I’ve been using solidly Cubase LE4 now for the last six months. Before that, I studied this particular version intensely for about two months, trying each feature and control, and making many test clips based on what I was learning from the manual and other users. I should mention that the LE4 manual is terribly written; the Cubase 6 being some 100 times improved.
Until about a month ago, I was 100% determined that it was time to upgrade to Cubase 6. My decision was partly influenced by some hands-on experience with 6, thanks to an acquaintance, and my realization the Cubase audio engine is as good as anyone’s on the market today. I can say that I now have about a CD worth of professional-quality finished pieces that were all recorded exclusively with Cubase LE4 and a great selection of 3rd-party plugins.
Of course, during all this time my curiosity had me learning, testing and experimenting with several other DAW systems. For good example, my oldest son is also a well-known professional musician but in the electronica genre. He swears by his Ableton 8, which I can understand, since he works with it at live shows and likes to make changes on the fly. Two other DAWs I experimented with heavily, because they were absolutely free to download and try with no troubles or strings attached, have been Zynewave’s Podium 2.40 and also REAPER 4.11.
So I will now make some comparisons here and my assessment of my future status with Cubase. First and I think foremost, using the same essential setup, PC, plugins, what-have-you, NEVER did Podium, REAPER or Ableton 8 ever freeze, crash or (in the case of Ableton, the only with full license here) cause any grief or issues with the licensing. All DAWs produced music of at least equal quality to my Cubase setup.
However, in the case of using my Cubase, I was confronted with two major license problems, major issues with what I can only conclude are bugs (and these after the most current 4.1.3 hotfix). Suffice it to say that my PC system is powerful enough for anything Cubase can throw at it, without wasting time on listing specs, and let me assure the reader that I know IT and PC service issues as well as most of my former colleagues. Furthermore, NO changes had been made to the PC or programmes surrounding any of the several problems.
I apologise for a long length to this post; however, since this is both my very first and also last on this forum, I hope one can excuse. After great patience, working hard to “like” or at least accept Steinberg software as it is, I have to say that I simply cannot tolerate such issues. I am well-informed of Cubase 5 and 6, too. It seems like every new edition fixes some past issues but also creates more new and often serious ones. I will not tolerate such behavior from a $400 piece of software.
I also conclude that it is we legal and law-abiding users of Cubase who are paying the price of the many, many licensing problems I and others have had; meanwhile, one can observe the dozens of cracked editions floating throughout the Net. And I also point out that Steinberg’s licensing is not what can be called “industry standard,” either.
Sad that just over a month ago I had every intention of being a lifelong Steinberg customer. You know, I have never posted on this forum, instead getting most of my needed info from other forums, because I have read and witnessed the arrogant treatment handed out to (particularly) new users. I believe it is wonderful that Yamaha is ultimately now in charge, as they are reputable and will most certainly purge the bad behavior from this forum and possibly also within Steinberg itself.
It has been a standing joke up until now within the recording industry that Steinberg is about the last place you go to get a caring and speedy response to any user problems. As secondary proof I note that Cubase issues are discussed some 10 times more on other forums than ever here. Here, one is faced with everything from snide responses and even unkind emoticons. One can almost see the tumbleweeds blowing across the pages here, because few post complaints and even fewer offer mostly ignored suggestions to all-knowing Steinberg. I will disappoint some by saying that it’s very unlikely I’ll return to this post to read the sort of brainwashed trolling criticism I always have seen when anyone complains.
Instead, I’ll leave you to your software and your prejudices. Some commentators here sound as though they are paid Steinberg employees, trolling to strike down any users who don’t toe the company line or express complete love for anything Cubase. Well, I have no love for bloated, poorly functioning software. I find nothing elegant about this DAW, even in Cubase 6. What happened? Steinberg used to be THE industry leader, yet mostly all I see now is a company struggling to keep up with the innovations of the others.
For some obligated other specifics, I will add that even 6 is a nuisance to apply routing, docking (or the lack thereof) is well below state of the art, the floating transport is an annoyance, forcing us to convert all .fxb to .vstpresets to make Cubase happy is an annoyance, having to unfreeze tracks to further update them is silly, Cubase ought to store user prefs. and settings immediately, safely, and well before it feels like crashing, and Cubase sometimes even likes to forget instructions and where it stores various items. I believe software should always do what it is told. It should be our servant and not the other way around. It’s an understatement to say that it has wasted an awful lot of my time and that there is little that is intuitive in its function. I offer these scattered remarks if only to avoid too much vaguery.
I’ll be sure to forward a copy of this farewell post to my contact at Yamaha, and if mysteriously “disappeared” from this forum, I’ll gladly then post this elsewhere around the Net. Unfortunately, based on my previous experiences with this forum, the issue of trust is also part of my complaint.
A Note: In my last licensing problem, my Steinberg contact, although trying to be helpful, supplied a suggested fix that was miles from the correct solution. When recontacted, and after I explained its failure and that I might just quit the software and move on, I received no further response.
