craigb
PE 4.  It STILL does most of what I need.
 
(But that's what my Mom said about her oven when microwaves first came out - until she used one!)

 
Craig
 
OK that's cool .... please don't laugh at what I am about to suggest to you
 
IMHO , I think the smartest thing you could do would be to give your self a lot of room to breath so you can handle your biznez w out putting a lot of unnecessary extra pressure on your personal finances and the musical software end of things ...
An updated current level DAW = never ending money pit ....
 
I went from SONAR 6 PE in XP to X3 PE in Win 8 and I can tell you it was a major pain to learn all the new stuff that was in X3 ...
To tell you the truth I was ready to just give up on SONAR entirely .....it was just way to much for me to handle...
 
Here is what I actually did , and this is what I found out
At the time (2013 ) , I wound up picking up Music Creator 6 for peanuts and a Groove 3 video for MC ,,,,
Bear in mind , at the time I had already upgraded to X3 PE ..but it was over my head ...
I was shocked because Music Creator was running circles around my SONAR 6 PE in every area performance wise
BTW, ...a number of people here on the forum confirmed that for me ....
I was told that the version of MC that I had back then was based on the audio engine of X 1 .....
 
If it wasn't for having a copy of Music Creator I may not of crested the learning curve of X3 ...
 
Here's what my suggestion to you would be ....
If you happen to want to get back in the music game while using Cakewalk software I would suggest that you seriously consider Music Creator 7 ....
Don't let the name or the product tier price point fool you...it is miles ahead feature wise than what I had in Music Creator 6 Touch and even my beloved SONAR 6 PE ....
IMHO , I think that it is a perfect place to get back into the game ...if you check out the current Music Creator 7 features you may see that I'm trying to steer you in the right direction
 
I think the most M C 7  would cost you is $50 bucks for the base program 
...it may even only cost you $20 ( my cost only because I've upgraded in the past )
For your price , you need to check while you are logged in ,and after placing it in the cart ...you can always remove it.
 
I hope a few other fellas around here chime in ...
M C 7 w a couple of free Blue Cat , Melda and Tokyo Dawn plugs means your good to go
 
all the best ,
 
Kenny
 
 
 

Of all the low end DAWs out there (<$50), MC ($19) is by far the best value for what it does. You cannot "upgrade" to Sonar with it but then for $99 (or $49 upgrade) Sonar Artist is the next best value and does allow you to upgrade.
 
I bought MC3 years ago for $29.

If somebody starts a monthly during this period, does it convert to lifetime if/when 12 consecutive months are paid?
 
If so, maybe you could go monthly for a month or two, then convert/do the payoff a month or two down the line.
 
If not, please disregard

 
 
A nice idea from Ed.

Some cool suggestions here.  I'm just happy to be able to start entertaining these types of ideas again.  Wondering if you'll have enough to pay rent each month is no fun (and, since I didn't a couple of times but was living with a friend who let me slide, I want to pay him back first even though, or especially because, he doesn't expect it).
 
I just need to slow down and catch up first.  Being the spreadsheet guy that I am, I've created a nice running month-to-month budget worksheet so I'll know what needs to go where and how much I'm saving for new things.  As much as I'd love to get back into making music, several other things have to have priority like new clothes (that actually fit) for seeing customers and a reliable car.  Even once I'm ready for music I still need to get a lot of gear AND a computer able to run the newer versions of things. 
 
All of that said, I AM putting things into a "Goals" list so I can see what I'm working towards and there will be money budgeted for fun stuff.  The way I break things down is like this:
 
10% (right off the top) - Anything I want - this is the reason I work and live
5% - Charities, gifts, etc. - This includes doing for others what Bapu was trying to set up for me.
10% - Savings (mostly as a buffer against the unexpected)
10% - Investing (could be for my own business, real estate, back to trading commodities which I was good at, etc.)
65% - Expenses (this is what you live on - housing, utilities, transportation, clothing, food and all those expensive non-food items like laundry detergent, etc.)
 
I was almost a millionaire using a simpler variation of this so I know it works.  You'll find similar breakdowns in lots of books like the Richest Man in Babylon or the Wealthiest Barber.
 
One of the few good things to come out of having lost everything is that I have now learned to live on FAR less.  In fact, if I only work about 30 hours a week at my new job (and assuming about 70% net take-home pay), all of my monthly expenses (which includes portions of things that aren't paid monthly like my every two years car registration) only comes to about 40%.  So that means I can use 25% of my take-home to improve my living conditions without over extending myself.  I already know that I'll need a different place to live if I want to have studio gear plus I need a car I can trust.  Right now I don't even have a TV, but that hasn't even made the goal list (I'm only missing some sports - not much else!).
 
Hi, 
tl;dr
Good times! :-)
 

You are the only person (other than me) that I've seen reference 'Richest Man In Babylon'
 
I also recommend 'The Money Game' - which is less about money than about knowing yourself.

BobF
You are the only person (other than me) that I've seen reference 'Richest Man In Babylon'

Heh, I think I've bought at least five copies since I keep giving mine away!  I'll have to check out the Money Game.
 
An interesting side note to my budgeting is that I've set up a second savings account for my "fun" money.  It has a Visa debit card attached so I can use that for whatever I want then pay myself back instead of a credit card company.  Plus, if someone steals that card and uses it, I'm only out whatever is in that account.

My budget is as follows:
 
100% - VSTs

bapu
My budget is as follows:
 
100% - VSTs

+ 20-40%? 

I can't even think of my wish list yet...  Besides a GOOD sound I/O, there's everything that goes with a guitar (except a stand, I kept one) like an AxeFX or a Line 6 Helix and an amp and cab(s) and, and, and...  Then I'd want a decent keyboard synth (just one, then I could always trigger software types with MIDI), a nice bass, a physical mixer, and, and, and...  Of course, there's software to get (or upgrade - I still have a lot).  Unfortunately, I can't find my Waves Diamond box (or my original Gold box either).  I wonder if they got stolen sometime during my moves.  Plus now there are all these cool new tools like ARC, IR's and VST's!  *Sigh...*
 
(And I didn't even mention cables!)