18 Years & 11 Cubase Reviews Later
By: Mark Wherry
Tags: Sequencer, Audio, Steinberg, Music, Cubase

The modern era of Cubase comes of age this year and can finally have a drink, at least in England, as it enjoys its 18th birthday. After attending the product’s unveiling at the Frankfurt Musikmesse in 2002, I’ve followed the development of what started out as Cubase SX since the beta versions, reviewing many of the releases for Sound On Sound magazine in the intervening years.

To celebrate the announcement of Cubase 11, I’ve pulled together the introductory text and conclusion from those reviews with links to the original articles. So, sit back, and set your clocks for 2002…

Cubase SX: SX Appeal?

August 2002

It even made the cover!

Key Features: The first version of Cubase’s modern era, built entirely from scratch with the Nuendo codebase.

Cubase SX

Cubase SX is the most ambitious and eagerly anticipated software launch in years. Is this the future for computer-based music production?

One of the aspects that appealed to me when I first used Nuendo was the elegance in the design and operation of the program, and this has certainly been carried through to Cubase SX. In the core areas of the program, particularly the Project window, the attention to detail is obvious, and the overall interface has been streamlined to focus on the most common tasks. The fact that almost every function of the program can be accessed from the Project window without the user feeling that functionality has been compromised or that the interface has become cluttered deserves praise indeed.

Steinberg’s plug-in implementations of SPL’s famous DeEsser and Craig Anderton’s QuadraFuzz are bundled with Cubase SX. Notice also the ‘floating’ VST Send Effects rack and the new Plug-in Information window, which provides information about the installed VST, DirectX and MIDI plug-ins.

The appearance of Cubase SX is unlikely to appeal to everyone, but personally I liked the subtle, attractive and functional approach that’s been taken. The only aspect I had reservations about, at least when I first started using the program, was that the majority of buttons and labels are now pictorial instead of text-based. This was particularly off-putting at first, but hovering the mouse over most buttons displays a hint box to explain the function, and everything seems perfectly obvious now I’m used to the interface.

Computers are often criticised for being unpredictable, but when it comes to stability, I found Cubase SX to be completely reliable. The full release version hasn’t crashed on me once, even when pushing the limits with an arsenal of plug-in effects and instruments, and generally it felt as though Cubase SX was a robust platform to run my virtual studio from.

In terms of the Cubase product line, SX replaces both the previous high-end VST/32 version of Cubase and Cubase Score. At the lower end of the market, Steinberg will introduce Cubase SL with a reduced feature set to replace the current vanilla Cubase VST version. No feature set or pricing for Cubase SL was available at the time of writing.

So the ultimate question for most people will be: should I choose Cubase SX as my next MIDI + Audio sequencer? For existing Cubase users, the competitive upgrade price, coupled with the fact you can keep your existing dongle, means that the answer is a resounding ‘yes’. For musicians new to computer-based recording, SX is around 150 pounds cheaper than Logic Platinum, and around 150 pounds more than Sonar XL.

There’s really not much to choose between Cubase SX and Logic Platinum, other than personal preference. Where Cubase SX gains from being the new kid on the block in its simplicity and streamlined interface, Logic Platinum scores on mature power, and can also handle larger surround configurations. Perhaps Cubase’s most direct competition comes from Sonar: as a personal preference I would choose Cubase SX every time, but you should try out both programs before making a decision. I think Cubase is a more elegant program (for my way of working), and Sonar’s current lack of surround sound support may also be a factor.

It’s impossible to be anything other than impressed by Cubase SX. Steinberg have created an incredible music production tool that’s a joy to use and rarely feels like it’s getting in the way of what you’re trying to achieve.

Cubase SX 2: Still Feeling Like SX?

November 2003

Key Features: The first version of Cubase to include both Windows and Mac versions in the same box; Steinberg claim over 100 new features; updated user interface; VST 2.3 audio engine with VST Connections window; Time Warp tool; Stacked Cycle Record mode; improved Key Editor.

Cubase SX 2

The first major revision to Steinberg’s Cubase SX incorporates the newly developed audio engine from Nuendo 2, new features for media composers, and classic features from Cubase VST. Does it all add up to a substantial improvement over version 1?

Cubase SX 2 enters the market at an interesting time, facing tough competition from the latest generation of other MIDI + Audio applications, such as Sonar 3, Digital Performer 4 and Logic 6. From a personal perspective, putting the feature lists to one side for just a moment, I think I like using Cubase SX the most out of all the sequencers, primarily because the Project window is powerful, elegant, and, as I said in the original SX review a year ago, never feels like it gets in the way of what you’re trying to achieve. As Steinberg make it possible to achieve more and more in just the Project window, I think the brilliance of the design is proven because, even with all the new features, it doesn’t feel cluttered.

Existing SX users should upgrade to SX 2 immediately, without a doubt, because they’ll simply love the new feature set. For OS 9-based Cubase VST 5.x users who didn’t feel comfortable in making the jump before because of so many ‘missing’ features, SX is now a far more viable prospect than before and deserves serious consideration, especially since you can’t actually buy a new Mac that boots in OS 9. However, whether users of other sequencers will be tempted to switch is another, perhaps more subjective and personal matter, although I’m sure some users will at least be curious about using Nuendo’s advanced audio functionality at a lower price, especially if cross-platform work is important to you.

At the end of the day, SX 2 is a remarkable improvement over SX 1 in just about every respect. Although there are some features that still need to be brought back from VST 5.x, along with the issue of manipulating multiple Tempo Events in one go, and other small improvements that could be made, Steinberg have at least made an effort to address the weaker areas in the first release of SX a year ago. The more I worked with this new version, the more I liked it, and the more improvements I discovered; when I need to use a sequencer, the red diamond is still the icon I’m going to be double-clicking.

Cubase SX 3: Do You Think I’m S3Xy?

November 2004

Key Features: Audio Warping; Play Order Tracks; improved colouring for channels, tracks, and parts; Audio Event Envelopes; redesigned Synchronisation and Metronome Setup windows; MIDI Device Panels; Edit In-Place; Process Tempo.

Cubase SX 3

Cubase SX 3 is the latest incarnation of one of the best-known brands in sequencing software, offering many new features and tying up the loose ends from previous generations of Cubase. But with increased competition, most notably from Apple and Cakewalk, can Steinberg maintain their cross-platform advantage?

Some existing Cubase users have been disappointed that they will have to upgrade to SX 3 in order to resolve issues they had with SX 2, such as problems that many experienced with crossfades, there being no intermediate SX 2 release. At the end of the day, though, existing Cubase users who do pay to upgrade to SX 3 are unlikely to be disappointed with the purchase since there are so many other great new features aside from fixes that were requested in regard to SX 2.

In terms of the competition, it’s perhaps a shame that Steinberg haven’t responded more aggressively to Apple’s Logic Pro package, which bundles together all of Emagic’s software instruments and effects. While Apple have an advantage in being able to recoup revenue from computer hardware sales and Steinberg can’t simply afford to give away their entire product line, including the SE versions of Steinberg’s more popular VST Instruments might have been an interesting sweetener, encouraging users to upgrade to the full versions. Even the £200 Logic Express now includes a playback-only version of EXS24 MkI, the ES1 synth (although Steinberg and Waldorf’s included A1 is a good alternative), and the EVP73 modelled electric piano — and the just-announced version 7, previewed elsewhere in this issue, promises more goodies including all of Garage Band ‘s instruments.

Nevertheless, Cubase SX 3 brings Cubase back to a level where it can seriously be used for music composition and production, especially in the film and media industries where many previous users have either looked elsewhere or stuck with Cubase VST 5 in the absence of a suitable successor. These users should now seriously look to Cubase SX 3 as it’s a definite improvement over previous versions of Cubase, both SX and VST, despite a few MTC issues to be resolved with the otherwise brilliant Play Order Track feature.

Speaking of the Play Order Track, though, features like this in SX 3 make it feel like there is some genuinely musically interesting functionality in the application again, as opposed to purely utilitarian features like a new mix engine. Improvements can be seen in almost all areas of Cubase in this new version, and while Steinberg hasn’t quite got all of the loose ends tied up, this is undoubtedly a far superior sequencer to SX 2. What a difference a year makes; and the difference is you…

Cubase 4

December 2006

Cubase 4

This was the one of the versions of Cubase I didn’t review; it was written by Sound On Sound’s now Editor-in-Chief, the brilliant Sam Inglis. Cubase 4 was the version where the SX and SL appendages disappeared from the names of the main and junior editions of Cubase, the latter now being referred to, somewhat confusingly, as Cubase Studio. The user interface turned dark blue, and the Media Bay window was introduced for browsing files, project assets, and accessing the new Sound Frame preset management system, which is now known as VST Sound. This was also the first version to support Steinberg’s VST 3 plug-in standard.

Cubase 5: Five Stars

March 2009

Key Features: VariAudio; VST Expression; Tempo and Time Signature Tracks in the Project window; Beat Designer and Groove Agent ONE MIDI and VST plug-ins; Reverence convolution reverb; improved interaction between automation and MIDI controller data; the first sully-supported 64-bit release for Windows Vista.

The first paid‑for update to Cubase for two years introduces some major innovations for sequencing and composition, including integrated Melodyne‑style pitch correction and editing.

Overall, Cubase 5 is a really fantastic update, and, compared to version 4, actually has musically useful new features that cater to many different groups of musicians. From major new facilities like VST Expression and VariAudio, to more workflow‑oriented improvements like the batch export feature in the Export Audio window, which I didn’t have space to discuss in more detail, allowing you to perform multiple exports of tracks or mixer channels with a single command, there really is something to make every Cubase user smile in this update.

Like any piece of software, it would seem, Cubase 5 isn’t perfect. There are a few quirks here and there, such as an instability that can manifest itself when you have multiple controller lanes open in the Key editor, or the fact that certain ‘on top’ windows like the transport panel don’t always minimise correctly with the parent window on Windows Vista. But at least Steinberg will be addressing many of these issues in the forthcoming 5.0.1 update mentioned earlier. One particular area of the application I wish Steinberg would look at in a future version, though, is the Preferences window.

With so many preferences, it’s becoming really hard to remember where to find certain options, especially when they get moved around from version to version or disappear altogether. Mac OS X Tiger’s System Preferences window showed one possible approach to locating certain settings, allowing you to search for items and having the window disclose where suitable matches might be found. And even Reaper, the “reasonably priced” digital audio workstation, offers a Find field in its Preferences window. We really need something like this in Cubase.

Ultimately, though, I actually do like the direction of Cubase 5. Rather than simply focus on redoing the user interface, or adding only ‘me too’ features from competing products, Steinberg seem to have really thought about functionality that will help users get more from the application. If Sound On Sound ever has to review Cubase 5 for a third time¹, there will be a high standard to beat.