scook
It is a feature in X2. The preview button. located just to the right of the solo button, is only on Audio tracks which receive input from a plug-in and Busses.

 
Thanks scook and Alex.  I see it now and have figured out that it won't show on a simple intrument track (until spit) and only on the busses in the track view (which were hidden on my system).
 

SuperG
It's a synth track - freeze it; there's your recording.

So Zo brilliantly pointed out how to do this. Create a MIDI track with one note, mute the MIDI clip, drag it onto channel 13  (see my image on #1). Extend it for as long as the track is. Delete the MIDI track you created. Freeze will now work. This looks like we are working around a Sonar issue (or something in need of improvement).... anyways....
 
Still my feature request still stands as we know this is possible in realtime, other DAWs can do this, but so far this is by far the best solution that works right now although bouncing 16 tracks can take a long long time .Thanks Zo!

As a separate question, do you need to perform audio specific operations on the Maschine parts? Because I've just been multi-outing Maschine so I have kick on one track, snare on the next, etc, allowing me to keep everything as midi. Currently I'm sequencing/recording in Sonar but using the Maschine hardware to browse kits/samples etc.
 
I know you want to see if you can get this specific thing to work, I'm just trying to figure out if there isn't a different workflow that might work even better for you.

Hi Sander,
 
Yes I'm going to probably use your workflow a lot in fact, in a bid to get to know this thing inside out I'm just investigating all the options. I see three options right now, dragging in the MIDI after using Maschine sequencer as you say (has loads of advantages), MIDI freeze (a more classical approach) and just using it as a controller for addictive drums etc. I've yet to discover about Battery integration etc. It really is early days for me and I need to look at the Groove3 tutorials.
 
There should be a fourth option and that is to pump out the VST output straight into the Sonar tracks (which is what this thread is mainly about), and I've discovered something Ableton can do but not Sonar for the very first time. I'm hoping Cake now will see the use case here and consider implementing the feature request I submitted to them yesterday (even if it is just to keep up with Ableton). I'd still be interested to know if other DAWs can do this as well.
 
BTW I've yet to get into the MIDI option in much depth, but I've managed to drag one track out of the Maschine sequencer and into Sonar so I get the concept, there's probably a few tricks I am missing though to make this efficient for multiple tracks.
 
Cheers
 
Alex
 
 

Ok, well I think I'm doing something slightly different from what you mention but that might appeal to you;
I've set up a track template with all of Maschine's audio outs and eight midi tracks (channels 1 through 8). I've also premapped the pads to notes for each Maschine group (channels 1 through 8 are groups A through H). Then I have a Maschine template that I made with the editor that corresponds with those notes.
 
Basically this means my workflow is;
Find a kit using "normal" browsing from the hardware. Once I like it, route the kick, snare, etc to whichever individual out I like. That means I get them all separately in Sonar. Then I press shift+CTRL on the Maschine hardware to switch to regular midi mode, and in Sonar select the midi track corresponding to the group I want to record. Then simply record in Sonar as you would with any other softsynth.
 
While this takes a little setting up and definitely has a few quirks of its own I've found for me it's a much more logical workflow for linear sequencing (as opposed to Maschine's pattern based sequencing. What you do miss this way is being able to use note repeat during recording, but it's always still an option to record a pattern inside Maschine and then drag it onto one of the dedicated midi tracks.
 
Hope that helps. 

This is extremely interesting thankyou. Well me being a Maschine newbie I get what you say but find it difficult to follow as I haven't really done anything at all with Maschine yet, just trying to work out what it is capable of. I haven't even gone anywhere near Maschine templates so I will have to study this in more detail once I get more familiar with the product...If I can't work out what you are saying may I ask questions later? To be honest (if you had the time) that looks like a very good candidate for a YouTube video, people will be very interested in this, but that's a big ask esp when I've yet to educate myself.
 
thanks!

CakeAlexS
Sadly not. If I highlight the waveform, Right click on the track -> Freeze.
All options under here are greyed out except "Freeze options".
It's like it only exists in picture form, and not in sound.
 
http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation/default.aspx?Doc=SONAR%20X3&Lang=EN&Req=Mixing.22.html

 
It's gotta be you ♫... 
 
Seriously, there's something fishy... it works here just fine. It has to be a synth track though. Yes, previews are picture only - but freeze is what actually produces a track with audio.

The only time an audio record option would be useful potentially is when playing  a live performance and potentially tweaking non automatable params of the synth in real time. In all other circumstances, freezing and copying the frozen audio seems like a much better and more powerful option since you *don't* have to do it in real time.
Even if we implemented recording audio from synths it would likely be only for realtime recording. Freeze/bounce covers all other cases more effectively.

Thanks Noel... I definitely appreciate your comments...
Well I definitely would want to do it this way like the Ableton freaks can to be honest... I've thrown you a feature request yesterday I'll keep my fingers crossed  Choice is always good thing...
 
For Gene's benefit and other's here is a thread summary....
 
Add a dimension pro softsynth track and assign a sound. Now arm and mute it.
Add an audio track. Under input change it to Dimension Pro -> Primary Output Stereo
On the audio track click Waveform preview on.
Record and everything will work as you say, bouncing, freezing etc....
Now delete the MIDI clip you created on the first track, still see the audio waveform on the second track?
Good - try and play it back or freeze it etc :) - Won't - Cos it's just a meter.
 
Now the Dimension Pro will generate MIDI on the softsynth track when recording, Maschine will not as it's doing it's sequencing internally within the plugin and there are multiple outs, so to work around this we need to put in a dummy clip to con Sonar (?) into to recording.
 
However if Sonar could record the plug-in effect or synth output it would be a lot neater solution (no bouncing or freezing).
 
Cheers...

CakeAlexS

John
Akex you need to freeze the synth not the track. 

I blame it on Jon ;)

Now you "h" is acting up.