This will be my last post.
I tested one of those issues, I cant say I could reproduce it.
Automation to multiple tracks (not lanes) it worked fine.
I didn't bother testing your second problem because by the time I was ready and willing to spend my time helping you, you were ready to uninstall + reinstall sonar and basically told us we were wrong.
or I quote... you said;
"WRONG AGAIN" I believe was the exact words you used.
like none of us knew what we were talking about.
 
look at the big picture here...
are you really trying to persuade other users on this site not to buy cakewalk products over 2 features that either
 
A- the manual is wrong
B- are not working to your liking ?
 
or is it the support thing ?
 
sorry man, my head is spinning.
Edited my previous post- I wish you luck.
User Blocked.
 

I hope this gets sorted out for you.   It's easy for people to get really irate when software doesn't work for them. Check out gaming threads.  If it were a toaster you can take it back.
 Too bad DAWs are treated like religions.  When one is irate it is very hard to choose our words carefully. When we don't it offends those religious ones and a jihad breaks out and you get that "beat down Sonar style".
 
 Believe it or not there are some support issues even developers get stumped. Few people probably remember Gigastudio 2. People could have almost identical setups and different issues.  Back when Yellow Tools was around I would get an odd error only on one system.
 
 Sometimes the only fix is to switch religions despite the money invested. Later one you could try a demo and see if the issue was solved.
  

It's true, a thread title like "NO MORE TECH SUPPORT FROM CAKEWALK" in giant caps is excessive.
Though,of course I had to read, and actually found a somewhat heated discourse of ideas, but definitely merit on both sides of the opinions offered here.
 
I'm very sensitive (in a bad way) to online software companies who don't offer proper support for their products, since I've been burned by that before . . . yet I also see that Cakewalk is apparently in a transition to try and offer better support, and they have a very long history of excellent support . . . so I think it's best to give it some time to pan out completely. When you have a software problem that only the programmers can help with, passage of time can be very frustrating.
 
I haven't really seen many posting on the forum to the contrary that they are getting great support right now, so we all know there's an issue. Truth is, if I needed some help that only Cakewalk could fix for me, I would also be really mad right now. However, there's a fine line between getting help to fix a serious show stopping software issue vs. wondering why the software can't do things the way you personally like it to work. If features are actually broken, then software support is really not going to help fix it right away for you, it's the programmer / developers that will have to address that, but either way, there's always a queue.

chuckebaby
This will be my last post....

I'm hoping that you mean just for this thread! 
 
Walt

Mr. Anderton,
I've been reading your columns for years...no...decades...long before I was a Cakewalk user.

 
 
Well thanks for that. I guess that kinda makes you my boss, so I better answer.
 
I think part of the problem is you give no system specs (you could be using ASIO4ALL with a sound card, or a big $$ RME USB 3.0 interface for all we know) but more importantly, there's no recipe to reproduce. We do know you're using Windows  8.1, which has reported problems with various programs, but we don't know which version of SONAR you're using or the project context. The bottom line is that when I "select any or all tracks, hold [control] change edit filter from clip to automation or back" (which I do a lot) it works perfectly and as expected, every time. I can do a screen capture if you don't believe me. But before anyone can tell you how to fix your problem, they have to be able to reproduce the problem, or at least have experienced it. Non-reproducibility may also mean the issue is system-specific, which implies there's virtually no way anyone can help unless they've experienced, and solved, the problem (or experienced something similar with a different program, which could provide some clues).
 

Also, the manual shows that any selected tracks can be "bounced to tracks" for an internal bounce and that always corrupted some soft synths. Never worked properly.

 
I've done this literally hundreds of times in the past month alone, bouncing a combination of MIDI, audio, Loops, and instrument tracks to create multiple final candidate mixes of songs within the project itself, and it has always worked properly (unless I did something like forget to "Select All" before bouncing, or had unselected tracks in track folders so I didn't see them). But, we also don't know what you mean by "corrupted," which soft synths are "some" soft synths, or how you define "not working properly."
 
There have been multiple threads about people having problems bouncing or exporting tracks, but it always came down to some aspect of the program that was not taken into account. The only time I know of a guaranteed, reproducible bouncing problem was when upsampling was first introduced, and only if there were tempo changes in the song. But there was a hotfix a few weeks after the update that solved the problem, so I doubt that's the issue you're experiencing.
 
So although we're told something is wrong, the descriptions are vague at best, we have no idea how to reproduce these problems, and there's no context in terms of your system, project, or software. There simply isn't enough data to give meaningful assistance, and I suspect support would react similarly. If they're overloaded and have to choose between helping someone who's provided a clear explanation with details that allow for making educated suggestions and something where they have to  play "20 questions" just to get more specifics, they'll choose the former. The job of support is not to query users until there's enough data to figure out the problem. The job of the user is to provide enough information to a support person that the problem can be narrowed down to a few possibilities, and pursued from there.
 
I recommend that if you really want to solve problems:

• Start a fact-based, not opinion-based, thread about ONE problem at a time. 
• Describe the problem in detail (screen shots or videos are helpful too). "Corrupted," "some" soft synths, and "not working properly" tell us nothing useful.
• Describe steps to reproduce or if it's intermittent, describe what steps you take that lead up to the problem.
• Give details about the context (type of project, SONAR version, and system basics) in which you experience the problem.

Then you'll have at least a chance of arriving at a solution. 
 

bgl1
It did not happen when Roland owned Cakewalk.

 
Not true at all. There was considerable dissatisfaction with Cakewalk support during the Roland era, as this article details (it's not a forum post or thread, it's an article from NJN Network and brings up some interesting points - like how Cakewalk should simply give up on free support and start charging). Consider yourself fortunate your problems were addressed. Or consider this thread from 2006. I was able to find these within seconds of asking Google; there are plenty more.
 
But it's not surprising. People have always complained about Cakewalk support, just as people complain about Native Instruments, Steinberg, Microsoft, Apple, and anyone else who makes software. There are even threads littering the internet that complain about Waves, which most people consider as having some of the best support around.
 
I could just as easily dredge up plenty of threads about Cakewalk support being helpful since Gibson acquired the company, like this one, this one, this one from two weeks ago, this one, this one, this one...and here's one that complains about Studio One support, praises Cakewalk support, and then pans Cakewalk support. Go figure. 
 
Of course there have been major/serious issues lately, but they're in the process of being fixed. You can't just snap your fingers and have fully trained employees answering questions about SONAR. But I've been tracking the progress in hiring because naturally, I too am concerned, and there are people being hired. There's not much else Cakewalk can do to improve support right now other than hire more people to provide it, so that's what they're doing (as well as working on the feedback portal). Meanwhile, issues are being solved...just not enough, and not fast enough. But this too shall pass. 
 
Meanwhile, I'l remind everyone that Obedia.com provides excellent phone support for SONAR. You need to pay, but compared to just about any other company that charges per incident, their prices are extremely reasonable. Most importantly, they don't just support SONAR, they will find out what's wrong with your computer if that's where the problem lies. After all, you really can't expect Cakewalk to support products from (for example) Dell and Microsoft...yet some of the people who complain about Cakewalk support, as well as support from other DAW companies, expect exactly that. When I've had computer problems that affected SONAR (twice), Obedia solved them in under 15 minutes, which also improved the performance of programs other than SONAR.

just ask a question btl1,you have the best and fastest text support on the planet right here in the forums.....

To all of you who are offering advice for the problems I've experienced with Cakewalk Sonar Platinum:
 
1. I appreciate the desire to help me solve the 2 overarching problems that I've experienced. These are not obscure problems. They are much needed functions that are listed in the manual that are not working on my system. Asus laptop, Windows 8.1, 16gig RAM, i7 (3rd generation) processor, M-Audio Fast Track Pro set to Wave 16bit/44.1k, Sonar Platinum 22.7.0.
 
2. These are not problems that have not been addressed by Cakewalk Tech Support. They've logged into my system a few times in the late winter and early spring and never solved these issues. My sessions are rather large and full of synth and fx plugs. Using lanes helps but they suck up so much screen real estate that I really do want to be able to view automation without using lanes.
 
3. I can switch my view filter across multiple audio tracks but only one instrument track at a time. That is maddeningly inconvenient. I appreciate all the advice I've gotten from so many people over the years, but with my current "fat" sessions, some well needed AND PROMISED functionality has never worked for me...nor for Techs who've logged in tried it for themselves, AND, written up but never addressed these issues. I'm sure you understand my frustration. I've got more work to do and I've always gotten through with "work-arounds" and that's not right.
 
4. Mr. Anderton, I will never be your boss. Receiving good advice...fantastic. Bossing you....nope.
 
Bruce
 

I have been using Cakewalk since Pro Audio 9 and THIS FORUM has given me enough support on ALL of my issues.  Typically it was my own fault for not fully understanding the way the program worked and using proper workflow.  Other times it was a setting (or two).  And yet other times I was having hardware issues.  ALL resolved on this forum.
 
I am not saying that support is not necessary, it is.  I personally have never used it because I haven't needed it!
 
Cakewalk keep up the great work and to all of the forum user's and experts that have helped me (Mr. Anderton included!)
 
Thanks...
 
Pat (Patm300e).
 

I suppose it is all relative.  Ever try to get iPhone support?  You can wait for two hours at the Genius Bar and the solution will probably be to buy a new phone.  My intent is not to insult Apple: just to provide perspective.
 
I got very frustrated when I had Sonar problems that took a couple of weeks to resolve, but when you consider how deep the software is and how little it costs relative to the development, I understand that Cakewalk can't realistically have 100s of people standing by.  It sounds like they are working to improve.