If Studio one is much easier to handle and more stable for you -
there is no question what to do,
specially cause you are a long time Sonar user .A new workflow and tools aso
can bring a fresh breath into the creative process.
As a  lifetimer you can everytime switch back to Sonar or you can run Studio 1 for 
band recording and sonar in your studio .
 
regards

David.Hoffman
So the question is... any advice on whether the switch is worth it? So far there doesn't seem to be any compelling reason to stay with Sonar (unless the stability issues are resolved). It seems that rolling updates have destabilized the product.

Ditching S1 for me had to do with external midi gear.
Implementation of midi in S1 seems to be targeting VST instruments more.
My reference is S1 v2.x.
 
a) you cannot record midi just arming a track, you will record just notes if not having echo/monitoring on.
No controllers recorded - really odd. When using VST instruments you don't even notice, since monitoring is always on.
 
All other daws I just armed for recording, and what comes in is recorded. Usually just a general setting in midi preferences if to record aftertouch and a few things like that.
 
b) What the midi track targets on output decides everything and you have to set that up what to filter or let through. Everything wasn't on by default for some reason.
 
To me they overcomplicated midi overall, the way you had to start creating a generic midi controller.
When testing S1 v1.x I never even got midi to work - it initialized, no error messages, just no data through.
 
And didn't like the implementation of multi out VST instruments either. At the time you did not get a track, just a mixer slot for that(second out and up). I think v3.x fixed that though.
 
So moving most things to external midi gear I dropped S1. And there was nothing I felt S1 excelled in either. A lot of expand/collapse to see sends unless you ran tall mixer view.
 
 

TPayton
Dear Cakewalk forum brethren,
 
I must confess that I too was unfaithful to Sonar with a younger DAW. Her name is Mixcraft. I started my Cakewalk journey with Guitar Tracks, decided that I needed more midi capability, and then upgraded to X1.  After finding the the skylight interface to be baffling and disorienting, I sought out a new love on the internet. And I found Mixcraft.
Her clean, easy, breezy interface made X1 look like a confused old lady wearing too much make up. While MC was so easy to use, Sonar seemed to be trying to be all things to all people. Every time I opened Sonar I felt overwhelmed and buried up to my neck in tech.
 
I mentioned Mixcraft's name on this board once and was justly and firmly shouted down by members of that legalistic sect the Sonarites. Mixcraft was ridiculed as a toy. But Mixcraft is a cool little program made by some innovative people, and is quite user friendly. Very lightweight compared to Sonar, but not without value.  And it had take lanes and automation lanes before Sonar did. So a measure of respect is in order. But Sonar added these features a couple of versions later, and implemented them quite well.
 
Then a few interesting things happened.
 
Over the course of time I realized that while Mixcraft was a great scratchpad for me, with it's ease of use and all, when it came time to roll up your sleeves and really get to work, it was time to fire up Sonar. Then Cakewalk offered me lifetime updates. I'd have to be a fool to pass that up.  And over the course of various updates the Cakewalk interface has become much more adaptable. With the new Sonar lenses feature I can now configure it to be as easy (or even easier) to use as Mixcraft. But when there is heavy lifting to be done I can still pull out the big Sonar toolbox if desired. Best of both worlds.
 
So I still play around with Mixcraft a little here and there, and am a registered beta tester for them. The beta tester discount allows me to upgrade to each new version for about the cost of a pizza, so why not?
 
But barring anything unexpected happening, Sonar is my DAW of choice from this point forward. Lifetime updates! What a concept! 
 
Thanks Bakers for continuing to take Sonar in a positive direction.
 
 

Good phrasing, dynamics and sense of drama - you should post your music

It has no drum replacer
It has no vocalsync
The 64-bit version only accepts 64-bit plugs
The 32-bit version only accepts 32-bit plugs
You can only open one project at a time, requiring workarounds like the scratchpad
 

Why not use both?
 
When I was at Cakewalk ten years ago we were very competitive and protective about SONAR being your only DAW, but nowadays, I find that so many people are fluent in multiple DAWs, depending on how you work, what kind of music / audio you're creating and producing...
 
I'm just suggesting - don't think of it as a "switch," think of it instead as an "add".

Some comments on what's been touched on here...
 

• I would not use anything other than SONAR for multitrack recording and mixing, anything other than Studio One for album assembly, or anything other than Live for live performance,
• Mixcraft is a cool program that does a lot for the money.
• SONAR is more "delicate" because it is tied so closely to Windows. The downside is if Windows sneezes, SONAR catches a cold. The upside is when Windows is finely tuned, SONAR soars.
• I have no instability problems with SONAR, but I have a proper music computer, solid interface drivers, and pay attention to things like graphics card drivers and turning off useless startup programs.
• If you look at forum posts, the main sources of instability problems with SONAR are third-party plug-ins (SONAR follows the VST spec very closely, not all plug-ins do), interface drivers (especially if a company's main market is the Mac), and Windows/system issues (the main culprits have been well-documented). 
• Studio One point upgrades are free. Integer updates are paid (at least so far, so I expect this will hold true in the future).
• SONAR has an extremely flexible upgrade model, probably the most flexible in the industry because once you own the software, you own it...and you decide whether to upgrade or not, how much you want to pay for it (i.e., the longer you wait, the less it costs), and when you want to upgrade.
• SONAR has features I simply can't live without for some of the production work I do. That precludes even considering a different DAW. If SONAR didn't exist I'd have to go back to using multiple programs, like I did in the days before SONAR existed.
• If you own a sports car, it's fantastic and fun to drive, but requires maintenance to keep it at the top of its game. So if you then drive a VW Passat, you're going to enjoy the fact that it doesn't require the same kind of care. However, you won't be able to take corners at 50 MPH, or go from 0 to 60 in two seconds. If you don't want to maintain a sports car, the VW Passat is a better choice.

Sonar Platinum (Lifetime Updates)
Studio One Pro 3
I use both.
Studio one was kept at arms distance for a while for me, because the midi seemed to be lacking quite a bit in my opinion, but as of Studio One Pro 3 the midi has been rock solid for me.
As it has been stated in a few different ways and at a few different temperament levels, use whatever works "for you".
 

I don't know one guitarist who switched from, say, a Gibson to a Fender. They play both.

David.Hoffman
So the question is... any advice on whether the switch is worth it? 

Really? Really?
You really have to ask for advice on such a personal taste issue?
 
 
OK, I say go.

I added S1-3P a while ago during a too good to pass crossgrade offer.
 
I won't do a full review here, but there are a number of things that S1 just doesn't do, or do better than SONAR.  OTOH, there are some really cool things about S1.  I'm betting that with more experience I'll like S1 even better, but I honestly don't see myself giving up SONAR.
 
Cakewalk would have to do a lot of work to get me to let go of S1, and PreSonus is faced with the same amount of work to get me to give up SONAR.
 
I'm firmly in the SONAR + S1 and Gibson + Fender camps