yevster
When a bug is so old, you adjust your workflow around it, that's hardly rock solid. This never had to be done on any other DAW I've ever used.

yev, when you experience this, do you have the 64 bit double precision engine engaged in your Sonar options? If so, do me a favor...try disabling that and export a mix that gives you that problem. I have had that exact issue you mentioned. Disabling that and never using that option totally fixed me. I've gotten quite a few artifacts from all versions of Sonar while using that.
 
The random midi events....I can't say that I have ever had that one and I do lots of midi stuff here. The only thing I have experienced was random midi notes dropping on some of my hardware synths. For example, say I used an old drum patch from a synth. The snare drum may drop at measure 12. So I stop and restart playback at say measure 10, and the snare at 12 would then fire....but I may lose it at measure 22.
 
Stuff like that has driven me crazy. However, I have traced it to just some of my old hardware synths. None of my softsynths do this thank God. Also, I have found quite a few of my old hardware synths being updated in software format. Korg released all their old keyboards in software format. Using that has helped and I no longer get any drops.
 
I have to agree with you....there are *some* things in Sonar that just do not happen anywhere else. I've always felt I've had to treat it a bit more delicate than other DAWs. Meaning, always stop playback before adding something intense or doing something that may possibly crash the program. In other programs like PT or even Studio One 2, I can just do whatever I want without having to stop anything. They just don't seem to crash while being under that type of stress where some of the versions of Sonar in the past have definitely burped or crashed hard. I've not tried anything like that with Platinum as I guess I'm too used to babying Sonar. But now that I've remembered that.....I'm going to try to build a house while audio is playing to see what may happen now. :)
 
-Danny

yevster

Anderton
Did you try my suggestion about checking streaming through FX?

Nope. Tried to find it and couldn't.

 
In addition to trying Danny's tip about the 64-bit engine, here's the stream through audio FX deal.
 

 

As every other DAW seems to clear its buffers automatically before exporting, it would appear only sonar users expect their most recent playback to impact their audio export. A casual user shouldn't even have to know what a buffer is.

 
Have you really tested every other DAW?
 
When I turn off "Always Stream Audio Through FX," as soon as I click stop, any effect tails stop immediately. With it turned off, I was not able to reproduce what you described.
 
I tested as follows:
 
Loaded a clip.
Added 10 seconds of silence before its start, and extended its end with silence for about 45 seconds.
Inserted a delay set for 99% feedback.
Started playback and by enabling "Always Stream Audio Through FX," verified that the delay tail went on for at least a minute after stopping playback.
Disabled "Always Stream Audio Through FX."
Started playback and after the echo kicked in, stopped and exported the file immediately.
Played back the exported file.
There was no sound at the beginning of the exported file.
 

A casual user shouldn't even have to know what a buffer is.

 
There are several valid reasons for wanting to always stream audio through FX. According to the Help button for the Preferences screen given above, these are:
 
○  Any effect with a “tail” (reverb, delay, etc.) will finish playing when playback is stopped
○  Effects will respond to automation envelopes, even on empty audio tracks.
○  Many plug-ins do not update their UI properly until they receive audio input.
 
SONAR gives you a choice, and even casual users can benefit from studying a program's available preferences and related help files.
 
I'm not saying it's not possible to experience what you're experiencing, it's just that I can't reproduce it if "Always Stream Audio Through FX" is disabled and I follow the test procedure above. Maybe it's something else that's not in my test procedure. Please provide me with the steps to reproduce it because if I can't reproduce it, I can't evaluate whether it's a problem or merely an occasional inconvenience. It's certainly not a bug, based on any standard definition of the term.

I know it's not allowed to say it here, seems like anyone who doesn't think everythong is great is "wrong", but to me it seems that they have held back some stuff on the initial release in order to be able to deliver the promised extra features over the year. It's been referred to as like getting X4 now and X5 over the next year, but to me seems more like X3.5 with the extra .5 to follow. I really want to be wrong, I love my Sonar and if I never got another upgrade it's still beyond what I ever thought I would have a my disposal when I first started with this stuff, but as upgrades go I do feel short-changed this time especially as AD2 will not install offline, so is totally useless to me and the hefty price increase next time round.

paulo
I know it's not allowed to say it here, seems like anyone who doesn't think everythong is great is "wrong", but to me it seems that they have held back some stuff on the initial release in order to be able to deliver the promised extra features over the year.

In a way you're right, a lot of this update was for stuff happening "under the hood." However, doing that work is what makes the rollouts of additional updates and features easier over the next year. Nothing that was actually ready for release was held back.
 

As upgrades go I do feel short-changed this time

 
Hopefully you won't feel short-changed a year from now about what you received for $149.
 

especially as AD2 will not install offline, so is totally useless to me

 
Cakewalk doesn't have any control over how XLN wants to handle their products. Personally, I think it was pretty amazing (and cool) that Softube dropped the dongle for the ProChannel modules.

paulo
 
I feel short-changed this time especially as AD2 will not install offline, so is totally useless to me and the hefty price increase next time round.

Does this mean that AD2 will not work while we are not connected to the net, or is it just that you have to be online for initial installation?

Initial installation.

I'm pretty sure they offered a work-around, at least with AD1 during the initial X3 release there was some discussion about it. It's getting pretty tricky to run offline DAWs for sure. Thank God I don't.

Sanderxpander
I'm pretty sure they offered a work-around, at least with AD1 during the initial X3 release there was some discussion about it. It's getting pretty tricky to run offline DAWs for sure. Thank God I don't.

Yes there was a workaround with AD1, but not with AD2.

Danny Danzi
I have to agree with you....there are *some* things in Sonar that just do not happen anywhere else. I've always felt I've had to treat it a bit more delicate than other DAWs. Meaning, always stop playback before adding something intense or doing something that may possibly crash the program. In other programs like PT or even Studio One 2, I can just do whatever I want without having to stop anything. They just don't seem to crash while being under that type of stress where some of the versions of Sonar in the past have definitely burped or crashed hard. I've not tried anything like that with Platinum as I guess I'm too used to babying Sonar. But now that I've remembered that.....I'm going to try to build a house while audio is playing to see what may happen now. :)
 
-Danny

Ok I hold my hand up, I was wrong and firing from the hip a little bit when I first posted.
 
X3 blew me away with all the extra functionality it delivered and straight out the box the initial WOW factor didn't feel as intense.  That being said the installation was flawless and Cake's attention on this forum made it worth while.
 
As you describe, I wish the audio engine was more robust like some of the other DAW's with features like sand bagging VST's so that if they crash they don't take the DAW with it. Phase coherent multi track quantizing could be much much simpler too but all in all I love the fact that we all are made to feel like big fish in a small pond with Cake as opposed to just being an invisible number

Anderton
 
 
Cakewalk doesn't have any control over how XLN wants to handle their products. Personally, I think it was pretty amazing (and cool) that Softube dropped the dongle for the ProChannel modules.

Yes, I understand that, but for those that won't be able to use it, it leaves the rest of the upgrade package looking pretty thin at the moment IMHO, especially as the OP question was asked in the context of last year's offering. I sincerely hope that you're right and what is to follow will in hindsight make it look like a good deal, but right now from my perspective it looks over-priced and I don't see enough to feel inclined to buy it.