Yeah, shopping for groceries is a whole different experience than updating Cubase.
Iirc, updates around the C5 era were fifty bucks, and there were also .5 feature updates for free. The 99 per update was maybe introduced ten years ago? Not sure.
But I am pretty sure that Steinberg never did sales back then.
My condolences. That’s the way Apple Cupertino operates. As someone else mentioned, they’ll make you buy an entire new machine four os cycles from now…a helluva lot more expensive than quibbling over the prices of Cubendo.
At any rate, looks like you’re now somewhat ok with the overall fairness and reasonable approach that many of us feel Steinberg takes.
I’m on pro 12 and a bit interested in pro 15, but some of the features actually put me off. (A melody writer??! What composer would want to use that, apart from Dom Sigalas who seems to like everything?) The big thing for me is -will it work efficiently on my system? I have an old computer with decent specs for the time and Cubase runs generally pretty well on it. If I buy one with more loops and other stuff that I don’t use then will it still work? It would be very nice if we could have a modular version, where the trip-hop crew could have the bits and bobs of largely pre-composed modules and the old guys and girls who stoically write everything could just load their modules. If I decide that I want to get out of my face and write misogynistic songs I could always load the Drill module! I am saying all of this with a wry grin btw! Peace!
Hi,
if Cubase 12 is running fine on your system I don’t see a reason why Cubase 15 shouldn’t.
“Melody Maker”:
Haha, Dom is very excited about pretty much everything in his videos when it comes to Cubase. In all fairness, it’s his job to promote Cubase and he is pretty good at it, isn’t he?
Anyways, you don’t have to use this function if you don’t need it. And I don’t think it’s meant as a songwriting tool in the conventional way in the first place.
I would suggest to download the Cubase 15 trial version and see if you like it. If you are coming from Cubase 12 there will be some nice new features waiting for you but be prepared for a different kind of GUI experience.
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Efficiently? What have you discovered so far with cb15 30-day trial installed side by side with your v12 on that older computer?
“Loops and other stuff”? Those don’t self-install at core installation. As you’re talkin’ about the long list of loops & “stuff” at the right side of the download assistant under the core program install tab….don’t install them. You say you don’t want them….so great..don’t click on that stuff 
I don’t use loops etc and I can’t remember the last time I clicked to install ANY of that right-side stuff. I think I tried the reverbs once in the past, but not really anything of interest there for what I do. But that’s just me.
I haven’t tried it, and a 2 week trial sometimes isn’t enough to evaluate it alongside my working system, but fair dos to Steinberg for allowing that option. I’ve had software before which includes bloatware which I don’t need. As people get faster and faster machines, aren’t software companies writing to assume a certain level of speed which is going to accelerate as the years go on. And wouldn’t it be good to have a perfect version of Cubase which would run on an average home computer? It would save us all a fortune in upgrading our hardware. It’s a subject that I’m sure the guys at Steinberg take into serious consideration when upgrading their software. I suppose I was just optimistic and downloaded and installed everything with C12 and it runs pretty well with the occasional hiccup. I’m very wary of upgrading though because my system might not be up to spec.
Actually 60 days - two months.
You can test the trial version for much longer - it’s actually two months (60 days). So, plenty of time for testing!
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Oh yeah….. 2 months!
Ok 2nd-from-original-poster ….there you go….have fun!!!
How did you manage to slip in your post while I was typing. I didn’t even notice until now…
I think my post was the more succincter. 
I’m putting this in my diary: “Today I beat @Reco29 to the draw!” Drinks all round!
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I would love to see a pricing system similar to what Bitwig offers.
With the initial purchase, customers get 1 year of free updates. After that, you can extend your update plan for another year by paying $100.
I believe this model could solve several of the issues we’re currently facing:
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We could finally get rid of version numbers and simply call it Cubase.
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Updates could be delivered in a continuous flow. Right now, it often feels like features are either held back or implemented in a way that they can be marketed as part of the next big update.
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The developers would probably enjoy a more relaxed October, without the pressure of a massive release cycle.
From a pricing perspective, nothing would really change for us or for Steinberg. The difference is that we’d likely see new features spread throughout the year — for example, even in summer — instead of waiting for one big annual release.
I have an access code and might take you up on it 27 months from now when there might be a 2 for 1 drinks sale. For now, I just want the recipe bugs fixed on the beer I have.
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That sounds a lot like a subscription plan. I stopped using W*ves plugins (which work great) the moment they switched to that model, and went all-in on UAD.
That would create chaos for anyone trying to troubleshoot issues, make 3rd-party software, or provide support for Cubase. Version numbers exist because each build of a software is a distinct build–they’re not just a marketing gimmick.
That’s how you end-up with a broken DAW. The OS, the audio interface, and the DAW must be tested for compatibility–and that requires versioning. You can’t just push updates to machines if you want reliability and stability.
They would probably put the company out of business.
Have you ever worked in software development or IT? I understand what you’re feeling from a customer perspective–but it goes against all tech best-practices. Continuous updates are for standalone apps and websites–not digital audio workstations.
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Oho nice one! I might go for it!
It is but it’s also not. You get every single point update for the version you currently have a license for even after it has expired. You just don’t get major version upgrades. REAPER has a similar model but it’s 100 version updates instead.
No thanks, I’m happy with the pricing system that Cubase offers.
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It’s the same pricing model pretty much.
So no need to change anything then.
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