Steinberg Cubase
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Cubase is a MIDI, music sequencer and digital audio editing computer application (commonly known as a DAW - Digital Audio Workstation) created by the German firm Steinberg in 1989.
Origins
Cubase started as a MIDI recording and editing tool. Later, features for recording raw audio were introduced. Cubase was originally written for the Atari ST, and has since been ported to Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows.
The original Cubase used its own operating system called MROS (MIDI Real-time Operating System) which runs on top of the computer's own operating system. MROS did not initially work well on Windows 3.0, which was not intended for real-time applications. However, modern operating systems are designed to support multimedia applications, so modern versions of Cubase no longer use MROS.
The release of Cubase in 1993 on the Atari Falcon was breakthrough in DSP software technology as realtime manipulation of audio was possible without the assistance of additional processor cards as was the case with the more costly Pro Tools and other similar systems.
Operation
Cubase creates projects which allow the operator to edit MIDI files, raw audio tracks, and other associated information like lyrics, and to present them in a range of formats including musical scores, editing console, event lists, etc. The operator can also mix the various tracks down into a stereo .wav format ready to be saved on a CD.
While MIDI is a fairly ubiquitous standard for representation of digital music, there is no broadly accepted standard for the interchange of complete projects containing both MIDI and audio between Cubase and other competing recording/editing software (e.g. Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Digital Performer, or Cakewalk), so while actual pure recorded audio information can be exchanged, it is hard to import a whole project (with specific edits, instrument information and automation) in its native format from Cubase to another application and vice versa. The cross-platform OMFI format (which is supported by Cubase SX) resolves this issue to some extent.
Versions
Cubase has undergone three main incarnations - initially Cubase, which featured only MIDI, and which was available on the Atari, Macintosh and Windows. After a brief period with audio integration, the next incarnation, Cubase VST, featured fully-integrated audio recording and mixing along with effects - VST stands for Virtual Studio Technology, a standard for audio plug-ins which has led to a plethora of third-party effects, both freeware and commercial. Cubase VST was only for Macintosh and Windows - Atari support had been effectively dropped by this time, despite such hardware still being a mainstay in many studios. Despite Cubase VST offering a then-unheard-of amount of power to the home user, computer hardware took some time to catch up, and by the time it did, VST's audio editing capability was shown up to be weak compared with systems such as ProTools DAE and Digital Performer MAS. To address this, a totally new version of the program called Cubase SX (which is based on Steinberg's flagship software Nuendo) was introduced, which dramatically altered the way the program ran, and featured a steep learning curve for users of older Cubase versions. However, once the new methods of working are learned, the improvements in handling of audio and automation make for a truly professional sequencer and audio editor.
A notable improvement with the introduction of Cubase SX was the advanced audio editing, especially the ability to 'undo' audio edits. Early versions of Cubase VST did not have this capability. Cubase SX features real-time time-stretching and adjustment of audio tempo, much like Sonic Foundry's ground-breaking ACID.
There are four cost-progressive, variable-feature versions of Cubase (in pricewise ascending order): LE, SE, SL, and SX. Cubase LE is only sold as an OEM product and is included for free with various music hardware products.
The differences in features (of version 2.0) are tabled in this PDF. As of December 2005, the latest version of Cubase SX/SL software is 3.1.
Copy Protection
Almost all versions of Cubase use dongles for copy protection. Parallel port dongles were employed as copy protection up until Cubase VST5.0. Cubase SX V1.0 introduced the use of cross-platform USB dongles. Both dongle types allow license transfer between machines.
VST Instruments
Cubase VST 2.0 in 1999 introduced a virtual instrument interface for software synthesizers known as VSTi. This made it possible for third-party software programmers to create and sell virtual instruments for Cubase. This technology has become the de facto standard for other DAW software when integrating software based instruments on the Macintosh and Windows platforms.