As the NAB Show wraps up, it’s a good time to reflect:
I have to say that for a product that has only been on the market for 2 years, I was amazed at just how many people I met, who have adopted the SONAR REAC Recording option for the V-Mixing system (Digital Snake and/or M-400).
As mentioned before, the REAC sends 40 channels of digital audio down a CAT-5 cable. Connect the cable to your PC’s network card and the Cakewalk REAC driver will pump the audio into SONAR. Many live venues, houses of worship and rental companies are taking advantage of the recording option. Using this option, the tracks record directly into SONAR. Once in SONAR the ‘live’ tracks can now be mixed, edited and mastered for either DVD, CD, web, or other formats. Obviously, this opens up a whole range of possibilities as you essentially have a 40 track recording studio at every live event whether it is a sermon or an outdoor rock festival.
Aside from the REAC recording customers, I spoke with many people who were in disbelief of the power and functionality SONAR has. I never like to say ‘no’ to customers, so NAB has been a great show and here’s a few examples why:
Customer: Can I use SONAR’s 64-bit internal audio engine on a 32-bit operating system?
Me- Yes , you can!
Customer: Do you have 64-bit audio plugins for mastering?
Me- Yes, we do and they’re included in SONAR.
Customer: What if my other plugins are 32-bit, I can’t use them right?
Me: Actually, SONAR has something called Bit Bridge which allows you to run 32-bit plugins on a 64-bit system.
Customer: Does Cakewalk support SONAR and/or the VS-700 running under Bootcamp?
Me: Yes, we do.
Customer: If I have a multitrack project that is in stereo, is it possible to convert it to surround?
Me: Yes! Just add a surround bus and route your tracks to it.
Customer: What about a surround mix to stereo?
Me: Of course, just reverse the steps and assign the tracks to a stereo bus.
Customer: Is it true that the mic pres in the VS-700 are the same as the ones in V-Mixing systems that cost over $10,000?
Me: Yes, they are.
Customer:And the motorized faders are the same as the high quality faders on the M-400 digital mixer?
Me: Yes, they are.
Customer: Wait, and there is a full Fantom synth inside the VS-700 too?
Me: Yes, there is.
Customer: Ok, I see SONAR is incredible for audio production but I assume the MIDI features are not as strong?
Me: Actually, Cakewalk have been making MIDI sequencing products for over 20 years and SONAR has arguably the best MIDI functionality on the market.
Customer: The VS-700c is great for controlling audio effects, Fantom VS Synth, the high-end mic pres, SONAR Producer with unlimited audio tracks and effects, 64-bit audio processing, 64-bit mastering plugin suite, soft-synths like Rapture, Dimension Pro and Z3ta+, and a full MIDI sequencer for what… about $10,000? Cause that’s what the other systems go for!
Me: Nope, not even close.
Customer: $7,000?
Me: Lower
Customer: $6,000?
Me: Keep going
Customer: Under $5,000?
Me: Yup
Customer: Your kidding, I can save nearly 2/3 of my … ?
Me: Yeah, sorry about that 🙂
Okay, so I had to say ‘no’ a few times but the above dialogue is a great summary of how the show has gone.
To all of you who attended, Thank You for making NAB 2009, a great show for Cakewalk and the Roland System Group.
Until next time,
Robin Kelly