My hat is off to Cakewalk for thinking ahead and taking the time and trouble to code and support Melodyne's ARA technology.  Only 4 DAWs support it, and WE are one of them!  Pro Tools doesn't even support it!  Wow!
https://youtu.be/ix1FKDtfiUs
"Does Cubase support ARA?"
"Unfortunately it doesn’t yet. ARA is currently supported by Studio One, SONAR, Tracktion, and Samplitude."

I would say "Early Adopter" is more accurate. I believe first honors go to Presonus.

scook
I would say "Early Adopter" is more accurate. I believe first honors go to Presonus.

Correct.

Like Hertz, we try harder.

It's a Four Way Tie for First.
What is more to the point is what is missing.
All the other DAWs on the planet.
The more I experiment with and watch ver 4 videos of Melodyne the more I am seeing the bigger picture, which I think Cakewalk recognized when they were first approached by Celemony to support this particular technological breakthrough.  I was smart to upgrade to Studio from Essential while the gettin' was good and the sale was on.
My excitement about this is unquenchable.  I have only scratched the surface so far.
 
 

Not the first time Cakewalk has been at the head of the pack.
 
In the earliest days, Cakewalk for DOS was one of only a handful of computer-based MIDI sequencers, far and away the most popular of them, and the only one not limited to 8 or 16 tracks. Later, SONAR was the first DAW to offer true 64-bit internal resolution. We forget that even many everyday features such as track freezing and track folders and slip-editing were once unique to SONAR. 
 
Because CW has always been focused on Windows, they've always been on top of Windows' internal developments and even influenced Microsoft's directions regarding audio support. That's why our DAW of choice offers load balancing, minidumps, Skylight and many under-the-hood optimizations such as priority-inversion detection. And why it was first to support touch screens, WASAPI and Bluetooth MIDI, and is now leading the way in pen and advanced touch support.
 
 

Celemony deserves the real credit here by opening up their API to developers thru the ARA port without having to send audio out to Melodyne then back to the host like an ordinary external audio editor.

Any host developer not willing to take advantage of this is really not thinking ahead and may be left behind as melodyne is by far "The" pitch system currently used by all producers serious about putting their best work forward.

Cakewalk deserves praise for getting in at the earliest time along with the Hamburg team at Presonus.

Let those waiting to see whether it is worthwhile to add this to their host development take heed, if you wait too long you could loose a few customers to the competition that adopted and implemented a pretty novel and efficient system such as ARA.

The Manual is 272 pages long for Melodyne Studio.  I'm only on page 19, but I now know why, and when to use Region FX and when to use the FX Bin.  The difference is crucial, as it turns out.  But as a rule I now follow this regimen:
 
Region Effect - When I am working on a single track, perhaps with split up clips in it or the track as a whole.
FX Bin - When I am working on a track with take lanes (comped)
 
We have talked about the difference before and concluded there wasn't much of a difference if any at all.  There is a difference. A huge difference.  When working on a track with take lanes - Always Insert Melodyne into the FX Bin.
 
UPDATE: That rule just flew out the window.  The FX bin did not accomplish what I thought the manual said it would.  Come back rule!  Come back!  Alas...it is gone.

Region FX changed my life.

Thedoccal
Pro Tools doesn't even support it!  Wow!

I've been saying this ever since soon after Pro Tools appeared and an engineering student was trying to convince me that it was the only Profesional DAW out there because its the "industry standard" - I bit his head off (and a few months later he's opened his eyes once he's realised the limitations of PT).... PT might be the industry standard, but industry standards are mostly crap. Most of the industry standards from when I was full time in the industry have been over priced crap. E.g. I never walked into a control room without seeing a pair of Yamaha NS 10Ms (and had to have a pair myself because people would insist on it - they are still changing hands for way over what they are worth), or be offered a set of Beya DT 100s to put on my head (and have to have several pairs to provide to musicians because that's what they would insist on). There are many, much better alternatives, but these became the standards.
 
I have used PT on many occasions since it first became "the standard" and always hated it. People rave about it because it's the standard, but "standard" is literally what it is! Nothing more than that. It lacks all sorts of stuff, handles everything inefficiently, bogs down when you add some plugins, limits your track count and workflow etc.
This is why I've been using Sonar almost exclusively for years and why I'm glad it never became a standard. Cakewalk has always been alternative, innovative, and a driving force for change and improvement, just like me and I think that's why I always found a partner in Sonar.  [end of rant]