I got the letter to purchase X2.
 
I was one of the early avians.
 
So why is it money is being wasted sending paper to registered users?
 
Definitely a sign of chaos and incompetence.
 
I am one the angries about the X interface: more clicks, more menus, more wasted space,...
 
And I am one of the complainers that the CW managers made a big bad decision to reduce the upgrade price, even though I still think the X series is crap.
 
I have been suggesting the price of CW products should be increased to cover the cost of better, faster development and fixes, and to fix the website and forum software.
 
Instead we got reduced prices, more bugs to fix, and now a reduction of staff.
 
Yea, reducing the upgrade price, and making a me-too-ugly-grey-on-grey-extra-clicks interface was a great strategy.
 
How's that workin' out?
 
And now a paper plea to do what I have already done.
 
Trouble, oh we got trouble,
Right here in Cakewalk City!
 

How's that workin' out?

 
I can only speak for myself when saying "just fine, thanks".     Then again, I haven't been angry or upset with the X series, so I suppose it makes sense.
 

SteveC

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=39163

I get mail from various companies for my ex girlfriend's mother who died 13 years ago and never lived at my address. It means nothing except we live in a world with databases so huge that keeping them all properly sorted is a task that does not always go as planned. In other words, the piece of paper that sent you into a tizzy of needless literary spooge and the urge to add to the angry whine rant o' the day pile is very common around the world with companies doing well and struggling.

I'm happy with it. Would like to see color coding though.

Rick - Sofware Engineer by trade, Rock Star God wannabe 
Sonar X2 producer
Roland Octa-Capture
M-Audio Fast Track Ultra
Boss DR-880
Boss GT100
Line 6 Pod X3
Yamaha HS 50M
Focusrite VRM Box
Audio-Technica ATH M-50
Various guitars and amps

I wouldn't mind getting an email once in a while.

Somehow I'm of the opinion that the 'X' series isn't going away anytime in the near future. So if it really aggravates you that much you may want to consider some of the other options that are out there.

My ex used to bother me to no end, then we got divorced. Simples.

Regards

Mike

Intel i7-2600 @3.4GHz; 2-Samsung HD103SJ ATA Drives (1T ea); 16G Ram; Win7-64 (SP1)
Sonar X2a; Cubase 7; Live 9 (all 64)
RME-Fireface UFX;M-Audio Keystation Pro 88; Axon AX 100 Mk II; Machine Mikro
Guitars and Amps
(formerly posting as miguelito)

I think some people simply enjoy whining and enjoy even more a chorus of whining. Maybe it's a form of group therapy. Sonar is far from perfect but for many it gets the job done. The forums of other products shows that no matter how perfect your product is ,there is always that segment that perpetually has a problem with it and seems to think smartasss remarks help.

im not going to knock you for your post but man where did this come from,also not going to ask if youve been under a rock but the X series has been out for almost 3 1/2 years now,why are you just speaking up now??
it has sold very well and hauled in a large new group,people who werent using cakewalk products before are now interested on a producting breaking ground of the 2010's not the 1990's

i love the X series,out of all previous releases these are by far my absolute fav's.
look at all the options we have now?

the graphics that you so call boring are right along the lines of studio one and other daw's of this day and age.

this is not a grandmothers(just a medafore)daw ?
its a sign of the times,
i was just looking at sonar today and saying,wow,this track view/console veiw looks awesome.
some people may want the same sonar released year after year(and pay more money for it???)
but i want somethin new and improved every year
these are the same people who(and tell me if im wrong) are still using windows XP.
 
sure go ahead and give it to me now because of the XP statement,sure i deserve it...but..
you have to accept change and roll with it rather than sit and wish for the old to come back.
i hope you will change your mind and give it a chance.
its worth your time,trust me.

best luck  :)

Charlie Roy
http://soundcloud.com/charlie-roy/jack-it-up 
  
My Sonar X2 tutorials:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjZS61Wg-XY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruAnAPR6-hQ

Don't understand the complainers.   If you think protools is better, good luck there!   I recently mixed on protools and nothing was intuitive

jm , have you tried any number of the stupid amount of learning resources ?

Karl's videos (yus I want 10% ta very muchly)
Scott's books (yus I want that v700 , airmail ta and as a "gift" :) )
Eli's groove 3 videos.. (dunno ya.. send me something nice and NO not a postcard)

I use a few things, besides sonar, and you might find yourself having the same issues with other things.

I guess the days of sitting in with someone who knows this stuff in a studio is/are gone.. maybe thats part of the problem.. but other resources do a good enough job to replace em.

if you like 8.5 , then stick with it.. it's not gonna stop working tomorrow is it ?

learning a new interface is best in downtime.. NOT in the middle of a project.

Not sure why you guys bother discussing this with the OP.  It's obvious (to me at least) that no matter what we say he is not going to be happy.  And even if the Bakers came along and fixed everything he was complaining about, he would find something else to get under his skin.

Homebuilt Desktop PC

AMD Phenom II four-core processor 3.4Ghz
Asus M5A78L AM3+ mobo, 16Gb Ram
120Gb SSD Programs, 1TB Project HDD, 1TB Samples HDD
Sonar X2a Producer
Sonar VS-100
Zoom R16
A-800 Pro
Casio CTK-631
BK-7M (Midi/Wav backing module)
Shure SM58
(still acquiring the kit!)

You guys missed the point of the post.
 
I should not have received a paper letter encouraging me to purchase what CW records indicate I own.  Waste of money.
 
And a big indicator of how the organization has been managed.  And what kind of trouble it is in now. What do the layoffs that we do not know about mean for development?
 
At our dance studio we use a 8 year old DOS/Windows program to track students' and families' enrollment and participation. With this program we send targeted offers, reminders,... via email messages and paper messages.
 
That the CW marketing managers cannot provide the sales dudes with the same information can only be a reflection of the lack of use of customer information.
 
The cost for such software functionality is miniscule.
 
For more than 10 years many of us waited patiently for improvement. We got some. And we got bugs that were never fixed. And features not completed. And hence functionality abandoned.
 
And now more of the same. And the response of some users, as it has ever been, is to be patient, learn the new way, don't be hatin'....
 
I am angry. And disappointed. I have given CW thousands of dollars during the past 13 years.
 
And I get a letter asking me to do what I have already done.
 
=========================
Been playing with computers since '84. Providing support for 18 years.
 
I have windows 98, xp, vista, 7, and now 8, in the home and office.  I am an early adopter.
 
W8 has done away with all the 3-d crap.  Easier to read. But more stupid menus with hidden functions. But it is more modifiable than Sonar X.
 
"Looks just like Studio 1." Yea, that's a good reason to accept it.
 
==========================
I think the X series is less efficient.   I am disappointed in the changes in the GUI that directly contradiction 40 years of interface research and design. (e.g. Minimize the user's need to look away from their current focus.)
 
I own and have viewed many of the tutorial videos for the X series. But, having to look away from what I am working on to find the appropriate menu, read the label, remember if the little triangle means left-click or right-click, select the correct setting, and return my eyes to the work is way inefficient.
 
Using key-commands that require looking at the keyboard is way inefficient.
 
More menus, more clicks, un-modifiable command bar, loss of colors,...
 
Examples:
   Using 8.5.3:  I have redundant tool bars on the 2nd monitor to quickly verify state of tools and settings.
    I can work on a clip (split, move, slip,..), adjust envelopes, and adjust the audio snap transients, WITHOUT changing SMART TOOL edit filters for each adjustment.
 ---------------------------------------
 
Still no macros, no importing projects, no saving track templates with data, no nested folders, no modifiable toolbars with small buttons,....
 
What makes me way crazy is Reaper does all of these things.
 
"Love it or leave it."   This is never written at the Reaper forum. The response is, "That is something I also do not like, try this theme. This is how to use the theme editor to change that. Oh yea, John has created a new extension to do that. Here is a nested macro to do that with one click instead of 10. That is a confirmed bug,  we have fixed that, try the latest pre-release version,..."
 
How is it a company smaller than CW can provide all this, and constant communication, for less money?   Third party support, that's how!   Anyone can change the complete layout and colors, and add program functionality, because the mindset is NOT PROPRITARY.
 
==================================
 
X series: 
   note values on a menu is stupid
 
  lanes:  no clear indication of multiple lanes when track is minimized
      track needs to be partially expanded to see 
                if the lanes' menu button is glowing a soft blue:   way stupid
     lanes are not individually height adjustable,.....     stupid
      constant scrolling to view and adjust adjacent clips/tracks
      inconsistent behavior:  unfinished at best
 
      screen sets: no way to save individual presets: stupid
       more options for meters than gadgets, no presets but meters change with screen sets
 
X is less efficient to use, has more annoyances, and more bugs than 8.5
 
 
(Oh yea: Our dance studio management program and ALL files are in ONE folder, with subfolders, nothing in hidden/buried folders, and no difficult to change registry settings. Easy to find everything, easy to backup. Way user friendly.)
 
Don't get me started.