Simple question??  All the extra plugin are in X3 that Is missing in Platinum!!
 
all the best
John
 
The only advantage to me is the voice thingy and is not so good if you cannot sing!!!  SAUSAGES!!!

1. Bugfixes.
2. Performance improvements
...but you can get those with, I think, the Professional or Artist level, so that doesn't answer your question.
 
I'm enjoying the extra Kits but if that doesn't float your boat, upgrade to a lower level, or not at all.

There are upgrade features which you can find researching "what's new" in Platinum...many worth the cost individually to upgrade, for a lot of users. ...new control bar features, vocal sync, mix recall, AD2 with 3 kits to choose from, enhanced MIDI and piano roll features, to name a few.  Plus, there will be more coming as a Platinum member, with Cake's new purchasing structure.

stickman393
1. Bugfixes.
 

stickman, can you elaborate?
 
I ask because after some time looking for a new "home" DAW once Acid Pro 7 and I parted ways, I finally settled on Sonar X3e Studio, and so far, despite still having lots to learns and having met a few bugs/quirks, I can live with them, as on my setup, Sonar X3e is the most solid, stable 64-bit, appealing DAW I've used. Over Xmas I spent a few days immersed in making music, with the lowest % of time spent thinking about software issues (as opposed to the music itself) in many years, a real joy.
 
Computers being computers, I am nervous about leaving this relatively solid rock for a new version, because while some new versions fix old bugs, they sometimes don't fix them for everyone, and / or create new ones. I went through this over around 18 months with Studio One 2 before ending up here.
 
I've seen some folks say that for them, Sonar 8.5 was the last solid version for them for a number of years. As X3e basically has all the features I could need, I am sort of leaning to just sticking with Sonar X3e in the same way -- i.e. not fixing anything which is not broken.
 
Unless I see some super-important, proven fix for something which matters to me, or some absolutely life-changing new feature, in Platinum.

http://blog.cakewalk.com/...nhancements-and-fixes/
http://www.cakewalk.com/D...lp=NewFeatures.01.html

lingyai
Computers being computers, I am nervous about leaving this relatively solid rock for a new version, because while some new versions fix old bugs, they sometimes don't fix them for everyone, and / or create new ones.

Why not wait for an update or two before upgrading.  The new version has only been out a month so you could let the beta testers do their thing while you continue to make music.  That said, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot wrong with the new Sonar, and a lot of old bugs have apparently been fixed.
 

Paul P
 
Why not wait for an update or two before upgrading.  The new version has only been out a month so you could let the beta testers do their thing while you continue to make music.  That said, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot wrong with the new Sonar, and a lot of old bugs have apparently been fixed.

The beta testers already did their thing, future beta testing will concentrate on upcoming membership features. At present bug fixes consist of whittling down the queue of known bugs, and collecting user info about any bugs that are in the new version. However as Paul points out, this does seem to be a very solid release.
 
The question of whether to upgrade now or later depends on two things. The first is what you do with SONAR. For some people VocalSync or Mix Recall would be enough to justify upgrading even if they didn't need the other features. But the reality is X3e didn't have a lot of bugs that affected typical workflows; they became revealed as you pushed it over time. 
 
The other aspect is pricing. Right now there's a $149 special for upgrading. Also, although if you update in the future you'll receive new program features, you won't receive any content you missed. The first update should be out before the sale is over, so you can look over the content and see if it has value to you. On the other hand some of the content will be available separately for non-members and non-SONAR users, but not all.

perhaps Cakewalk should do like the Sims does things..
 
you create a bare bones program and then sell consumers 10 expansions packs over a course of 3 years to fill in what the program should've had in the first place.. AND then after the 3 years is up.. you create a upgraded version of the program and repeat the cycle..
 
 

Anderton
The beta testers already did their thing...

Yes, but all the bugs they uncovered have yet to be patched.  CCC could probably use some love as well, for those who want to be sure of a problem-free installation (yes, some have had no problems, but others have).
 
If it were me, I'd wait bit.
 

Craig is right to say it comes down to what you do and what you need. Personally, I've already made the cost back on the time VocalSync and the more subtle and obscure waveform draw optimisation have saved me.
 
In a more general sense, I'm really into the idea of ongoing updates rather than yearly versions, and am keen to be "on the bus" for that. But the other upside of that is that there's no rush to get on. If you're not sold yet, you can check back in a couple of months.