DAWProject - transferring projects between DAW’s

[conwayt]

Hi, just wondering if the new, upcoming Cakewalk Sonar will incorporate this new file format which facilitates the transfer of projects between different DAW’s?

 

https://www.bitwig.com/stories/bitwig-and-presonus-are-making-it-easy-to-share-projects-between-programs-271/

 

[BigT1]

That definitely looks interesting.

[John Vere]

I don’t think they will be changing the format that we have used for a long time now. It’s really not that hard to move projects if you follow the steps outlined in many videos. 
There can never be a universal project file format as every DAW is different. 

 

[Craig Anderton]

I don't think it's designed to be universal, but to enable taking advantage of a DAW's feature that may not be available in your main DAW.

For example, it wouldn't surprise me if people did tracking and proprietary forms of editing (e.g., audio chord tracks, algorithmic composition tools) in one DAW, then moved it over to Cakewalk to mix due to its fluid mixing environment. Or, created a project in Cakewalk, then moved it over to Bitwig to do the inter-track modulation tricks that make Bitwig seem more like a modular synth. Or, transferred a Cakewalk project temporarily to Digital Performer to do notation, then back to Cakewalk to do everything else.

You can pretty much do all those things now with import/export, but it would be faster to just open up the project in another DAW, do what you want to do, and then go back to where you started (or finish off in the other DAW, e.g., likein the example of moving to Cakewalk and mixing).  At least I think that's how it would work in theory

[Noel Borthwick]

We already have full cross platform project transfer to and from Sonar <==> Next using our own new transfer format. It goes beyond what this does and supports tracks, buses, auxes, plugins, instruments, routing, automation, arranger track, folders and more. Since it's our own interchange format we have full flexibility to rapidly grow as the need arises.

[Jimbo 88]

Yeah,  I do what Craig is describing a lot.  Once you start doing it regularly it is pretty easy.  Pretty much export a midi track, then export an OMF.  Do the reverse in the other app.  Open the midi file, then import the OMF.  Most of the time I'm going back an forth between notation programs, so I mostly just do it thru midi files.

I would think it would be quite easy to create a file format that just combines the two in the correct order. After all, we are working on computers.

 

Edited September 30, 2023 by Jimbo 88

[Jimbo 88]

3 minutes ago, Noel Borthwick said:

We already have full cross platform project transfer to and from Sonar <==> Next using our own new transfer format. It goes beyond what this does and supports tracks, buses, auxes, plugins, automation, folders and more. Since it's our own interchange format we have full flexibility to rapidly grow as the need arises.

Very interesting...