Steinberg Cubase Pro 13 Upgrade Cubase AI 12/13  

Cubase

Cubase is one of the best recording programs in the industry. Cubase is thus increasingly used by professionals. This is because Cubase is a versatile program that works very intuitively. There are technically three different versions of Cubase: Elements, Artist, and Pro. These three versions have different prices and consequently also different functions and plug-ins. Elements is the most affordable version and has thus the least functions and plug-ins, whilst Pro has all the functions and plug-ins. The Artist version falls exactly in between the two. These three versions make Cubase a lot more accessible for beginners because you can already do a lot with just Elements without having to pay hundreds of euros. Do you want to upgrade? No problem, you don’t have to pay the full price of the next program but only the upgrade price.

Pro

Pro is, although quite an investment, the best version of Cubase. You can record different instruments and vocals with so little latency it won’t even be noticeable. Furthermore, all the bars are separated in handy boxes which makes synchronising, cutting, pasting, and dragging a lot easier. The system also has a built-in metronome so you can record your parts whilst staying on beat. Do you dislike the sound of the metronome? No problem, you can choose between different sounds and pitches. Recorded audio is also easy to edit with the added tools (like fades and EQ), effects, and plug-ins. Consequently, you can make the recording as beautiful as possible. Additionally, Steinberg made sure that there are sounds, effects, and plug-ins for every single genre possible. Pro also gives you access to VariAudio 3, which makes it possible to alter the pitch of individual notes of monophonic audio. You can also quantize multiple tracks at the same time and with ARA support editing the audio becomes even easier. With the Project Browser, Track Archives, and Project Import navigating the program will be a lot easier. Pro also gives you access to Audio Alignment, which automatically synchronizes your audio perfectly. This is especially nice if you struggle with latency. Furthermore, you can edit multiple tracks simultaneously with Group Editing. The program can be used with MIDI devices or through an interface.

The differences

One of the most important differences is that Elements has a limited amount of tracks, whilst Artist and Pro have an unlimited amount of tracks. With Elements you are also limited to 16 groups whereas Artist has a limit of 32 and Pro has a limit of 256. Pro has the most effects, sounds, and plug-ins of the three versions. This version is thus the most ‘complete’ and is predominantly used by professional sound engineers. The extra functions mainly make mixing and mastering easier and faster, whilst Elements and Artist are still whole programs with which you can make high-quality music. You can always expand the program further with third-party plug-ins, instruments, and effects.

Keep in mind: this product is software, there are no physical items included.