Should I spend my $$ On Sonar X3 Or Logic X

[bduffy]

You can't demo Logic, especially if you don't have a Mac (!). Best thing to do is visit an Apple store and check out Logic on one of the display machines. It should be obviously fairly quickly whether you like it or not.

Peace,
Andy.

I think that's a great idea, but I would add that it does take some actual time and struggle (at least on my part) to get used to DAWs. Until you've learned a few keyboard shortcuts (took me forever to get used to hitting Enter for play!), one's general inclination is to severely despise anything different than they're used to, so I'm not sure if an in-house demo would be enough to decide, but it's the best possible option. Perhaps a music store, too?

I would add that switching to OS X was relatively easy for me (coming off 10+ years of PC), once you get used to losing a few Windows-only VST gems, etc (but that's not as true as it once was; lots of dual-platform plugs these days).

[ZenPunkHippy]

Yeah, fair point - it isn't always an instant decision. When I first tried Logic I was sold pretty much within the first five minutes, coming from Cubase on Windows.

YMMV

Peace,
Andy.

[ZenPunkHippy]

About Sonar - it's definitely not my favourite host (I have them all for testing ...).

I find the interface too cluttered and the handling of MIDI/audio tracks to be really off-putting, but if you're used to it there is a lot to be said for sticking with what you know.

Macs are great, but you can build a more powerful desktop PC for a better price if you aren't buying top of the line components.

Peace,
Andy.

[cryophonik]

I would like to hear from anyone who has moved from one to the other and hear your thoughts. Most people I know use Logic and swear by it but Sonar X3 looks quite slick and I like the look of integrated Melodyne.(Maybe I'm just suffering from the "grass is always greener" syndrome).

I didn't really "move" from one to the other, but I do own and use both Sonar X3 and Logic Pro X (on my MBA). Personally, I prefer Sonar over Logic, but it probably has a lot more to do with my familiarity and comfort with Sonar, which I've used since v5 and has some unique features that I use a lot (e.g. step sequencer, Melodyne ARA, which is pure win, btw). That said, Logic is a very nice DAW.

One thing that I would suggest doing is taking stock of your current plugins to see if there are any that aren't available in 64-bit AU.

[bduffy]

Yeah, fair point - it isn't always an instant decision. When I first tried Logic I was sold pretty much within the first five minutes, coming from Cubase on Windows.

YMMV

Peace,
Andy.

Really? Wow. For me, coming from Cubase-Windows, it was like "WHAT IS GOING ON?? IS THIS AN AUDIO TRACK OR A MIDI TRACK?? AAAGGGHHH!!!". It just seemed so different...

And no doubt you can build a more powerful desktop PC. I wouldn't recommend Macs to the budget-conscious, but if you prefer OS X, it's worth, IMHO.

[Numanoid]

Given all the stability problems and uncertain future of X3, I would think going Logic would be a no brainer. I'd much prefer S1 to both however.

Yeah right

Only recently nobody thought Logic would be updated, there is no guarantee it'll happen again.

[VitaminD]

You can't demo Logic, especially if you don't have a Mac (!). Best thing to do is visit an Apple store and check out Logic on one of the display machines. It should be obviously fairly quickly whether you like it or not.

Peace,
Andy.

You've just proven you can demo Logic.

[ZenPunkHippy]

You can't demo Logic, especially if you don't have a Mac (!). Best thing to do is visit an Apple store and check out Logic on one of the display machines. It should be obviously fairly quickly whether you like it or not.

Peace,
Andy.

You've just proven you can demo Logic.

I meant at home, at your leisure ...

[mondaydave]

Thanks for all your comments.

In response to some, If I where to stick with what I "need" I could probably stick with my X2a for another few years as it meets my requirements buy I am a sucker for a shiny new toy!

I don't have huge problems with Sonar that others report but I have had to learn to obsessively save after almost every action I make. (I have had my screen turn white and lose a few hours work on more than one occasion)- I'm just wondering if this is how it should be, Do users of other daw's have to obsess about saving due to a fear of crashing?

The other small annoyance with Sonar is a lot of the bundled FX etc. are from various 3rd parties meaning different interfaces/ controls to get used to. I may be corrected on this but from what I have seen most of the Logic plug ins seem to have a standardized layout. (Am I being to picky in thinking this makes a difference?)

A new computer is a requirement right now anyway and I'm just torn between investing more into PC/Sonar or going the other route.

Logic does seem to be more an industry standard, Is there good reason for this?

All being said Sonar has a nice workflow and I don't abandon all I've learned on it lightly.

[jancivil]

Do users of other daw's have to obsess about saving due to a fear of crashing?

I'm using Cubase 5.5.3 on OSX.6.8 for years and it very rarely crashes. I have it set for 3 auto saves, at intervals of 9 minutes (an auto save at the exact moment of a 'real' save can cause a hang). I have had days, though, but I have to say I have not lost substantial changes in a long time. Expecting crashes to a paranoid extent is not what I would call 'how it should be' though. I have infinite undo by preference so I tend to save a useful change.

[VitaminD]

You can't demo Logic, especially if you don't have a Mac (!). Best thing to do is visit an Apple store and check out Logic on one of the display machines. It should be obviously fairly quickly whether you like it or not.

Peace,
Andy.

You've just proven you can demo Logic.

I meant at home, at your leisure ...

I never specified. You assumed.

[wesleyt]

Logic does seem to be more an industry standard, Is there good reason for this?

Good q, especially considering Logic only recently lowered its price to be one of the least expensive.

Logic is my go-to and favorite DAW. I supplement it with Live, Numerology, Renoise, and Bidule. I also have Reaper, but it's never clicked with me.

I've tested Studio One, but I liked Logic better, so I didn't buy it.

Even before Logic's price reduction, it was an incredible value, when you consider its complete included effects, high-quality synthesizers, and sampled instruments.

LP 9 never crashed on me in years of use, and what little LPX instability I've seen seems to have been fixed.

I've been a PC user since the early 90s; I slowly moved to Mac starting in 2008. I'm fully Mac now except for work, where I use a number of Windows-only apps. It's the best OS for me.

I think Logic is a standard because it's a complete, high quality, stable DAW, that is easy to use once you're over the initial learning curve. I say go for it.

[cryophonik]

Ya know, it's funny seeing the Logic/Sonar/Studio One comparisons in this thread. As a current owner of the first two and prior (two-time) owner of the latter, it seems like these three DAWs are borrowing so much from each other that they seem to be converging toward each other, at least in terms of core functions and workflow. That's good news for the user, because it reduces the learning curve dramatically IMO. I think that's one of the reasons I felt comfortable and productive with Pro X so quickly - at almost every step of learning it (still ongoing), I realize that it was more or less the way things were done in Sonar or S1.

One feature of Logic Pro X that I really love (and wish Sonar would provide) is the dedicated iOS controller (Logic Remote, free). I use V-Control Pro with Sonar and it's excellent, but the V-Control Pro module for Sonar is not as deep as the modules for PT, Cubase, or Logic, nor has it been updated for X3. So, it would be cool to have a dedicated Sonar controller app. However, given Cakewalk's PC-centricity, I'm not all that hopeful that they'll deliver an iOS app any time soon.

[pdxindy]

I don't have huge problems with Sonar that others report but I have had to learn to obsessively save after almost every action I make. (I have had my screen turn white and lose a few hours work on more than one occasion)- I'm just wondering if this is how it should be, Do users of other daw's have to obsess about saving due to a fear of crashing?

It was like that for me some years back with Tracktion. I switched DAW's and regardless of features and all that, just having a stable host was a hundred times worth it. Being able to just enjoy making music without worry of crashes is the most important feature of all. Regardless of what you switch to, I suggest you find a host that is reliable FOR YOU. There were lots of people back when I was using Tracktion who had no such trouble with it. But that did not help me at all. If your host is not reliable, get another host.

[satYatunes]

I don't have huge problems with Sonar that others report but I have had to learn to obsessively save after almost every action I make. (I have had my screen turn white and lose a few hours work on more than one occasion)- I'm just wondering if this is how it should be, Do users of other daw's have to obsess about saving due to a fear
of crashing?

Yes, I have had X1 crashes on few occasion. That's where I changed the auto-save to 5 mins.

The other small annoyance with Sonar is a lot of the bundled FX etc. are from various 3rd parties meaning different interfaces/ controls to get used to. I may be corrected on this but from what I have seen most of the Logic plug ins seem to have a standardized layout. (Am I being to picky in thinking this makes a difference?)

I do have this problem too. It doesn't feel like a cohesive product like Cubase or S1 because of so many third party plugins. But I am trying to put more attention to their quality than looks, which should be the case but I understand this concern totally.

By the way, I don't know where you are located but in US Guitar Center is actually a very good place try the demo of Plugins/DAWs. The one nearest to me have almost everything installed on a MAC, it's not usually crowded so I just sit there and take my own time in trying out different plugins there. The also leave you alone until unless you have lot of questions.