everything, I use almost exclusively organic sounds (bass, guitar, piano, drums, strings, etc.).  I very rarely use anything that "sounds like a synth."  My current album was done 100% in Sonar and it all sounds organic.  (themightykonrad.com)
 
As others said above, there are a ton of guitar players here, and people who do folk, country, and other styles.  We have a good group of electronica/dance producers, but I wouldn't say the majority is electronic-oriented.
 
Anyway, we are all here to help if you need something.

Each to their own... I've been listening to synthesiser music since the BBC Radiophonic Workshop did the incidental music for Doctor Who back in the 1960's...
 
That doesn't mean I don't appreciate music played on classical instruments.
 
But... Whatever... Bash the guys who like to use them... I'll get over it LOL 

synkrotron
Each to their own... I've been listening to synthesiser music since the BBC Radiophonic Workshop did the incidental music for Doctor Who back in the 1960's...
 
That doesn't mean I don't appreciate music played on classical instruments.
 
But... Whatever... Bash the guys who like to use them... I'll get over it LOL 

Everything I've been wroking so hard to learn and create is intended to be as close to live band material as possible and I'm somewhat offended by the OP.
 
So there you have it, Charly. You've managed to insult the synth guys and the live guys.
 
Well played.
 
I, as I'm sure others, will still help you any way we can though. Just ask your questions.

I don't really think I insulted anyone. I could have, but didn't. I did say "crazy sounds" but that only insults the sounds.......People have thin skins these days.
 
If you say we all use organic instruments, why the multitude of things(including tutorial videos that could have used any style) seemingly geared to electronica?
 
MY gripe is really more against the videos, and lack of clear clean steps on working with loops. I am getting it slowly, thanks to you guys and the videos, but I am WAY more right brained. Too many years as a technician.....

DAW stands for Digital Audio Workstation, and while it is pretty common to have MIDI capability built in, the DAW as an entity is not primarily a platform for synths. A straight up audio editor with effects processing would probably qualify as a DAW even though it has no way to host a software or hardware synth. So there is nothing anti-DAW about not using digitally generated audio. As someone who almost only uses synths and heavily processed (unrecognizable?) samples, I find myself a bit peevish at times to see how much work has gone into providing primarily audio recording and processing in Sonar, but I recognize that it is probably the primary focus of the vast majority of users. Perhaps the synth issues seem to occupy this forum out of proportion to the number of members who use MIDI, because it produces more questions or problems for musicians. Recording is basically, play it into the microphone, add reverb and print. The skillset required to play the instrument, get the microphone set up right, and apply effects is enormous, but most musicians think they have got that stuff together. MIDI and sound design seems to throw them for a loop and they end up here with a post.

But there are plenty of vids. Dragging and dropping, importing, manipulating loops are all basic functions in Sonar. There are plenty of vids showing those basic functions. Ergo... plenty of vids describing how to work with loops. And those X1 Advanced vids I recommended show more advanced ways of manipulating and triggering/recording those loops. The Intrument vids I recommended shows how to use some of the samplers to trigger and manipulate loops. The vid series I did not mention is the SWA X2/X3 Complete series that shows you how to do almost every durned thing you need to know about working with Sonar.
 
So yeah... it is a little insulting because I study these materials day in and day out. People have gone to great lengths to create and provide these materials. Perhaps it's because I'm just sore right now but really it's not that hard to find this stuff or ask things without hyperbole and innuendo.
 
BTW the VERY first thing I did after installing Sonar before even really reading the manual was create a loop based song using the included content so I could get used to working in the Track View. I had never done anything like that in my life and I had it put together in a couple casual days. Easy peasy. A few weeks later I had written and recorded my first "full band" arrangement using drum synths and recording my guit and bass into Sonar. I had only studied the manual a little bit.
 
Now after years of studying almost daily I am using it semi-professionally BUT still consider myself a novice.
 
Sonar is a complex program (as are all DAWs) but the resources are out there (more so than many other programs) and it's really not that hard to get simple stuff done like drag/drop looping and recording.
 
Seriously... press B (opens the Browser), look for and audition loops (this is covered in the Reference Guide tutorials), drag them into the track view. Arrange and mix.
 
Simple.
 
If you have any questions come here and ask them or do a google search with Cakewalk Sonar in the search terms. You'll find manual entries or threads here or even online videos.
 
Stay calm. Put your head down and learn the program like every other mufugga here has. You'll be fine.