In Ableton Live, there is a function that will slice a wav file at transients and assign these slices to midi notes so that you can play back the slices using your midi controller keyboard.  Is there a way to accomplish the same thing in Sonar?  I have used AudioSnap Pallette to slice a wav file at transients before but dont know where to go from here.  I like the RXP in Sonar but it treats wav files as one big slice.

As far as I know RXP does allow you to play slices of a loop individually to make your own patterns.  I was using it on a project, but ran into problems running it in 64 bit.
 
Cyclone also does this as I recall.  I'll just go have a look...

Yes, Cyclone does this.  Drag and drop a wav file into Cyclone's loop bin and then drag the individual parts onto the different pads in the lower part of the interface.  The pads can be assigned to MIDI notes.

this is where apps like sample robot come in handy, map them out, put loop points in and save sfz, then load them into dim pro or rapture http://samplerobot.com/was.htm

Good question. Being able to play slices in another, controlled order is an open door to a new world of possibilities.
For this specific task you ask, I find Sonar a little odd, since it has developed this facility for rex files in RXP, Beatscape, Dim pro, with a very easy button that allows you to drag and drop a midi scale of all the slices adiacent to each other onto a midi track, but it has not the same easy functionality on sliced wavs or library acid wavs.
This is odd since Sonar has not the capability to create rex files, while it has capability to create acid wavs.
 
To slice a wav, Sonar has Audiosnap, Loop Construction Window and Beatscape (Cyclone for who has not the producer version)
To go further from Audiosnap 2.0, consider the cakewalk video tutorial  at:
http://cakewalk.com/CakeTV/SONARU.aspx/Go-Deeper
Audiosnap slice and session drummer.
This video suggests to use the scissor tool in the audiosnap palette to cut audio files out of the slices, then click the "on" button in the same palette to disable audiosnap, enter the selector tool, select all the slices and apply trimming. After that you can drag slices to either an instrument or a sampler. The example shows drag and drop towards Session drummer, that can hold 12 slices, but I've checked also Beatscape's pads, which can hold 16 slices, and finally matrix view, that can hold virtually infinite.
 
All these instruments are then assigned to your midi keyboard easily, so you can trigger the individual slices from midi (matrix view through midi learn).
 
So, it's definitely possibile to slice a wav and control slices through midi. But it is awkyard towards what Sonar offers to rex.
We might post a feature request!

Matrix view is supposed to do that. How well it does it is another story.

NI Battery3 can do it by default - just drag a loop and Battery instantly place slices over pads. Then you can edit slices individually, change notes etc. and save new "kit". I haven't tried this with Maschine, but Battery is not so expensive.

Yea, love battery for this. Super quick. I love how this actually just 'works' 

After splitting the clip at transients, "bounce to clip" to create individual samples then drag in. 

Split clip into sections via transients, bounce to clip, then drag into battery. Done.  

 

 I once found this video demonstrating a varient of this process with Sonar and Battery- It actually shows how to take the whole clip and create a loop into Battery with individual slices, completed by saving the Sonar clip as a Acid file. 

Worth a watch. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41Gbbj-tIbw

  This was very easy. Great video!!! Been looking all night for this info. Yea, love battery for this. Super quick. I love how this actually just 'works' After splitting the clip at transients, "bounce to clip" to create individual samples then drag in. Split clip into sections via transients, bounce to clip, then drag into battery. Done. I once found this video demonstrating a varient of this process with Sonar and Battery- It actually shows how to take the whole clip and create a loop into Battery with individual slices, completed by saving the Sonar clip as a Acid file. Worth a watch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41Gbbj-tIbw

smclaurin2


In Ableton Live, there is a function that will slice a wav file at transients and assign these slices to midi notes so that you can play back the slices using your midi controller keyboard.  Is there a way to accomplish the same thing in Sonar?  I have used AudioSnap Pallette to slice a wav file at transients before but dont know where to go from here.  I like the RXP in Sonar but it treats wav files as one big slice.

 
Their is no decent way in sonar to do this, we could do with a wave slice to a sampler in sonar, something like Imagaline sliceX which conicedently is a great cheaper option if you run 32bit windows.
Your are looking at third party options really, the keyboard apsect of things is quite straight forward.
You can manually chop samples and drag them to session drummer,
Although i prefer a combo of Fxpansions Geist which will allow you to have either 8 standard kits/8x 16 pads or you can slice uto 8 loops to each kit called engines 1-8 in Geist, their are variouse ways you can have this set up and used routing wise, you can also have the 8 engines all wrapped up in a midi take lanes, so you can close it all down to one track overall.
 
Not sure if you have ableton if so, I also have ableton rewired, i send all my midi from sonar into seperate channels in session view,onbiousley i have all my rewire in/out setup before hand, and all i do is add my audio to a new track, slice it and then drag it all onto one of the Channels that is going into sonar audio in,i then export or copy/write in the midi from my sliced ableton to Sonar, so in all i have all my midi arrangment in sonar, and if i want to automate my drumrack slices or ableton plugins, i Delete the midi fro my ableton clip and just use that clip to add automation/automate my midi that is now in sonar, i can then loop sections of sonar over and experiment make lots of autmation clips, I then arrange them in oder in my lane in sessions view and add follow action in ableton which can link the row to play in order after any given time, so i can sync it all to suit my arrangement in sonar. Its not as complicate as it may sounds, but i now have so much flexablity with and creative ideas now i have these two DAW's rewired up.
 
I do have a rewire template already setup for ableton 8 and sonar X2, and i have customised the ableton look so its now almost the same colours as Sonar X2,Looks great if i mat say so!, you also have the option to send your session view lanes or production view lanes if you Prefer the linea view to your ableton sends and then those sends onto sonar audio in, bare in mind all tracks to and from' each have their own lanes this is a multi in/out template, you would have to route the sends yourself, but its all visually esay to see in session view what is going where , so you can switch the ins/outs to allow for bypassing threw the sends.
I dot know if any of this info helps anybody, but if anyone wants a good rewire starting template for ableton 8+ and sonar X2,give us a shout and i can send it too you. I guess i could also throw in a couple of diagrams and Pointer how to/where too setup the follow action on the ableton clips for your automation.