I didn't upgrade when X1 came out because I didn't like the idea of having to learn a new user interface, 8.5.3 was working pretty well for me and I didn't want to face a flood of new bugs while many old bugs were still flourishing.
 
All of those reasons are still true for me, but I have to admit, some of the new features of X3 look interesting.
 
So, my question for other 8.5.3 users is, what is your opinion on the feasibility of upgrading 8.5.3 to X3?
 
Thanks in advance for your input.

I am still on 8.5 and will likely remain there until SONAR un-does some of the changes made at X1 and propagated forward since. I've even considered abandoning Cakewalk for Studio One or Reaper, but decided there was no great benefit in doing so.
 
What it comes down to is this: what can't you do now that you could do if you switched to another DAW, be it X3 or a competitor?
 
When I ask myself that, the honest answer is "nothing".

>>I am still on 8.5 and will likely remain there until SONAR un-does some of the changes made at X1 and propagated forward since.
 
Care to elaborate a bit (pun intended)?

I'm staying for sort of the same reasons, I don't even use half of what 8.5 has to offer, why would I want to add more? 
The only feature I want  is "wave editing"  which was not included in the newer versions so I see absolutely nothing I am interested in at this point. 
Upgrading is 100% dependent on your requirements. Is there something you want to do that 8.5 lacks?  We upgrade to gain better, faster and easier. Will that happen, might, but not until you've parted with yet another $300 and a few months of time learning how it works. 
If I'm going to put time and money into learning something new, I would do Cubase I think. I have the LE version but it is way to limited once you've used a product like Producer. 
 
Now there's also the issue of Calkwalk becoming part of Tascam, it might become a dead end product.. should we invest our money there? 
Why don't you try the demo? That's what I did. 
I hope Sonar survives into the future and they add wave editing. 

I am on 8.3.1.  I haven't even looked at the features for X1, X2, X3... etc.  I am a firm believer in if it ain't broke don't fix it.  8.3 does everything I want it to do.  Am I naive?  (That's not a rhetorical question, btw, please feel free to answer.)
 
I'm also running Windows Vista Business x64 for the same reason.  My current configuration of OS/SONAR almost never crashes (knock on wood)... maybe 3-4 times a year but always due to a 3rd-party plugin.
 
Anyway.... so I download the latest "Morphestra" for Kontakt, it tells me I need to upgrade Kontakt (sigh... seems like this is endless).  So I upgrade from Kontakt 5.1 to 5.2 except... guess what... Kontakt 5.2 all of a sudden REQUIRES at least Windows 7.  So I won't be able to run any new Kontakt samples until I upgrade my OS?!?
 
I'm moving my studio in a month so I'm resigned to upgrading the OS at the same time.  I guess my question is twofold: 1) will the same thing happen to me with SONAR if I don't upgrade, or will I even be able to reinstall 8.3.1 onto Win7 or Win8 and 2) even if not, should I upgrade anyway?  (Brings me back to the original topic.)  If yes, should I upgrade for the features or just for compatibility with a newer operating system?
 
I'm so sad to be giving up my current system which seems flawless to me...

bitflipper
I am still on 8.5 and will likely remain there until SONAR un-does some of the changes made at X1 and propagated forward since. I've even considered abandoning Cakewalk for Studio One or Reaper, but decided there was no great benefit in doing so.

Out of curiosity what were the changes they made at X1 that you disagree with?  I'm sure if I search I could find a thread but this seems easier.  (EDIT oops I see I missed someone else asking the same thing.)

I would jump at the chance although I would suggest waiting for X3D patch (I'm sure others will disagree but I suspect it will be out by the end of the year so there isn't much of a real point here).
 
Having said that I actually upgraded from X2 to X3C today, as I needed to use Melodyne and addictive drums for a track. Was no longer just "nice to have".

Matt why are you using 8.3? For me it was the buggy version and 8.5 was the finished product. See this is the problem as I see it with X series, they are still working on it and people are probably spending to much time mucking about and not getting any recording done in the meantime. 
Even Sonar 7 works on Window 7 64 bit, Vista was a lost child and you should move on. Just don't go as far as Window 8.1.. that's when things get ugly. I still like Windows 7 and it is another case of why upgrade if it works for you. 
 
 Alex you can purchase Melodyne and run it via tools in Sonar 8.5. So not a must have for me. 

Yes I also use Melodyne just fine in 8.3.
 
The reason I still use 8.3 and Vista is just that... no bugs, no crashes, why upgrade?  Buggy for you but not for me.
 
The company that built my computer (visiondaw.com) is recommending I upgrade to Windows 7 they claim it is the most solid option.  Agree?

Thanks for all the helpful replies ... I appreciate the discussion.
 
The two main reasons I never upgraded to Sonar Xn are 1) Why should I have to learn a new user interface whose main claim to fame is that it is different, while 8.5 has been a familiar friend for years, and 2) New versions of all SW are buggy and Cakewalk is more than competitive in that regard. It is VERY annoying that Cakewalk keeps adding tasty new features that sound interesting, but doesn't do enough about fixing problems that have been around for years. The tasty new features also seldom work as advertised in the first version, and often take many versions to become really usable.
 
I have become comfortable with 8.5.3's quirks and have learned to get around them enough to get the job done in a fairly efficient manner.
 
BTW, I use GoldWave for my audio editor and have been very pleased with it. I doubt that Sonar would ever have all the features that GoldWave has, even if they added wave editing to Sonar.
 
Integrated Melodyne would be nice, but as was pointed out, it works fine with 8.5.3.
 
I believe the discussion about OS compatibility is probably the strongest reason to have to upgrade someday. For now, I have been using 8.5.3 on XP Pro x32, Vista Ultimate x64, and Win 7 Pro x64 with good success. BTW, I agree that Vista was a mess, initially, but has been improved to be very Win 7 like in performance. While I haven't tried Win8 at this point, it looks like they used the Vista team to develop it. That's why I have an extra (uninstalled) copy of Win 7 Pro x64 that I'm keeping for a rainy day, so it will be a few more years before I'm forced to upgrade Sonar because of OS compatibility problems.
 
Thanks again.