Cubase and new MacBook CPU

Hello ,

I’m currently a Cubase 9 user, but was planning on up-grading when I got a new MacBook. However, Apple announced their transition to their new custom apple specific CPU. I’ve preferred Apple for music production because of how easy it works with Cubase and third party plugins, however now I’m wondering if I should buy the current 2020 MacBook or switch to Windows(as a last resort). I’m mainly cornered about how or if the new CPU will affect Cubase, UAD, NI, and smaller third party plugins; Are there any tech-heads who can tell me the pros and cons, or if I should be worried about this situation at all?

Well - Seeing it will be an ARM processor, the software has to be compiled to a completely new instruction set. Parts that are written in machine code to speed up the program has to be completely rewritten, because the ARM instruction set is completely different from the conventional x86 instruction set. It will not be a case of “let the source code be compiled to another processor”. It does not work that way. Sure - For parts it will, but especially parts that are streamlined to speed up stuff on a x86 instruction set, will have huge problems and probably have to be rewritten from the ground up.

Sure - Apple will do a “Rosetta Stone” again, where (parts of) code can be run on a emulator-like translation layer, but that will introduce severe slow-downs, and will (especially in music applications) create a huge latency. Also - Emulating Windows using bootcamp will no longer be possible, so no Windows (and thus games and Windows applications) will be usable on the new Apple computers.

My prediction is that a lot of music applications, like DAW’s and plugins, will simply will give up on Apple. It will be too expensive (and probably very complicated) to rewrite something like a DAW from the ground up. Even smaller plugin company’s have to consider if rewriting their software is worth the income it potentially could generate.

And then there is the cost for the consumer. I cannot imagine a rewrite of a huge application like a DAW will be given for free. The development costs (that certainly will not be insignificant), have to be payed somehow. The same goes for plugins.

Maybe it will work out fine in the end, but it’s also fully possible that the Apple platform will be lost as a music platform for anything that’s non-native.
We will see…

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Hi,

Some thoughts on this topic are here.

Thank You, this was the thread I was looking for!