KVR Audio

sonicpowa · Post by **sonicpowa** » Mon Sep 21, 2015 2:45 pm

xphen0m wrote:Cakewalk really need to improve Sonar's MIDI functionality. It is light years behind Cubase (especially), even Studio One and even REAPER (which is saying something because REAPER is still abysmal for midi).

Really? I was in the impression that Studio One was not good about MIDI, and V3 fixed some of it.

AROSSA [Cakewalk] · Post by **AROSSA [Cakewalk]** » Fri Sep 25, 2015 4:08 pm

Saw some questions about the Synth Recording. For those wanting to learn more about synth recording and some of the latest features, here are some new videos:

Synth Recording:

Drum Replacer:

Style Dials:

Start Screen:

AROSSA [Cakewalk] · Post by **AROSSA [Cakewalk]** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 12:09 am

SONAR Lexington update is now available:

http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/ ... #Lexington

In case you missed any of the other updates, here's a year end review:

http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR/Year-In-Review

xphen0m · Post by **xphen0m** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 2:16 am

I will not renew my Sonar subscription in January. I do a lot of MIDI work, and working with MIDI in Sonar was a nightmare for me. Cubase is still the king there, which is now my one and only DAW and it's going to stay that way.

Meffy · Post by **Meffy** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 2:25 am

I've got to watch some of those tutorial videos. A lot has gone into Sonar lately that I missed.

deastman · Post by **deastman** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 2:27 am

xphen0m wrote:I will not renew my Sonar subscription in January. I do a lot of MIDI work, and working with MIDI in Sonar was a nightmare for me. Cubase is still the king there, which is now my one and only DAW and it's going to stay that way.

Just out of curiosity, what makes it a nightmare? What is missing that you require and which Cubase provides?

xphen0m · Post by **xphen0m** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 2:40 am

Here's an example:

There's no easy way to do legato the way I can do it Cubase. In Sonar, I have to use a CAL script. I hate this because CAL doesn't function properly a majority of the time. Sometimes when I load it, it'll do something weird with the selected midi, but put a legato'd copy down at the bottom of the PRV. I have the erase this and try it again. In Cubase, there's a legato button that has options. One click, done. This is just one example.

Editing MIDI in Sonar in general was just not user friendly. I was hopeful that this Sonar subscription would bring new MIDI functions (especially after Cakewalk's little questionnaire a while ago).....but nope. So I will wait until I see something "good" done to improve midi editing before I blow cash on Sonar again. That's what I should've done the first time.

The only thing I liked from the subscription was the Drum Replacer, and maybe one other thing. I also liked the synth recording. But synth recording wasn't a big deal to me, honestly.

deastman · Post by **deastman** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 3:35 am

Hmm. I don't think I've ever tried to use a MIDI sequencer in a legato mode. That is usually something I expect a synth to do as an interpretation of the incoming note data.

Otherwise, you didn't really list anything other than it not being user friendly. I've always found it to be extremely user friendly, and it still remains my favorite MIDI editor since StudioVision. I never got along very well with Cubase.

Not that I'm trying to persuade you- your opinion is what it is. I'm just curious to learn more about why it works so well for me and not for others.

xphen0m · Post by **xphen0m** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 4:24 am

deastman wrote:Hmm. I don't think I've ever tried to use a MIDI sequencer in a legato mode. That is usually something I expect a synth to do as an interpretation of the incoming note data.

Not a "legato mode". A "legato function". I wouldn't be playing in automatic legato. I'm talking about a function where once everything is recorded, in Cubase for example, I use the legato function to create an automatic legato between all notes.

This was a big one for me because I use that feature after every take in Cubase. In Sonar, it took a lot of time to get it right.

lfm · Post by **lfm** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 7:23 am

xphen0m wrote:
deastman wrote:Hmm. I don't think I've ever tried to use a MIDI sequencer in a legato mode. That is usually something I expect a synth to do as an interpretation of the incoming note data.
Not a "legato mode". A "legato function". I wouldn't be playing in automatic legato. I'm talking about a function where once everything is recorded, in Cubase for example, I use the legato function to create an automatic legato between all notes.

This was a big one for me because I use that feature after every take in Cubase. In Sonar, it took a lot of time to get it right.

You should be able to do that in a flash with CAL script in Sonar.
I modified an existing script for duration on notes since drumspads created too short ones, and it was not hard to do.

Unfortunately Cakewalk does not promote CAL that much, so I guess majority does not even know about it.

EDIT: sorry, I did not read back enough.
Check out the AutoLegato MFX here:
http://www.tencrazy.com/gadgets/mfx/

chris.r · Post by **chris.r** » Tue Dec 29, 2015 10:21 pm

Taking all the possibilities of Smart tools, CAL, MFX etc. I always thought that should place Sonar in front in terms of MIDI editing.

acYm · Post by **acYm** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:35 pm

Technically yes it should be above average but it's always very glitchy and never feels tightly integrated enough. The above example was not surprising to me.

AROSSA [Cakewalk] · Post by **AROSSA [Cakewalk]** » Wed Apr 13, 2016 6:21 pm

Sneak preview of the new mastering plugins coming to SONAR this spring:

sounddesigner · Post by **sounddesigner** » Thu Apr 14, 2016 11:24 pm

@AROSSA, I hope more than just redesigned Mastering effects (wich are old plugins) is coming to Sonar in the next release. I was very happy to see the extended routing capabilities and other added functionality brought to Sonar many months ago but lately updates seem skimpy and bloat-ware like. I hope to get more of the type of features and functionality I like and not more of the stuff that disappointed me with Cakewalk these last many years (skimpy and bloat-ware). So far I seen a few good things from these new Rolling-Updates and I hope more is coming before my update-permit expires and I'm required to pay again, I may not reach for my wallet other-wise.

Mystic · Post by **Mystic** » Fri Apr 15, 2016 9:25 pm

There has been some bloat but not nearly as much as other stuff. I don't care about the style dials, LANDR or the synths that they updated but you can't deny there have been vast improvements and features in the past year. Melodyne 4, Patch Points, Synth Recording, Upsampling on playback, Clip exporting, Drum replacer, vocal sync, the new midi engine... not to mention the bug fixes that we get every single month. Plus, some of what they've already announced for spring like the new UI themes, library and mastering update all look very promising.

Introducing the new SONAR: New lineup, new features, plus membership