I suppose I’m out of luck, but thought I should check with the forum.
I am currently on Cubase 13 on my main computer, and my laptop. No issues.
I kept an old IBM (high-end for the time) laptop that I bought in 2005 running Windows XP in the Firewire days, and the Steinberg MR816CSX ran perfectly with it. I also have a MOTU 8pre, and it can connect with the MR816CSX through SPDIF, giving me 16 channels on that old IBM laptop. This setup could effortlessly record 16 channels. I used it to record my band live. I was using Cubase Studio 4.5, but later I installed Cubase 6.
I haven’t used it in this capacity in maybe 6 years. It’s still on Windows XP on it, but the laptop still works, and is not connected to the internet. I tried firing it up today, and found that since I last checked, the dongle doesn’t recognize the license.
It would be really handy to be able to record 16 tracks on that old machine. It is still stable and never failed me. The MR816CSX is still a great interface. Why has the license disappeared? I have of course upgraded Cubase over the years. I’m on 13 on both my other machines. I paid for Cubase 4.5 and for 6.0.
Did upgrading those other machines get rid of the license for 4.5 Studio and 6.0 Pro? Do I really have to trash that computer, even though it was, and is, a perfectly good sixteen track recorder?
Hope somebody here can help. It was such a great laptop for this purpose.
You old licenses are still valid. Have you tried to plug in the dongle using an online computer and then run it through the latest e-licenser centre to check the licenses? And while your at it, please make sure that the aforementioned licenses are on your dongle or else moved again to your dongle.
This is not exactly my field of expertise, however, I am pretty sure that you will be able to get your old IBM up and running again. So, no need to trash it!
As Reco29 wrote, your eLicenser-based license is still valid, you should have a “Not upgradable” Cubase 11 license, if you updated to Steinberg Licensing from an eLicenser-based one.
I followed all the steps that Fabio_B provided, and now Cubase 6.0 starts! Next I have to see if my MR816CSX still works, which I’m sure it does. When I had to replace it because Firewire no longer existed, I went to a smaller Steinberg interface, the UR242, which I still use today with Win11.
A tip…you know that updated elicenser pgm you just downloaded and installed?
Copy THAT installer itself to someplace super secure…in triplicate
Why?
Because when January lands …for all you know, that installer itself may disappear off the face of the earth forever…an fyi in case you were to come looking for it three years from now.
That’s a really good idea. I’ve got the installer program and the database update copied to this computer. Practically, the only computer I could need it for is this very old IBM laptop. And going back it looks like I bought it in 2008, not 2005. But it’s WinXP, and it was very stable. Fast CPU for the time, and two hard drives in it. My much newer laptop from 2018 has Cubase 12 on it, so no dongle needed, thankfully! And my desktop is running Cubase 13.
But at the time, with Firewire, it was an incredible laptop for Cubase. 16 recording channels! And it still works! Now I’m wondering how long these two drives are going to last! My band recorded rehearsals with it for many years, and now I’m going to record a live show with it. Hopefully!
That’s a good question. I hadn’t used this laptop in maybe 5 years. Looks like I made a copy of the C drive onto the other drive. Looks like each drive is 256 GB. Pretty good for back then. For audio, plenty of space for a whole show or even ten.
But generally, if I am going to use this computer to record, I will copy the files to another computer to mix. Could SSD’s even work in a computer this old?
I confirmed today that the MR816CSX still works perfectly, and I think the MOTO will work through SPDIF to give me 16 channels. It’s gratifying that the best tech from then still works.
But today, nobody’s doing it this way. The mixing jobs I do now come from tracks recorded on a Midas board that can record 32 tracks on SD Flash cards, while simultaneously serving as the sound board for a live performance. But setting up and operating that is somewhat complicated. The Midas board can even record directly into Cubase on a separate computer, although I haven’t tried that yet.
To explain, because I record the local orchestra and youth orchestra and local chamber concerts (using a Zoom F4), I got asked to record a benefit Jazz concert. They wanted me to do the same for the jazz concert as I do for the orchestra, but that makes no sense to me. I think I need to close mic the instruments in the septet and mix them. I could just put up a stereo pair, but I think my old equipment will be able to close mic the instruments and make a much better mix.
Anyway, probably too much information! Elated that I can still run Cubase 6 on a top end laptop from almost 20 years ago.
If it’s a ThinkPad, then probably yes. If you post the model number I’ll be able to tell you. FWIW, I have an X220 from 2011, upgraded with an SSD and it runs Cubase 14 on Windows 11 fine (for light projects), but that’s with a lot of tweaks and hacks, both in hardware and software.
Nevertheless, if your old laptop is still doing the business on Windows XP, I’d say leave well enough alone, according to the principle of not fixing what ain’t broke.
The most important thing now though, seeing as you have everything working well on Cubase 6, would be to get an image backup of that disk and save it away safely on other media. I use TeraByte Image for Windows but there are many other products out there.
The idea is to save the exact state of the hard disk (which could fail) to a file on e.g. an external USB drive, from which you can restore to a replacement disk (possibly SSD, which would also provide a substantial performance boost).
In the event of failure of the hard disk in your old laptop, such a restore would be much easier and faster than trying to re-install Windows XP, Firewire drivers (if you can even find them), Cubase 6 etc., and all dependencies onto a blank replacement disk.
I keep another old ThinkPad, disconnected from the internet, that I use with a MOTU 828 MkII Firewire interface. Such kit still works just as well as it did back in the day.
It’s pretty amazing what can be done with an old but good laptop running XP and a good Firewire interface from back then. I suppose if I want to get paid for recording bands nowadays, I need to give up on this XP laptop solution, and buy a 32 track board. But circumstances led me here, and I think it is amazing that my 2008 solution still works.
I’m hoping it works one more time, and I’m doubting that I should even do this. I should probably turn this job over to the guy who runs the board at the local music bar, and then ask for the audio files to mix. I can’t imagine investing in SSD upgrades for such an old laptop. As it is, I’m borrowing a mic splitter so I can capture live mics and still feed the band’s PA.
Appreciate the conversation! The old laptop can still connect to wireless. But I keep it turned off assuming it’s not safe nowadays.
