I bought the Nuendo crossgrade from Cubase. I don’t want to surrender my Cubase license now because I’m in the middle of a project. I have 4 questions:
1- How reliable is Nuendo to open Cubase projects, and how reliable is Nuendo 11 compare to Cubase 11?
2- Is there a time limit to activate my Nuendo license?
3- For those who did the crossgrade, what are your impressions? What feature do you benefit the most from Nuendo compare to Cubase?
4- I’m used to Cubase for music work, mostly MIDI. I do post jobs on ProTools (13 years) and want to move to Nuendo. I always kept default Cubase shortcuts but for post work and a lot of editing and spotting clips, I was thinking about using the PT shortcut template in the Key Command editor. I tried it but it seems quite limited in the way it is programmed. What are your takes on that? Trying to replicate what I’m used to in ProTools or learn and program shortcuts based on Nuendo default shortcuts? (I know it purely subjective, I curious about your experiences) Is there someone who did program more PT like shortcuts who be kind to share it?
4- PT shortcuts. I am a 20+ year user of PT, and finally moved out of that into Nuendo, for many reasons.
To me, personally, I just preferred to learn Nuendo’s default shortcuts. Also makes it easier if I have to come on here or ask someone “how do I do this?” as they most likely use Nuendo shortcuts.
I moved from Pro Tools HD in 2015, first to Cubase, and now very recently to Nuendo (I compose for film/TV/theatre and also do sound design for theatre).
I’ve been through the exact same crossgrade process, and was reassured by seasoned users on this forum, that Nuendo will have no trouble opening all kinds of Cubase projects. Nuendo = Cubase Pro Ultimate.
I don’ think so – I would be interested to know this too!
Video cut detection, Cue sheet export, Loudness track…! To name a few! (Plus, there is that ever-returning subject about the “red border” style selection, that is different from Cubase’s “inverted” selection look. I prefer Nuendo style.)
I would also advise against adapting your PT shortcuts onto Nuendo. The programs approach things in different ways and the PT functions do not necessarily “directly translate” to Nuendo.
The Nuendo YouTube channel has some great videos about coming to Nuendo from another DAW (actually Pro Tools).
I would also buy one of these keyboards. They are great:
The shortcuts you miss and the functions you need often can easily be built with a combination of logical editor and macros, and then be made to shortcuts. Then, as an addition to the keyboard, I would also strongly recommend getting an Elgato Stream Deck XL. I create keyboard shortcuts for all my special functions that I use very often, and map them to the Stream Deck. This way, I can carefully mold my own DAW to exactly what I want it to be. That’s the really incredible thing about Cubendo!
4 - I moved from PT a couple of years ago and went with the PT Keycomands as a startingpoint. There were some things not translating too well so I chose to rearrange them, but a lot of stuff is just muscle memory and it gets you started pretty well. Also, when switching back to PT for some reason (we do some stuff in PT for compatibility reasons or for STEM Session etc.) you are right back in that seat, too.
Thanks for your input!
I’ll try to use the default shortcuts and expand them. I like the idea of something like the Elgato Stream Deck. I think there’s an iPad app that can do something similar, could be a good way to use my old iPad.
I took some time to look at all the commands available in the Key Commands page, there are so many! Trying to assign keys in a logical way so they are easy to remember seems like a hard time but I think it will worth it. That’s one thing I like about PT, the shortcuts assignment and the use of modifier are so logical.
Yes, seeing that list of key commands is daunting. I don’t think the key commands window is really meant that way, as a list to be viewed and remembered – it’s not really structured that way. That’s why I like the coloured keyboards from the likes of Logickeyboard, KB Covers and Editors Keys. The labeled keys contain all the core functionality right in front of me, and I don’t change those. But everything else, the more complex key combinations, I adapt to my own workflow and change as I please.
I agree that moving from PT, the core logic of the F1-F4 keys and the way it mends together with the behaviour of the F5-F10 tools, was one of the hardest things to leave behind. But after a while, molding my own workflow to my liking (which PT won’t really let you), became even more attractive.
Hope you find your own way with your combination of Nuendo/PT! (As a fan of said labeled keyboards, having different keyboards or covers to choose from has saved me throughout my multiple-DAW years )
I switched to Nuendo for two main reasons. Initally, speaker layouts beyond 5.1 , like 7.1 or 7.1.4. And as of the end of 2020, that the Dolby Atmos Renderer got included.
But don’t weight this too hard. Am just (I think) a somewhat ambitioned hobbyist exploring the world of Immersive Audio in various areas. Nothing about video, movie and film.
Yeah, the Dolby Atmos feature is really interesting. I don’t have the speaker setup to do it, but I’ll begin exploration with binaural monitoring someday soon!
For those who want to know the answer, I send an email to Yamaha support. The activation code for a crossgrade from Cubase to Nuendo doesn’t expire. Even if I wait until the next paid update for Nuendo, the activation code will activate whatever Nuendo version is out at that moment.
