Deciding on Cubase 5

[UMDRevan]

Hello everyone,

I had a quick question that I was hoping people using Cubase could answer.

I was thinking of picking up a copy of Cubase 5 (Academic), especially since VST expression and the HSO look like an amazing deal and other DAWs aren't offering anything comparable. Of course I'd be using recording functions, automation and all the other features, but VST expression and the HSO seem to me to be the clincher.

Now, I've been researching quite a bit, checking out user forums, etc. and it seems wherever I go, whether it's cubendo.com, cubase.net, kvr, etc. that Cubase users seem unusually dissatisfied.

My question, finally, is this: is it actually worth buying Cubase? I spent some time at cubase.net, and quite frankly, it has me second guessing whether it's actually worth it. The users seem to be constantly upset, this Chris B. over there is rude and dismissive, and even some of the other users seem to be, well, frankly mean and unhelpful. No one gets their questions answered, and I get a little worried looking at the large number of bug fix requests and how they are all ignored or dismissed as user stupidity. Add on top of that some of the horror stories I've heard on lost/broken/stolen dongles (and the fact that I'm going to have mobile setup--laptop to school everyday, 1hr 30min commute), I'm a bit worried.

But I'm still having this debate with myself because no other DAW is offering anything like the VST Expression/HSO deal.

Help? :icon_sad:

[kdm]

Hi - welcome to the forum!

I'm a Nuendo 4 user and don't have Cubase 5 (Cubase 4.5 on another system), so I can't advise you on the value of VST expression, though I've heard it is a very cool feature - one I am hoping to take advantage of in Nuendo 5 someday.

In general, c.net isn't a great resource for end user support, sorry to say. Too much noise.
However, we are trying to offer an alternate option here with Cubendo.com. You'll see some ranting as we all get frustrated, but the expertise is generally very high and you won't get brushed off.

On Cubase 5 in general - there are quite a few users very happy with it. Nuendo has a few bugs that annoy me, but over all, it's the best DAW on the market for what I do.

Time between fixes is rather long and painful. That is a negative no doubt. Dongle on a laptop? It is risky, but it doesn't have to be as much of a hinderance:

If you have a PC, you could get Reaper for commuting or more risky situations (no dongle, $50 or so for personal use), and use Cubase for studio/stationary use where you know the dongle isn't at risk. I would also use a short USB extender cable so it isn't as likely to be snapped off the side of the laptop. It should work fine if you us a USB port near the power supply.

I haven't tried HSO, so I can't comment on its' value (I wouldn't expect too much, but for a basic orchestral sounds set, it's probably useful), but there are other similar libraries such as GPO 4 (just released). I can't say Reaper would give you a comparable composing tool as it's VST implementation is still a bit hard to deal with, so Cubase/VST expression still exceeds most other apps, whether you use HSO, GPO or larger orchestral libraries.

Halion One in Nuendo isn't great - rather slow, cpu hog, etc. It might be better in C5 though.

[The Guru]

Sadly, it all comes down to your patience level. If you can deal with being treated lower than pond scum, then by all means give Steinberg your money.

Sorry for the negativity, but Steinberg goes out of its way to piss off users. You reap what you sow.

[MattiasNYC]

Hello and welcome.

I would suggest the following:

~ Analyze the cost / performance ratio compared to other DAWs
~ Double AND Triple check that the features you need in Cubase actually work
~ Make sure you understand and are ok with the way SB as a company handles issues with their customers - it's less than stellar.

Other than that I'll say again that Cubendo software indeed is/has been really great with some truly groundbreaking features.

[Daryl]

You will find a great deal of negativity, both on this forum and on cubase.net. Some of this is justified, some is governed by hisory. There have been times where I have been fed up to the back teeth with Steinberg. Then I look what is on offer elsewhere, and realise that the grass is certainly not greener.

I have no first hand knowledge of Cubase 5 (having only used it for a few hours at a time at a friend's house), but Nuendo 4 is very stable and works better than Nuendo 3 ever did. I wouldn't have said that a year ago, but the update has fixed most things that matter to me.

In the end you will find something that either suits your workflow, or not.

D

[TAFKAT]

UMDRevan,

Welcome to the Forums Mate..:D

The frustration you see displayed by many of the end users is due to the fact that the application is arguably the best DAW on the market , the end users some of the most knowledgeable , at the same time the company has an uncanny habit of placing entities in positions that interact publicly who do not have the ability to communicate and interact with their most valuable asset , their user base in a respectful way.

My advice would be to steer well clear of the signal to noise of the official "non support" forums, and post the queries and qualms here , you will have your questions answered.

For the most part the offical support channels will not offer you anything past what you will receive here, and in most cases less. Also posting the qualms online will add to the collated knowledge base here for other end users.

Cubase 5 is a great DAW , and despite the company often appearing like they cut their noses off to spite their face , there are some diamonds in the rough within the community that still make it a viable and powerful option , just don't expect a warm and fuzzy interacting with the company , ignore the signal to noise at the offical forums that are slowly dying a much needed death , ask as many questions that you have here, as you will be sure to get some honest appraisals from both sides of the fence ( Hi Nate ) , dive in and enjoy.

:009:

[TerryG]

All things considered, Cubase 5 Academic ($270) with HSO 16-bit ($100) is an excellent value when compared to anything else of equal ability.
It's exactly what I did for the purposes of keeping abreast of what's new around here.

The really cool thing is that for the first 25 hours the dongle is actively running Cubendo, you'll be able to run ANY dongle-protected Steinberg software... Very handy if you need some Dolby/DTS encoding in Nuendo, or are an existing Cubendo user and want to play with everything on two machines for awhile. You'll get a chance to fire up all those VSTi demos lingering on your old discs as well...

If you sort out all your mixes in advance, you can do alot of encoding in 25 hours... without dropping $2K on the Dolby/DTS (if you could even find retail versions these days). Just download them and away you go.

I had fun running Nuendo in two machines side by side.

Hell, that benefit alone might get Guru and D off the couch...
It's even worth registering for a night class during fall quarter at your local community college. :wink:

[UMDRevan]

Thanks, everyone, for your responses. It's a little bit comforting to hear that the world isn't burning, just smoldering a little.

Anyway, taking the given advice, I'm going to spend some time digging through the forum for any info I can find on VST Expression issues and HSO issues. Thanks again.

[UMDRevan]

All things considered, Cubase 5 Academic ($250) with HSO 16-bit ($100) is an excellent value when compared to anything else of equal ability.
It's exactly what I did.

The really cool thing is that for the first 25 hours the dongle is actively running Cubendo, you'll be able to run ANY dongle-protected Steinberg software... very handy if you need some Dolby/DTS encoding in Nuendo, or are an existing Cubendo user and want to play with everything on two machines for awhile.

Hell, that benefit alone might get Guru and D off the couch... :wink:


Interesting, I've only seen C5 academic for $300. Where did you find it for $250, if you don't mind me asking? And how do you like HSO?

[TerryG]

Interesting, I've only seen C5 academic for $300. Where did you find it for $250, if you don't mind me asking? And how do you like HSO?
I just corrected my price... it's about $270 at JRRShop with the Group Buy discount of 15% from $299...
It can be found on this page: http://www.jrrshop.com/group-buys-c-372.html?page=2&sort=2a
Then just type "GROUP" into the coupon box during checkout to see the final price. You can confirm it before you're committed to buy.
You can get the full version for about $455 too... there's quite a bit to see in four pages.

The HSO 16-bit is a good value... same sounds as the 24-bit version.
And, I was able to install the February '09 HSO 1.5 update over this version as well.
A bit of navigating here and there to get all the samples to show up (not clearly stated instructions).
There are some handy tips in the C.net HSO subforum if you have the patience.

[D]

The users seem to be constantly upset, this Chris B. over there is rude and dismissive, and even some of the other users seem to be, well, frankly mean and unhelpful. No one gets their questions answered, and I get a little worried looking at the large number of bug fix requests and how they are all ignored or dismissed as user stupidity.

All of these things are true (especially the assessment about Chris B.), and well documented. As far as the users being mean and upset, it's usually because of being ignored by the company and the other inexcusable behavior by most of it's representatives.

The software, when it works (which is most of the time), is very good.

[UMDRevan]

All of these things are true (especially the assessment about Chris B.), and well documented. As far as the users being mean and upset, it's usually because of being ignored by the company and the other inexcusable behavior by most of it's representatives.

The software, when it works (which is most of the time), is very good.

Yeah, that is a reasonable explanation for the users' mood; I suppose they can't be blamed.

Good to hear your assessment on the software.