Cakewalk: "Big announcements coming June 1st, 2016"

[Boardwalk]

"We'll only be selling lifetime updates for SONAR Platinum during this period. It's a better value and will reduce confusion over which version to buy. We want customers to have the best experience."

Point is: when that period is over they'll probably use the concept which counted before the period. So very little has changed. They promised SMac, big deal. It's just about a temporary injection of cash flow. My 2c.

[atukao]

Opcode Studio Vision - Gibson

[whyterabbyt]

Opcode Studio Vision - Gibson

wow. y'know, since the point at which Roland sold CW, I dont think there's been a single person who's ever mentioned that, ever.

[ObsoleteAcc99]

[DELETED]

[UncleAge]

The deal expires August 31st. So what will the purchase options be after that date?

Back to normal pricing, most likely.

If that is where this ends up then this is just a cash grab. That and the creation of two classes of Sonar Platinum users. As a potential Mac customer I don't see this as a good thing.

[Numanoid]

The deal expires August 31st. So what will the purchase options be after that date?

Back to normal pricing, most likely.

If that is where this ends up then this is just a cash grab

I think so too

Over the last 5 years there has been several models in place

There was "regular" paid upgrades -> X1: Dec 2010 / X2: Sep 2012 / X3: Oct 2013

Then came "new" Sonar: Jan 2015 (membership model of 12 months)

And now lifetime free upgrades: Jun 2016

Being a backseat CEO I would say that this kind of slaloming is down to trying to earn more money

[Resonant- Serpent]

The flaw in your logic is that the bakers have already stated that Sonar isn't the main cash cow for the company, and that most are not on the Platinum level which is the only level that qualifies for lifetime upgrades. For those of us who were already supporting the company, it's a no-brainer. 99.00 and I never have to pay for another upgrade. Sounds like a deal to me. If you look at just forum traffic and posts, the policies of the last 18 months have brought a lot of people back to the company. The latest release is the least cpu intensive and most stable release I've used, a constant for the past year, and I've been there since Pro Audio 5 back in '95. While I'd still like to see improvements such as Chord Tracks and the Drum Maps improved, it's on the right path. Some really big improvements have been added like the drum replacer, in-host synth recording, dragging audio to the timeline for tempo track, etc. The list is huge. If you're on Windows 10, Sonar is the most efficient of every host except Reaper which, to be honest, no host can touch. But, Sonar is close and has become a lot better over the last year. Definitely less cpu intensive than Cubase Pro or Studio One v3, which I also own. I do miss the named updates, but otherwise, I like where the program is going. I use it every day, and it delivers with constant improvements. While there have been some bugs that were introduced with updates, they've been squashed in as little as 24 to 48 hours. The new "public beta" of Early Release is also squashing bugs before roll out.

Sonar had a tough hill to climb and I was one of the most vocal about Gibson's takeover and the founder leaving. I still remember what happened to Oberheim and Opcode. But, this has been a 180 degree turn for the company. They should be proud of what they've accomplished, and I see no reason why they would stray from the current path.

Don't just scroll through this list, but look at the details for each release. There's been a huge amount of additions and fixes that makes other companies look anemic in their release schedule:

https://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Rolling-Updates

[Numanoid]

The flaw in your logic is that the bakers have already stated that Sonar isn't the main cash cow for the company

So what is their main bread and butter?

Is it Rapture Pro?

[Resonant- Serpent]

Don't know exactly. The bakers did say that the lower level programs are far more popular than people realize. Although it's a different industry, I know that gaming has followed this model for a while. Both Rift and Lord of the Rings online games went free with the micro-transaction model, and both were hugely profitable afterwards. Image-Line has released lifetime updates for years, and continues to pull a profit. With the money from Gibson backing them up, and Mac development underway, I don't see how they could fail. It took a year to defeat my cynicism over the acquisition, but I can't deny that the company has been its best under Gibson. I guess if the world didn't continue to surprise, there wouldn't be much reason for staying alive. Luckily, some of those surprises are good.

[Numanoid]

Don't know exactly. The bakers did say that the lower level programs are far more popular than people realize.

So why have they put so much effort into Sonar, upgrades every other year, masses of updates for the latest version of Sonar.

While z3ta+ 2 for Windows hardly has had any updates since 2011 ? The latest version is still 2.1 according to KVR database

Kind of weird that they would spend so much time on Sonar if it wasn't a cash cow for the bakers

[bronxsound]

I guess if the world didn't continue to surprise, there wouldn't be much reason for staying alive. Luckily, some of those surprises are good.

sadly the majority is not... hence if something seems to be too good to be true it surely isn't

[Resonant- Serpent]

Don't know exactly. The bakers did say that the lower level programs are far more popular than people realize.

So why have they put so much effort into Sonar, upgrades every other year, masses of updates for the latest version of Sonar.

While z3ta+ 2 for Windows hardly has had any updates since 2011 ? The latest version is still 2.1 according to KVR database

Kind of weird that they would spend so much time on Sonar if it wasn't a cash cow for the bakers

Sonar is still the flagship software. Some of the releases and improvements that we're seeing have been in the pipe for years. I don't see them as working less on Sonar, but broadening the base and capturing more of the market.

From what I've understood, they have different development teams for different areas. The latest update to z3ta was the 2.1 update on 3/21/2016 which fixed a lot of issues. The first release wasn't so hot, especially with the alternate tuning functions missing, but they've remedied that. I'd say it's evidence that Cakewalk is a better company now.

https://www.cakewalk.com/Support/Knowle ... 2-1-Update

[Numanoid]

Sonar is still the flagship software.

...but not the cash cow

That's very unusual isn't it?

[Aloysius]

UPDATE: Issue followed up by Cakewalk ...

[Resonant- Serpent]

I guess if the world didn't continue to surprise, there wouldn't be much reason for staying alive. Luckily, some of those surprises are good.

sadly the majority is not... hence if something seems to be too good to be true it surely isn't

Depends on the ebb and flow of life. Four years ago I almost died twice in a year. I had to sell all my software and studio gear to make a down payment for surgery that had a higher chance of killing me than making me better. I squeezed the odds and came out on top. I've been able to rebuild my studio and enjoy the act of creating something. Cakewalk isn't perfect, but their batting average is high for the past 1.5 years, so I'm going to go with this being a good thing. The brain naturally retains bad experiences more than good ones. I'm choosing to go with the positive. If that changes, then I'll adjust. Current software is so much more that what anyone thought possible when I was paying 200.00 an hour for crappy studios in the 80's. I think most don't even realize how spoiled they are. Humans have a tendency to only value experiences won through conflict, and will often create drama when there is none. I see what's happening with Cakewalk as positive, because it is. If I constantly worried about getting hit by a bus, I'd never cross the street.