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Cakewalk Sonar Power Studio 660
Introduction
Cakewalk’s Sonar Power Studio is a package that includes Sonar
Studio Edition and the Cakewalk SPS-66 FireWire Audio and MIDI interface. When Cakewalk
approached us to review the Sonar Power Studio, they wanted someone who had “little
to no” experience with Sonar to have a go at it. Being that I have not
used Sonar before, I was the most likely candidate. Cakewalk’s intention
is to provide a product that even those who are taking their first steps into
the world of digital audio workstations will find easy to use, yet provide
a product with enough features to please the more advanced users. In addition,
Cakewalk also offers the more affordable Sonar Power Studio 250. It includes
all the same software, but contains the SPS-25 USB and MIDI interface for those
who require less ins and outs, and who need USB connectivity.
Installation
To test this, I decided I would do what most beginners do; follow the instructions
in the owner’s manual. Installation of the software took just at few
minutes. I inserted the CD-ROM in to the computer and followed the on-screen
instructions. Cakewalk has provided everything you need to connect the SPS-66
interface to the computer, including a FireWire cable and AC power adapter.
There is also a quick start guide with a diagram to help connect your instruments
to the interface.
Getting Started
First, I launched SONAR. From there, I opened the Tutorial demos one by one.
I was able to set up audio and MIDI preferences with ease, and within minutes
I felt like I was in control of Sonar. The user manual came in handy, as it
was easy to read and navigate. Even though SONAR is automatically configured
for the SPS-66, you may find it helpful to understand how to do this yourself.
If you need to adjust the driver ins and outs, or change the audio settings,
detailed instructions are found within the user manual.
As far as the Cakewalk SPS-66 FireWire Audio and MIDI interface is concerned,
I was initially very impressed by its physical construction. Its aluminum,
rather than plastic, casing helped set my mind at ease that this was going
to be a durable interface. I would be just as comfortable tossing this in a
laptop case and using it in on the road as I would with my desktop system.
If you have multiple FireWire ports on you computer, you may not be able to
install the hardware through all ports. I realized this when the front ports
on the Rain Recording Tower would not recognize the hardware. But, once I connected
to a port on the rear of the machine, I was good to go. So, if you encounter
a similar problem on your system, be sure to test another port before freaking
out!
The features of the SPS-66 are impressive. FireWire bus powered, you can record
6-In/6-Out at 24-bit/96 kHz, or 4-In/4-Out 24-bit/192 kHz. In addition, an
onboard analog limiter helps to eliminate clipping, and it comes with premium
built-in mic preamps and +48V phantom power. Furthermore, it includes both
WDM and ASIO drivers, so it may be used with other programs on your PC. Out
of the box, this is set-up to give you high quality recording.
Additional Software In The Box
In addition to the Sonar 5 Studio Edition, Cakewalk has added a couple of
goodies to sweeten the deal. Included is an LE version of IK Multimedia’s
Amplitube, an amp and FX modeling plug in to get just the right guitar tones
you need.
In addition, the Power Studio includes Roland V-Vocal Variphrase
technology. Using V-Vocal is pretty painless. Simply select the track you wish
to edit,
right click on it, got to V-Vocal, and select “create a v-vocal clip”.
Once you do this, V-Vocal, will automatically analyze the vocal clip and draw
the pitches on the screen. You can also overlay the waveform on top of the
pitches. Then, editing the vocal is made easy through the addition of editing
tools that will allow you to adjust pitch, vibrato, and timing.
Summary and Conclusion
To summarize, Cakewalk has done a great job here of providing a product that
is easy to use out of the box. So, from the beginner to the advanced user,
you will be able to create and edit projects with ease.
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