Definition: CERTIFIED

1) Attest or confirm in a formal statement.
2) Officially recognize (someone or something) as possessing certain qualifications or meeting certain standards.

That means the spec is up to it. It doesn't not say it will work out of the box.
It does not say it will create the music for you either.
There is NO mention of sound cards either here.

It's been repeatedly stated here that the days of tweaking your DAW are over. If you have to tweak your hardware to get software to run, there's something wrong in the software.


Totally and utterly incorrect, whoever said that either has no idea whatsoever or works for a marketing dept. This is absolutely utter BS. It could be anything. YOU have to find out what the issue is and sort it. HAL will not find the problem out for you. 9 times out of 10 you will find the issue is NOT with your DAW software, or you haven't tweaked it. But good luck believing that one (I believe in flying pigs myself).

You should be able to go online, order one of those PC's, install Sonar and be on your way. The only thing I can possibly think of that you would have to do is turn off some of the options in Power Save mode. Other than that, you should be able to plug in one of the Cakewalk recommended USB or Firewire devices and start using Sonar.

 
I dunno... it looks like you're adjusting the line a little to where it seems right to you, based on your experience.  But isn't that what everyone's doing?
 
Also...  I'm too lazy to search, but I wonder if those systems have TI Firewire chipsets or USB2 slots...
 

CakeAlexS

Definition: CERTIFIED

1) Attest or confirm in a formal statement.
2) Officially recognize (someone or something) as possessing certain qualifications or meeting certain standards.

That means the spec is up to it. It doesn't not say it will work out of the box.
It does not say it will create the music for you either.
There is NO mention of sound cards either here.

Quote ...

Thus begins the actual testing phase. If Cakewalk software is not already installed, we’ll load one of our programs and install any necessary hardware. We load up a large test project and work with it for a while in order to test all of the major functions of our application: Audio and midi recording on multiple tracks, soft synth sequencing, mixing, effects processing, and automation. We then use USB midi and audio devices, Firewire interfaces, and PCI cards to verify the connections function properly. Specific performance features we look for are:

• low latency operation
• CPU efficiency
• hard drive throughput
• machine noise levels
• overall system responsiveness

The review is concluded when we’ve finished testing major PC music and sound scenarios. If all performance expectations are met, it becomes a recommended DAW for Cakewalk customers, and is added to our DAW Labs page.

The above is a direct quote from Cakewalk.

They do all the testing in their labs so you don't have to Alex.

Digital Audio Workstation Qualification Process for Cakewalk DAW Labs

Here is a complete list of Audio hardware that Cakewalk has tested ...

Audio And Midi Hardware For Your DAW

I hope I'm not coming off as argumentative, that is not my intention Alex. Seriously.

All I'm trying to say is, be it right or wrong, accurate or inaccurate, Cakewalk has a list of 'Off the shelf' PC's they say they have extensively tested their software with and will run, right off the shelf.

I can't argue the validity of those statements, I can only quote them and take them at their face value.

Another thing to keep in mind is, HP, Dell, and the other big box places have already tested component compatibility. In other words, they aren't going to put a video card in a motherboard that is known to have problems with it. If they do, it causes them too many headaches. That is one benefit from buying an off the shelf PC. A lot of times, components are custom manufactured just for that particular box. Dell was famous (or should I say infamous) for doing this. I don't know how they do it now, but remember the old 'riser' boards they used to use and the proprietary components inside?

Edited for clarity and typo's.

I don't know how they do it now, but remember the old 'riser' boards they used to use and the proprietary components inside?

 
I believe that was Dell's previous alien technology, 'cause it sure never looked quite like the inside of any other PC.  
 

Were you expecting Cake to install the software and hardware?
Were you expecting Cake to write to play your music?

Nowhere does Cake state they should do the configuration for you. Absolutely nowhere. None of your references or quotes say this. You seem to think "configuration" comes under terms "certification" and "testing". Nope and no. Eggs are not sausages.

Configuring and optimizing a PC is YOUR responsibility. YOU are the integrator. Cake is NOT responsible for your hardware unless they make it. You get the software and tools to do it from various companies who have supplied it, YOU have to do it.

You still didn't answer my specific questions either...

a) Does Dell supply device drivers or test your audio equipment?
b) Does HP test sonar on their machines?
c) Why do Dell and other manufacturers issues firmware and BIOS upgrades?
d) Why does windows have registry tweaks?
e) Why does MS supply windows update?
f) Why do people leave stability and optimization tips?

I guess it's for magical reasons.

Heck why am I saying it, the link you gave me says it:

http://www.cakewalk.com/PCResource/certification.aspx

"Because most audio hardware and software are happiest when Windows is entirely dedicated to their needs, a reasonable amount of customization to the OS is expected. Basically any part of Windows that may conflict with music production, or consume valuable resources should be disabled or minimized as much as possible."

That means drivers, hardware, firmware, software that hogs too many resources or simply does not work. Software known to interfere with windows.

YOU configure your PC. You makes the music. You you you you you :).

CakeAlexS


Were you expecting Cake to install the software and hardware?
Were you expecting Cake to write to play your music?

Nowhere does Cake state they should do the configuration for you. Absolutely nowhere. None of your references or quotes say this. You seem to think "configuration" comes under terms "certification" and "testing". Nope and no. Eggs are not sausages.

Configuring and optimizing a PC is YOUR responsibility. YOU are the integrator. Cake is NOT responsible for your hardware unless they make it. You get the software and tools to do it from various companies who have supplied it, YOU have to do it.

You still didn't answer my specific questions either...

a) Does Dell supply device drivers or test your audio equipment?

Dell's Official Driver Download Page. (http://www.dell.com/suppo...e/ShowProductSelector)

b) Does HP test sonar on their machines?

No, Cakewalk does that in their Cakewalk DAW Lab.

c) Why do Dell and other manufacturers issues firmware and BIOS upgrades?

To correct a wide array of problems. I would NOT recommend update the BIOS or Firmware on a box that Cakewalk has "Certified". If it works, don't touch it.

d) Why does windows have registry tweaks?

You're not supposed to do those. These are end user manipulations that Microsoft does not endorse.

e) Why does MS supply windows update?

To correct a wide array of problems. I would recommend you do NOT perform Windows Updates on a working DAW.

f) Why do people leave stability and optimization tips?

They don't any more. PC processing power has gone beyond the need to alter Swap File settings, and the myriad of other tweaks. They are not relevant anymore.

I guess it's for magical reasons.

Perhaps you are aware of new tweaks that I am not that pertain to newer systems.

I'm going by the ones that Sweetwater has on their web site. It says it was updated for Windows 7, but I've been told that none of those tweaks are needed or recommended. The threads are there, you just have to search for them.

Please ... by all means, what are these tweaks? Where can I get a list of them? I am willing to do anything I can to my DAW to make it run Sonar more stable. I don't see how doing any of that will fix the confirmed bugs, which is what I encounter ... but I'm willing to entertain anything logical that may help. Even anything illogical.

CakeAlexS


Heck why am I saying it, the link you gave me says it:

http://www.cakewalk.com/PCResource/certification.aspx

"Because most audio hardware and software are happiest when Windows is entirely dedicated to their needs, a reasonable amount of customization to the OS is expected. Basically any part of Windows that may conflict with music production, or consume valuable resources should be disabled or minimized as much as possible."

That means drivers, hardware, firmware, software that hogs too many resources or simply does not work. Software known to interfere with windows.

YOU configure your PC. You makes the music. You you you you you :).

Reasonable, such as power management, not doing a myriad of DAW tweaks. Going in to your registry, disabling Swap Files, FAT tweaks, and that kind of thing are not reasonable to the average user.