By Eric Price
ROAD TEST
Steinberg Cubase Pro 8.5 Digital Audio Workstation
At the tail end of 2015 , Steinberg released a low-cost , point revision upgrade that takes Cubase from version 8 up to 8.5 . I am going to take a look at some of the more important and intriguing changes to the Pro edition of this venerable DAW . Hopefully I can help you decide whether you want to ante up and take advantage of the new features right away or wait until their next full version release .
First stop , and first impressions , are with the new transport panel . The actual look of the panel has been cleaned up , sporting a fresh , refined layout , which interestingly enough includes the removal of the jog
shuttle . One very welcome improvement here is the ability to freely edit tempo settings from the transport panel – even when the Tempo Track is engaged .
I also appreciated the retooled look of the MixConsole , with new dynamic hover controls making for quick access to various parameters and its ability to view all the inserts and EQs at the same time . Also added are various pop out commands found along the four sides of whichever window you are working in . One such control , on the right side of the project window , allows you to quickly access the MediaBay . I should point out here that even the MediaBay has been revamped for smarter and quicker use .
Steinberg is also stepping up its game with regard to the collaboration realm with the all-new VST Transit Cloud . VST Transit allows you exchange project files with private individuals , or you can search for users from anywhere in the world with whom you may want to work based on their profile details . The basic version of Transit has 500 MB of storage with 1 GB traffic bandwidth per month and there are paid expansion options with more storage and greater bandwidth currently available .
With this upgrade , I now have two other long-standing requests crossed off my wish list . Firstly , I can at last import tracks from other projects without actually having to open that project – the best part being that the tracks migrate with all of their settings and content intact . Bravo , Steinberg !
Secondly , and even more thrilling for me , was my desire to have punch-in and -out points not tied to the cycle recording mode locator positions and Steinberg has delivered here , too . The punch-in points now being fully independent of the cycle mode locators allows for punch-in zones to be placed inside of larger cycles , making for a more effective punch-in experience .
Like the new import capability , another feature unique to the Cubase Pro version is a profile manager that allows for storing the unique settings for different users that can be recalled instantly , handy when Cubase is deployed in a multi-user environment .
Both the Key and Drum Editors have also benefitted from upgrades . In the Key Editor , you can now shift notes , duplicate notes , and extend note length with just the object selection tool , making manipulating notes far easier and faster than ever before .
With the Drum Editor , you can now condense the edit window by filtering out MIDI parts not in use so you only see the notes with assigned parts instead of seeing all 128 notes at once . Now you can concentrate only on the sounds you are using and not have to deal with empty space . They have also added the ability to view note lengths in the drum editor for the first time .
In the under-the-radar department , Cubase Pro 8.5 now includes zPlane ’ s élastique
version three algorithm for time-stretch and pitch-shift . The results from the new algorithm after applying massive time stretches and / or pitch shifts are very impressive and have never sounded so good .
The Chord Pads also got a few new tweaks , including the ability to use your own chord symbols and also the addition of a new Sections play mode where you can play individual notes from within a chosen chord from your controller .
Finally , Cubase Pro 8.5 includes Retrologue 2 , a new version of Steinberg ’ s virtual analog synth plug-in . The update adds a third oscillator , an enhanced modulation section , and five new effects . Steinberg has taken an already powerful synthesizer and brought it up a few notches . If you ’ re not already using this synth , it certainly deserves a ( second ) look .
The upgrade price varies depending on which version of Cubase you ’ re currently running , so you ’ ll have to visit Steinberg ’ s site for that info . They ’ ve also got a series of informative YouTube videos showcasing these changes and more in greater detail .
But in short , I must say there are definitely some great additions and powerful changes here . Combined with the workflow improvements and visual enhancements , I believe Cubase Pro 8.5 is well worth the investment to upgrade .
Eric Price is in his 10 th year of writing and reviewing for Canadian Musician and yes , the thrill is still there ! He can be reached at eric @ gepconsulting . ca .
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