The ad is written poorly. It's grammatically clumsy, as is the style of the writing. It reads as if it was written by someone who has never written ad copy before.

As far as what "membership" means - In this case, I believe they are giving customers the option of paying a monthly fee, to use whichever version they choose, as opposed to coming up with a larger sum of money up front to purchase the version outright.

From what I can gather, the 12 months of membership would include any updates.

It is a very poorly written advertisement, though.

If you pay upfront you own what you got and 12 mths upgrades. If you pay per month you don't own it until it's paid, (stop paying, reverts to demo, or last version you fully paid for). I am actually interested in finally upgrading from X2 Pro if it will run on boot camp. I have a lot of songs I mixed in Cakewalk prior to getting the Mac Pro. And a lot of it I can't export to OMF without a LOT of hassle.

The insteresting part is that you get free upgrades within the year after the purchase.
Many companies goes for subcriptions, memberships or montly fee. It seems like a new way to make more money.. :rolleyes:

pcrecord, post: 423648, member: 46460 wrote: The insteresting part is that you get free upgrades within the year after the purchase.
Many companies goes for subcriptions, memberships or montly fee. It seems like a new way to make more money.. :rolleyes:

The upgrade part is strange - in that most platforms don't "upgrade" every year. Pro Tools 9 seemed to last forever, as did Samplitude 11 and Pro X Suite. Even Sonar's PE and X Series all seemed to last at least a year, and more accurately, probably closer to 2 years. It took several years for all these companies to upgrade their platforms - meaning a new version - once they established a particular version.

Any other "upgrades", such as patches, updates, fixes.... are things you shouldn't have to pay for anyway.

Sorry but just no way will I do subscriptions, memberships or monthly fees.
Not happening.

Makzimia, post: 423647, member: 48344 wrote: stop paying, reverts to demo, or last version you fully paid for

What's ironic here, no software is bug free. The developers learn how to improve through customer complaints lol. It looks like the beginning of pay pre use/ leasing. We are being conditioned to accept bugs as a way to keep us on a hook, line and sinker. Next it will be server side apps..

pan60, post: 423654, member: 40762 wrote: Sorry but just no way will I do subscriptions, memberships or monthly fees.
Not happening.

I'm with you on this.

A good reason to be back on a console.. or on a DAW that works, and is all you need. Hybrid makes good sense.

Did Gibson buy Sonar?

Hybrid makes total good sense for me.

audiokid, post: 423656, member: 1 wrote: Did Gibson buy [[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.cakewalk…"]Sonar[/]="http://www.cakewalk…"]Sonar[/]?

They did, some time ago they also acquired Tascam. I have actually used cakewalk off and on since DOS days. Back then of course they were called twelve tone. I believe you might see quite a shift still in the pecking order of where Sonar sits. With Craig Anderton being very involved in it's workings and a new model they seem to be excited about.. who knows.

A survey was taken sometime in the last year, what this is now, is a result of that. Apparently they are already looking to get a leg up with a couple of new features no other DAW has. Watch this space? :).

Not planning to move over completely, however, it's tempting, because of my situation, to install it on the Mac under boot camp, if it will run well.

Tony

I have a couple friends that are so ticked they are talking about dropping there systems and moving to another platform.

pan60, post: 423670, member: 40762 wrote: I have a couple friends that are so ticked they are talking about dropping there systems and moving to another platform.

Can find that feeling on ALL DAW platforms :). I am not planning on dropping Logic Pro X anytime soon. I just would like to clean up some less stellar mixes I did, now I have much better conditions.

SONAR is more than just a digital audio workstation - it's the most advanced music production experience available today. We've completely changed the way our software is developed by introducing a Membership program that offers continuous updates to the program including new features, improvements, fixes, content, and video tutorials that guide you along in the process. And thanks to the new Cakewalk Command Center, we've made the installation and update process a breeze so you can focus on what's truly important - making music.

SONAR now boasts a powerful new line up designed to meet the needs of any musician, regardless of skill level or budget. And every version includes 12 months of membership meaning you will always get the latest and greatest version no matter when you make your purchase. Craft your very own masterpiece today with the most enjoyable DAW in the industry.

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Link : https://www.cakewalk.com/Products/SONAR

Pretty nice sound on the second video

Pretty nice sound on the second video

And now for existing Sonar Platinum owners lifetime core/ updates for only 199.00. Also, possibly worth a separate thread, Sonar OSX is coming!!. That's exciting. A chance to use Sonar alongside Logic easily = clean up back catalog of songs done on either.

Tony

I'm not against subscription based software; I think there are advantages to this model - the first is that all upgrades are included (or should be if it's a good subscription plan) as well as having the tech support that is ongoing and doesn't void out after a certain period of time.

There are some good plans out there - for example, Slate Digital now offers a subscription plan for all of their processors - (everything but their mic modeling system, SSD4 and Raven) - and you can choose a monthly ( around $25) or yearly ( around $240) plan; the nice thing about the monthly plan is that you can cancel it if you have a period of down time, and then re-start it at anytime without paying any penalty. The subscription also includes any new processor plugs that Slate develops over time... at no extra cost to your subscription fee; access to anything new that they come up with is automatically added to the subscription.

To me, this seems to be the model for a good subscription... I'm not privy to the details of other plans (like Avid) but the Sonar plan doesn't really sound bad - based on what I've read here - and for some, it seems like a valid option for those who can't afford the upfront cost of a new version or an upgrade to a newer version. There's also the additional advantage of being able to try out different programs to determine what software fits what you do best - without risk of spending a lot of money and then being stuck with software that may not be the best choice for your workflow or style of production.

Obviously, if you know what you want, and can afford it, then an outright purchase of the software is always there as an option.

I guess I'm not seeing the downside to the subscription plan alternatives that others here do...

I was looking at the option of the Slate subscription, it looks like a pretty good option to have all the plug-ins on offer without having to buy them all upfront, and the extra feature of any future additional plug-ins they develop in the future seems like an added bonus.

IMO I think we will see more and more of this type of subscription modelling, especially from plug-in developers in the future.
From the end users POV it seems like a good deal considering the cost of buying only a few of their top plug-ins would equate to the cost 12 months of subscription on its own.