SONAR Home Studio

About

SONAR Home Studio is a Digital Audio Workstation for Windows 7, 8, and 10, transforming your computer into a personal music studio. It includes professional tools, loops, instruments, and effects for creating, editing, and mixing music. The software is part of the SONAR family, known for its use in creating music for films and games, and offers features such as TH3 Cakewalk virtual guitar amps and a Step Sequencer. It's a great platform for beginners in music production, with the option to upgrade to a more advanced application when ready.

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

57%

Audience ScoreBased on 14 reviews

gameplay1 positive mentions

stability2 negative mentions

The software offers a decent amount of virtual instruments and loops, making it a good entry-level DAW for beginners.
The interface is user-friendly and intuitive, with a visually appealing design that is easy on the eyes.
The program has a solid amount of tutorials and help content, which is beneficial for users who are new to music production.

The software is plagued by audio issues, including random stops and stuttering, which significantly hampers usability.
Gibson has ceased all development and support for the product, leaving it buggy and without future updates or patches.
Users have reported frequent crashes and instability, particularly when using certain features or instruments, leading to a frustrating experience.

music
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Users generally find the music aspect of the software to be user-friendly and effective for casual and amateur musicians. They recommend starting with Music Maker (Premium) for budget-conscious users before transitioning to Samplitude Music Studio for more advanced features. Overall, the recording, mixing, and manipulation capabilities are praised as satisfactory for non-professional use.
- “Please consider using Samplitude Music Studio from Magix; this is also available on Steam.”
- “If this is outside of your budget, get Music Maker (Premium) and move to Samplitude when it is on sale.”
- “I'm a casual user; my musical interest comes in waves from year to year, so I'm not a professional by any means.”
- “I'm a casual user, that is, my musical interest comes in waves from year to year, so I'm not a professional by any means.”
- “After all, not all of us make a living out of music.”
- “Please consider using Samplitude Music Studio from Magix... this is also on Steam.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the software is generally criticized for being buggy, with users experiencing frequent crashes and glitches. While some have learned to navigate these issues and report fewer crashes over time, the lack of effective crash reporting and future support raises concerns about the software's long-term viability and reliability.
- “It's buggy as it is, and without any future support, it's a complete waste of money.”
- “With time, I've learned to 'evade' crash-inducing manipulations. You just have to learn how to work with the software's glitches. It's not so bad and won't get in your way. I rarely experience crashes now. The rapture session seems to cause most of them. If an instrument doesn't load, be patient and don't click anywhere; it might take 30 seconds or so to load. One thing that I find troubling, however, is that through the countless crashes I've experienced, I've only had 2 crash reports to send. The software doesn't seem to be able to identify most crashes when they occur, and when you reopen it after a crash, it's as if you closed it normally - minus your unsaved work. If the software sends crash reports only 5% of the time, I don't see how it could improve itself over time.”
graphics
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The graphics received mixed feedback, with some users experiencing technical issues that hindered their ability to fully engage with the visual elements of the game.
gameplay
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The gameplay is visually appealing, but users report that the underlying mechanics are not functioning optimally.