KVR Audio

advaya · Post by **advaya** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:01 pm

mabian wrote:it shows they just don't care that much to what users need and ask for...

As much as I love (repeat, LOVE) Cubase, I cannot argue against that point.

gravehill · Post by **gravehill** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:06 pm

soundpalace wrote:I find that if you are used to Cubase and have used it extensively, Sonar "might" be really really confusing and illogical to you.

Seconded!!

I'm also a current Cubase user and looking for switching sequencer. My very first sequencer was Cakewalk Pro Audio 9 and I stayed with them until Sonar 2. Then a friend talked me over and I switched to Cubase (VST 32 v5 at the time). Lately I've tried demos of various sequencers and I find that even as a former Sonar user, the workflow seems now really hard to get used to. It seems Samplitude might be the sequencer of choice for me...

advaya · Post by **advaya** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:12 pm

gravehill wrote:
soundpalace wrote:I find that if you are used to Cubase and have used it extensively, Sonar "might" be really really confusing and illogical to you.
Seconded!!

I'm also a current Cubase user and looking for switching sequencer. My very first sequencer was Cakewalk Pro Audio 9 and I stayed with them until Sonar 2. Then a friend talked me over and I switched to Cubase (VST 32 v5 at the time). Lately I've tried demos of various sequencers and I find that even as a former Sonar user, the workflow seems now really hard to get used to. It seems Samplitude might be the sequencer of choice for me...

Agreed, but it does not take long to get accustomed to its workflow (I've spent a fair bit of time with S3 + S4). I suppose if I ever abandon Cubase, it'd be my next DAW of choice.

captain caveman · Post by **captain caveman** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 1:55 pm

Coxy wrote:I could prob get the Academic vers of Sonar 6 for £126 as opposed to the upgrade from my sx 3 to cubase 4 at around the same or somewhat higher.
........

Any talk on people in similar situations or using both?

Hi

I use SX3 and Sonar 6. I bought Sonar 5 a couple of months ago and then got the upgrade to 6.

If you can get it for £126 then it'll be worth it even if only for the effects that you get with it. Sonar FX (apart from the Vintage Channel 64) can all be used in other DAWs too, so even if you don't like it then you have bought a bunch of nice effects for £126.

Sonar 6.0.1 still has a way to go stability wise though. There is a big bug at the moment where the last parameter of VST effects isn't recalled when re-opening a project, but it will be fixed in the next release.

In terms of getting used to the workflow goes, if you know SX3 then Sonar does pretty much the same stuff and you can customise the menus, right-click menus and toolbars to suit yourself. I have had a few "user head gap" problems but you soon get around the brain block. I'd imagine that this would be the same with any other DAW though.

MIDI editing is the main downfall. They should scrap it and just copy what Cubase does, because this is where Cubase leads by a long way.

Having said all that, I wouldn't mind checking out Samplitude.

captain caveman · Post by **captain caveman** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 2:17 pm

Also, the £126 price tag is why I am saying you should go for it (if only for the effects like Perfect Space low latency convolution (er Waves IR-1 is $800)).

It has also shown me that whilst Steinberg may have problems, the quality of Cubase is not one of them. Cubase is slick and with flexible group routing (check it out in Sonar, it's like a release of left-brain tension whilst mixing) and multi-track warping they will have a total winner.

It's just the company that needs a kick up the shorts, not the product.

But it is an interesting, eye-opening experience getting into the nuts and bolts of another product. The grass isn't greener on the other side, it's a different shade and whether or not you like that shade is entirely subjective.

dusted william · Post by **dusted william** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:26 pm

I want to love Sonar, but for me it is terribly unstable, half my VST's dont' work. I've tried every demo since sonar 3 and I've even tried P5. If I could just get the Sonar6 to work I would switch, but I can't.

dw

mabian · Post by **mabian** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:32 pm

Can you tell me three plugs with which Sonar 6 does not work?
And what are the problems with them?

I think that the VST integration of Sonar 6 is far better than the previous (no more adapter) and 99% of my plugs (DX and VST) work flawlessly.

Thanks
Mario

dusted william · Post by **dusted william** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:37 pm

I can't remember them, I just remember it not working with them. I was having more problems just getting it to play. Sometimes it would, sometimes it wouldn't. I could never figure out why.

There is something in my setup that does not like cakewalk, could be my soundcard, don't know.

dw

mabian · Post by **mabian** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:42 pm

There's a known issue, for example with ezdrummer and firebird, that make those plugs produce sound only after their GUI has been opened once.
It's going to be fixed in next SONAR patch - should be very near now,
according to their official statement weeks ago.

- Mario

dusted william · Post by **dusted william** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:48 pm

Like I said, I really want to use Sonar. If I could I would.

dw

smart · Post by **smart** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:54 pm

I would try the demo and see what you think!

While your at it, maybe give the demo version of Zynewave Podium a shot too?

coreydavid · Post by **coreydavid** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 4:05 pm

Coxy wrote:Saw an advert for sonar 6 in a music mag I was just re-reading and it looked ok. Checked the new features online and a couple things really appeal to me. The Sonar 6 mixer looks like it has a lot better mixing and EQ flexibility and the New ACT is very apealing to. I have a midi controller but don't use it nearly as much as I would like because of the constant remapping of controls on synths/cubase etc.

I could prob get the Academic vers of Sonar 6 for £126 as opposed to the upgrade from my sx 3 to cubase 4 at around the same or somewhat higher.
It would mean re-learning the workflow, getting used to the new way of working and different nuances that each sequencer has.
But on the plus side I find change refreshing and inspiring and I would still be holding onto and using the SX 3 that I own.

In a nutshell, I think i'd get more out of buying Sonar 6 than I would upgrading to Cubase 4. And at least then I could have the best of both worlds.

Any talk on people in similar situations or using both?

And no silly dongle!

Resonant Serpent · Post by **Resonant Serpent** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 4:56 pm

dusted william wrote:Like I said, I really want to use Sonar. If I could I would.

dw

Have you tried asking over on the Sonar forum for help? The people there are rather nice and informative. They should have you up to speed in no time.

One of the great things about Sonar is the .ini file. You can customize and change parameters that other hosts simply don't give you the option to change.

puffer · Post by **puffer** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 5:10 pm

Again, there *have* been improvements and changes to the Sonar MIDI editing since v2, aside from the inline MIDI editing. Whether these enhancements are enough to sway users of other sequencers is obviously a matter of taste and opinion. But to say that Cake hasn't touched the MIDI editing simply isn't true.

Arcvidean · Post by **Arcvidean** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 5:48 pm

I certainly want to change from Cubase SL3 to Sonar 6 but after having Cubase for nearly four years found Sonar virtually incomprehensible, more so than Cubase when I was first learning. I hope this is just habit though and intend to put more time in on the demo. I'm fed up of dongles and think Steinberg is really helping to mess things up in the Virtual recording realm. I don't even know how many of my plug ins will work in Cubase 4 and don't intend to find out the hard and expensive way, I shudder to think of the cost of all those Native instruments Komplete 2 instruments at NI upgrade prices alone.
Arcvidean.

Cubaser thinking of turning to Sonar 6 instead of Cubase 4