I am primarily a video editor, but I want to step up my audio game for my short-form content (Reels/TikTok style). I am looking at buying Cubase to handle the audio post-production.
Since I don’t need complex MIDI orchestration, would Cubase Elements be enough to import MP4s, clean up dialogue, and render? Or does Artist have specific video features I would miss?
I just need stable video playback for standard H.264 files without the engine choking.
Hi,
According to the Comparison sheet, Cubase Elements and Cubase Artist offer the same set of features in the Video area.
However, with Cubase Artist, you can work with more tracks, and you will get more built-in plug-ins.
Since the video engine is identical, I think I will start with Elements to keep the initial cost down. If I end up needing more insert slots or VSTs later, I can always upgrade to Artist.
I did even full orchestral compositions in Elements. For the audio part, it should be absolutely enough for you.
Keep in mind, Cubase can be picky about imported video formats, at least on Windows (didn’t check MacOS yet).
One important detail that can block the video import is the requirement for a “Constant Framerate”. Something that is not mentioned anywhere and causes people to waste time trying a lot of different video compression settings that are actually not relevant.
I’m using free Handbrake for the videos that Cubase doesn’t want to import.
Since most of the clips I pull from social media are Variable Framerate (VFR), I would have definitely wasted hours figuring out why the import was failing.
And if you’re doing full orchestral work in Elements, then it’s definitely powerful enough for my simple sound design edits. I’ll stick with Elements and keep Handbrake handy for the conversions.
If you don’t plan on creating music maybe you should check out Wavelab instead of Cubase.
I think it would help if you described what kind of audio work you envision doing. Perhaps Cubase is not the best suited tool?
Just curious, but what video editor do you use? I use VEGAS, which has enough audio features for my (simple) requirements. I’d have thought most, if not all, video editors would be similar.
Fair question! I do high-paced edits for Reels and TikTok where I deal with lots of layered sound effects and dialogue cleanup. Doing this inside my video editor is just too slow and clunky for my needs. I need a dedicated timeline so I can snap sound effects to the grid and use VSTs for noise reduction. I simply prefer the linear layout of Cubase over loop-based software provided that the Elements version can handle the video sync smoothly.
I use Premiere Pro for the majority of my work but I find that the audio editing tools feel quite secondary compared to a dedicated workstation like Cubase. While VEGAS is known for having slightly better audio handling than most editors, I still struggle with precise rhythm alignment and high quality plugin management when I am layering multiple tracks of sound effects. Moving the project into a DAW just feels much more fluid for the kind of sound design I am aiming for so I am looking forward to testing how Elements handles the sync.
Sounds like Cubase might be a good fit for your needs. I would recommend you trying it out. All versions of Cubase can be used for a generous 60 day trial period.
Might as well go for Cubase Pro!