Serial Do Sonar Le 8.5
Dec 30, 2010 Rapture LE/SONAR 8.5 serial # question Rapture LE came with my version of 8.5-I attempted to go on the cake site and.
It's not touted as version 9, but the list of improvements certainly makes this year's upgrade to Cakewalk's Sonar DAW a big deal. The Matrix view is being used to test out different combinations of loops to see what works well together.
Note how loops triggered in the Matrix view can be recorded (in real time, as you work in the Matrix view) into the Track view as Groove Clips. Like clockwork, every AES Convention brought a new version of Sonar Producer Edition and Sonar Studio Edition. So, of course, Sonarians were expecting that version 9.0 would appear at the 2009 AES, with the usual upgrade price from whatever version they were using. But Cakewalk threw a curveball, instead introducing a 'point' upgrade at a reduced price ($99 for 8.0 owners). Some Cakewalk fans felt betrayed, but cooler heads prevailed once people realised that they were getting serious value for money. Other Sonar users scratched their heads, feeling that the new version justified a 9.0 designation and wondering why Cakewalk didn't just call it 9.0.
Well, if Propellerheads could name Reason after a program in a Douglas Adams book, then maybe some Fellini fan at Cakewalk really liked the movie 8½ and thought it would make a good name for a software update. Anyway, in retrospect, its release toward the end of September was perhaps premature; there were some issues with the AudioSnap update, and the Matrix View — while a highly valuable addition — needed some useability tweaks. In typical Cakewalk fashion, they were quick out of the gate with version 8.5.1 to address several small fixes. That was followed up by 8.5.2, which added a considerable number of useful features to the Matrix View.
The result is a mature version of Sonar 8.5 that greatly expands on version 8.0. We've already done three Sonar workshops on new features in 8.5: the PX64 'drum strip' (October 2009: ), VX64 'vocal strip' (November 2009: ), and Matrix View loop‑based sequencing window (December 2009: ). While they are not reviews per se, these articles should still give you a good idea of what these features do.
I wouldn't consider PX64 or VX64 some kind of spectacular breakthrough, because with enough work you could string together existing processors to provide much (but not all) of their functionality. However, having everything ready to go in a single, optimised plug‑in is extremely convenient, and the effects have a few tricks up their sleeves — I particularly like transient shaping in PX64 and the doubling in VX64. PX64 has some seriously useful applications for bass as well, whether electric, acoustic or synthesized. However, the Matrix view has undergone several improvements since I wrote last month's workshop on it.
For my playing style, the most welcome addition is the ability to record solos and mutes along with track data when recording to the Track view. Clicking on mute and solo doesn't sync to the trigger resolution: they respond instantly.
Aop-104a Driver here. I find that very handy, because I can bring in a loop a 16th‑note or so early to preface the downbeat (Novation's Launchpad works fabulously as a controller for this sort of thing). However, neither of these buttons can receive MIDI commands, so you can't trigger solos or mutes with external controller buttons — a shortcoming that I hope will be addressed in a future update.
I'd also like the ability to delete multiple cells simultaneously, as it's tedious to do so one at a time. Accessibility is improved, with a set of key commands for when the header has focus, the most important being 'trigger column'. But there are additional commands to simplify navigating around the Matrix, and some new cell shortcuts too.
While the Matrix view was a major addition in 8.5, the updates in 8.5.2 make working with it much more fluid. This screen shows the PX64 Percussion Strip, VX64 Vocal Strip, and two of the Project5 effects added to 8.5 (Stereo/Tempo Delay and Alias Factor). All of the effects from Project5 have now been folded into 8.5: Alias Factor (a decimator module, which Sonar never had before), Phaser, Exciter, Mod Filter, Multivoice Chorus/Flanger, two‑band Parametric EQ, Stereo Compressor/Gate, Stereo/Tempo Delay, and the Studioverb 2 synthetic reverb. Although the functionality of some of these is duplicated by existing Sonar effects, the character is not. As a Project5 owner, these plug‑ins were accessible to me in Sonar and I reached for them surprisingly often (especially the Stereo/Tempo Delay, which always seemed fantastic for dance track rhythmic echoes).