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#518229 01/16/19 09:40 AM
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anyone got this , just looking for a WEE REVIEW.
Worth buying ?, etc.


would love to get to know more about sonar , but don't want to purchase if it is not worth the money.

Thanks
https://reverb.com/uk/software/learning/craig-anderton/1959-ebook-the-big-book-of-sonar-tips-by-craig-anderton

Last edited by beatmaster; 01/16/19 09:41 AM.

win 10 64 bit 16gb,i7 chip, ssd 500gb, m-audio air, ,Roland BK-7M, 1000,shure sm7b,sonar,acid,mixcraft, variety of plugins.Sample tank 3,Kontakt. TC Helicon Voicelive 3 2 .
https://beatmaster1.bandcamp.com/releases

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I'm not familiar with this, but Craig Anderton is probably the definitive author of SONAR tips.

For a general guide to SONAR, for well over a decade I relied on the SONAR Power! series by Scott Garrigus.


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My take....

Even though I don't have this one you refer to Craig has been around for a long time in the Cakewalk fold.

The one I do have (which is packed in box since we recently moved) is a similar and quite in depth book but by Scott Garrigus during the Sonar 5 era.
I think the book was a good investment...as I would think Craig's book would also be a worthy one.

Scott has a good informative site in case you're remotely interested:
http://www.digifreq.com/digifreq/

Judgment call for you....me?....I'd get it.

Let us know.....

EDIT: looks like Matt and I were typing simultaneously. smile




Last edited by chulaivet1966; 01/16/19 10:18 AM.
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I bought this Big Book. It shows various ways Craig handles things. He has some good ideas. A lot of the stuff in the book I was aware of. I think you need a bit of product knowledge to get the best out of Craig’s book.

However, if it is a book on understanding Sonar the book by Scott Garrigus is way better (I still have Sonar X2 power, and it is still good IMHO). His books are on older versions but most of that stuff is still relevant. Over the years I have had several issues of Scott’s book and still have Sonar X2.

Another book I have is Simon Cann’s book Cakewalk Synthesizers (From presets to power user) but it has lost some relevance. Some of the synths are not there but it covers things such as TTS, Dimension Pro, Rapture, Z3TA also SFZ et al. Having said that Simon Cann has several small books available on Kindle quite cheap that explain the various form of synthesis. These are well worth a look if you require more understanding of synthesis. Off memory “How to Make a Noise” series.

My thoughts

Tony


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The Craig Anderton Big Book is great if you already use Cakewalk but want ideas to use it more efficiently. It is essentially a combination of some of his older books on Sonar and expanded versions of the weekly tips he posted in the Cakewalk forum and covered in his monthly Sound On Sound column. In short it's not a good overview but you do get a lot of deep learning about a multitude of Cakewalk features.

The +++ Sonar Reference Guide +++ is the last user manual pdf file published by Cakewalk one month prior to Gibson shutting Cakewalk down. For some reason BandLab doesn't include the pdf file as part of their Cakewalk by BandLab download.

The reference guide is also available as an online resource +++ HERE +++

Another free resource is +++ Cake TV +++ which is a product video series developed in house by Cakewalk staff. It's similar in nature to the videos offered by PG Music.

To me, the best introduction to Cakewalk is the +++ Sonar Explained +++ video series by Groove 3. For $23.33 US (it's on sale right now, normal price is about $30 US) you get a series of 49 videos that fully cover the DAW in 5 hours and 30 minutes. I suggest purchasing the videos as a 1.1 GB download then you can view offline or on a portable device like an e-reader, tablet or cellphone. You watch whenever it's most convenient to you. Each video is fairly short so you can break up your watching into small chunks.


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Thanks guys

Geez, big food for thought.


Off to explore the books, and the Groove videos sound worth a look.


Big thanks for the supplied links.

Last edited by beatmaster; 01/17/19 07:39 PM.

win 10 64 bit 16gb,i7 chip, ssd 500gb, m-audio air, ,Roland BK-7M, 1000,shure sm7b,sonar,acid,mixcraft, variety of plugins.Sample tank 3,Kontakt. TC Helicon Voicelive 3 2 .
https://beatmaster1.bandcamp.com/releases

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Jim,

MalwareBytes blocked the link to the +++Sonar Reference Guide+++ at 4shared. I could be a false positive, but I wasn't going to allow the access.

The online manual link at bandlab is fine though.

Insights and incites by Notes


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Got to love MalwareBytes. Great software.


Regards,


Bob

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Sonar Reference Guide, Downloaded and scanned with Ashampoo no bugs etc.


win 10 64 bit 16gb,i7 chip, ssd 500gb, m-audio air, ,Roland BK-7M, 1000,shure sm7b,sonar,acid,mixcraft, variety of plugins.Sample tank 3,Kontakt. TC Helicon Voicelive 3 2 .
https://beatmaster1.bandcamp.com/releases

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Notes,

I'm confident the file does not have malware. I haven't seen any posts on the (now frozen) Cakewalk or (new) Cakewalk by BandLab forum indicating anyone has experienced issues with the file provided by the Cakewalk server.

The size of the file downloaded from my Cakewalk account and the file up on 4Shared is the same down to the byte.


Jim Fogle - 2024 BiaB (1111) RB (5) Ultra+ PAK
DAWs: Cakewalk by BandLab (CbB) - Standalone: Zoom MRS-8
Laptop: i3 Win 10, 8GB ram 500GB HDD
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Probably a false positive.

I tried again with no problem, it might have been one of the ads on the site.

Still couldn't download without signing in though. frown

Insights and incites by Notes


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Bought the Groove 3 videos.

Thanks Jim for the info and link.


win 10 64 bit 16gb,i7 chip, ssd 500gb, m-audio air, ,Roland BK-7M, 1000,shure sm7b,sonar,acid,mixcraft, variety of plugins.Sample tank 3,Kontakt. TC Helicon Voicelive 3 2 .
https://beatmaster1.bandcamp.com/releases

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Notes, I wanted to print out a hard copy of the Sonar Reference Manual until I found out how much it costs to print more than 2,000 pages! It is very comprehensive though. As Cakewalk by BandLab continues to be developed I'm sure the program will diverge enough at some point for differences between the manual and program to become noticeable. But considering the number of bug and stability fixes BandLab is providing it should be a long time.

Beatmaster, I think you'll enjoy the videos, I know I do. Substitute the term Cakewalk for Sonar and BandLab Assistant for Command Center and even video # 1 makes sense.


Jim Fogle - 2024 BiaB (1111) RB (5) Ultra+ PAK
DAWs: Cakewalk by BandLab (CbB) - Standalone: Zoom MRS-8
Laptop: i3 Win 10, 8GB ram 500GB HDD
Desktop: i7 Win 11, 12GB ram 256GB SSD, 4 TB HDD
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Jim, I downloaded the manual, it took forever. I have a slow DSL Lite connection because I'm about 3 miles from the end of the fiber optics. So when it finally downloaded, I double-clicked to open, and Adobe informed me it was corrupted and wouldn't open.

With >2,000 pages, I wouldn't attempt to print it out. The toner and paper cost would be prohibitive. So the on-line link you provided should work fine for what I need. (Thanks)

I'm still using Master Tracks Pro for MIDI and Power Tracks Pro for Audio, but PTPro has been orphaned so I feel I need something new.

I tried a demo of Cubase and it froze my computer (Cubase LE) and I downloaded Cakewalk. I won't be installing it until after the busy tourist season is over, we have plenty of gigs and we always need new songs. I can work with MTPro very fast and until the gigs slow down I need a very fast interface so I can focus on very fine music.

I thought I could look through the manual and get some head start pointers, but the on-line one should be good enough for that.

Passport, the makers of Master Tracks Pro was purchased by Microsoft many years ago to use their technology in Power Point.

MTPro and Encore were not of interest to MS so they were purchased by GVox in I think the early 2000s and GVox did nothing but introduce a few bugs.

Then one of the GVox guys bought both Encore and MTPro, changed the name back to Passport and I think had good intentions but it's been 10 years with no support.

MTPro doesn't work at its best in Win10, and I know some day it will no longer work, so I need to learn to use something else. Power Tracks has no way to manipulate the groove, so it's out, Cubase is out, and that pretty much leaves Cakewalk.

I hate to lose MTPro. Being that it's MIDI only (no audio), it means no sub-menus or sub-sub menus. Every dialog box I need is available with one click of the menu, and everything pops up fast. It has all the MIDI editing features one could ask for too. But everything has its expiration date, and MTPro has already passed its 'best used by' date.

So come the summer slow season, I'll be digging into Cakewalk.

I registered on the Cakewalk forum, and they seem to be friendly so I'm sure if I need help, I'll get it there. I foresee no problems working with the DAW, just understanding the interface and working efficiently with it.

Insights and incites by Notes


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Bob

Just a thought have you tried a trial version of Mixcraft? you ought to

I have and use(d)them all (plus a half dozen or more you didn't mention)


Larry

Last edited by Larry Kehl; 01/20/19 10:58 AM. Reason: more typos

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No, how does Mixcraft do MIDI.

I'm most interested in MIDI editing, including the way to inject a groove into the old BiaB styles with quantized drums.

Notes


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
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100% MIDI Super-Styles recorded by live, pro, studio musicians for a live groove
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