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Why does Cubase suck?

Bard2dbone

Bard2dbone

Aug 4, 2002
6,760
846
62
Arlington TX
#1
So right after, and I mean immediately after I bought a system that comes bundled with Cubase, I started seeing comments on forums about what crap Cubase is. My first thought is "Where were you guys a month ago?" My second thought is "Why?"

So details please: Why does Cubase suck?
 
#3
I've been using Cubase for a few years now...and it definitely doesn't suck. I think there's a decent learning curve with it that throws people...but it's a great program for many of us.

On the other hand, I think that Steinberg sucks. When I moved to my new macbook pro, I ended up with a copy of SE3 for it after moving from an earlier version. Of course, Steinberg neglected to mention anywhere on their website or on the product that it doesn't function with intel-duo-core processors and that you have to upgrade to the much more expensive 4 versions to use it...and it won't run any of the VST plug-ins I loved with the earlier versions.
 
#4
I'd say it, like everything else on forums like this, is good or bad only based on personal preference.

I personally don't like it, there's a feature or two that isn't in a spot I like it to be or isn't there, and there's a few features that are there that I think get in the way, but all in all it's a decent program. It's not like it's poorly coded or just thrown together, so if it works for you it works for you.
 
#6
The workflow is iffy. It just doesnt feel like a professional program to me. As mohawk stated everyone is gonna hate a DAW. Go to other websites and search about pro tools. There are more pro tools haters than any other DAW and its the industry standard. They all do the same thing in a different way, people are either gonna love it or hate it.
 
#8
i_got_a_mohawk said:
If you buy anything, you will soon find piles of people saying it sucks.
Click to expand...

THis is absolutley true. Anything you buy, someone will say that it's garbage. If you play a bass solo, someone will say how easy and unimpressive it is. If you start dating a new girl,. someone will say how "easy" she is. Basically, people are idiots. If people were chocolates they weould be bastard coated bastards with bastard filling. I usually ask opinions on places like this but ultimately I decide for myself what sucks and what is good.
 
#10
Depends on what version of Cubase you are talking about.
If you have the LE version that comes with stuff like cheap Zoom effects units, you might find that it isn't all that amazing. Especially if you have, like me, previously used Cubase 4 at school or something.
 
#11
Cubase is an excellent, pro-level program. I have used it for years in a professional environment. There are a couple limitations compared to Nuendo (simultaneous track rendering, for example), but the value tradeoff is worth it for many, including me. It particularly excels at a MIDI-integrated environment.

Also great programs: Pro Tools, Samplitude, Logic. Choose the one that makes sense for you and don't take too much stock in internet advice.
 
#12
I have used a few different hardware and software systems.

As Elros said, there are a few different versions of cubase, from free (LE) to v4. Experience will depend alot on what you want/expect them to do, because they are not all as loaded with capabilities as the premium version, but I haven't found any of them to "suck."

I think alot of people (me included) write it (anything, really) off more because they don't understand how to use it as opposed to it actually sucks. But there is alot of value to it working intuitively, and if the program doesn't match well with a person's particular conceptual scheme it might seem like it's a poor design. Sometimes, though, it's more the brain circuitry that's not up to par.

You'll also find alot of people that get the free version (LE) bundled with some hardware and think it sucks, but the real problem is they can't get their mixer/recorder/input device to interface properly with their PC, and they blame that on Cubase. I think Protools also had a free version for a while but pulled it- many of the nastiest reviews of that were also from people who invested the same amount of time and brains learning how to use it as the money they spent, zero...
 
#13
There is no promised land in terms of DAW. There never was, there was just the first (Pro Tools) and little else, and then there were many (including free ones). In fact I am seeing a lot more mid-level studios that are using Cubase and SONAR. But the big studios still pretty much use the ProTools/HD192 stuff because "industry standard" is a valuable phrase if you are a studio, though almost always they also are able to deal with (convert??) Cubase files as well. If someone says "Cubase sucks!" I think they just don't have a complete understanding.
 
#16
As a program, I don't like Cubase....not because it sucks, but because it comes from a very different mindset than I do. I just find it awkward to use, with a very strange UI. Given it's origins are German, and I'm in the US, this could be part of it.

I use and like Sonar a lot; Reaper is the best app for the money I've ever seen; ProTools is industry standard (though I don't care for it either). I find all 3 of these easier to use than Cubase.

Steinberg, on the other hand, do suck. Very bad about issuing updates, even ones that have been promised in public. Draconian dongle copy protection scheme / replacement policy (pretty much, lose it, break it: buy it again). Now that Yamaha own Steinberg things may get better, but Japanese ownership of a German company releasing english language product sounds dicey. And as much as I enjoy the company of Germans and Japanese, neither country's corporate culture has a great history of responding to customer feedback.
 
#17
IMO the interface is kinda hard to use, compared to say Pro Tools. I use Nuendo (Cubase on steroids) and it takes a good while to get used to it, but even so little GUI things tend to bother me, but then again all interfaces have their issues. One thing that I do not like is that when you are doing an EFX process and want to get the preview, it will only do it for the track rather than preview+the other tracks at the same time. The device setup is a lot better than those I have tried on Cubase, which took forever to set up right. The mp3 mix export sucks, I have to do everything in .wav and convert it later. I think for the most part though, it just takes a while to get used to, but Pro Tools just struck me as a bit more of a professional program than Cubase/Nuendo, but thats all opinion.
 
#18
Bard2dbone said:
So right after, and I mean immediately after I bought a system that comes bundled with Cubase, I started seeing comments on forums about what crap Cubase is. My first thought is "Where were you guys a month ago?" My second thought is "Why?"

So details please: Why does Cubase suck?
Click to expand...

oh, it's just this obsession with tools that men have (and yes, it's always men)

tools and technique, we think that just one more fancy tool, one whizzy new technical trick will take us where we need to be... it's not just musicians... check out photography or Apple Mac forums some time :) all full of desperate men trying to fulfill themselves with tool accumulation :)

bunch of tools the lot of em :)

whether or not Cubase 'sucks' is totally irrelevant to 99% of people who hold an opinion, because they probably wouldn't do anything special with it even if it was 'awesome' or whatever the opposite of 'sucks' is...

Mozart needed a pen, a harpsichord, some paper and a powdered wig, end of story...
 
#20
Bard2dbone said:
So right after, and I mean immediately after I bought a system that comes bundled with Cubase, I started seeing comments on forums about what crap Cubase is. My first thought is "Where were you guys a month ago?" My second thought is "Why?"

So details please: Why does Cubase suck?
Click to expand...

Cubase doesn't suck...
As with most things, it's all down to the person running it.
If you start with a well spec'd/configured machine, then add Cubase/Sonar/Neundo/Reaper/Samplitude/etc, you should be able to get some serious work done.
One thing that all DAW software has in common... it's imperfect. You can throw out any DAW software, and an experienced user can "shoot holes in it".
No matter what you choose, there will be some amount of compromise.

My advice is to try as many different DAW apps as you can... then chose the one that best fits your environment/temperment/budget.
If Cubase is your choice, I'd install it and make some music.

I've got numerous major label clients... and I can tell you for certain that Top 10 records have been made using: ProTools, Logic, Cubase, Samplitude, Nuendo, Digital Performer and Sonar. In the end, they're all just tools to get the job done.


Jim Roseberry
www.studiocat.com
[email protected]
 

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