I'm with Alex and Bob on this one. I can't count how many updates have happened to Windows 7 just in the last few months, and I've had many issues related to graphics cards not having up-to-date drivers. Sonar is tied very deeply into the Windows OS and when drivers and the OS get out of sync, anything can happen.

Hello.  Thank you, Bob, CakeAlex, and Anderton, for your suggestions.
 
OK, so I have some work to do.  Updating the OS and uninstalling/re-installing Sonar are both good next steps to take.
 
Downloading the seven or eight update .ISO files from Microsoft looks like it is going to be a bit of chore (2.64 gb in size, 15+ minute download time, burn onto DVD for transfer to DAW, lord have mercy!).  I should just bite the bullet and connect the DAW to the internet for updating.
 
Bob, can you provide for me those instructions on proper uninstall/install procedures for Sonar?  Thanks.
 
Thanks everybody for your on-point and helpful instructions!! 
 
  

Sure - I just typed these up last night for someone else, so I just copied the permalink to that post:
 
http://forum.cakewalk.com/FindPost/2988375
 
In the above post, I typed in X2, but really meant X3.  The instructions work for either version - just substitute X2 or X3 as needed and you will be fine.  
 
I am not sure what your ISO downloads are for - are you not connecting the computer directly to the web, for updating Windows?  (if not, I have never done it that way, and can give you no guidance one way or another on whether or not that is a good thing to do or a potentially problematic way to do it).
 
I always connect directly to the web and run Windows Update for the computer needing the updates.
 
Bob Bone
 

Hello.
 
Actually, I just tried to connect my DAW to my internet connection (first time ever I have done this).  And I was greeted by an error message saying Windows cannot find a driver for my network adaptor on the DAW (grrrr  #%^&^%$#%$^!!!).
 
So now before I can update Windows the easy way (!!)  I have to find drivers for my DAW (which of course depends on using Windows Update, which I can't use because Windows can't access the DAW network adaptor.  Gimme a break!!!!).
 
At the rate this is going, using the Microsoft .ISO download files now looks like the faster option.
 
 

Funny Window 7 normally has all those drivers? I haven't had that issue since XP. My solution in those days, was to use a PCI Network card that I had the drivers for. 
Did you check that you had not disabled the drivers in device manager?  
Did you try using another computer to download the drivers for your MoBo ? Looks like you have ASUS. 
 
https://www.asus.com/Moth..ards/P8Z77V_LX/#support

Actually IIRC when I built my DAW I had to download my network drivers from the motherboard manufacturers site. If you are using your motherboard's network connection go to their site on your internet computer, toss it on a usb drive/key or a cd/dvd and then toss that on your DAW for installation.
 
Earlier though when I mentioned the Mackie I was saying the device or its drivers might be messed up BUT if people were talking about it having problems with specific firewire cards what they were referring to was likely a firewire issue with most FW interfaces. What you want is to make sure your firewire card has the appropriate chipset. The most reliable ones are Texas Instruments chipsets. You will have to research this, again using the model number of the firewire card. If you are using the firewire connection on your motherboard chances are it does not have the appropriate chipset but the correct cards are only around $20-30 and easy to install on a free PCIe slot.
 
However you may just want to consider another interface all together because as I said... Mackie's are not common and from Cactus Music's post it may be conflicting with Sonar which is indeed finicky (unfortunately). Focusrite makes good interfaces for a good price and many of us are using them without any problems. If you get a USB model of theirs then firewire is no longer an issue so you can just forget about piddling around with a new card or whatever. I have a Scarlett 18i6 and it's great and has tons of connections (including MIDI) but you can snag a smaller version just for audio like the 2i2 or 8i6 for $150-250.
 
Other brands to look at would be Presonus (inexpensive), MOTU (which you have for MIDI but the audio stuff is more expensive) and lots of people seem to like the Roland Quad Capture (again kind of pricey). Also RME and M-Audio interfaces seem to pop up a lot on here.

What I read on the Mackies is they seem to work real well with Locic and Pro Tools. Not much about them being used with Sonar other that reported issues and then the threads are never finished. 

Hey I was just looking up Mackie Onyx on the forum and found this..
 
http://forum.cakewalk.com/Troubleshooting-Computer-Crashes-in-Cakewalk-m2949643.aspx
 
 
And then you asked the same question back in September ??
http://forum.cakewalk.com/Computer-Freezes-When-Using-Sonar-X2-m2884926.aspx
 
 
So this is the third time you've started the same thread with almost the same title? 
Looks like you never followed though with the good advice given regarding your firewire chipset. 
 
 
 

I like my old Mackie board but they are not the first name I think of when I think of interfaces. Also not a fan of the whole firewire thing when USB is more than capable of handling most audio needs. We get soooo many complaints from firewire users on here it really does seem like a gamble. However those that do indeed get their FW stuff playing nice are indeed quite happy. There is some magical formula of cards, interfaces, drivers and settings that I personally wouldn't want to mess with. If I for some reason ever needed ultra mega connectivity (like if I was gonna start recording 40 channels at once or something) I'd probably go the PCIe route over FW.
 
I however am not a tech. Just going by what I read here and elsewhere in my travels. USB works fine in my humble little one man set up though so I'm happy.

Hello.  I did finally get Window 7 fully updated.  It required first that I get the proper network adaptor drivers from the MOBO web-site.
 
Now with Win 7 updated, I'm going to spend a couple of days working with Sonar to see if I still have the freezing behavior.  If so, I will then do the uninstall/re-install dance.
 
My current firewire card is made by StarTech.com.  The StarTech web-site reports the chipset for this card to be “Chipset ID - Texas Instruments – TSB12LV26.”
 
I am wondering if I should use a different audio interface.  The Mackie 1604 with firewire card that I use worked flawlessly with my previous DAW, running Win XP and Sonar 8.5.  I am hoping that I can resolve this problem without buying a new audio interface.  But the Mackie and its firewire card is now out of production, and future drivers for this device are unlikely.
 
I have previously queried this forum about this problem.  Because the problem is intermittent in nature, it takes me a while to find out a) is there actually a problem?, and b) is the problem still there?  Obviously, it this is an easy problem to fix, I would have fixed it a long time ago.  It could well be that I might need to consult with this forum a number of times in seeking a solution - for which I apologize.  I hope and pray Mr. Cactus never has to deal with such a gremlin in his/her studio.
 
And I thank everyone who wrote in with their thoughts and suggestions.