CAKEWALK BY BANDLAB - FREE TO EVERYONE

europa_man · 04-04-2018, 03:59 AM

SONAR relaunches as ‘Cakewalk by BandLab’:
Iconic DAW now free to download for everyone!

https://blog.bandlab.com/cakewalk-by...press-release/

Quite an announcement!

dug dog · 04-04-2018, 04:39 AM

Did NOT see this coming. I went so far as to check the date of the article- what with it being so close to April 1st.

ReaMike · 04-04-2018, 04:39 AM

Nice!

billybk1 · 04-04-2018, 04:50 AM

Wow, the former flagship version of Cakewalks SONAR Platinum is now free to all. This is going to put pressure on the other major DAW apps to compete in a free marketplace.
I think the days of paying hundreds of dollars to purchase and hundreds more when you consider 5-10 years of yearly upgrade fees of a DAW app are coming to an end. I started with SONAR 1.0 back in 2001 and did the yearly upgrades and finally did the "lifetime" deal at the end. Probably spent several thousand during the past 17 years on SONAR upgrades. I am downloading the new "Cakewalk by BandLab" version now to see what it offers in stability and new features. You can't beat free.......interesting times.

Saukkola1 · 04-04-2018, 04:53 AM

Has anyone tried this to see if this?

EvilDragon · 04-04-2018, 04:57 AM

Quite interesting development. Of course all the bundled products, you can't get for free, and that makes sense.

Pretty cool move.

ivansc · 04-04-2018, 05:15 AM

Odd. I had already joined and was expecting to get some sort of Cakewalk-alike but all I can access is an online Bandlab project window. What am I missing?

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 05:24 AM

Since it is free now, I recommend to try it and take a note about some features. May be these features, as FRs for Reaper, can get more support then:

* check how ARA is working (if you have Melodyne)
* check MIDI files import/export
* check functionality when working with loops (groove pitch following, loop constructor with a possibility to export acidized WAVs, the quality of automatic tempo conversion for percussive sounds)

For control surfaces other then Faderport and MCU, you will need AZController (will come into Reaper in its next incarnation)

And in case you have started some project in Cakewalk by BandLab, you can any time teleport it back into Reaper with ReaCWP

Saukkola1 · 04-04-2018, 05:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivansc

Odd. I had already joined and was expecting to get some sort of Cakewalk-alike but all I can access is an online Bandlab project window. What am I missing?

that is also all I received, is this just someone's late April fools joke?

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 05:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivansc

Odd. I had already joined and was expecting to get some sort of Cakewalk-alike but all I can access is an online Bandlab project window. What am I missing?

They have not updated the main page yet.

https://cakewalk.bandlab.com/

or directly:
https://www.bandlab.com/download/assistant/windows

Softsynth · 04-04-2018, 06:13 AM

Bold move.
Hopefully there won't be any "in the cloud" crap. That type of business model is a very unwelcome, I hope the cloud plugin/DAW model fails as it would probably flourish at the expense of what we have now if it succeeds.

Diego · 04-04-2018, 06:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivansc

Odd. I had already joined and was expecting to get some sort of Cakewalk-alike but all I can access is an online Bandlab project window. What am I missing?

From BandLab Assistant select APP and then download and install Cakewalk

Michael AD · 04-04-2018, 06:22 AM

I too was a LONG TIME user of Cakewalk going back to their days as 12 Tone Systems. I too had Sonar Platinum with the lifetime subscription.

And then I found Reaper.

It took me a few days to adjust and I've never touched Cakewalk again.

Nuff said!

europa_man · 04-04-2018, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael AD

I too was a LONG TIME user of Cakewalk going back to their days as 12 Tone Systems. I too had Sonar Platinum with the lifetime subscription.

And then I found Reaper.

It took me a few days to adjust and I've never touched Cakewalk again.

Nuff said!

Me too - almost.
Reaper is my number 1 DAW & always will be.

I sometimes Import a two track mix into Sonar Platinum to master the track.
I love the mastering suite offered in Sonar.

Is that cheating?

bolgwrad · 04-04-2018, 06:35 AM

Win7 64-bit and above only, mind you.

dug dog · 04-04-2018, 06:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by europa_man

I love the mastering suite offered in Sonar.

Is that included in the new freebie?

SubbaseDnB · 04-04-2018, 06:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by europa_man

Me too - almost.
Reaper is my number 1 DAW & always will be.

I sometimes Import a two track mix into Sonar Platinum to master the track.
I love the mastering suite offered in Sonar.

Is that cheating?

Never used Sonar.Wondering how the mastering suite thing is in comparrison to say Studio ones project page.and also does the mastering suite in Sonar have any advantages over say mastering in Studio one or even Reaper?

LCipher · 04-04-2018, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Softsynth

Bold move.
Hopefully there won't be any "in the cloud" crap. That type of business model is a very unwelcome, I hope the cloud plugin/DAW model fails as it would probably flourish at the expense of what we have now if it succeeds.

My thoughts exactly. And since they're primary focus is "Social Music Maker and Recording Studio" I'm not sure how this will play out.
I have ZERO desire for any cloud, collaboration on line etc stuff.

OTOH - maybe SONAR will finally get varispeed:

Quote:

BandLab have past form in acquiring and developing audio technologies — something they’ve done already with AudioStretch, an iOS app that slows down audio and video without any change to pitch for transcription and music learning.

https://www.soundonsound.com/news/cakewalk-sonar-lives

It also looks "online activation only" - which I will NEVER accept especially in light of the SONAR demise.

REAPER all the way baby!

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Softsynth

Bold move.
Hopefully there won't be any "in the cloud" crap. That type of business model is a very unwelcome, I hope the cloud plugin/DAW model fails as it would probably flourish at the expense of what we have now if it succeeds.

Unlike with previous owners, money is no longer an issue

Cloud can be applied at some places, BandLab is partially "soundcloud" like, just with a possibility to put project parts in addition to the final result. I guess Cakewalk By Bandlab will get that functionality at some point.

Sonar has already played with cloud technologies, for uploading projects and auto-mastering.

If you can record something on the road with a smartphone, as in current Bandlab app, and then open that in real DAW, I do not see that as bad.

While the number of bugs is almost equal to the number of features, Sonar was serious application. So it can land strait to the top of free DAWs list (T6 is quite special, with many features not existing, the same for Ardour and free versions of other DAWs are limited).

LCipher · 04-04-2018, 07:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by azslow3

While the number of bugs is almost equal to the number of features, Sonar was serious application. So it can land strait to the top of free DAWs list (T6 is quite special, with many features not existing, the same for Ardour and free versions of other DAWs are limited).

Yeah - I think it's a really positive thing in general.
They certainly can't f it up more than Cakewalk/Gibson.

Strip out the bundled crap, fix the bugs, add few features - could be a really nice daw.

And I bet there are a lot of motivated codes at bandlab vs the most likely toxic atmosphere during the recent CW / Gibson hand.

Tod · 04-04-2018, 08:22 AM

I got an email about it over a week ago. Heh heh, they even remembered my user name on the Cakewalk forum, even though I haven't been there in years.

I've got a lot of old Sonar projects I'd like to get into, hopefully this can happen now.

lachrimae · 04-04-2018, 09:29 AM

Install
Copy the following Cakewalk VST folders to your normal VST directory:
StBoost
StPX64
StTL64
StVX64

Enjoy your new Cakewalk VSTs in Reaper

https://i.imgur.com/jUXyqfP.png
https://i.imgur.com/j82A0av.png
https://i.imgur.com/n5QjEHc.png
https://i.imgur.com/1SHIEnU.png

ivansc · 04-04-2018, 09:49 AM

Got it up and running and superficially it looks exactly the same. Weird - I still have my old Cakewalk Sonar install on the studio machine but this will bear some scrutiny. I cant remeber what was still missing from Sonar & Vice Versa....
And in the meantime I still have Reaper (and Studio One and a couple of others)

SoulOne82 · 04-04-2018, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LCipher

REAPER all the way baby!

Hell yeah!

pattonfreak1 · 04-04-2018, 10:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lachrimae

Install
Copy the following Cakewalk VST folders to your normal VST directory:
StBoost
StPX64
StTL64
StVX64

Enjoy your new Cakewalk VSTs in Reaper

https://i.imgur.com/jUXyqfP.png
https://i.imgur.com/j82A0av.png
https://i.imgur.com/n5QjEHc.png
https://i.imgur.com/1SHIEnU.png

weird... the only one I have showing up is Boost 11. I dont even have any folders for the other 3

lachrimae · 04-04-2018, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pattonfreak1

weird... the only one I have showing up is Boost 11. I dont even have any folders for the other 3

Hmm, I suppose it's possible that the others were already installed on my system from some point in the past, though I can't imagine why.

Zargon the Destroyer · 04-04-2018, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pattonfreak1

weird... the only one I have showing up is Boost 11. I dont even have any folders for the other 3

Yeah, I thought I'd try too and have the same result.

The VSTis seem to work (although I don't reall use 'em).

Dr Bob · 04-04-2018, 11:57 AM

Mine gets stuck on "installing" ...

Gonna delete and try again ...

Anyone else having problems?

dB

bobtom1 · 04-04-2018, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr Bob

Mine gets stuck on "installing" ...

Gonna delete and try again ...

Anyone else having problems?

dB

Same here but I went to my downloads folder and installed it from there.

Dr Bob · 04-04-2018, 12:06 PM

Brilliant! Thanks

dB

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 12:07 PM

The installation went smooth for me.

Looks and feels like Sonar Platinum. Can not comment on plug-ins since I had them installed before.

BandLab Assistent was added to Win startup... I do not see an option to disable that. Disabling with msconfig works (but some people report it re-enable itself if started).

It seems like the application itself is not calling home. But it has not infinite "membership" date.

EDIT: membership date is a placeholder, the owner promise to remove it later...

Quasar · 04-04-2018, 12:29 PM

No offline activation option, so I'll pass. I think it's cool what they're doing though, and I'm glad for the Sonar crowd that the software is apparently going to survive.

fetidus · 04-04-2018, 12:43 PM

I'm curious how they'll monetize this in the future. For now, it's "free" and I'm sure there will be a goodwill period, but eventually they'll need to generate some revenue from it... and I wonder if they'll try to implement an "in-app purchase" kind of model for plugins, features, and/or content? Or maybe a subscription model again for something like a "pro" bundle... or who knows what? Very interesting development in the DAW community.

Definitely not interested in Cakewalk myself (I am former user from many years ago though), but I will be watching to see if BandLab is going to innovate in any way. With the kind of financial backing they now have, and apparent zeal from the CEO, let's see if anything comes out of this after the honeymoon period settles down.

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fetidus

I'm curious how they'll monetize this in the future.

He can, but he is not forced to.
Family budget is in Forbes... So Cakewalk price (I guess it is at the same order as during Roland -> Gibson transition) was like pocket money

Dr Bob · 04-04-2018, 01:25 PM

So, on the Help About menu, it says membership through to 4/10/2018.

What happens after this? Do we have to subscribe to the Bandlab site to keep membership and keep the software running, or what?

Looks pretty, but different workflow of course. Might be useful for importing though.

dB

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr Bob

So, on the Help About menu, it says membership through to 4/10/2018.

What happens after this? Do we have to subscribe to the Bandlab site to keep membership and keep the software running, or what?

Looks pretty, but different workflow of course. Might be useful for importing though.

dB

Clarified by the owner:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meng

Quick update - will sticky this at my first post too - the 04-10-2018 is just an arbitrary 6 month date set for authorization checks - it's confusing and will be removed! It's NOT an expiry date :-)

"Legacy" Sonar also has authorization check periods (even for "Lifetime").

fetidus · 04-04-2018, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by azslow3

He can, but he is not forced to.
Family budget is in Forbes... So Cakewalk price (I guess it is at the same order as during Roland -> Gibson transition) was like pocket money

Yep, but it's also now part of a company that has a business plan and has to meet its projections one day -- his dad can't endlessly fund his pet projects with older family money. It's not a charity. And the veterans Noel Borthwick and his dev team don't come cheap. So after some period of time, the young and ambitious startup CEO, Meng Ru Kuok, will have to account for the development costs in the balance sheet. If it's part of a larger business model to bring in tons of people to the general brand, even that has to have a reckoning at some point. That's all I'm saying. So at some point in the future, there will be some accounting done and there will be an ROI they'll look at -- and in theory, a path to monetize. But who knows? In the meantime, it will be fascinating to watch. I think this is a watershed moment for the DAW community -- a potentially new business model for DAWs is being introduced here. It might have a broader impact on other DAW business models. And in the long term, I'm not sure it's a good direction. We'll see!

azslow3 · 04-04-2018, 02:39 PM

Compare to other BandLab actives, Cakewalk was not expensive. And if at least some part of the information about that company is true, the ambitions are not less then "new music imperium". With such plans, having "the best free DAW" is way better then having "place N DAW".
Cakewalk has not managed to return the DAW to commercial top during last 10 yeas, I do not think it is possible in a short term (note that currently the developers are the same as before).
But as a free DAW, it is automatically on top and can be kept on top. And as such it can significantly influence the DAW market.

fetidus · 04-04-2018, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by azslow3

Compare to other BandLab actives, Cakewalk was not expensive. And if at least some part of the information about that company is true, the ambitions are not less then "new music imperium". With such plans, having "the best free DAW" is way better then having "place N DAW".
Cakewalk has not managed to return the DAW to commercial top during last 10 yeas, I do not think it is possible in a short term (note that currently the developers are the same as before).
But as a free DAW, it is automatically on top and can be kept on top. And as such it can significantly influence the DAW market.

Agreed that BandLab can potentially significantly influence the market with this move, and as far as BandLab's ambitions, you're probably right about a "new music imperium" approach. But as for money, Cakewalk will have to eventually justify itself in BandLab's portfolio. No matter if Cakewalk is relatively "not expensive" to acquire, maintain and develop. It didn't ultimately succeed under Roland's stewardship, and it didn't under Gibson's either. Successful businesses don't keep things around like this for long unless they contribute in some way to the bottom line, or they figure out some other measurable value for it. How they do all that with Cakewalk will be interesting to watch. I like Noel and his team personally, and Meng Ru Kuok seems like a nice guy from what little I've read, and I wish them luck.

C-H · 04-04-2018, 03:16 PM

interesting