This is sorta old news by now, but I haven't seen it mentioned here. Sonar Platinum is coming to Mac. There will be a free alpha version available this fall. Also, they currently have a free lifetime updates offer going through August. I was able to upgrade for $99 and will never have to pay for another update again. They took a page out of FLS' book.

https://www.cakewalk.com/June-2016

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This is hersay...Ableton for life!

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quote:

Originally posted by dj_alfi change your avatar for fucks sake.

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Originally posted by Beatflux This is hersay...Ableton for life!

I'd be cool with that, too.

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I can understand why FL does it as I assume that the majority of their income is from new users (noobs seem to gravitate towards FL for many reasons).

Not so sure how Cakewalk will sustain the same business model though.

It smells of freemium future content.

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Originally posted by tehlord It smells of freemium future content.

They've been pretty forthcoming with their future plans, and it all looks great, but yeah, there's also some free bloatware (I don't even bother installing most of it). Ever since going to their membership paradigm, they've been rolling out new features to the core program on a near-monthly basis.

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Fair enough then.

But yeah, Live all the way for me from now on

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Originally posted by tehlord But yeah, Live all the way for me from now on

I do like Live for creation, mostly instrumentals. But, I hate using it for tracking of live vocals/instruments and mixing. I like having a dedicated console view...cuz I'm oldskool (or, maybe just old).

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I hear that. I can still use Cubase for recording audio, but I'm not 100% against mixing in Live. It's not ideal though.

I'm hoping they improve that in 10

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For the Mac platform free upgrades for life is essential as you just don't know when a change of architecture (or even just an OS update) is going to render your expensive software unusable until you pay for an upgrade.

I'm staying on X3 as I feel like I've already given Cakewalk enough money, and don't need any more new FX or VSTis.

Last edited by Mel David on Jul-15-2016 at 17:16

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Originally posted by Mel David I'm staying on X3 as I feel like I've already given Cakewalk enough money, and don't need any more new FX or VSTis.

Yeah, they've definitely been adding new FX/instruments, but they're doing a hell of a lot more than just that. Every single monthly update since Platinum was released has had at least one improvement to the core application (e.g., new MIDI engine, better audio performance, patch points/universal routing, Aux Tracks, Mix Recall, VocalSync, direct soft synth recording, better startup screen, new track insert menu, smart solo, smart swipe, new skins plus a skin designer coming in the next release, etc.)

Here is the huge list of Sonar Platinum improvements (planned and implemented):

http://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SO...Updates#2016.06

I don't think that there is another developer that is coming close to this level of output.

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That $99 deal was from jrrshop right? I think I remember an email newsletter about it but I just didn't bite as I haven't been firing up Sonar much these past two years.

I started with Sonar 8 Producer, then upgraded to X1, then X2, then X3 whenever they went on sale. The extra stuff they keep bundling don't really interest me, being a Komplete owner and various other plugins and sample libs. I'd rather load up something I already paid for. Seems that when Cakewalk do bundle something it is a lite version (eg. Melodyne Essential), and is a marketing strategy with their partner.

Native Instruments is more generous with what they bundle in their yearly updates, yet even I haven't upgraded from my original 8.0 version. I am more tempted towards an upgrade to Komplete 10.0 than Sonar Platinum right now.

Just going to have to make do with what I have already. I was thinking though, if I sell my VSL Special Editions I'll be able to go on a bit of a shopping spree.

Last edited by Mel David on Jul-18-2016 at 17:33

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Originally posted by Mel David That $99 deal was from jrrshop right?

$99 is the direct cost from Cakewalk for all Platinum license holders, and it's good through August. I'm not sure what the cost would be for X3 owners, but I believe that it's $199. $199 is the X3 upgrade price at JRR Shop, and there are not any discount codes for it AFAIK. To get the free lifetime updates, you'd need to buy it before August 31.

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