I doubt my story is the same as for others, but I looked at many possible DAWS when SONAR seemed like it would disappear. After trying many demos, I bought Studio One using their cross-grade pricing, and, as I mentioned, I only bought the DAW and not the subscription.

I had several reasons for choosing Studio One. The most important was the integration with Notion notation software (same company). Then I decided to swap out my Focusrite interfaces for one from PreSonus so that the PreSonus Control Software would give me tight integration with both the audio interface and their Faderport Control Surface. I much prefer the PreSonus Control software to the Focusrite software.

BIAB 2025 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 7 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.