Sonar X1 producer here. I'm discovering Z3ta+ soft synth. I control it via my PCR-300 edirol keyboard (a control surface that works great with Sonar itself) through Sonar ACT.
I made multiple ACT assignements from Z3ta+ to the PCR knobs, sliders and buttons. It works in playing, and sonar beautifully remembers the assignements in different sessions. Yet, when I enable midi recording and press W (enable automation write) in the midi track strip, I only record midi notes but I don't record the knobs motion.  Since it's the first time I'm using these tools, I guess I am missing something about recording automation. Can anybody help me?

There's a minor bug related to soft-synths and the write enable button (but is unconfirmed by CW) in which the soft-synth write enable shows red when you click write enable on the midi track, but automation is not recorded.
 
I think you will find if you open the soft synth, disable write enable and re-enable it (W in top right hand corner on the Soft-Synth) that the automation will now write.

YES! It works! But I confess I had not seen the W at the upper right in the synth page, I had enabled W in the channel strip, they are not linked. 1 reply, but decisive. Thanks a lot.

gswitz
There's a minor bug related to soft-synths and the write enable button (but is unconfirmed by CW) in which the soft-synth write enable shows red when you click write enable on the midi track, but automation is not recorded.
 
I think you will find if you open the soft synth, disable write enable and re-enable it (W in top right hand corner on the Soft-Synth) that the automation will now write.

Could not reproduce this in X3D, I'm guessing it is fixed.

Nope. The bug is still there. I just reproduced in Sonar X3d.
 
It's specific to soft synths. I've been on the phone with support and they reproduced the bug as well, so...
 
It's in the system.
 
Specific steps...
Create project...
Insert Audio Track
Add TH2 to regular FX bin (not PC)
Write enable Audio Track (with TH2 open you will see W on TH2 turn red as well)
Record enable the audio track
R for record
Move one of the smart controls in TH2
 
Expected... Envelope for the automated parameter is written to the track
Actual... No envelope is created or written.
 
Workaround...
Hit stop.
Hit the W to disable Write Enable on TH2
Hit the W again to enable Write Enable on TH2 (I'm sure this can be better said)
Hit R and twiddle pot in TH2 and you will see envelope created.
 

fcarosone
I had enabled W in the channel strip, they are not linked.

I believe regular FX ARE linked by default. By this I mean that if you add a VST to an Audio track and write enable the audio track it will write enable the VST as well.
 
Midi/Soft-Synths are different. If you Write Enable a Midi track it DOES NOT Write Enable the Soft-Synth that the Midi Track outputs to. This behavior is the same for Simple Instrument Tracks. You have to explicitly Enable Write on the Soft-Synth.
 
I believe that the goofy behavior I describe with TH2 may be related to the fact that you CAN specify TH2 to work as a Soft-Synth and set the midi output from a midi track to be input into TH2 so that you can automate TH2 that way. The problem is that the W for write enable gets changed to red on the TH2 in some cases where write is NOT actually enabled. That's really the bug.
 
So Sonar marks the W Red because it's a VST plug, but then doesn't actually write enable TH2. This makes TH2 a special case, a bit like dropping a Soft-Synth into the FX bin of an audio track and using the Synth as an effect on the track. So, perhaps if you drop Pentagon onto an Audio Track to use it as a Vocoder, you would get the same behavior.
 
Also, it may have to be on a cold start. And I was using the full version of TH2, not the Sonar Version.
 
This is not the same for other FX. For example, if you add a regular VST to an audio track and write enable the audio track, it will create the related envelope when you twiddle a pot.
 
 
 
 

gswitz
Nope. The bug is still there. I just reproduced in Sonar X3d.
 
It's specific to soft synths. I've been on the phone with support and they reproduced the bug as well, so...
 
It's in the system.
 
Specific steps...
Create project...
Insert Audio Track
Add TH2 to regular FX bin (not PC)
Write enable Audio Track (with TH2 open you will see W on TH2 turn red as well)
Record enable the audio track
R for record
Move one of the smart controls in TH2
 
Expected... Envelope for the automated parameter is written to the track
Actual... No envelope is created or written.
 
Workaround...
Hit stop.
Hit the W to disable Write Enable on TH2
Hit the W again to enable Write Enable on TH2 (I'm sure this can be better said)
Hit R and twiddle pot in TH2 and you will see envelope created.
 

 
Hmm what am I missing... Could not reproduce...

I was using the full version TH v2.2.16 (64 bit). I enabled write automation and record on the audio track itself and not the plugin. I was able twist the pot next to the lineout label whilst recording and the automation "output level" graph was created (which played back later). Note the plugin was in the standard bin (not pro channel).
 
Thanks...

Not sure, Alex.
 
If you watch the end of this video you can see it happening when I demonstrate the use of the Wah pedal. You can see that both the track and TH2 have the red Write Enable marked. You can see the smart control moving with the A for write automation lighted blue. You can see the track in the background where no automation is being written.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ja1RvsICh0Y
The video itself is what put me on to it because I went to check the automation lane and it wasn't there.
 
I've seen it happen both using ACT to control the parameter and skipping ACT and twiddling the nob with the mouse. Again, I got it to happen earlier today in X3d.
 
I don't know if there's some secret clicking required that only I do and you don't. Maybe. Whatever it is, the issue shows up for me. I was also able to walk the person at Cakewalk support through the issue and he confirmed it was a problem for him too.
 
Now, this problem counts below the 64 bit engine as totally inconsequential. There's an easy work around, and anyone debugging it would resolve it in a second by unchecking and re-checking the W. It's really not worth more time imho.
 
Merry Christmas, Alex. Presents are wrapped and under the tree and I'm off to bed.
 
Peace to the world!