Hi All,
 
With the current sale, I'd be able to snag X3 for probably the lowest price it's ever likely to be offered for. But before I commit, I want to try to avoid the same pitfall I always seem to end up in, and see what the ETA of X4 (if there is one) is. I don't see anywhere that X4 is confirmed at all yet, but I also remember how unexpectedly X3 appeared on the scene when it did. Do you think we're looking at the same kind of deal here? And how much is likely to be different/new in X4? Do you reckon it might be another big step up, or does it seem that X3 might be the bee's knees for some time?
 
Thanks.

I have no idea so fed the questions to http://www.ask8ball.net/ here are the results
 
Do you think we're looking at the same kind of deal here?
My reply is no
 
And how much is likely to be different/new in X4?
Most likely
 
Do you reckon it might be another big step up, or does it seem that X3 might be the bee's knees for some time?
Concentrate and ask again
 

Look, there is no benefit to Cakewalk in telling you that the new version will be arriving in X weeks. If you are holding out for the new version you will not buy the old version which is going to be piled up in their (or their distributor's) warehouses when the new version comes out. The usual final hint that a new version is coming is when they announce that if you buy the old version they will upgrade you to the new version for free. By that time, since the price includes the new version, they will probably have raised the price to something close to what you would have to pay for the new version upgrade. Usually that is more than the most drastic discount they will offer to move the old version.  X3 is a fully functional pretty magnificent DAW for home use that has had a bunch of bug fixes applied. I would not expect any more updates, and the new features tend to be underwhelming compared to the value of the discount on the older version. If the current upgrade is a good deal for you, buy it. You can probably upgrade to X4e when they are nearing the end of the next cycle for a similarly attractive price. 

scook
I have no idea so fed the questions to http://www.ask8ball.net/ here are the results
 
Do you think we're looking at the same kind of deal here?
My reply is no
 
And how much is likely to be different/new in X4?
Most likely
 
Do you reckon it might be another big step up, or does it seem that X3 might be the bee's knees for some time?
Concentrate and ask again
 

Pmsl. I was going to moan about X3F at this point but I have been out classed.

Anyway to keep you 'in the know' I have been studying cake for some time now. I have come to the viewpoint that somehow alien grey technology will be made available in the next release. You heard it here first.

And finally I have just asked 8ball 'Will I have sex tomorow?' And the reply was 'My sources say no'.... Crap.

I do not see the situation as a 'pitfall', but rather a great opportunity to pick up X3 at a good price.
 
Yes, there will be either another maintenance release - which would be free - OR there will be a new version release, in which case you will still have X3e.
 
The advantages are in having it now, IF there are features you wish to have access to at this point.
 
The disadvantage - if it is that - is really down to whatever the difference in upgrade price is between your current release to the new release, and the difference in upgrade price from X3e to the new release.  
 
If that total difference between the two upgrade paths is maybe $50 or so, then if I were in your shoes I would skip a couple of pizza nights and go ahead and upgrade now to X3e now.
 
This same question comes up literally every year at around this time, and the conditions remain the same, except that in this case, X3e is considered by most accounts to be a stellar version, perhaps as good or better than 8.5.3 was.
 
I think it would be money well spent - more invested really, in a tremendous release that you could jump into right now.
 
Bob Bone
 

slartabartfast
Look, there is no benefit to Cakewalk in telling you that the new version will be arriving in X weeks.

The music industry has seen a lot of vaporware where companies announce that something will be released on a specific date, only to have it be pushed back, modified, or sometimes even scratched altogether. Cakewalk has chosen not to pre-announce products, but to wait until they are 100% sure they will be baked and available when promised.
 
Frankly, I'm not a fan of vaporware as I have seen it do more harm than good. So, I'm glad Cakewalk has taken this approach.
 
That said, I can guarantee that Sonar X4 will be released before Sonar X5. Well, at least I think so...

Also you have to be careful about announcing new stuff too far in advance for sales reasons. Not only can it lead to people choosing not to buy, which is never good for a company of course, but those same people can then get angry because the new version isn't coming fast enough.
 
So even if CW did something real general like "No release date promised, not a complete list of features, but here's some of what will likely happen," it could hurt them. 
 
Plus I usually find that the more noise a company makes prior to launch, the less impressive the launch is. Like with nVidia. When they dropped their 8800 line of graphics cards, it was a bolt of lightning out of the blue. There was -no- indication they'd happen then or be so powerful. They rocked the graphics world. However when they didn't have their GTX 400 series on time they did all kinds of press releases, shows, and hype, talking about how awesome it was gonna be when it finally came out... and then it was extremely underwhelming.

To be honest,
and I don't wish to be a total downer for those whom desperately need things"sorted",but I REALLY hope X4 is a little way off yet,I mean I'm only just coming to grips with the intricacies of the quad channel eq[I LOVE the fly out analyzer-I had it as a feature request]but I have to shell out for DECENT monitors[I have some 5" yellow coned ones,but they just DO NOT have even a smidgen of high mid clarity compared to a Tannoy Eaton that I use in conjunction with another passive speaker and Sony MDR-7509HD phones...in fact I HATE these monitors,and now the next gen has arrived they're worth ...not a lot,but to buy good monitoring[Event OPAL etc etc]which in Oz,are loads[sometimes 80% and even more!-and Event used to be Oz owned I believe?]of dollars[AUD]than Sweetwater,and the like,and then those stores ONLY sell such items to US residents only,or with insane shipping costs due to weight-and it's gotten a LOT worse in recent times.

Also my laptop has only lasted 2 1/2 years before breaking[I can still use it,but the cpu is reaching 90c!!! i7 2630QM[yes I know its dust buildup etc]but it's super fragile atm and I don't want to risk opening it up to clean it as this model is no picnic to open.
So yes,I'm almost totally at ease with where my X3 is at,the only things that really bug me are related to this computer,and I should be using my desktop,but many of the plugin licences I blew the amounts of machines through web user error,and and and,but long story it's in another part of this house big enough for it,but it's only comfortable in there in Autumn ,Spring,as it has no insulation and the owner[really nice old guy]we do not wish to hassle,so X4 in 2015 would probably be fine right here.
Bob