Does anyone else find it unsettling that most of the on-line musical instrument retailers, and Amazon, are still selling Splat at full price?
The unknowing are going to be showing up en-masse looking for answers. 
This just doesn't seem right and just. 

I'm just reading it and am very shocked.
Been using it around ten years now and it's the only DAW I've ever loved.
Also all my sympathy for all you folks at Cakewalk, I whish you all the best and good luck with everything to come.
 
As for Gibson or anyone responsible for the pricing/sales/marketing etc. , might I suggest a sincere effort to accomodate the 'lifetime' upgraders like myself.
Maybe it was too good to be true, but you made it look so and that makes it your responsibility.
The least you could do is hand out some licenses of CW products not yet owned.
If you've stopped selling them and we all know a financial reimbursement (which most likely would be our right under consumer laws in most of the countries you've sold in) this would seem like a fair, smooth and virtualy costless way to do right by your loyal customers.
 
Having aired my angry feelings in regard to this mostly sad and unfortunate situation, I would like to also add to the positive whishfull thinking about a new possible future.
 
As I've read in one of the comments, a "Steve Jobs" might be pulled and they would arise from the ashes like a Phoenix.
 
When I read the news and was digesting everything, the same kind of idea arose in my hopeful mind.
I really hope Cakewalk will persevere and come back from this stronger than ever before.
 
It is suggested here more than once partnering with MS might be an option, but I was thinking someone else.
Why not try and get Google interested ?
There are so many great apps and hardware for Apple.
It is very frustrating to a small time musician/producer like me who really doesn't want to buy Apple products.
I've been thinking at times even to buy an iPad just because, but more than that I'm thinking why no one is bold enough to start hoggin' on the Android pie ?
 
You can keep Cakewalk going for PC, make it functional for Chromebooks and make, just like 30yrs ago, professional music software available on a platform where it (virtualy?) doesn't exist.
Another good thing is that Google isn't exactly short on cash :)
 
Wouldn't it be great if they could be convinced it's about damn time Android took audio serious?
This could mark the beginning of  a new age where anyone with a tablet or smartphone, rather than just those with an iPad or iPhone, could start making music with professional tools and in likewise quality.
 
Anyways, that all might be whishfull thinking, still I really hope and will keep hoping this end will lead to a new beginning for Cakewalk/Sonar.
Now, like anyone with a Cakewalk heart out here, I'll just be letting it sink in more and be sad about this.
 
Best to all of you...
 
 
 
 
 

Not sure if anyone is monitoring these forums anymore, but this morning I put in an email to support. I am trying to get a name and phone number (and/or email) to discuss the possibility of open sourcing Sonar. Here is a copy of my support ticket: 

Hello,
I would like to inquire about the future of Cakewalk Sonar. I understand that Gibson is spinning down operations for the DAW products and I would like to talk to someone about open sourcing the project. I am a Senior Software Engineer and would be interested in leading the discussion. I know this would be a big decision and would have to happen at a fairly high level within the company, but if the plan is mothball everything DAW related, then open source should be at least considered.
 
As an open source project Sonar would be one of the most polished open source software titles in existence. Gibson would also join the ranks of companies like Redhat, Mozilla (FireFox), Facebook (React) and Google (Angular) to name a few that support the open source movement. It would also say a lot with regard to how people are treated when the company had to sunset a product that musicians, professionals and most of all customers count on. With little effort on Gibson's part, people will feel included rather than left out as things spin down.
 
Thanks for your time and efforts on a great product. Please get me a name, phone number and email so that I can present some possible options to letting Sonar live on as free open source software. I love the product and I'm sure I could get a lot of support behind the initiative!
Thanks,
Jeff Noble 
 

If anyone can get me this information I would appreciate it.
Thanks,
-Savij

If it were any kind of option - I would volunteer whatever time I could, as a programmer, to develop fixes for any portion of Sonar that would break for some upcoming Windows maintenance, just to be able to keep Sonar alive and working, in its current functional state.
 
I am quite sure other coders among us would also likely be willing to devote their resources for the minor tweaks that will at some point need to be made to keep Sonar working in an active Windows environment (meaning Windows being allowed to be maintained, versus us keeping a dedicated computer 'frozen in time' (disconnected from internet)  to keep Windows and Sonar working together).
 
Anyways - were such an option available, I would absolutely commit my time to performing such maintenance to Sonar as needed to let it continue working with Windows moving forward.  I have 38 years of programming experience.
 
Bob Bone

For those thinking of heading to Studio One, I would tread very carefully. I've owned it for a couple of years and the trajectory of Presonus/S1 is eerily similar to Gibson/Sonar. In particular, it's been over two years since they released their last major update. And well, S1 isn't all that great. No drum editor, missing Sonar's logical MIDI editing, although it does have a couple of cool features of its own. 
 
Honestly I've looked closely at Cubase, Bitwig, FL Studio, Live, Reason, Reaper and S1, and I'm far less than thrilled by any of them. 
 
When is NI going to release a DAW?! They could do so much with integration with their other products hard and soft, and they are always innovative.

Savij
Not sure if anyone is monitoring these forums anymore, but this morning I put in an email to support. I am trying to get a name and phone number (and/or email) to discuss the possibility of open sourcing Sonar. Here is a copy of my support ticket: 

Hello,
I would like to inquire about the future of Cakewalk Sonar. I understand that Gibson is spinning down operations for the DAW products and I would like to talk to someone about open sourcing the project. I am a Senior Software Engineer and would be interested in leading the discussion. I know this would be a big decision and would have to happen at a fairly high level within the company, but if the plan is mothball everything DAW related, then open source should be at least considered.
 
As an open source project Sonar would be one of the most polished open source software titles in existence. Gibson would also join the ranks of companies like Redhat, Mozilla (FireFox), Facebook (React) and Google (Angular) to name a few that support the open source movement. It would also say a lot with regard to how people are treated when the company had to sunset a product that musicians, professionals and most of all customers count on. With little effort on Gibson's part, people will feel included rather than left out as things spin down.
 
Thanks for your time and efforts on a great product. Please get me a name, phone number and email so that I can present some possible options to letting Sonar live on as free open source software. I love the product and I'm sure I could get a lot of support behind the initiative!
Thanks,
Jeff Noble 
 

If anyone can get me this information I would appreciate it.
Thanks,
-Savij

robert_e_bone
If it were any kind of option - I would volunteer whatever time I could, as a programmer, to develop fixes for any portion of Sonar that would break for some upcoming Windows maintenance, just to be able to keep Sonar alive and working, in its current functional state.
 
I am quite sure other coders among us would also likely be willing to devote their resources for the minor tweaks that will at some point need to be made to keep Sonar working in an active Windows environment (meaning Windows being allowed to be maintained, versus us keeping a dedicated computer 'frozen in time' (disconnected from internet)  to keep Windows and Sonar working together).
 
Anyways - were such an option available, I would absolutely commit my time to performing such maintenance to Sonar as needed to let it continue working with Windows moving forward.  I have 38 years of programming experience.
 
Bob Bone

I suggested this earlier in this thread, and I would be more than happy to devote my time to help maintain Sonar. I've got around 35 years programming experience.
 
Even if Gibson didn't want to make Sonar open source, they could always get us to sign an NDA.
 
Mark.

On trying to get Microsoft interested in saving Sonar:
I worked there 1990-1997 as an audio designer/evangelist in the Multimedia Division (r.i.p.). Part of my responsibilities were to liason with audio/music software/hardware manufacturers, and I was the representative to the MIDI Manufacturers Association. I saw first-hand how challenging it was to get folks at Microsoft interested in an area that few saw as strategic to the business.
What I learned - 1. you need an internal sponsor, someone to defend the value of a deal or effort to (often clueless) upper management. 2. no matter how excited everyone is, it must have a solid business justification (profit and/or significant strategic value) otherwise it will die early on (this justification is not always accurate, but it has to LOOK good).
If you don't have both of these, you aren't going to get anywhere.
 
On hopes that Sonar will be somehow sold off:
I'd personally love to see this happen, but from what I have experienced of product and technology killings (a LOT) the time to try and sell IP is BEFORE any announcement. Afterwards the value moves significantly closer to zero. A large factor here is installed base, which we can see in just a week is already researching options. Any sane company will know that trying to win back customers who have already left is massively difficult.
 
On blaming Gibson:
OK, I admit I am not a Gibson fan these days. I don't see where they excel in any way except acquisition, and even that seems to have no value to customers, but (maybe) some value to shareholders.
However, Craig Anderton did post a key nugget when he indicated that Cakewalk c-level execs were responsible for certain decisions, NOT Gibson. I'm sure Gibson has a lot of responsibility here, but it sounds like someone high up at Cakewalk shares it too.

476 signatures on our petition.
 
Microsoft! Rescue us Cakewalk, Sonar and Music Creator user! Gibson has pulled the plug. @Microsoft #SAVECAKEWALK
[link=https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/microsoft-please-rescue-cakewalk-and-sonar-out-of]https://www.ipetitions.co...ewalk-and-sonar-out-of[/link]

Sylvan

Jarsve
401 signatures
 
https://www.ipetitions.co...ewalk-and-sonar-out-of

I want to sign this but can whoever made this re-write it to correct the grammar and spelling issues? I am not trying to be a punk here, but in order to be taken seriously we should put forth our best effort. I feel that if someone from Microsoft that has any kind of authority to actually do something about this reads this page with the poorly written English (grammar and spelling issues,) they will immediately get the impression that this is not very serious.


Please, let's do this right. Fix the poorly written English.
 
Thank you,
-Charles

Thanks, be free to write it. English is not my first language, so I appreciate if someone better write it.

gcurrie 
On hopes that Sonar will be somehow sold off:
I'd personally love to see this happen, but from what I have experienced of product and technology killings (a LOT) the time to try and sell IP is BEFORE any announcement. Afterwards the value moves significantly closer to zero. 

 
I agree. I worked for 30 years in the corporate s/w development world and went through quite a few M&A's. Believe me, if Gibson could have gotten something for Cakewalk they would have. They are shuttering it to save $. Cakewalk is clearly a loser, costing more in salaries, facilities and other overhead than it generates in revenue.