SONAR ARTIST SONAR PROFESSIONAL SONAR PLATINUM USER GUIDE
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Table of contents 5 Preface 5 6 About this manual Conventions used in this book 7 Installation, registration and basic setup 8 10 13 15 18 22 24 26 26 Installation Cakewalk Command Center Running SONAR for the first time Basic audio setup Connecting your equipment Opening a demo project I can’t hear the demo project Registering SONAR Next steps 27 SONAR Tour 28 29 30 31 33 34 35 Getting around The Control Bar Skylight The Track view The Console View The Browser The Inspector 3
37 Getting Started 38 39 41 42 47 47 49 50 Creating, playing and saving projects Creating a new project Opening project files Playing project files Recording audio into a project Adding an audio track Getting ready to record Recording your performance 51 Troubleshooting 53 Index 55 LICENSE AGREEMENT
Preface SONAR User Guide is designed to help you learn and use SONAR Artist, SONAR Professional and SONAR Platinum. This book explains how SONAR works and how to use it to create, edit, produce, and perform. The SONAR User Guide is task-oriented and contains cross-references so you can find the information you need. The User Guide book also includes a comprehensive index that you can use to find information on any specific topic.
Conventions used in this book The following table describes the text conventions in this book: 6 Convention Meaning Bold Text that appears in bold is a command in SONAR. For example: Click OK. Right angle bracket (File > Open) A right angle bracket is a menu item separator and represents a level in the menu hierarchy. Example: File > Open means to click on the File menu and select the Open command. Monospace font A monospace font is used for file names, directory paths and code examples.
Installation, registration and basic setup In this chapter, you will learn how to install and register SONAR, and also how to connect and configure your audio and MIDI equipment.
Installation Please note before installing: In order to install SONAR, you must log in to your Windows system as a user who has administrative privileges. Once installed, the program can also be used by users who do not have administrative privileges. If system monitoring software, such as anti-virus programs are installed on your computer, you must close them until you have finished installing SONAR. You must also remember to close applications that are not shown in the Windows taskbar.
To install SONAR 1. Start your computer. 2. Close any programs that are open or running. 3. Do one of the following: If you are installing from Cakewalk Command Center (recommended): Follow the instructions under “Cakewalk Command Center” on page 10. Cakewalk Command Center provides the easiest way to download and install SONAR. Simply log in with your Cakewalk account and Cakewalk Command Center automatically retrieves your serial number and simplifies the installation process.
Cakewalk Command Center 1. Download Cakewalk Command Center from www.cakewalk.com/Command-Center, then install it on your computer. 2. Double-click the Cakewalk Command Center shortcut on your desktop to start Cakewalk Command Center. 3. Type your Cakewalk account username and password, then click Connect. If you do not yet have an account, click Create Account.
4. Your purchased products are listed under Connected Products. Select SONAR, then click Install. Cakewalk Command Center will download and install SONAR. During the download process, you may be presented with helpful information about the product that is being downloaded. A download progress bar is displayed at the bottom of the page. 5. When installation is complete, click Launch to open SONAR.
Uninstalling SONAR 1. Double-click the Cakewalk Command Center shortcut on your desktop to start Cakewalk Command Center. 2. Your purchased products are listed under Connected Products. Select SONAR, then click Uninstall.
Running SONAR for the first time There are several ways to start SONAR: Double-click the SONAR icon on your desktop. From Cakewalk Command Center, select SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum] and click Launch. Windows 8: Click the SONAR tile on the Start screen. Windows 7: Click the Start button, and choose Programs > Cakewalk > SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum] > SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum].
Figure 1. The MIDI - Devices section. At the top of the window, you will see the MIDI Inputs. Make sure that all devices in this window are checked. If a device is not checked, click on the square next to it. At the bottom of the same window, you will see the MIDI outputs. The device at the top of the list is Output 1, and the one below Output 2, and so on. Select one device at a time in the Outputs window. Clicking Move Selected Devices to Top will allow you to change the order of your MIDI devices.
Basic audio setup In order to hear sound when playing back a project in SONAR, it is essential to configure your audio device properly. 1. Do one of the following to open SONAR: Double-click the SONAR shortcut on your desktop. From Cakewalk Command Center, select SONAR and click Launch. Windows 8: Click the SONAR tile on the Start screen. Windows 7: Select Start > All Programs > Cakewalk > SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum] > SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum]. 2.
4. Select the desired Input Driver. Depending on your computer's configuration, you may have multiple options available. Your Input Driver is typically your computer's sound card or audio interface’s input. You will want to set this to the device that you plug your microphone, guitar, keyboard or other input device into. 5. Select the desired Output Driver. Your Output Driver is typically your computer's sound card or audio interface’s output.
8. In the Record Timing Master list, select the input on your sound card that you plan to plug devices into, such as a microphone, guitar, keyboard or other input device. Figure 3. The Audio - Driver Settings section. For more information and the recommended settings for specific models of sound cards, visit the SONAR support site: SONAR Artist: www.cakewalk.com/Support/By-Product/SONAR-Artist SONAR Professional: www.cakewalk.com/Support/By-Product/SONAR-Professional SONAR Platinum: www.cakewalk.
Connecting your equipment There are several types of audio interfaces (sound cards). CardBus (PCI), USB/USB2 and FireWire are the most common. Laptops can use an audio PCMCIA card (PC Card). Many audio interfaces also have MIDI inputs and some have built in MIDI synthesizers as well. This section covers the various audio connection options. Analog and digital audio inputs There are two basic types of audio inputs: Analog.
The following table describes the various types of analog and digital connections you may encounter.
Connect an electric guitar to your computer Guitar DI Box Computer Sound Card (or external audio interface) Headphones or Speakers Connect a microphone to your computer Microphone input Microphone Computer Sound Card (or external audio interface) Headphones or Speakers USB connection USB Microphone 20 Computer Sound Card (or external audio interface) Installation, registration and basic setup Connecting your equipment Headphones or Speakers
Connect a MIDI interface or controller to your computer USB connection USB MIDI Keyboard Microphone input Computer Sound Card (or external audio interface) Headphones or Speakers Microphone MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is the way computers communicate with keyboards and other electronic instruments. The term “MIDI” refers to both the type of cables, connections, instruments and controllers and the “language” all these components use to “talk” to each other.
Opening a demo project Note: In order to follow along with the tutorials in this User Guide, please download and install the optional SONAR Help & Tutorials via Cakewalk Command Center (see “Cakewalk Command Center” on page 10). Now that your sound device is configured, let's open the demo project included with SONAR and listen to it. 1. Click File and then select Open. This will bring up the Open dialog box, which is used to open Cakewalk projects that are saved on your computer.
Figure 4. The Open dialog box. 2. Navigate to the Cakewalk Content folder (default location is C:\Cakewalk Content\SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum]\Tutorial Projects\Audio Tutorial Project) and locate the project named SONAR_AudioDemo.cwb. 3. Select the file by clicking on it so it is highlighted and then click the Open button, to open the demo project. Note: If prompted to unpack the bundle, accept the default locations and click OK. 4.
5. Click the Play button in SONAR's Control Bar, which is located across the top of SONAR's interface. 6. Enjoy the tune! While we just covered basic setup and ensured that you can playback files, there is much more you can do with SONAR. For more information, see “Next steps” on page 26. I can’t hear the demo project If you weren't able to hear the demo project, it is most likely related to one of the following three things. Review the following steps to try to resolve it.
Audio starts to play, but I get a message that says DROPOUT or AUDIO DROPOUT either in a dialog box or in the Control Bar A dropout is a symptom of audio hardware when it is unable to pass audio data fast enough. There are a few things that may alleviate this: Increase the buffer size or mixing latency. Go to Edit > Preferences > Audio - Driver Settings and increase the value of the Buffer Size slider, or adjust the hardware buffer size in the ASIO Panel. Changing the Playback Device.
Registering SONAR We strongly encourage you to register your copy of SONAR. Registration is mandatory for technical support and for all SONAR updates. Registering SONAR online or over the phone is quick and easy, and allows you access to technical support as well as notifications when updates become available. To register anytime, log onto www.cakewalk.com/register, call 888-CAKEWALK (U.S.) or +1 (617) 423-9004 (outside U.S.). For hours of operation and contact information, please visit www.cakewalk.
SONAR Tour In this chapter, we will explore the basics of SONAR to get you started. Be sure that you have completed all instructions in the “Installation, registration and basic setup” chapter. For more in-depth information about specific SONAR features, please see the online Help.
Getting around The project is the center of your work in SONAR. A project may contain a number of different elements, including audio, MIDI, video, etc. All of these elements are organized into tracks, clips and events within a project. Tracks are used to store the sound or music made by each instrument or voice in a project. For example, a song that is arranged for four instruments and one vocalist may have five tracks (one track per instrument, and one track for the vocals).
The Control Bar Much of your time in SONAR is spent recording and listening to your project as it develops. The Control Bar contains the most important tools and other pieces of information you will need to record, edit and play back your project. The Control Bar consists of several modules that each contain various related controls. You can re-arrange and show/hide each individual module, which allows you to only show the functions you need most often.
Skylight Skylight introduces a next generation workspace and presents a new level of simplicity by providing an intelligent interface that moves beyond contemporary, single-window design and layout clutter. You can hide, dock, collapse or expand any of SONAR’s views instantly. Figure 6. Skylight. C D E A F B G A. Control Bar B. Inspector pane C. Track pane D. Clips pane E. Video Thumbnail pane F. Browser G. MultiDock The main components of the Skylight interface are as follows: Track view.
The Track view The Track view is the main window that you use to create, display, and work with a project. When you open a project file, SONAR displays the Track view for the project. When you close the Track view for a project, SONAR closes the file. To switch to the Track View, choose Views > Track View or press ALT+1. Figure 7. The Track view. A B C D E A. Track pane B. Clips pane C. Video Thumbnail pane D. Navigator pane E.
The Clips pane shows the clips in your project on a horizontal timeline called the time ruler that helps you visualize how your project is organized. Clips contain markings that indicate their contents. The Clips pane lets you select, move, cut and copy clips from place to place to change the arrangement of music and sound in your project. The Bus pane shows the buses in the project. The Navigator pane displays a large part of your project so you can see an overview of your song.
The Console View The Console View is where you can combine the sounds on all the different tracks to create the final mix of your song or project. Use the Console view to adjust the levels of sound for the different tracks in your project, to change the stereo panning, and to apply real-time effects to an individual track, combinations of tracks, or the final mix. To switch to the Console View, choose Views > Console View or press ALT+2. Figure 8. The Console view. B C A D E F A. Console view menu B.
The Console view contains the following main elements: Menu. Use the menu to configure channel strips. You can filter the display of specific channel strip types and modules within channel strips. Track, Bus and Mains panes. The Console view has three separate panes: the left most pane contains track channel strips, the middle pane contains bus channel strips, and the right pane contains main channel strips. You can drag the pane splitter bars to resize the panes. Channel strips.
The Inspector When working on a project, you will frequently need to access track and clip parameters and mix controls. The Track Inspector and Properties Inspector provide easy access to relevant settings for the selected track(s) or clip(s). To expand or collapse the Inspector, choose Views > Inspector or press I. Figure 10. The Inspector. A B C D E A. Show/hide Clip Properties Inspector B. Show/hide Track Properties Inspector C. Show/hide ProChannel (Platinum and Professional only) D.
SONAR Tour The Inspector
Getting Started In this chapter: 38 39 Creating, playing and saving projects Creating a new project 41 Opening project files 42 Playing project files 47 Recording audio into a project 47 Adding an audio track 49 Getting ready to record 50 Recording your performance Getting Started 37
Creating, playing and saving projects Note: In order to follow along with the tutorials in this User Guide, please download and install the optional SONAR Help & Tutorials via Cakewalk Command Center (see “Cakewalk Command Center” on page 10). Understanding and managing project files is central to your workflow in SONAR. In this tutorial, we are going to cover the basics of getting started with project files and some of the operations that can be performed with them.
Creating a new project There are several ways to get started with a project in SONAR. When SONAR is opened, you will be greeted with the Quick Start dialog box. Let’s take a look at the options available in this dialog box. Open a Project. Use this button to open a standard File Open dialog box, which lets you select the project that you want to open. Open a Recent Project. Click the drop-down list to show the most recent projects that have been opened in SONAR.
Let’s explore some of the things you can do in this window. Note: The list of available project templates shown may vary depending on your version of SONAR (Artist, Professional or Platinum). Name. Type the name of your project in the Name box. For this exercise, let’s name your project Tutorial 1. Location. Use the Location box to specify where the project should be saved. Click the Browse button to browse to a specific location.
Cancel. Click Cancel to close the New Project File dialog box. Help. Click Help to open the online Help topic for the New Project File dialog box. Click OK now to move forward with this tutorial. Congratulations, you have just created a new project in SONAR! Opening project files Next, we are going to cover how to open existing project files. Select File > Open from the menu bar across the top of SONAR’s screen to open the Open dialog box as shown in the following figure.
For this tutorial, we want to open one of the sample project files that are included with SONAR. Navigate to the Cakewalk Content folder (default location is C:\Cakewalk Content\SONAR [Artist, Professional or Platinum]\Tutorial Projects\Audio Tutorial Project) and locate the project named SONAR_AudioDemo.cwb. You can load project files into SONAR in one of two ways: Select a file by clicking on it so that it is selected, then click Open. Double-click the file from the browsing pane.
To expand a track to make all of its controls visible 1. Point the cursor to the bottom edge of the track. 2. Click and drag down to reveal all track controls. Tip: You can also double-click an empty space in the track strip to maximize/restore the track strip. Control Description The Mute button is used to silence a track during playback. Any tracks that are muted will not be heard. The Solo button is used to silence every track except the one that is soloed.
Locate the drop-down list for Output and click the small arrow to show all available outputs. Select the output that your speakers or headphones are connected to. If you can’t find the Output drop-down list, make sure you have expanded the track fully by dragging it down. Note: Your options will be different from the preceding image. Select the output that corresponds to your sound card or audio device. Next, you will want to repeat the above process for all of the tracks in your project.
Experiment with the Mute and Solo buttons on each track. If you solo multiple tracks you will hear all of the soloed tracks. If you mute any tracks, they will not be heard. Tip: You can also use your keyboard’s SPACEBAR key to start and stop playback in SONAR. Once you are done listening, click the Stop button . Saving project files SONAR offers you many options for saving your work. To investigate these options, click on the File menu and choose Save As. This opens the Save As dialog box.
Take a look at the drop-down list labeled Save as type. Click the Save as type arrow to see a list of supported file formats. Let’s look at these different file formats now: Normal. This is the first option listed and the most common format used for saving project files. Choosing this will create a Cakewalk Project file with the .cwp file extension.
Recording audio into a project One of the most important aspects of creating music in SONAR is digital audio recording. This is the process of taking the sound from a microphone or an instrument and recording it to an audio track. Once this step is completed you can edit and mix the song to prepare it to share with the world. This tutorial will walk you through the steps involved and provide you with some insight on how to get the best possible audio recordings.
5. Click the Output drop-down menu to select the track’s output. The available outputs for the track are displayed. 6. Select the output port that you want the audio track to play through during playback. This is how you ultimately route the audio to your speakers. You will usually choose 1 and 2, because these are most commonly the outputs that speakers or audio monitors are connected to. 7. Click the track's Record Enable button .
Getting ready to record At this point, we need to check the input levels to make sure they are sufficient and not distorting. Perform as you would if you were recording and watch the meter on the track respond to the sounds you produce. If the meter never even comes close to the maximum, increase the input level. If the meter even occasionally reaches the maximum, decrease the input level.
Recording your performance Now that everything is set up, let's record something! 1. Go to Edit > Preferences > Project - Metronome to configure the metronome (or click the Metronome icon in the Control Bar’s Transport module). 2. Set the metronome for a 2 measure count-in. Click Use Audio Metronome, select the Recording check box and set Record Countin to 2 Measures. For details about each metronome option, click Help. 3.
Troubleshooting If you’re having a problem with SONAR, don’t panic. Check the SONAR ReadMe for additional information that wasn’t available when this User Guide was printed. To view the Readme, select Help > View Readme. Refer to the Troubleshooting chapter in the SONAR online Help. Visit our support Web site at www.cakewalk.com/Support, where you will find answers to frequently asked questions, tech support documents, program patches and updates, and more.
Troubleshooting
Index A E Audio types of inputs 18 Audio setup 15 Electric guitar connecting 20 Equipment connecting 18 Events 28 B Browser 34 Bus pane 31 F FAQ 51 C Forums 51 Cakewalk Command Center 10 G Clips 28 Clips pane 31 Console view 33 Control Bar 29 Getting around 28 H Help 51 D Demo project opening 22 troubleshooting 24 I Inspector 35 Installation 8 K Knowledge base 26 Index 53
M S Microphone connecting 20 MIDI controller connecting 21 MIDI devices setting up 13 MIDI interface connecting 21 Mouse wheel 33 MultiDock 30 Serial number 8 Skylight 30 Support 51 T Technical support 51 Time display 28 Time ruler 28 Track view 30 Tracks 28 N Troubleshooting 51 Navigator pane 31 Tutorial 22 Now Time 28 U O Uninstall 12 Online Help 51 User interface (UI) 28 P Patches downloading 51 Project 28 R ReadMe 51 Registration 26 54 Updates 51 Index V Video Thumbnails pane 31 Vide
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