Hi,

I seriously thinking of getting X2 but need to try and answer a question first:

What is the quality of the time stretching algorithm like?

I have never owned Sonar before, as I've always been a die-hard Mac user, but X2 has seriously tempted me away from Cubase/Logic/Pro Tools and so on, as it now seems to me that bigger advances are being made in PC music software than Mac music software (something I thought I'd never say).

I am very used to the quality that zplane's élastique Pro gives me in Cubase 6.5, as I can make pretty drastic tempo changes (up to 60 to 70 ± BPM), and it's still quite useable. However, the videos I have seen on Audio Snap 2.0 so far haven't impressed me much, as it seems you have to do an offline render in order to get the best results, which for software that claims to be "DAW 2.0" seems somewhat old-fashioned (no offence meant). I have to say that other than this, I am massively impressed with all other aspects of X1/X2 that I have seen so far, the channel strip and Skylight interface are simply stunning and don't even get me started on R-MIX!


So, to get back to the point, am I wrong? Have I just seen poor video examples of Audio Snap? 


My work calls for me to use lots of loops and audio clips that often need time correction and time stretching and I need to know X2 can/will deliver on this or if there are any plans to update this aspect of the software in the near future (or if 3rd party algorithms can be bought and used, like in Logic Pro).


I have asked this question on Cakewalk's Facebook and You Tube pages but have (as yet) had no reply.


Can anyone help me get the answer? 


Many thanks in advance!

X2 has not been released yet so aside from the beta testers (who aren't allowed to discuss the products) and Cakewalk themselves no one would know. Try back in a month or so. But really for the price it is worth checking out. Also I'm sure there will be a full demo ready soon. In the meantime you can try the X1 demo to test it. The time stretching stuff will probably be similar if not exactly the same. Welcome to the forum.

Also many folks here use multiple DAWs to achieve their goals. If I had the cash I'd have Nuendo working alongside Sonar.

I'm could be wrong about this but I think Sonar uses the same type of stretching math as Logic- namely Izotope Radius algorithms. I think the non-real-time strecthing is of very good quality but I have not compared it to other programs.

Thanks for the reply Beepster!

At the moment, I do not have access to a PC to check out the X1 demo, so can't test it first hand as I am a Mac user. I would have to get a PC emulator (or install Boot Camp and buy Windows 7) in order to try it.

I do understand there will be an NDA regarding X2 information, but was maybe hoping for a tiny snippet of pre-release help from the Cakewalk guys!

Thanks again.

Thanks backwoods!

AFAIK, it goes like this:

Izotope Radius:
Avid Pro Tools
Apple Logic Pro (optional purchase)
Cakewalk Sonar
Adobe Audition

Zplane Elastique Pro:
Steinberg Cubase
Ableton Live
MOTU Digital Performer
Image-Line FL Studio
PreSonus Studio One
Cockos Reaper
Sony Acid

Propellerhead Reason has it's own internal method.

Thanks again.

There are others here who claim to have had good results with boot camp but I believe the official position is it's not supported. If you are looking for some DAW PC tips check out the Sonar recommended systems page... http://www.cakewalk.com/PCResource/default.aspx On there is a link to a company called ADK and they build really nice custom PCs however just poking around at their website is a great for building knowledge as to what you should be looking at in regards to a PC DAW set up. There is also another regular poster who works for a company called StudioCat who do the same thing so check out their website as well. I spent about $1500 in parts building my rig but I when all in. I probably could have built it for about $800 and still have been able to run Sonar with no glitches whatsoever. I know you didn't ask but it's good stuff to know if you are thinking of taking the plunge into PC audio. Cheers!

There are also quite a few vids up on youtube in regards to looping/sampling/stretching/etc... with Sonar. Also be sure to check out the Sonar University section of this site. Lots of good stuff up there. http://www.cakewalk.com/CakeTV/SONARU.aspx

Thanks again Beepster!

Have to say, this is a very different kind of forum, it seems! Not used to people being so friendly and helpful, as most forums I've used before are just flame central!

I've decided to buy a PC to run X2 on, though I didn't have a massive budget to have one built, so went for a Dell Inspiron 15R 5520, which has this spec:

Intel Quad Core i7-3612QM Ivy Bridge 2.10GHz (up to 3.10GHz) 6MB Cache 
8GB 1600MHz DDR3 RAM
1GB AMD Radeon HD7670M Graphics
1TB 5400RPM Internal HD
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit

I will aslo be adding an external 7200RPM audio HD as well along with the new Roland Duo-Capture EX audio Interface.

I did this because it's quite close to the latest 15-inch MacBook Pro, so I have a rough benchmark that I am familiar with. If I really take to X2, I can always invest in a build-to-order custom PC.

Thanks again for all the help and advice!

That sounds like a good set up. Be sure to optimize it for audio. There are lots of good guides on how to do this on the web. There are also many threads on this forum on the subject and there is a guide somewhere in the blog I think. I personally used the Sweetwater guide (just google Sweetwater Audio Optimization). And yeah this forum is a very different animal. It's one of the main percs of being a Sonar user. There are always answers to be had and people around to help. I would have been completely lost without these guys. Cheers.