I also opted in for the phone survey.  I picked up the Expander/Gate PC module since i didn't already have it.

superdan54
Saw there was an optional 20-minute phone survey you can opt-in for...any one know if there is another incentive for signing up for that?

Only the pleasure of talking to us :)
 
It's optional of course.

Andrew,
It just "smelled" like Cakewalk was sniffing around about the subscription concept and I'm glad to hear that Cakewalk is probably not moving in that direction.  FWIW, I used to faithfully purchase most updates of Adobe Photoshop, but after V6, they went to the monthly thing.  Despite the fact that Photoshop is a superior product, I decided to move to Corel Paintshop Pro and that's where I'll probably stay...Love Cakewalk Sonar and the premise is working well and would hate to see it change.

I used my voucher to buy the softube mix bundle. I couldn't resist the 40% off + the 25€ voucher.
A subscription model of Sonar will probably end any future conections with Cakewalk for me. Hope that they wont go that route

I missed this survey, and after seeing threads on it, I am glad that I did... this post is sort of off topic, but in response to the comments above.
 

dubdisciple

digimidi
 
[...] FWIW, I used to faithfully purchase most updates of Adobe Photoshop, but after V6, they went to the monthly thing.  Despite the fact that Photoshop is a superior product, I decided to move to Corel Paintshop Pro and that's where I'll probably stay... [...]

[...]  there is absolutely nothing i use regularly in current version that i did not use as far back as Photoshop 6.  Not CS6...but 6!! [...]

Ironically, I am the same with Adobe; and even sadder is that I have a copy of Paint Shop Pro 5 (prior to JASC's acquisition, c. 1998) that is only 17.5MB, self-contained, and has the most-used core functionality of an image editor. It is easily portable on a thumb drive, so I often "wow" people that I can modify images regularly even on THEIR machines. Word processing falls into the same bin... how many "features" do I need in a program initially intended to replace the typewriter??
 
Technology can sometimes be a downfall in ways, and the thing I enjoy most are "disruptive innovations"... technology that has existed for 40-50 years, yet no one thought of "another application" for them. The best recent example of this is Nintendo's Wii... the focus of that product was to capture market from non-gamers (specifically women and older people) and the "solution" was simply to change the interface and make it social. HUGE win. The technology is so old, in fact, that Wii is the only product of its like that makes a profit on the initial sale of the box (all competitors take a loss on their box in hopes that people will buy more games).
 
There are, in fact, many such things with music that could be incorporated into Music Creator (they could also be incorporated into SONAR, but I would target MC for this instead) which would snag-in NON-musicians if done properly. There is absolutely nothing "bad" about getting people involved in learning music, but I am often concerned about new musicians viewing DAWs as a "technological, menu-driven nightmare" on first use. Make it "fun," and inexpensive, and there are millions of new users to be had.
 
Food for thought, anyway... sorry for the thread disruption (pun intended ).
 
 
 

mettelus

Word processing falls into the same bin... how many "features" do I need in a program initially intended to replace the typewriter??
 

Made me think of this article from yesterdays Times:
 
============================================
Here’s a riddle for you. A woman loads up a large car and prepares for a long  drive. In the back she puts suitcases, coats, boots and all the rest. Into  car seats go the kids. Her husband leans through the window and gives her a  kiss, she pushes the ignition button and motors off.
 
Two hours later (it’s quite a long riddle) she stops for petrol. Afterwards,  she pushes the ignition button again and nothing happens at all. So she  hunts for the key, but can’t find it. She pulls out her pockets. She empties  her bag on to the floor. No key. Where can it be?
 
Answer: in her husband’s shirt pocket, two hours down the motorway. And  somebody is about to get a bus. Such is the madness of a newish invention,  popular in top-end motoring, known as the “proximity key”.
============================================
 
LOL - the 'key' has worked just fine for hundreds of years, why the need to reinvent it
 
Didn't Renault once make a car that wasn't supplied with keys at all, just electronic fobs? I seem to recall there were a few incidents where owners had left the lights on and drained their cars' batteries, so they couldn't even open the doors or bonnet (hood) to get at the battery!

yea 25 will use it toward upgrade but will wait if i can to see if sonar 9 will be free after upgrade as usual 

Andrew Rossa [Cakewalk]
 
I am sorry you weren't thrilled. The idea was to try and understand how customers are purchasing software today. It's not meant to be an indication that we will be adopting an Adobe style model. We are just trying to understand usage and purchasing behaviors. Since when is data such a bad thing?

  This should be a sticky.  Thanks for the $25 to spend.  I've always tried to participate in the surveys regardless of being paid to do it.   
 

Camp NO SUBSCRIPTION here.
 
Got the SWA video training X2/X3 for free. Unfortunately I spent my remaining free time for the year filling out the survey! :)

Never mind, got it.

Mosvalve
I'm an idiot, I didn't write down the code for the $25 after the survey. I thought it was going to be in my account. Oh well.

Follow the link to the survey you were given again. It'll take you straight to the promotion code without having to take the survey. I just did it again because when I first did the survey, I really thought there was nothing I needed (without shelling out extra). However on second thoughts I figured I might as well get the Melodyne videos. I've already watched Eli Krantzberg's excellent Groove3 tutorial but I figured it couldn't hurt to watch another course, I might pick up a few pointers that Eli left out, plus this one's specifically geared toward the ARA integration. Anyway I needed to retrieve the promo code and thought I'd have to take the survey again but that wasn't the case. 

I did the survey, and getting the SWA Complete to have on my laptop (and am not online. Normally I use Groove3)), the Melodyne ARA one, the 5 pack Zeta bundle and Craig's MiniMoog for Rapture.
 
I totaled up my CW Sonar online purchases (which doesn't include my 1st Pro Audio 9 from GC)since 2000 and it came to $2,308.91 (not counting the above), so far over the past 14 years (13+1/2). I guess I think of that as investing in Cakewalk's and my own future. (I didn't upgrade for a 5 year period during some "dark years" LOL)
     I would prefer to not have my license expire! I could work around the monthly or yearly payment, I suppose, but I do feel resistant to that idea. I know I'd prefer to buy what I want, when I want.
 
Thanks to Andrew for pointing out the harmlessness of the survey. I went to my fave local music store today and Les Pauls have jumped in price for 2015, so I am very curious as to Gibson's next moves, RE Cakewalk (and I suppose Tascam, too).
Michael
 
 
 

pentimentosound
I went to my fave local music store today and Les Pauls have jumped in price for 2015

What Gibson USA does is not necessarily what Gibson Brands does. For example, the pricing on the new TASCAM USB interfaces is really pretty amazing given that the specs (I tested 'em) pretty much meet or beat anything in its price range.
 
A lot of the price increase is because the new, super-high gloss finishes are gorgeous, but they are labor- and time-intensive. Last year there was an SG (bass, IIRC) that came in two different models. One was double the price of the other but they appeared to be identical except for the finish. I thought the price was a mistake, so I thought I better double-check before the copy for the web went live. It turned out it was the difference between them was the cost of the finishes.
 
I dunno, maybe Gibson will do satin finishes again someday, which cost less to do...thankfully I have nothing to do with those decisions, and I don't speak for Gibson. But also, the guitars continue to be made in the USA, including the Memphis and Acoustic divisions. Henry's quite insistent on that, however there's a price to be paid for keeping Americans employed instead of, say, Vietnamese...and it doesn't get any cheaper as time goes on. But they're damned good at what they do 

Ditto on the quality! and colors....oh man, the new Bourbon Burst is really fine! It is catching up with my favorite- Iced Tea. I just realized I am really "old school/traditional" when it comes to Gibsons. I love the ones I either owned when younger or didn't get around to buying, yet, like a ES-355, Firebird V, L5-CES.
 
 I don't really like the idea that the E tuner thingy is becoming "required reading" and you'll have to custom order one without it, if you don't want it.
   They still make some fine guitars, though!
Michael
ps I sort of wasted my $25 survey voucher. I was exhausted last night when I ordered the SWA Complete X3 videos, not noticing they are really the X2 videos with a "what's new in X3" one. Crap! I already own the SWA Complete X2. Oh well, there's always another sale/coupon/deal coming.......

I chose three VKFX Modules Tremello, Chorus, Wah. For $5, I figured you couldn't go wrong.