Cubase 13 Install observations and resolution of missing plugin presets

Dave · November 5, 2023, 7:12pm

Computer Imac 2020
3.6 GHz 10-Core Intel Core i9
AMD Radeon Pro 5700 8 GB
32 GB 2667 MHz DDR4
OSX Ventura 13.6.1 (22G313)

Cubase Info
Upgraded from Cubase 12 Pro to Cubase 13
Cubase 12. 12.0.70 Intel
Cubase 13 Version 13.0.10 Build 123 (Intel) - Built on Oct 10 2023

Download Assistant Info
Version: 1.34.3
Java Version: 1.8.0_312
Downloader: Aria2 1.18.10
Steinberg Activation Manager Version: 1.4.40.1045
Steinberg Library Manager Version: 3.2.40.295
Steinberg MediaBay Version: 1.1.20.42
eLicenser Control Version: 6.12.8.4321
Steinberg Install Assistant Version: 1.2.2.68

Errors/observations after Cubase 13 install

Cubase 12
Cubase 12 Load now tells me no Licence for Halion Sonic SE. Why? Surely Halion 7 and Halion Sonic 7 replaced older versions and the Halion 7 licence covers.

So why does this message appear after Install of Cubase 13?

Auth Manager shows Halion 7 licence activated and Cubase 13 Licence activated so surely they cover the licensing of Hallion Sonic SE legacy.

Cubase 13
1: No presets found for any of the new Cubase 13 plugins so suggests an install issue with files not being installed correctly, and or mediabay associated issues.
All preset lists are blank when accessing them from the plugin menu bar. Nothing appears to show in Mediabay either.

The Problem
The underlying Problem was that the Cubase 13 install had not registered its apps VSTSound files inside the Steinberg Library App.

My Solution.
Went into Application folder on Mac with finder.
Selected Show Package contents so the VSTSound folder can be seen
Selected the first Vstsound file which then brought up the Steinberg Library Manager prompt to register the contents in Library Manager.
Selected the Install to default option.
Library then registered all the VSTSound files in that folder and Plugin presets appeared.

Whilst this worked I do not know if this is the correct way as I just saw this from Joerg who I understand is a Steinberg Developer.

“Please, NO! That will link the libs from private to common, if done for C12 you see the C12 content in C13, if done for C13, you’ll see the C13 content in C12 … make sure to remove those links from common. Do not use the LibraryManager for VST Sounds in Program folders. I’ll post the “common” locations for Win and Mac later.”

So you shouldn’t allow the Cubase apps VSTSound files to have links in the common folder. So this folders content should be examined to see what it contains. Its locations is different on Mac and PC’s

Now as a Mac user I don’t know what the equivalent of common would be. I thought the Steinberg Library app itself is the way of avoid creating problems but it appears to have a bug and fails to prevent this.
(Subsequently advised the common file location on a Mac is
Macintosh HD\Library\Application Support\Steinberg\Content\VSTSound )

I observe that all these new plugins are held within the Cubase 13 app itself now and are not installed into the normal VST3 plugin directories as they do not appear there so these new plugins unique to Cubase 13 onwards and appear not available for previous Cubase versions although visible in mediabay…

2: I observe in Plugin Manager under Cubase 12 I had a set up a list of all the the Steinberg Media Technologies plugins on the system. Cubase 13 loads the custom lists but it did not auto update with the new plugins. They are only visible in the default set. The Custom build list I had created for all Steinberg plugins has to be manually rebuilt.

3: Saw a post discussing the new Channel and Inspector windows and the images posted indicates that there should be scroll bars on these windows the same as that on the mix console window to allow things like the 16 insert positions to be accessed via those windows. No score bars appear on those windows on my installed version. One to follow up.

Anyone with scroll bars in these windows?

4: Some play back audio glitches on existing Cubase 12 small projects (less than 5 tracks) loaded as tests into Cubase 13. No idea why yet.
May have something to do with background indexing jobs ie Mediabay rebuilds or network tasks. No idea how a new install works so not easy to spot problem areas.
Never occurred on Cubase 12.

5: Each load of Cubase 13 appears to re-index all plugins and sounds as if it cannot pick up the previous loads XML parameter file build, so acts as if defaults.xml is not there and rebuilds.

Hope these observations of some help.
If anyone has scroll bars on the inspector and channel windows or knows how they can be enabled please respond.

Cheers
David

Paul_Adkin · November 6, 2023, 9:50am

Thanks for opening this topic Dave.
I’m using Windows 10 and with the update from Cubase 12 pro to 13 pro I’ve also found that none of the new promised plugins Voice Chain, VoxComp or the new EQs etc. are visible, and I haven’t been able to deduce if they’re actually installed or not.
There is a new samples and loops pack with various offers (Dubstep, Ambience etc.) that has been installed but none of the loops can be accessed (they have a stop sign icon next to them).
The scroll bars on the inspector and channel windows are enabled, but only when necessary.
So, in my case, Cubase 13 pro seems great but missing much of the expected, promised material.
If someone knows what might have happened and how to fix it, please help.
Cheers,

Paul

Dave · November 6, 2023, 12:07pm

Paul this missing preset problem appears to be all about the correct paths and links to the preset locations.
The plugins and preset files are all there but not visible as they are unique to each version of Cubase.
There appears two problems. One a potential weakness in the Steinberg Library app which allows us to unknowingly create the problem just by registering a vstsound file which shouldn’t be registered and not showing its existence in the Library.
The error is most likely created during updates and manual tidying of libraries locations along with weakness in documentation on specifically what the Steinberg Library app is doing. The options it gives about registering sound files are not well explained to users. Ie When the prompt comes up to register missing sound files I recall you have three choices and I have no idea what the differences was between choices like registering to default location or registering in place so I used what I thought was the safe option of default when registering a vstsound file that I didn’t know should not be registered. Even worse it fixed my initial problem of making my missing presets visible making me think I’d found the solution when in fact I’d created other invisible issues which would manifest themselves depending on how I used my Cubase versions. These issues would not be immediately obvious unless you adopt strict testing regimes which we as users seldom do.

The solution was to remove incorrect alias links usually created via the Library app being used on the wrong vstsound files. And in my case correct the vstsound files the library replaced in Cubase 12 because I believe I picked the wrong option in the Library app when registering. I’m still researching this part of the issue to understand that apps options but manually corrected using my backup and restore via macs Time Machine.
There is a post on the support forum under Cubase specifically about fixing the missing presets which gives pointers to how to fix and the locations of the static (unique to Cubase version) vstsound files and the common libraries where links are used to share vstsound files.

I’m away from my computer now and too old to recall file and path names from my faliable memory.
But will be happy to help further if you can’t find the link or solution there. The member Joerg knows the answer and as I understand it is one of the Cubase developers, probably on the mediabay side of things so will fully understand the paths issue.

Hope this helps.
Cheers
David.