Sonar doesn't come with an audio interface, no. But personally, I'd rather choose my own interface regardless.
I currently have an Echo Audiofire 12, which has 12 balanced inputs and 12 balanced outs. It's necessary because I record drums and other instruments through a 16 channel Mackie board and I don't like sub mixing and ending up without control of all my elements.
If I'd gone with the Mbox stuff, I'd be assed out.
So really the peripherals are a matter of situational requirement.
As far as going with PT because it's an industry standard, well, I can assure you that professional studios don't JUST use PT. PT simply serves as a tracking program for a lot of those guys because it's simple and it does the job. But when you get into production in the box, mastering, extensive editing and other stuff, I know they rely on a host of other software.
Because of that fact, I chose Sonar because it offered the majority of all those things in one package. The audio engine is just as good as PT, which can operate at 64bit floating. The limitations in Sonar are dictated by your computer's performance. That's it.
I like Sonar because it offers a complete recording solution, and at the same time, a complete production solution that allows me to produce from scratch, all the way down to the finished product.
And it comes with amazing plugins.
Again, it's really situational requirements. Sonar works for me. PT works for you. But if you find yourself needing to buy additional things to iron out your recordings, then that's when you have to begin evaluating whether or not your software is really providing your needs or just serving as a nice hype hook.
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