Reply To: Free Sonar Tier

[Peter DeLegge]

On SoulfulKeys said

I get what you’re saying, and I’m not disagreeing with how they’ve positioned Next and Sonar, but that still leaves some pretty big holes in the overall strategy. If Next is supposed to be the next step for BandLab users, where do they go once they outgrow it? If there’s no higher-tier option in the ecosystem, you’re basically forcing people to jump ship to another DAW. That doesn’t line up with how smart BandLab’s been about keeping creators in their system.

And honestly, if Sonar was never meant to be part of that long-term plan, then what was the point of keeping it alive all these years and investing resources into it? That would be an odd move for a company that’s made such calculated decisions with BandLab’s growth. If they just wanted a new DAW like Next that could handle BandLab files, they could’ve built that from day one without dragging Sonar along for the ride.

I’m far from a marketing expert, but even I know if you’re trying to grab DAW market share, you’d never limit yourself to just Windows. That would be a rookie mistake. So it’s hard for me to believe BandLab would make a move that short-sighted when everything else they’ve done has been so strategic.

I did miss addressing your point about the lack of a Mac version for Sonar. That is one thing that is telling. If Sonar’s integration in this beginner to pro strategy, it’s really strange that they would drop Mac support for the pro DAW. Next has Windows and Mac support. I updated it, but I found that Perplexity — the AI I was using to summarize Meng and BandLab statements — was wrong when it stated that Sonar does not read BandLab files. I didn’t have time to verify, but it appears from double checking with Google, that it does. But the lack of Mac compatibility for Sonar when it’s supposed to be so important to this beginner to pro ecosystem doesn’t make a lot of sense. Why was Next made compatible with both OS’s but not Sonar? That, IMO, is just one more sign that Sonar is not a priority, despite the company hype. The fact that there’s a Mac version for Next but they never bothered to invest in one for Sonar tells you something about how important it is to the company.

EDIT: I thought I’d add this important info to give more depth to the conversation regarding Sonar NOT being available for the Mac and BandLab having no plans to ever make a Mac version of Sonar. This is directly from the Cakewalk.com website:

“Is Cakewalk Sonar still PC only/ Will it run on Mac?

March 28, 2025 at 3:31 AM
Cakewalk Sonar will continue to operate solely on the Windows operating system. Although there are no plans to add Mac support, we recommend checking out Cakewalk Next as an alternative, as Next supports Windows and Mac, and the CXF format lets you open your Sonar-Windows projects over to Next running on a Mac. “

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