Upgrading Cubase or changing horses? What do ya think?

Quote from Geraldo7

First question concerning the above, is it a good idea to upgrade cubase to the newest edition (7).

The newest edition is Cubase 7.5 (on sale since yesterday).
Upgrading from Cubase 5 Essential to the "real thing" is a good idea, of course. But more features, more versatility, more complexity ... to be honest, I think you need a pretty good computer incl. 2 high-res screens to really enjoy it. At least I couldn't do without 2 screens anymore. First screen is project (track) view and second screen is mixer view. no switching back and forth, I can always see everything that matters to me. Cubase is an amazing beast and it is best to get some video workshop to learn the basics and the advanced stuff. Otherwise you can easily get lost.

If I would switch to another DAW? No, I've been using Cubase and its predecessor Pro-24 since almost 25 years. It's been a love-hate relationship at times, but nowadays I'm pretty happy with it.

In my experience it has proven best to get products that offer more flexibility than you think you'll ever need. Nothing is worse than jumping ship every year as your demands grow. Get a solid piece of software that offers more than you need and you'll save money and time in the long run. That being said, I don't qualify to compare different products and/or companies, I'll leave that to others. Imho, Cubase is a solid and powerful foundation for everything you'll ever run into.

I'm a former Cubase user.
Changed to Logic since switching to Macs a couple of years ago because anybody on Mac not working on Logic misses out greatly IMO. And I also own full licences of Ableton Live 9 which is a completely different DAW (and which I therefore have a soft spot for) and studio One V2 which at this point isn't mature enough and lacks features.

That said, you cannot say a lot of bad things about Cubase.
It's a full fledged and very developped, mature DAW which has been around for ages and will stay around at least as long.
It can be complex and clumsy, but if you configure it according to your work flow it can feel very streamlined, too.
The factory plugins nowadays are very good as well (that was the Cubase's weakest part back in the days when Logic on PC was a direct contender, still Logic's plugins are better IMO)
What I didn't like to this day is the dongle which IMO slows down the DAW and is an annoyance.

After dealing with different DAW's over the years my best recommendation would be:
Learn to work with your DAW. Learn how the things you want to do get done in your DAW instead of looking/shopping around all the time. Stick with Cubase.

+1 on Logic though, it is a great software . . . . . better than ever now.

I use Apples Logic and a bunch of WAVES plug Ins. Some are pretty amazing tools like the L316 Mutlimaximizer and the CLA Artist Pack. And surprisingly cheap at the moment: http://www.thomann.de/de/waves_cla_signature_native.htm

IMHO much better than the Logic plug ins.

I used Cubase 00-05, then switched to Reaper and have no intent of switching. It's not the most intuitive daw but if you have patience to dig into it you'll find it has pretty much everything you could possibly need. Never I have ran into a situation where I've thought "wish I could do that with Reaper". I've never had a need to use plugins that cost more than a $100 either on the other hand.

The smart move would be try Reaper for free, it's an uncrippled demo, and if you like it, $60 for 2 versions worth so a bargain. It'll nag you after a month when you open it, but that's the only limitation. Been using it since V2, Reaper and LIve are the only 2 major daws that can rewire both as slave and master (although Reaper doesn't have Live's VST limitation when slaved), and they work well together for me.

It's based more on Vegas than on Cubase , so some things are quite different to learn, but it's fully customizable and they have a lot of tutorials now to get you up to speed. The forum is also one of the most helpful I've encountered.

I'll give Reaper a big +1.

I too was a Cubase user (up until Cubase 4). Reaper is amazng and I have not looked back since.
The bundled reaper plugins sound great when used intelligently.
For what your looking for, I too recommmend the free Reaper version (basically the deal of the century for DAWs) and if you find the plugins underwhelming, add an plugin bundle that suits your style and needs. I bought "Ozone" a while back and it does what I need if I'm feeling lazy and want a simple "make it sound like this" mix in one click.

I've played with Cubase in the past plus some cheaper DAWs.
Have Ableton Live 9, Pro Tools 10. Haven't tried Logic on my Mac, but I tend to actually record on my PC and then mix on my Mac.

When I went to Reaper a few years ago, It was FUN to use. Not Ableton Live "fun" but it made sense to me. Since then they've expanded it A LOT and it's got a lot more to remember and so is closer to the other big DAW's now.

But I use it for everything from learning (slowing down tracks to hear solo's) to cutting up WAV files, etc.
I read it's not top notch professional for MIDI yet, so if you need that, go with others. But give it a whirl. It's lightweight, takes up very little CPU, and pretty robust.

So typically I either use Acid Pro to get up my pre-recorded drum loops (drums on demand) and import the WAV to Reaper. Or use MIDI in Reaper directly for drums from packages like Superior Drummer, and then track everything else directly as well. Up until recently I used an AKAI DPS 24 to record and port tracks because it was an easy-peasy setup, but sold that and go direct PC Reaper now to Mix on a Macbook Pro more because it's mobile and I can do some stuff at work.

Reaper is super Cheap and works on both Mac and PC for the same license. I think a DAW has arrived when Sound on Sound has articles on tips and tricks for it.

Sound on Sound has tips and tricks for: Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Sonar, Reaper, Studio One, Cubase, Logic, Reason, and sometimes other apps like recently Apple's "inter-app audio" for IOS7

Reaper +1

Try the demos. Most DAWs have them and they're uncrippled for the most part.
1) Cubase
2) Sonar
3) Reaper
4) Samplitude
5) Audacity

Never know which workflow suits you best.

Oh yeah, I like this theme for Reaper. It's optimized for two monitors but if you have only one you can quickly switch between the track view and mixer view with crtl+m.

http://www.houseofwhitetie.com…imperial/wt_imperial.html

There are crossgrades available. Basically, if you have a software, you can switch to another DAW for about half price. For example, Magix has their software going at $249 for a crossgrade up to December 31, that's about half price. Am sure other manufacturers will get in on the act.

Cubase 7.5 should be good, I have 6.5 and it has more than enough tools for me. The new one is probably improved, but you have to be a serious producer to get all the functionality out of it. Should be worth it and would last you for more than a few years.

Cubase 7.5 has all the tools you need ... and more.
I totally respect the need for expensive top-end filter plugins and outboard gear when someone is 100% dedicated to professional mixing and mastering. But since we're just normal mortals, you will be more than happy with what you get. I think even the professionals mentioned before could do with the tools provided by Cubase right out of the box. They're just always looking for that little extra. The only extra you should plan to invest in: A good video workshop to get you started and to show you the secrets, capabilities and best practices of Cubase. Don't try to manage it on your own, it's overwhelming.

Cheers,
Martin

I started using Cubase somewhere in the mid 90s. You could say i grew up while the program grew up with me. I am very much used to the workflow and changing completely would be quite a challenge for me. On the other hand i am still on version 5 and 6. Version 7 did not me impress enough to upgrade. But even version 5 does the job nicely.

If i wasn´t "married" with Cubase i would probably switch to Reaper.

Pro tools 10 for me,just what you get used to i suppose but i find it very quick and easy.

Quote from Geraldo7

Or is it better to invest in good and expensive plug-ins since my
cubase 5 is sufficient for recording?

I'd say it's more important to find good plugins you like the sound of. Expensive does not necessarily equal good. Stillwell makes awesome plugins for cheap. Variety of Sound, GVST and Vladg make great free plugins.

Long time Cubase user (since early 90s). Switched to Presonus Studio One about a year ago and never looked back. I also work in ProTools very often and I still prefer Presonus.

Problem with "established" DAWs is that they have a ton of legacy code which makes them inefficient (IMO) and some workflows are slightly dated. Studio One is relatively new and very modern. It's also very fast and doesn't have a problem where 50% of its code is there to solely run copy protection measures.