1+ for groove 3!  For the last month I've been on the $15 all you can eat plan.  I've got a chromecast, and flinging it to my TV.  It's better than Netflix!!!

I just bought 4 videos from the Cakewalk store this month (three by Karl Rove. Thanks fastbikerboy,) and SONAR X3 Explained came free with my X3 upgrade.
 
I have both of Craig Anderton's Advanced Workshop videos. They both are helpful, and we are lucky to have Mr. Anderton making presentations for us using the SONAR environment. Thank you for doing helpful things for us SONAR users throughout the years! Having more professionals doing the same is a good thing for the SONAR community.
 
The Groove3 tutorials are helpful videos, indeed.
 
I really like Eli Krantzberg's SONAR related videos. He is extremely good at teaching how to use SONAR and knowledgeable about music production related things in general. He also has other well done videos, such as Music Theory Explained, and MIDI Orchestration Explained. I wish he would cover more of these music production related topics using SONAR, though, since I'm more familiar with it (but there may be more tips and tricks or functionality he can reveal I'm not aware of), and it is my DAW of choice.
 
I can't overstate how impressed and pleased I am with Eli's tutorials/videos. If this was a university, and I was a student, again, he would certainly be my favorite professor! Come on Eli! ... uh Mr. Kranzberg....Give us some more videos using SONAR? And may you prosper and be in good health.

About 2 years ago, after a "7 year  lull" (LOL), I went from Sonar 5.2PE on my old P4 XP, to Windows 7 on a new ROG i7 ASUS laptop (intending to build another desktop, which I am still planning) and bought X1PE. Right after that we bought a house (and more studio gear/software ),  which kept me busy enough that X2 came out and I bumped up a level, though I didn't feel I was catching up. At that point I realized how far behind I was/felt! So, I got Craig's vids, ones for Z3ta, Rapture, X2 explained, etc, which led me to Groove 3. I did the monthly $15 All Access Pass, until they had a deal for $10/month, which I did until they had their $99/year! I don't have to go anywhere or know someone who knows Sonar!
    I couldn't be more pleased with it. It is like going to school for the stuff I OWN! How cool! I use CakeTV and whatever Craig does, plus Scott Garrigus' DigiFreq forum, too, and now feel like I am getting up to speed again.
Highly recommended!
Michael

Sometimes I find myself taking all those plugs out of the mix and going back to the bare tracks to mix. I find myself getting so out of my depth with what I have inserted into the signal chain, that I have absolutely no idea what tweaking a knob is going to effect. So, it's back to the drawing board and a lot of the time i find the bare tracks with a bit of volume balance, sounds just great. Of course I'll add a touch of compression, add a little EQ and then some delay and reverb....... oh no.

+1 for using what comes with Sonar.  Right now, I am using only PC and Reverberation.  I still have much to learn about both and try to keep my mixing as simple as possible.  My rule is:
- good performance
- good room
- good mic placement
- good mics
- good analog equipment in the input side
- good work with balances, mixing etc
- then I think about PC and plug ins
 
As I do only simple acoustic music, this works for me.
 
Tom
 

rebel007
Sometimes I find myself taking all those plugs out of the mix and going back to the bare tracks to mix. I find myself getting so out of my depth with what I have inserted into the signal chain, that I have absolutely no idea what tweaking a knob is going to effect. So, it's back to the drawing board and a lot of the time i find the bare tracks with a bit of volume balance, sounds just great. Of course I'll add a touch of compression, add a little EQ and then some delay and reverb....... oh no.

 
LOL That was funny as heck!

pentimentosound
 I use CakeTV and whatever Craig does, plus Scott Garrigus' DigiFreq forum, too, ...
Highly recommended!
Michael

+1 for Craig, Scott and CakeTV (as well as SONAR Power X*)  The Groove 3 Sonar X3 Explained vid is one of the best learning experiences I've had since joining the Cake family many years/versions ago.  Simple, thorough, extremely well produced and executed.  Answered so many questions I didn't even know I had, and touched on processes that I overlooked in the past because I thought they were over my head…but now I know enough to go forward with them...
 
I'm a guitar player from way back.  The advice I always give to new guitar players is, jam with as many other guitar players as you can…you will almost always learn something new from each one of them.  Same goes here with the various Sonar vids.  Watching these guys go through the motions, sometimes in different ways, increases the chance of a lightbulb going off in my head...
 
Love this community
 
Rob

Anderton
Don't forget that Cakewalk's Dan Gonzalez is posting a lot of excellent video tutorials here on the site, and they're free. He just did a series on compression that you'll find very helpful. Check the Cakewalk blog to see what he's been up to.
 
Also, if you want to find out about some advanced techniques, my two Advanced Workshop videos are still available from the Cakewalk store. While done using Sonar X1, virtually all of the techniques remain valid.

I have those Workshop videos and I found them to be a great asset. If you are investing in yourself and looking for great videos I would recommend them.
 
I would also say if you have not done so already spend some time over at the cakewalk university. There are three levels of videos there. Getting Started, Go Deeper, and Master Class. All of those videos are great as well. The best part is they are free. If you are new to Sonar you will learn a great deal just by watching those videos. They go beyond the basic use of Sonar and show some cool ways to get the most out of X3
 
On the Blog they have new videos on using the CA-2A compression plug. There is a lot of good information in those videos as well. Right now Dan is doing a section on mixing. 
 
I don't have many plug-ins outside of the ones that come with Sonar X3. I have all the great free ones that are out there. There are a few awesome ones that cost nothing.
 
The only one I purchased was Ozone 5. That is an incredible plug-in to use on the buss channels. Groove 3 has a great video that explains Ozone 5 in detail. I was not aware of everything it did until I watched that video. I did not like the choice of music used for the examples but I learned a lot from the video. 
 
They also have a great video on the Zeta 2 synth at Groove 3.
 
Investing in your skills is always a good investment. It is also good to have the videos to review every once in a while.

Like Marcus Curtis, after watching Eli go through mixing with/using IK T-Racks (which I had just bought!), I was both amazed at what they could do and delighted with ALL that I already owned... and obviously need to spend some time with! With experts like Craig Anderton, Eli Krantzberg, and all the contributors to CakeTV, I feel completely confident I will learn how to do what I want and way more! I have been really enjoying Seth Perlman's 5 part SD3 and Step Sequencer Master Drum tutorial, and finally feel like I am getting the hang of it and that it will be a major advancement for me. I've been longing after the ease of Groove Agent 2.
   In a way I guess, I feel blown away by all that my studio rig will do! It is nice to be impressed with what you own! LOL
Michael

Anderton
 
Also, if you want to find out about some advanced techniques, my two Advanced Workshop videos are still available from the Cakewalk store. While done using Sonar X1, virtually all of the techniques remain valid.

Hi Craig, 
I picked up both of the Advanced Workshop videos you did ...
I got half way through the first one today …already it has helped me a lot ….
 
before I got your videos , I felt like I was hitting a brick wall with X3 ,
X3 is just so much different than what I was used to S 6 PE …everything about X3 was a lot for me to absorb while trying to figure it all out on my own .
 
your videos are excellent and the material you presented was very deep and thorough ...
I think what you are doing is a great thing by putting it out there ….
helping people learn the tools so they can realize their musical dreams is a pretty high calling .
 
all the best , 
 
Kenny