Cyanide Lovesong

@Bruno de Souza Lino - it's not just 4K and UHD -- it's for any monitor scaling including 2560x1440 which is another common size. They can make the change to vector and you'll still have the size/scale you have now. That's not an issue, and they've made it very clear that's what they intend. You won't be disappointed! As far as high resolution monitors being a minority -- that's something that can and likely will change over time. This update will make Cakewalk SONAR cutting edge and competitive with other DAWs that have already proven this feature. It's not a crazy change, others have done it and it's becoming standard. The beautiful thing about a vector based UI is the software is ready for whatever screen size/resolution comes in the future. It's future-proofed.. There is every reason to be excited, and no reason to be concerned. Seriously! 🙂

My excitement about "4k" and "scalable" UI caused some questions/confusion, so I wanted to elaborate (speculate) based on Jesse's response: 1. It sounds like those who want the existing scale/size of Cakewalk to stay the same will be able to have that. The update will not force your UI to be giant. 2. When I said "scalable" I meant that the UI will scale to match Windows's scaling setting. It already does! It's just blurry, right now, when scaled. With the vector based update, it will not be blurry. (Depending on how they code it, they could put the scaling % in the preferences so it can be independent of Windows scaling.) 3. If you don't want the scaling -- as with all applications you can set it in the shortcut's "Change high DPI settings" option. This is something they could add in the preferences as well. 4. Other applications have proven that vector based UI doesn't have to be a performance problem. If they encounter performance issues, they can use a process that bakes scaled images based on the resolution needed, at which case performance is identical to bitmap. One of the Cakewalk engineers alluded to this (or something like it) as a solution if necessary. Bottom line? They got it covered! So there's no reason to panic about the vector update! It's only a good thing... And it will make Cakewalk viable for more users. Understand that right now any 4k laptop is stuck with microscopic UI or very blurry UI. The update will solve that! And anyone whose vision isn't what it once was, even on a 32 inch 4k monitor Cakewalk is a little small. 125% or 150% is perfect (or will be, once the vector update is released.) PS. Even if you don't need the vector update, it's represents something very positive from Bandlab: This is the type of update you do when you have long term plans for a product. It bodes well for the future! Let's help the team have a successful launch, and SONAR can grow as the userbase does!

A positive response: 1. I last purchased Cakewalk SONAR Producer Edition in 2004 if I remember right. It was V4. I paid $450. I've had a working SONAR/Cakewalk for 19 years now. So that's like $23.68 per year, or $1.97 a month... And the software is a whole lot better now than it was back then! So those of us who paid got a pretty sweet deal even if we have to pay again! 🙂 2. The 4k UI scaling vector update is a HUGE upgrade in and of itself. Are you guys still working on 1920x1080 monitors? 4k is incredible, but Cakewalk is TINY even on a 32 inch 4k monitor... And if you enable UI scaling, it's very blurry. Don't underestimate the value of the 4k overhaul -- it represents a large investment and it sets Cakewalk up to be competitive in the future. 3. Worries over vector performance -- FLStudio uses a vector based UI and performs very well. And if they do encounter performance problems, they can use a vector-rendered-to-graphics process that is the best of both worlds. It's just more code. 4. Speculation: Cakewalk NEXT will be included with their Bandlab subscription. Right now it's $15/month or $12.46/month when paid yearly. That includes some promotion and also music distribution (Spotify, etc.) ... They might create two levels of subscription: $9.99 for Cakewalk NEXT (no distribution), and $14.99 for NEXT & SONAR + music distribution. That's competitive with Soundcloud -- you get a good DAW + distribution + music host for the same cost as Soundcloud. Not bad. I can't see them going higher than $15/month for SONAR because they can't be more expensive than Studio One... Music distribution would really sweeten the subscription deal. 5. Lastly, if you're someone who loves a software and always buys the new version -- you're practically on a subscription anyway. I spent enough money with both Waves & Plugin Alliance that I could have subscribed for 8 years for each. And when I update to the next version of my Sonible tools? It'll be $240 in updates... And FabFilter? Oh boy. It adds up... Ableton updates are around $200 per version... It costs money to make software, and if SONAR can successful return to a pay model that means it has a future that it may not have otherwise. 6. As existing fans of the software -- our support & word of mouth will be important for the SONAR launch. If you like SONAR I strongly advise backing the company with this move. Day 1 purchases. Spreading the word to others. They need a strong user base to justify continued investment, so lets try to give them a good start. If the launch falls flat we could end up losing this great product. Or we can do what we can to push it forward and we could have another 20+ more years with it! PS. If you're bummed about buying it in the past and having to buy it again -- just calculate how much you've gotten out of it, like I did. If you paid for it 15-20 years ago it might not be such a hard pill to swallow. We got our money's worth. 🙂

I'm a longtime nostalgic fan from Pro Audio & SONAR era. This VECTOR based 4k update to Cakewalk is something I never thought would happen. The Cakewalk team always had great visual design skills -- the new SONAR is going to look incredible in 4K! And I'm willing to pay for it, absolutely. Also, Jess & Noel both answered questions in more detail than most companies will offer before a product is released. That gives me even more confidence in the team. I'm all in! And charging for Cakewalk actually gives me MORE confidence, not less. I couldn't imagine how Bandlab could keep Cakewalk going... but charging for it could make it a viable long-term business model. Oh I can't wait! Congratulations, Cakewalk team. We're wishing you guys the best, and you might just get a lot of ex-Cakewalkers like me to return with this major update! I'm going to install now so I can relearn the workflow. So excited! And again... Vector... 4K... WOW!