Sonar 2025.07 Feedback

[Matthew Carr]

A difference in behaviour from CbB, which seems like a bug - apologies if this is not new to 2025.06, this is the first time I've really used new Sonar

1. Click and hold on the timeline to begin a selection

2. Hold and drag mouse pointer off the far right of screen

In Cbb, this would advance the selection end, and the waveforms displayed in the track view would scroll in sync with the end of the selection

In Sonar, the selection end is advanced, but the waveforms only refresh their display once either a) the mouse is released or b) the mouse pointer is moved back to the left to be on screen. This makes it very difficult to fluently select ranges longer than what is currently displayed on screen as you can't see the waveforms for the current end selection point.

[timeworx]

19 hours ago, Kevin Mapplebeck said:

I have tried several times to install the ProChannel Modules, both from Product Center and the install file. It seems to complete the install but never updates Product Center nor are the modules available  in Sonar.

 

I'm seeing the same behavior. I thought it might be because I had a previous install with ProChannel modules from earlier Sonar versions. This would still be a bug with Product Center at the very least.

[PopStarWannabe]

After the today update (2025.07) Sonar found 4 new plug-ins after the startup scanning it did when I launched it.

What were those 4? How can I find out?

[Jonathan Sasor]

1 hour ago, timeworx said:

I'm seeing the same behavior. I thought it might be because I had a previous install with ProChannel modules from earlier Sonar versions. This would still be a bug with Product Center at the very least.

There's a product center issue with it not seeing that the PC modules have installed. The updates tab in Sonar recognizes it though. The included modules are PC2A and Concrete Limiter.

 

1 hour ago, PopStarWannabe said:

After the today update (2025.07) Sonar found 4 new plug-ins after the startup scanning it did when I launched it.

What were those 4? How can I find out?

No new plugins were included with the update, but the scanner will pick up changes for XSampler (which builds with every Sonar build) or if anything else has otherwise changed on the system.

[Tommy Byrnes]

I have been running a client’s sessions all week with the “new” Sonar. It’s a project that we’ve been working on now for two months, every week for long sessions. Until I downloaded Sonar out of necessity, since end of life has been announced for CbB, I have been using CbB many hours every day for years and have never once felt like my DAW would either let me down or fail to inspire some level of creativity by its looks. We are visual primates after all.

There have been problems with Sonar, some graphics problems (minor annoyance in the grand scheme) and some audio problems, which are major.

When using external inserts there is a two to three second freeze of the audio engine when toggling on/off. That makes real-time comparison of the effect impossible and a bad look when previewing mixes for your client. This issue does not exist in CbB. Certain plugins now pause the audio toggling on/off that didn’t in CbB. Not sure if they are related.

The audio glitches and stutters when scrolling in Console View, either front to back of tracks or up and down the strip.

And, there is a graphics glitch where items show up in the wrong place. I have posted examples previously here: https://discuss.cakewalk.com/topic/85548-graphics/

If I may ask, please make the active plugin in the FX bin highlighted in all themes. Also, please make the active track indicator at the bottom of the console strip more apparent in all themes, not just a thin blue outline.

Please add hash marks and more detailed numbers to the meters like the way the used to be. And, please give us the ability to change the color of the markers and text.

Overall, I feel that CbB was a more elegant and stable version. I’m sure there are a hundred things done since the last CbB update including the new vector graphics but this version of Sonar feels somewhat like a downgrade for me in both looks and performance.

I have too many years invested in the program and a booked out studio to switch so my hope is these issues will be addressed.