SONAR X3 Clean Install Instructions

Last updated on 3/8/2016

To completely remove SONAR X3 from your computer and reinstall it, follow the steps below.

Please note that this will remove any effects presets and key bindings you may have made in SONAR X3. You can back these up separately if you like, using Utilities menu > Cakewalk Plug-in Manager, Edit > Preferences > Customization – Keyboard Shortcuts and Edit > Preferences > Customization – Colors. Type F1 in these views for detailed instructions or read this Cakewalk blog post on how to do this. Note that this blog post focuses on migrating to a new computer, scroll down the post to find the backup instructions.

  1. Run the SONAR uninstaller.
    This is normally done by going to Start > Control Panel and clicking on Programs and Features. Next, select SONAR X3 and click on “Uninstall.” This will not remove any of your plug-ins, project files or audio data.

    STEAM users can right-click on SONAR in their Software Library and select “Delete Local Content.”
     
  2. After the uninstallation completes, open the Run Prompt.
    Open the Run Prompt by holding down the “Windows” key and pressing “R” on the keyboard.
     
  3. At the Prompt, type regedit and click [OK].
     
  4. Click [Yes] if asked to allow the program to make changes to your computer.
    Important: When you access the Registry Editor, create a backup by going to File > Export. In the Export Registry File window that comes up, make sure “Export range” is set to “All” and that “Save as type” is set to “Registration Files (*.reg)”. It is very important to create a backup of your registry because if you accidentally delete a registry key there is no undo function. You can, however, double-click on the Registry backup you made above to re-import your registry keys if you make any mistakes. You must re-import your backup (if needed) before restarting your computer.
     
  5. Delete the following Registry keys. If you do not have one of the Registry keys below, simply proceed to the next one on the list.
    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Cakewalk Music Software\SONAR Producer\X3
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Cakewalk Music Software\SONAR Producer\X3
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Wow6432Node\Cakewalk Music Software\SONAR Producer\X3

     
  6. Open the Run Prompt again.
     
  7. Copy and paste %appdata%\Cakewalk into the prompt and click [OK].
    On Windows 7, 8 and 8.1, the “AppData\Roaming\Cakewalk” folder will open.
     
  8. Right-click on the SONAR X3 Producer folder and choose “Delete.”
     
  9. Delete the contents of the following directory: C:\Program Files\Cakewalk\SONAR X3 Producer.
    If you have installed a 32-bit version of SONAR on a 64-bit operating system, the default location will be
    C:\Program Files (x86)\Cakewalk\SONAR X3 Producer.

    STEAM users should open the following directory and delete its contents: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\Cakewalk\x64\SONAR X3.
    Note: this path changes to C:\Program Files\Steam\SteamApps\common\Cakewalk\SONAR X3 if you are on a 32-bit only system. If you have installed STEAM to a custom location you'll need to adjust accordingly.
     
  10. At this point you can reinstall SONAR X3 from your installation discs, by downloading the installers from your Cakewalk Account or STEAM. Non-STEAM users should download and install the free X3e update.

This should eliminate any software irregularities that are causing your problem.

 

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