I recall the difference when I started playing trumpet as a child when I moved to a betyer instrument. The tone was so much better that I practiced more.

I like every new generation of Sonar better and better. Yeah it still has some of that old windows feel to it but the capabilities are there and the pluses far outweigh anything negative...so I don't really NEED to look at anything else and I don't especially WANT to work in anything else. I'm talking to some other musicians who use Reason...and they like it..can't win them over and don't want to try. We all have what we like I guess. Feature sets are so similar now that I question how much of a difference any of it makes in the final product. Get used to workflow and you're most of the way there.

I will note that different workflows can force you to work in a different manner which might inspire new results. And there's definitely been synths that have inspired me. 
 
That being said it's easy to spend WAY to much time jumping from synth to synth, and never making much music.
 
Side note I never was much of a musician, every couple of years, I start to work on my keyboarding but get distracted, though I guess the same goes for my music production.  Stupid real life interfering with hobbies.  Where's that lotto ticket again...

Life has a way of interfering with fun. My musicianship has slipped horribly over the years for the same reasons. Fortunately for me, I never have to perform live. 90% of music I make is for backing tracks for video.

Let me say this about that....
 
  As a human, and a consumer, I am in a perpetual state of GAS.  However the extent of the GAS, whether it is a severe bloat or just a minor percolation, depends on my wants in relation to my needs.
For instance, when I come to the software forum I am in a profound state of GAS.  It can get mighty windy around here.  Sometimes I feel like I am watching a 24/7 fast food dollar menu cable channel...so many choices, so little time or money.
 
  As much as I want to get the “FF Pro Q2 super freekin magic... line in the sand difference maker,” I am at a loss as to how I could justify buying it considering that I do not want to live in poverty, nor do I wish to forgo sharing a portion of my meager earnings with family and friends. 
So, I am left with the available tools in Sonar.
 
  I love women, but as I have come to realize there is no universal perfect woman, I have also come to realize that there may be the “perfect woman for me.”
 
  The perfectness of my woman, in a large part, depends the perfectness of me, and my abilities to meet her needs and desires, both physically and emotionally.  The better I know her, and execute the moves I have learned, the stronger her love towards me will be.  We are symbiotic.
 
  Don’t get me wrong.  I do not believe woman are software, or that they are plug ins.  What I am trying to convey is that “like women,” plug ins need to be understood, and the learning should never stop.
 
Each plug in has specific characteristics that make them sing.  It is dependent on the mix engineer to learn which buttons to press and knobs to turn that will achieve the desired result, be it earth shattering or smooth.
 
   I have a friend who drives a Porsche.  When I see that car I nearly lose my mind.  People fawn over him when they see that car.  He can get into and out of situations because of people’s perceptions about the car, which they transfer to his personae.  Ultimately though, it is just a car. 
 
   On the other hand, I drive a very old car. It starts every time.  I don’t have to park at the far end of the lot for fear of getting a ding, and the cost insurance is much less.  Of course, no one fawns over me, but people do comment on the frugality and practicality of using what I “have” to get me from point A to point B.
 
   Plug ins are no more like cars than they are like women.  But learning what makes them tick, and makes their engine purr, is the holy grail for me.  I need to listen better, and tweak those parameters that make me one with the vibes.  Within and without, when you can do that...KAPOW...music.
 
the blind horse

dubdisciple
I recall the difference when I started playing trumpet as a child when I moved to a betyer instrument. The tone was so much better that I practiced more.

I'm quite convinced that the piece of junk which was my first electric guitar severely hindered my progress and caused me to develop very very and habits, some of which took me years and even decades to reverse. Likewise, not having an amp for years and then only a uber cheap radio shack so-called amp didn't help. 
 
On the other hand, all those years fighting against my ridicule set up probably helped me build determination and taught me a lot. I've earned every little scrape of progress that I made the hard way, which made it all the more significant.
 

Nice post and big ole +1.   I drive a 2001 Saturn wagon with about 180K miles so I can identify.        But I'd rather have Komplete than put that $$ towards new car savings because I believe I can get better "mileage" from Komplete.   And I already have, many times over.   But it's also the only major software purchase I've made over the last six months.   And it'll take a lot more time before I've learned it's ins and outs.
 
 
BTW.... I'm really surprised there haven't been more posts commenting about this thread's title.   Y'all are missing a lot of opportunities...   
 

While it's always good to become proficient with the tools you have, steady improvements in technology over time mean better tools.  Not that they'll automatically make your mixes better, but advancements in GUI design, efficient resource usage, and stability tend to make modern tools more enjoyable to use, letting us focus on the music rather than the tool.  Good tools enhance the creative process, or at least don't impede it.  They don't make you wonder whether they'll crash or act weird or gobble up your CPU.  Worrying about that kind of thing is a real buzzkill when it comes to creating music, at least it is for me. 
 
That's why products like Pro-Q are, in my view, worth the asking price.  It won't instantly transform a mix to sound noticeably better, but it might make the process more enjoyable and less frustrating.  Thus many of us like to try out these new tools to see if we like them better than what we've been using ... sometimes, the search is rewarding.  In any case, it's usually fun to give the latest plugin a test drive -- a hobby unto itself, as Jim mentioned -- we're not unlike automotive enthusiasts who check out the latest models, go to car shows, spend time on forums, and read magazines comparing all the contenders packing the newest tech.
 
The plugin market is a fascinating one, very dynamic, with new players appearing all the time, including disruptors like Valhalla, Klanghelm, ToneBoosters, HoRNet, OverTone, and other independent developers who make high-quality products and sell them at prices anyone can afford.  This makes plugin shootouts fun, to see the scrappy Davids go up against the established Goliaths and hold their own, if not win the match.  There's something satisfying about seeing the tool you paid twenty bucks for slay that giant that sells for hundreds ... hurrah for the little guy! 
 
Anyway, let me stop rambling and thank all those who contribute to this forum.  It's been a great place to exchange info and opinions about these bits of software that make it possible to create things that used to take thousands and thousands of dollars to make.  Fun times, friends ...
 
Cheers,
Eddie
 

I'm not friends with GAS...I AM GAS...

I feed the fire and make it burn...and burn...and burn...

7 stages of Gear Acquisition Syndrome (according to MusicRadar):
 
1. Dissatisfaction
2. Desire
3. Research
4. Purchase
5. Guilt
6. Acceptance
7. Relapse