A lot of people use Cakewalk because, it's pretty good and it's free.

Well, the winds of change are blowing through the hallways of bandlab.

If you haven't already gotten cakewalk, don't put it off because it looks like the free DAW might be going away in favor of a paid version. They haven't released the details yet. Just know that things are changing shortly.

https://www.kvraudio.com/news/bandlab-technologies-reveals-new-brand-vision-for-cakewalk-57991

Here we go again... thanks for the heads up.

Thanks for the news. The KVR site is reliable.

I don't think this plan was unexpected. What was unexpected was the free version of SONAR at first.

[I switched to Studio One after it became clear Cakewalk was going to be killed off, and before BandLab picked it up.]

I knew things were going to go south once vulture capital got involved, I just didn't expect them to start screwing things up so quickly.

"[I switched to Studio One after it became clear Cakewalk was going to be killed off, and before BandLab picked it up.]"

I also switched to Studio One before BandLab picked it up. As things have turned out, I am glad I did. Studio One is a better product than Sonar.

I liked Sonar and would most likely still be using it if they were still in business.

Now you tell me that BandLab is going to charge for what they have been giving away for free? What comes next, subscription only?

This is just another sales and marketing method to try to generate profits.

If you were not a long-time user of Cakewalk and had spent money for years on their product, none of this would likely bother you.

BandLab? No thanks.

Billy

Same here and I agree that Studio One is a better product than the original Sonar.

I don't mind to have a paid, non-subscription version. I have been a long time user/supporter and had paid "0" for past several years.
see attached image of the question I asked...

To my understanding, base version will still be free.

Just as long as they don't shut off my PC based CWBL I'm good.

Another update.
Noel Borthwick answered my question about subscription(which is definitely not my thing)

"there are models that allow you to purchase an annual (non-expiring) license. This is what we did in the SONAR days. An annual license is no different from buying the software outright."

So there we have it I am very sure it would be priced fairly.

Even more updates:

" Me: "Annual" means no expiry / no deactivation after one year, just no further free updates after the year, right?"

Noel:
Exactly. We were one of the few companies offering this model even in the SONAR days. How it works is you either pay for 12 consecutive monthly subs OR you purchase a one year subscription upfront. In both scenarios the last months version is permanently unlocked for you and you own it. Many people who dislike subscription are unaware that we always did this. Also, an advantage of our monthly subscription is that once you cross the 12 month boundary you can continue consecutive monthly subs for however long as you want and you would always own the last version you paid for.

All subs are not bad and are actually better for some people who prefer paying in smaller increments. So definitely read the fine print."
-----------------------

Sounds fair to me.

I do notice that sometimes activation has to be refreshed, so just wondering if this will still happen to the free version and it will work ok.

I am struggling with that right now on Studio one. I bought Versions 2, 4, and 5. Then I subscribed to version 6 thru sphere. I decided I didn't want to pay the monthly after a year. Presonus has no record of my version 5 purchase, and I can't even get into my account now the password does not work. SO, I can't use it on either my Mac or my Windows lappy. They don't recognize the year i paid. So no either re up the sub or go back to version 4. Sucky deal.

So the dilemma is what to do. Cakewalk is a choice on the laptop, but not Mac. I can't use Logic anymore since my OS is too old. RB is win only. Hhhhmmm what does that leave me with? Reaper? never really been a fan. I was always confused by the send/receive crap. Also, not a fan of the GUI. I find the mixer view kind of crazy.

Cakewalk had a long history and a lot of happy users. There was a great forum. Some third-party software programs in Sonar did not carry over to BandLab. I don't think many of us were happy to leave at the time, but your only going to get one chance to screw me up. Sonar was more than just the software. There was a community that went along with it.

I have Reaper, which I sometimes use because I have a friend I collaborate with who uses Reaper. Reaper is a good DAW, just not my favorite.

Ableton Live came with my new interface. I looked at it and did not see any reason to switch.

I even have the original Sonar on a backup drive which still works. Steinberg Cubase is one of the mainstream DAWs I have not looked at.

If money is an issue, BandLab looks like a good deal. If you like BandLab, there is no reason not to use it. It is a pretty solid DAW.
Reaper is probably a better DAW, and for $60, it is almost free.

I am still running Studio One 5 Pro. I have had to redownload it several times due to computer issues. I never had any problems with the downloads. I have not yet found a compelling reason to upgrade to 6.

If I had to change from Studio One, I would most likely buy Pro Tools. I don't like many things about Pro Tools, but it is the de facto industry standard DAW. As such, it will most likely not go away in my lifetime and continue to be improved. It is not and never has been a very popular DAW with home studio folks.

As long as Studio One Pro continues to do the job, that is what I will continue to use. I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone. I looked at PreSonus Sphere Membership and decided it was not for me at this time.

Both Studio One 6 Professional and Artist editions are also available as standalone purchases or as an upgrade from a previous version.

Billy

Their forum is on fire right now and.

From the Bandlab forum:

Hey Rob, I can access every Studio One versions from 2 to 6 in my products page. If you go to Presonus main page and try to login there it does not recognize my password there. What I have to do to login is goto Your account login . Try that and see if that will give you access to your account.

Cakewalk the future

I was very sad when Gibson destroyed Cakewalk and the Sonar product. Then happy when Bandlab brought it back to life. I was a Sonar Platinum full everything user, then went into the subscription mode with them as well, which was no worse than upgrading annually cost wise. Then when Bandlab came along, all my platinum stuff still worked and they added improvements with very regular updates. Now that they have raised money in a stock offering, they have to start making money. I get it. It will be interesting to see what they come up with.

I also have Cubase which I went to when Gibson killed Sonar. So I am not hurting for DAWs!!

According to BandLab, after the final update/bug fix for CakeWalk by BandLab, the every 6 month deactivation feature will go away, and the old program will remain permanently activated. The only difference you will notice is no more updates, and no more support.

Keith,
may I ask where you saw this?:
"the every 6 month deactivation feature will go away, and the old program will remain permanently activated."

Thanks.

So far, I can’t find where I saw this exact language, only that it remains available. I know that I saw it somewhere but it’s not where I expected to find it. I’ll keep looking.

Don't. Save your time. I don't think it was clearly mentioned... yet by developers. Lets just wait and see what happens. Noel said that likely roll out of new Sonar/Next is by the end of the year.

While most of the DAWs are very capable these days, I am married to Cakewalk. Meng (owner) proved that they are serious about it by updating/patching it very aggressively in the last 5 years. I will definitely buy a license, if the price is fair and will not make me sell a kidney.

can any of the people who like Studio One better than Cakewalk post a few observations about why it's better?

Hi Pat. That first line quoted was me.

My reasons aren’t going to apply to most people, but what I like best about Studio One is the tight integration with my hardware. I have a Presonus audio interface that I bought because I couldn’t stand the Focusrite control software. Once I had that, I bought a Presonus Faderport for mixing, and a Presonus Revelator mic for Zoom. All of it works seamlessly.

You know I’m a composer and arranger. I should mention that I’m a beta tester for Presonus Notion notation software. I paid for everything but it helps me that the notation in Studio One is tightly integrated with Notion.

I have mostly Presonus equipment.

...Deb

Pat, I started with Cakewalk Pro Audio 8 and had all the Sonar Versions. I first got Studio One Pro V2 and have been with them ever since. The speed and ease of the drag and drop sold me right off the bat. I too also use Presonus hardware including the Fader Port. As others have stated it has tight integration with the software and hardware.
I own Melodyne Studio which is also tightly integrated with Studio One. In fact Presonus co-developed ARA with Celemony which even Sonar and others also use.
Studio One is cross platform which I own a PC and a Apple iMac and releases at the same time.
As Matt mentions it also works with it's Notion notation software.
Some of the features I like is the Arranger track, Chord track, The Scratch Pad, Lyrics Track.
One particular feature I like is just being able to drag over a effect on a send and it will setup and create everything for you including a aux track.
Another feature that is cool if drag and drop a Virtual instrument it will create everything for you and if you drag another on top of that one it will ask you if you want to combine them or replace the other one. This also works with effects. You no longer need to use a separate track for parallel compression just drop another compressor and make a splitter. They have features for doing live shows, beat making ,video and the list goes on and on.
I do have other DAWS including Logic, Reaper and so on but by far my favorite is Studio One.

I guess I missed the boat.

I was planning to download Cakewalk to replace my aging Master Tracks Pro MIDI sequencer.

All I want it for is the MIDI sequencing and editing abilities.

Is the last free version still available?

Master Tracks Pro works just fine, and has great editing features, but it's abandonware, so someday it won't work anymore.

Notes ♫

It says it is free and there is still a download link.

https://www.bandlab.com/products/cakewalk#download

To me the difference between cakewalk and studio is personal,choice. Both work well. I have track many projects in both programs. Studio one seems to handle things in a slightly and mean slightly simpler approach. I like the way studio one has a simpler setup when you open it. Yes I know you can template cakewalk to open up to you custom screen template, but after fussing with it for over an hour one day I got nothing that was saved. I don’t like the pro channel on each track in cake. It is cluttered and confusing. I like the signal chain capability of studio one. Simple and straightforward. Studio one does a video track as well. Nice feature. It also has a mastering page to finish a album like project. Lastly it comes with far superior plugins. Yes you pay for them. But they are really good. I don’t like the sonitus stuff when compared to the studio one plugins.

As mentioned above studio one is cross platform so I can run the exact same program on my Mac and my win laptop.

If cake goes to a paid system then to me it is a non starter for me. Cake is only interesting since it is free. For paid I want more than it offers.

Is cake a good DAW? Yes very good. Especially for free. And it was free since it stripped out the extra content. I want the extra content. I want a full suite of native plugins, a nice library of sounds.

I do agree cakes comping is really cool, but studio ne does almost the exact same thing. You just have to know it’s workflow. I love you can template even at that level. Jeff Pettit showed me a while back how to setup a one button arrangement that opened up a track and eight comping tracks for dragging the BiaB plugins original multiriff output this was so cool. One click and you could comp a finished lead track.

Finally it falls to familiarity. Which are used to. For me I started on cake and have used it a lot, so familiar. I Switched to studio one simple because it was for my mind more intuitive. For someone else like my friend Misha, he things differently, so cake is more intuitive to him. This just personal opinion.

Got it. Thanks.

Now I'll figure out how to use it. If I like it a lot, I'll go ahead and get the paid version if the price is right.

I met the guy who wrote Master Tracks Pro, he came to one of our gigs, and he said after he updates Encore, he'll work on MTPro. But he also said that after GVox bought the apps so many years ago, they messed up the code, so it'll be a huge, time-consuming job.

I like MTPro because it's MIDI only. That means it's quicker, and the menus are easy to acess, no menu->sub menu->sub-menu so every editing dialog is no more than a hover and click away. Plus the editing features are great.

Notes ♫