Cakewalk SONAR Home Studio 6 XL Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The big news for this update is that it now uses the same sound engine found in the high-end professional versions (Studio and Producer). Includes well-chosen set of virtual instruments and effects, and be sure to search the net for the huge number of free VST and DXI effects out there that will add a lot of additional value to this product. See the Cakewalk site for details of this product, and be sure to watch the instructional videos even if you are a long-time Home Studio user (you can find them on Cakewalk's site too to have a preview of what you get). This is probably the most significant update of Home Studio ever, and well worth the money for the home studio musician... you can make very professional-sounding recordings with this product. Note you will also need a MIDI and audio interface to plug in your keyboard/microphone/guitar, etc. BTW I recommend the XL version even at the extra cost over the non-XL version, the extras are worth it.

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Sonar Home Studio 6 XL makes it easy to produce professional music, without being in a studio. The 64-bit double precision engine gives you pristine sound quality, for unmatched music creation. Active Controller Technology (ACT) dynamically re-maps effect, mix and instruments to hardware controllers, for easier music creation. The AudioSnap suite lets you take complete control of your track, while the Synth Rack makes automating instruments a snap. At every step of your production -- from composing with virtual instruments, to recording, mixing, and beyond -- you'll fast forward your music production. SONAR Home Studio XL adds value and more power with a selection of over one gigabyte of instrument sounds, Boost 11 peak limiter, Session Drummer 2 drum instrument, and more. 10 new professional audio effects.Active Controller Technology (ACT) lets users easily control and automate effects, instruments, and their mix from MIDI controllers by automatically remapping controls to whatever has the focus Rip from and burn to CD directly from SONAR Home StudioAutomate tracks, effects, and instruments easily with enhanced automation tools.MIDI Input Quantize corrects the timing of MIDI performances in real-time.Freeze tracks, effects, and virtual instruments to conserve CPU power.Native and fully integrated support for VST plug-ins, no wrapper required.DropZone sampler with extended library of instrument sounds including a Drum Pack and Bass Pack.Cakewalk Publisher lets users present and stream their music on the Internet SONAR Home Studio XL Exclusives -Boost 11 Peak Limiter - Get more volume and punch from your final mix with this easy to use peak limiter/maximizer. Boost 11 gives you professional results with a simple to use interface / Dimension LE - A special version of the synth from Cakewalk. Features over 400 sound programs, ranging from real bass, organ and electric piano samples t

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Cakewalk SONAR 7 Producer Edition - Windows Review

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(More customer reviews)I have used Cakewalk products for about 10 years now. I have always been impressed with how user-friendly their software is and it is great that a company out there makes PC-specific software. I have used other software and have found that Cakewalk's is the most logically (pun intended) set up.
The reviewer who has commented that they had trouble opening the program also stated that they did research before they ever purchased a single program, implying they are new to the computer recording world. I wouldn't recommend a Ducati to someone who just started driving a bicycle. One need's a foundation before stepping up to the next level. I would suggest that if you buy this software you'd better have some foreknowledge of audio technology. Also, if you are just starting, then look at Sonar's Home Studio products first. They are much more affordable and can do much of what this product does minus the effects, soft synths, and processing power.
Also, you will need a powerful computer and audio interface (not just any sound card will do) to run this software. If you do buy this, make sure you invest in a high quality sound card too, otherwise what's the point? It'd be like buying a great stereo receiver and connecting it to two-inch speakers, then wondering why it doesn't sound like the awesome stereo your neighbor has. You need the proper equipment to run this, it's not end-all-be-all product, and neither are the other DAW's.
I highly recommend this product. I have had great results using it, but it does require a lot of knowledge. I also highly recommend you purchase a user guide to help exploit all this product can do. Check out "Sonar Power" they have always been helpful.

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SONAR 7 Producer Edition offers a remarkable experience that excels at every step of your production-from its inspiring, open and customizable environment, to intuitive music creation and editing tools, to polished mixing, editing and delivery-with the recognized best audio quality in the industry.Get the perfect take with the best comping, editing, and take management tools available Create and edit MIDI in new and intuitive ways with an integrated Step Sequencer, Smart MIDI Tools, and other extensive MIDI enhancements Upload songs directly to the Internet and build song players for your website, with Cakewalk Publisher Burn your mixes directly to CD with integrated CD burning Score to video with a thumbnail track and output to 1394 FireWire devices Deliver audio and video in virtually any format including Sony Wave-64, AIF, CAF, FLAC, SD2, WAV, QuickTime, MP3, WMA. Export to OMFI and Broadcast WAV for collaboration with Pro Tools and other DAWs New Features -Integrated Step Sequencer view provides the most innovative step sequencer feature set available in any DAW today. Complete MIDI overhaul with Smart MIDI Tools and dozens of other new featuresTrue linear phase mastering plug-insInternal sidechainingDelay compensation for external hardwarePitch to MIDI functionality with Roland V-Vocal 1.5Operating System Windows XP / RecommendedWindows XP/Vista (32 and 64-bit), can be run on Mac OS X with Boot Camp

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