As
expected from Steinberg, the Getting Started book
is clear and informative, with advice on setting up
your soundcard and instructions for connecting the
"dongle"...the small but essential piece of
hardware that occupies a USB port to allow Cubase
to work (incidentally you can store more than one
licence on this should you have other software,
such as "The Grand", which require the same
protection). The book takes us through basic (and
some not so basic) audio and midi recording and
editing procedures to a final mix, so straightaway
a newcomer to Cubase, or to digital recording in
general, could understand the workflow and get
going.
Once installed, the PDF help documents really are comprehensive as is appropriate for a programme of this calibre, covering Plug-ins, remote control devices, midi features, and of course the main Operation Manual. Demo songs and arrangements are included on the disc to illustrate what Cubase can do and how to do it.
Recording audio is easy, and we have the option of cycle or stack recording - great for multiple takes of, for example, a guitar solo which can easily be edited using the best parts from each take. Other audio editing functions are easily carried out too; normalising, reversing, fades and crossfades - one we particularly like is the "audio warp" tool enabling part or parts of an audio file to be brought into line with the song, and "slices from hitpoints", so parts of, say, a drum loop can be re-arranged.
Speaking of loops, Steinberg have dramatically improved the way loops are accessed, auditioned and imported into the song with the aforementioned editing features then being immediately to hand, so if you are a loop based musician looking for the sort of editing features and automation Cubase can offer then this is definitely worth considering.
Recording and editing Midi is easy with Cubase; again we have choices as to how we record; to merge as we build up a drumloop, or replace as we try the same keyboard solo several times...The score editor - to "write" notes on a stave, or to print out Midi parts we have played and edited - is excellent and can open up a whole different way for many musicians to construct a song.
Included in Cubase Studio 4 are "Prologue" and "Halion 1"...both virtual instruments with some excellent sounds. Prologue is a sythesiser modelled on subtractive synthesis with three oscillators and effects, while Halion 1 is essentially a sampler that plays sounds in the .hsb format - you cannot create these files with this version of Halion - you need the full version for that - but nevertheless the sounds are excellent and can be altered and automated to your liking.
Steinberg now supply effects in the improved VST3 format, such as the excellent Roomworks reverb (we can still use VST2 though as it's backwards compatible) and there is the facility to "freeze" insert effects and instruments thus freeing-up CPU power.
One particular feature we found useful is the Play Order Track. This allows you to work with sections of a song in much the same way a playlist works - have a verse, bridge, chorus for example, order them in the list, repeat as required...it creates a pattern based way of working allowing several arrangements of a song without extensive editing to make the changes. Once you settle on a particular arrangement it's easy to "flatten" it and create a linear left to right flow in the usual way.
So what do we think? Of course cheaper sequencers are avaliable, but the sound quality, effects and instruments are excellent within Cubase Studio 4; we can import and use video in different formats, the automation is superb, the score facility is comprehensive and don't forget that Cubase is Re-wire compatible so can work alongside other programmes, and is Cross-platform, ie: works on a Windows machine or a Mac. Those who are serious about their music would do well to consider Cubase Studio 4 as the central program within their project studio.
Once installed, the PDF help documents really are comprehensive as is appropriate for a programme of this calibre, covering Plug-ins, remote control devices, midi features, and of course the main Operation Manual. Demo songs and arrangements are included on the disc to illustrate what Cubase can do and how to do it.
Recording audio is easy, and we have the option of cycle or stack recording - great for multiple takes of, for example, a guitar solo which can easily be edited using the best parts from each take. Other audio editing functions are easily carried out too; normalising, reversing, fades and crossfades - one we particularly like is the "audio warp" tool enabling part or parts of an audio file to be brought into line with the song, and "slices from hitpoints", so parts of, say, a drum loop can be re-arranged.
Speaking of loops, Steinberg have dramatically improved the way loops are accessed, auditioned and imported into the song with the aforementioned editing features then being immediately to hand, so if you are a loop based musician looking for the sort of editing features and automation Cubase can offer then this is definitely worth considering.
Recording and editing Midi is easy with Cubase; again we have choices as to how we record; to merge as we build up a drumloop, or replace as we try the same keyboard solo several times...The score editor - to "write" notes on a stave, or to print out Midi parts we have played and edited - is excellent and can open up a whole different way for many musicians to construct a song.
Included in Cubase Studio 4 are "Prologue" and "Halion 1"...both virtual instruments with some excellent sounds. Prologue is a sythesiser modelled on subtractive synthesis with three oscillators and effects, while Halion 1 is essentially a sampler that plays sounds in the .hsb format - you cannot create these files with this version of Halion - you need the full version for that - but nevertheless the sounds are excellent and can be altered and automated to your liking.
Steinberg now supply effects in the improved VST3 format, such as the excellent Roomworks reverb (we can still use VST2 though as it's backwards compatible) and there is the facility to "freeze" insert effects and instruments thus freeing-up CPU power.
One particular feature we found useful is the Play Order Track. This allows you to work with sections of a song in much the same way a playlist works - have a verse, bridge, chorus for example, order them in the list, repeat as required...it creates a pattern based way of working allowing several arrangements of a song without extensive editing to make the changes. Once you settle on a particular arrangement it's easy to "flatten" it and create a linear left to right flow in the usual way.
So what do we think? Of course cheaper sequencers are avaliable, but the sound quality, effects and instruments are excellent within Cubase Studio 4; we can import and use video in different formats, the automation is superb, the score facility is comprehensive and don't forget that Cubase is Re-wire compatible so can work alongside other programmes, and is Cross-platform, ie: works on a Windows machine or a Mac. Those who are serious about their music would do well to consider Cubase Studio 4 as the central program within their project studio.
Steinberg Cubase Studio 4 Review