My hearfelt sympathy...

hm still a truckload of scripts, but the acutal program is 100 megabytes, right? rest ist mostly audio content

I just meant I'd rather be a muso than a Baker for the next few weeks - presenting one's creations to a scrutinizing public is always scary!

I believe Computer Music magazine are doing a full review in this months issue, out in a week or two.

For me and I wouldn't say I am a hardcore user, just someone who uses Sonar as more of a audio recorder with a splash of MIDI stuff here and there, I am finding the X1 release a little underwhelming.

I think for us long-term users the main problem is that everything has been moved around on the GUI. There was obviously a reason for this, but when you've been using the same software since 2001 and suddenly all the control move around, it can be a little difficult to "find the love".

The software itself is stable - I've not noticed any improvements in performance - it feels roughly the same as its predecessor. I think the changes and improvements to the workflow have been designed for the pro-user and so it will be those people who will laud the improvements.

Those of us who just dabble or use 1/10th of the functionality will be left scratching our heads and saying: "Is that it?"

It's certainly not as radical as the advertising blurb said. It feels more like a new paintjob than anything else. I'm not sniping, I am a satisfied user of nearly 10 years, but for me this has been the least essential upgrade I've made. Again, I'm not complaining because there was no demo to try before you buy. I paid my money to support a company whose work I enjoy and I will continue to support them.

thats pretty much all youre gonna get on the forums, everyone is trying to ask questions , give their opinion on how things should be done, and complain because their old way of working has changed.

your not gonna see many posts saying 'hey, x1 is great. no problems to report over here. carry on!' 

that said, hey, x1 is great, no problems over here......... so far.

Just want to weigh in and say that I'm planning on working with this new product for a while before I hang myself with a guitar string because 'X' is different.  I think that was the whole point of the release.  It is different.

Thanks Cakewalk.

hillsc


This was my take on heartfelt sympathies:

http://forum.cakewalk.com/fb.ashx?m=2151608

Most excellent post there man! It really is a tough call all the way around for both the Bakers and the users. I had the chance to talk to a pretty well respected member on this forum last night in private about some of the messages posted on here. We chalk it all up to many of us just being passionate about this program as well as the anticipation that goes with the hype. One of my favorite things to do is receive that Sonar package in the mail....and the best is opening the program for the first time. You can't wait to explore and experience all the new stuff, only to sometimes be let down. Some people haven't even gotten to the install phase yet, so it's easy to understand their frustration as well.
 
See man, being on the other side of the fence its easy for you to understand both sides. For some of us, we look at it like "well, with all due respect, we've been customers for so long, have spent a pretty penny on many versions of this, we have the right to complain when we feel like it." It's not a matter of us being ungrateful really. It's a matter of the hype getting the best of us as well as the let down. Kinda like when you meet that hott chic, you can't wait to take her out and wait for the date to come up, you take her out and it's a horrible time. She sure was beautiful on the outside, but man was she hideous on the inside....and she thought the same about me! LOL!!
 
The other thing to remember is, the people that have issues that are regs around here have paid their dues on this forum for the price of an internet connection and a question from a poster. Our members here ARE tech support for most things and they actually save the Bakers quite a bit of grief I'd be willing to bet. Those that hang here regularly want to make a difference for others while they support software that believe in. And many have been supporting it (like myself) since Cake 4. That's quite a bit to have invested over the years...now times that by the amount of people like me. This company works for us, we pay their salaries and most of us have way more money invested into this company than they do. They get paid to do what they do, they invest their time...we pay them, for that service. That said, I sincerely believe someone has the right to be a bit upset when something isn't right. Lashing out isn't cool, but speaking your mind is in a professional way and hey...we're only human. You look forward to this release, you get it, you're greeted with issues....you worked a long day and looked forward to this only to be let down. Sure, maybe it will be temporary, but we can't be blamed for being human, ya know? :)
 
I too think it's awesome the Bakers show up and talk to us here as often as they do. I also can agree with how they probably take some of this stuff to heart after they spent countless hours creating it for probably way less money than they are worth. However, that's how it goes in this business. Being in the field you're in is often times your choice. Being in that field sometimes can press your buttons...it goes with the territory. That said, I would be willing to bet most of the negativity we see is more out of frustration than not being grateful. We vent when sometimes we shouldn't say anything at all. We sometimes get nervous to the point of missing the obvious. We lash out when thngs that are supposed to happen don't happen yet our money is gone. I had a problem with X1...it concerned me, but I just took a nap and let it pass. I had to wait quite a bit for my passwords and download links to actually work. The link said 15 minutes....I figured by 30 minutes to an hour, there was so reason for concern. Especially since I received a paid in full invoice. But, I knew it would show up...it just took a bit longer than I had hoped.
 
Anyway, it's all like you said in your post...but we too that are spending the money here are human as well and are passionate about what we do. Sometimes that passion can over-rule us just like the passion the Bakers have to create this stuff. At the end of the day, I don't think any of it is meant to be taken personally. It's all out of frustration. :) If we hated this and we're not grateful, we'd not be here buying this thing every year nor would be showing up on the forum day in and day out. So we that b!tch and moan deserve a lil credit also...even if we kinda come off mean at times. ;)

Well said Danny!
 
Each time there's been a major new release of Cakewalk/Sonar, there's always been a period of "inertia"
 
Folks are excited about the new features/capabilities/improvements/possibilities
Upon using the new version, both positive and negative facets are discovered.
Early feedback starts rolling in... and you hear complaints about bugs and annoyances... and you read the occasional post describing why a particular user likes "X" feature/s.
 
Given that the GUI has undergone major changes, it's not surprising to see reports of bugs... and some initial impressions of confusion/luke-warm reception.  Given the changes, there's going to be a learning (adjustment) curve... even for the long-time users.  Personally, I think the new UI will ultimately be seen as a substantial improvement.  When working in X1, I feel a bit disoriented... but I think that's just a matter of familiarity.
Remember back to when Sonar 1 was released... (Cakewalk moved away from the "spread-sheet" style UI of Pro Audio).  It took a while for folks to adjust.  There's no doubt in my mind that X1's GUI is better organized.  Note that I'm not saying it's perfect. 
Many folks (including myself) are already compiling a list of improvments we'd like to see implemented. 
ie:  I'd like to see mouse-wheel support for the Pro Channel.
 
I think the X1 release (do to the major GUI changes) has stirred up more passion than other recent upgrades.
Otherwise, (IMO) the X1 release is right in line with those from the past.
The cycle of Cake Baking continues...
Perhaps some new chefs/ingredients/presentation... but it's still Cake.

benstat


I believe Computer Music magazine are doing a full review in this months issue, out in a week or two.

On one of the forums parts of it were posted (maybe kvr)

They gave it a 9/10