Hi guys,

I've owned Sonar X1 Essential for over a year now, but have not used it much because each time I do, I get very discouraged.  I start out in a very creative mood with some ideas in my head, and I'm ready to just start recording.  But it takes me so long to set up Sonar and figure out how to get the metronome working, MIDI inputs working & tied to a synth device, etc., that by the time I finally get it working, I'm out of time.  With so many others that apparently enjoy Cakewalk, I am obviously missing something that others understand.

Is it possible to be immediately productive (i.e., in less than 60 seconds) with Sonar?  I would really appreciate tips on how others achieve this.

A specific example of a simple creativity stopper I encounter: as mentioned above, I want to just sit down & improvise, and if I end up with something good, I want to keep it, otherwise throw it away.  However, when I start Sonar it requires me to give a name for the project I'm going to create before I even know what I'm going to play.  So I'm forced to litter my hard drive with a bunch of mostly empty projects with meaningless names (e.g., "cake1", "cake2", etc.).  And before I can know what name is available, I have to use a different app (Windows Explorer) to browse the project folders first.  Is there any way to just start working on a project, and then save it later if it turns out worthwhile?

Thank you for your inputs!

P.S. I have spent many hours pouring over the documentation/help files looking for solutions, so please don't assume that I haven't done some homework already. :)

Regards, Matt

1. Start SONAR

2. Close New Project pop-up window (un-check Show This Window ... to skip this step in the future)

3. Ctrl + N to create a new project (based on the Normal template) without having to give it a name

4. Go to Instruments list in the Plugins section of Browser

5. Drag and drop instrument into Track View

6. Start playing

SP

Set a default project with tracks your probably going to use (Kontakt, Z3ta+ etc) in the layout that makes the most sense to you (to avoid having to shuffle things around at the start). Create some track templates too to speed things up while working. It might seem like a boring task, but trust me you'll save so much time in the long run.

I don't think there is getting away from the fact that you have to use and get used to a DAW for a while before you find your own workflow and work smoothly. 

Practice makes perfect, preparedness makes us powerful.

Hey Matt,

I'm sorry you're experiencing this frustration. Sonar's workflow is an extremely efficient one and like Seth said you can be up and running in seconds - especially if you use the cool features it has like track templates say if for example you have a trio in mind (piano, bass, drums).

In this case you set a template once containing all the VSTs and tracks assigned to eat VST, then you just drag n drop it and voila, Sonar loads and sets everything up for you in a split second. :)

Set up a template for the kind of project you want to do and name it Normal so when you start Sonar you get that template. The record. If you want to keep it, then save it with a name. Otherwise, next time you start Sonar you will get the same template to work with. 

It takes two seconds to name a project. If you don't want to save to your hard drive just close the project without saving. If you decide you want to keep it just rename the project. As far as setting up other stuff figure out what types of things you would like to have set up for your little jam sessions, take an hour or so to create a bunch of blank template projects or insert whatever synths/effects you like to use most (you can change them later if need be) and save them all. That way when you get the musical itch you just open Sonar, open the project template you want and kabingo... you're in action. Then if you like what you have done do a "Save As" save and the original template will be preserved as well as your new project. If you don't want to keep what you have done just don't save it when you close Sonar. No biggie.

Thumbs up on the templates! It may be time consuming to set up all the templates you need, but once X1 starts, you load the template and you are off and running! I do alot of different types of projects and I have templates for just about any style of music you can think of. All of them are already setup with the instruments I know are the mainstays of the style of music I will be doing.

Yea, I have a "normal" project.  It has alchemy already set up but I used to have several others like Rapture.  Just click on it and it opens right up - esp. now that there aren't a bunch of synths attached w/ it.   Hit "b" for browser and the synth rack comes up.  Insert a synth if Alchemy doesn't seem right.  My keyboard controller (25 keys) is a novation usb already to play.  From starting the computer through starting the interace to starting SONAR is a couple of minutes - at most.  Usually I refill my coffee, etc. while stuff spools up.  Once I start playing the only other impediment is setting the tempo or choosing a different synth.

As far as saving - I save everything on the D drive folder.  For new songs, riffs, etc I don't have a plan for I have an experiment folder.  Once I've played enough, I save it there.  You do have to browse for that.  Then use the date or chord progression if you don't have a real name.  Done.

And you don't need to open explorer - use SONAR's browser.  It is a little funky compared to W exploer, but certainly not project stopping.

Mostly it is spending enough time w/ SONAR and your set up so you don't have to think about mundane things - file organization and the like.  It does take a little time to figure out how you work and to tweak your process accordingly.

@

I prefer to leave the Normal template with the Default settings and just name my templates accordingly. That way I can use the Normal template as a starting point for new templates.

Beepster


I prefer to leave the Normal template with the Default settings and just name my templates accordingly. That way I can use the Normal template as a starting point for new templates.

That's a great point, and I do the same, although I've tweaked my personal Normal Template just a bit (no tracks, Preview Bus, metronome routed, etc.). Most, if not all, of the tweaks I've been making to my Normal template over the years will be a part of the default Normal template out of the box in SONAR X2. 


SP