Going From Cubase SX3 to Sonar Producer 5, how hard is it?

[monkeymanx]

I just purchased a laptop, and while I enjoy using Cubase SX3 and am familier with it, the idea of having the dongle mobile with me is kinda rough. I don't want to lose it someday or something and they have to rebuy SX3. With my desktop it just stays on the machine the whole time so it wouldn't get lost.

Anyway, has anybody else made the transition from Cubase to Sonar? How about converting the Cubase project files to Sonar? If it is a difficult process or Sonar is that much different than Cubase I will just suffer with the dongle on my laptop I suppose.

[REDD Stylez]

you can export the midi from cubase and use them in sonar. they are both cool but it's easier to mix in sonar.

[parke02]

i was in the same boat as you. i looked into using sonar as an alternative and maybe replacement for cubase sx3 but found certain things a little confusing. im constantly trying out freeware vsts so that was an instant minus and i didn't like its midi implementation as well. i found it wierd/annoying having to use a midi and audio track for one vsti. anyways, if you're just importing your projects from cubase to mix and or edit in sonar, it shouldnt be that much of a problem. i ended up using a cracked version of cubase for my laptop but now use ableton live instead.

[crimsonwarlock]

im constantly trying out freeware vsts so that was an instant minus

SONAR handles freeware VST and VSTi fine (and non-freeware too of course)

i found it wierd/annoying having to use a midi and audio track for one vsti

I thought that too, untill I loaded a multi-timbral VSTi with multiple outputs. Having the midi and audio separated and being able to create additional midi-tracks to control the instrument gives you direct control over every layer in a multi-timbral instrument without having to resort to switching pages or selecting the 'current' midi-channel like some other hosts do.

[djLuna]

It's easy as 1,2 & 3. Both host are mostly based on the same concept, but they have different strong points!

[fandango]

I thought that too, untill I loaded a multi-timbral VSTi with multiple outputs. Having the midi and audio separated and being able to create additional midi-tracks to control the instrument gives you direct control over every layer in a multi-timbral instrument without having to resort to switching pages or selecting the 'current' midi-channel like some other hosts do.

Out of curiosity, how do you organise things? Do you put all the MIDI into one Track Folder and all the Audio into another Track Folder? Or do you group them together?

I keep finding myself opening the audio in the piano roll etc. I find it a bit hard to distinguish the little 8x8 piano icon from the 8x8 plug icon, especially at higher res.

[crimsonwarlock]

I thought that too, untill I loaded a multi-timbral VSTi with multiple outputs. Having the midi and audio separated and being able to create additional midi-tracks to control the instrument gives you direct control over every layer in a multi-timbral instrument without having to resort to switching pages or selecting the 'current' midi-channel like some other hosts do.

Out of curiosity, how do you organise things? Do you put all the MIDI into one Track Folder and all the Audio into another Track Folder? Or do you group them together?

I'm currently using SONAR 4 LE so I don't have track-folders. I hope to get SONAR PE5 in a few months or so (I have to save up for that first).

[fandango]

Ah, same here (sort of). Using Home Studio 4 which is based on SONAR 4 and likewise lacks Folder Tracks. Currently considering upgrading to S5.

[Oook]

i found it wierd/annoying having to use a midi and audio track for one vsti.

I thought Cubase does this the same way. Or have they changed that?

[MojoChopper]

Cubase does do it that way, they just tuck the audio channels into a closed folder track for you when you load a vst. Sonar's track templates can be used to simulate that behavior, if desired.

I really don't get the fuss over this. If you were using an external synth you would need to have both midi and audio channels if you wanted to drive the synth from a midi track and receive the audio into your sequencer, so doing the same thing for a vsti should not be much of a stretch.

mojo chopper

[Oook]

Cubase does do it that way, they just tuck the audio channels into a closed folder track for you when you load a vst. Sonar's track templates can be used to simulate that behavior, if desired.

I don't remember this behaviour from SX2. Did they change that in SX3 or is it just my memory that's leaking?

[MojoChopper]

Version 3 is my first version of Cubase - hopefully someone will chime in with the answer to how version 2 handles it.

More precisely, in SX3, a folder track named "VST Instruments" is created as soon as you add a VST into the instrument rack. A nested folder track named for the synth is placed therein. The synth's audio tracks are then placed into that nested folder track.

Sonar doesn't support nested folder tracks yet, so it can't exactly mimic this, but you can come fairly close with track templates.

cycloptic

[keyman_sam]

If you dont want to look at the 2 tracks per VST thing, jsut hide the audio. Its pretty simple. So, insert all the VSTs you want, select all the audio tracks and hide it.

In the mixer view, hide all the midi tracks. This way, you have the midi tracks to work with in the main window and audio tracks to add effects and stuff in the mixer window.

[Ildon]

I have to agree with another poster that it's easy to mix on Sonar. I can produce a track in an hour or two with my Home Studio.

[kstevege]

Out of curiosity, how do you organise things? Do you put all the MIDI into one Track Folder and all the Audio into another Track Folder? Or do you group them together?

I keep finding myself opening the audio in the piano roll etc. I find it a bit hard to distinguish the little 8x8 piano icon from the 8x8 plug icon, especially at higher res.

I do a lot of orchestral compositions using K2 as a VST to access all my EWQL and other sample instruments. What I do in Sonar when using virtual instruments is as follows: I create a 16+ track midi template. I hide all the virtual instrument audio tracks in the track view and I hide all the midi tracks in the console view. This way I can focus on the midi recording in the track view and focus just on the mixing in the console view. (I a dual LCD monitor setup, with widescreen LCD for my track view). I am able to control/mix audio of each orchestra section individually in the console view. No need to use the uadio tracks in the track view. No need to have midi tracks in the console view. No need to adjust volume using the midi tracks.

I find this very efficient and practical.