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

“Amazing! I’ll be working with Jaco Pastorius, Charlie Parker, Art Tatum, and Buddy Rich, and you’re telling me it’s not that great of a gig?
“Well…” Saint Peter, hesitated, “God’s got this girlfriend who thinks she can sing…”