Cubase Pro 8
Cubase Artist 8
Read me
Decem ber 2014
Steinberg M edia Technologies Gm bH
Table of contents
Welcome .................................................................................................................................. 3
Welcome to Cubase! ................................................................................................................ 3
What is new in Cubase 8? ...................................................................................................... 4
Software license and system requirements .................................................................. 5
Software licensing ..................................................................................................................... 5
Minimum system requirements ............................................................................................... 5
Installation and activation .................................................................................................. 6
Installation ................................................................................................................................... 6
License activation ...................................................................................................................... 6
Technical support and additional resources ................................................................. 8
Register your software first ...................................................................................................... 8
Technical support ...................................................................................................................... 8
Updates for download .............................................................................................................. 8
Hardware drivers ........................................................................................................................ 8
Steinberg USB-eLicenser ....................................................................................................... 9
DAW key command presets ................................................................................................... 9
The Cubase community ........................................................................................................... 9
Known issues in Cubase.......................................................................................................... 9
Additional technical information .................................................................................... 10
Cubase 64-bit version ........................................................................................................... 10
Plug-in compatibility with older Cubase projects ........................................................... 11
Old VST plug-ins .................................................................................................................... 11
Notes about using SoundCloud.......................................................................................... 12
Credit notice:
Steinberg, Cubase, Groove Agent, ASIO and VST are registered trademarks of Steinberg Media
Technologies GmbH. Windows and DirectX are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the
United States and other countries. Mac, Mac OS and OS X are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the
U.S. and other countries. Intel is a trademark of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. AMD is a
registered trademark of Advanced Micro Devices. All other product and company names are trademarks
and registered trademarks of their respective holders. All specifications are subject to change without
notice. Made in Germany. Copyright © 2014 Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. All rights reserved.
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Welcome
Welcome to Cubase!
Congratulations and thank you for purchasing Steinberg’s
Cubase Pro 8 or Cubase Artist 8!
Cubase has a very long and successful lineage, going all the
way back to 1989. Since its first release on the legendary
Atari computer, Cubase has become a household name
around the globe. And this is just one of many reasons why
musicians, producers, composers and audio engineers have
turned to Cubase over the past quarter century and made it
the home of their musical creativity.
The goal for this iteration was to combine latest
technological advancements with creative capabilities: to mix
innovation with inspiration, to marry professionalism with
passion. And we believe that we’ve succeeded in delivering
just that.
The list of new features in Cubase Pro 8 and Cubase Artist 8
is long, and while some of them are immediately apparent,
others are tucked away to work effectively in the background.
It took a huge amount of engineering to make projects open
and save faster, to make the software more responsive and
have it perform at its very best.
If you are an upgrading customer, we thank you for your
continued faith in us. If you are entirely new to Cubase, we
hope you appreciate the new possibilities that our advanced
music production system has to offer.
Either way, please fill us in on your experiences with Cubase
by referring to our internet forums at
www.steinberg.net/forum or through the contact channels for
your region, the information of which you can find on our
website.
The Start Center runs automatically as soon as you insert the
Cubase DVD. If you take a closer look, you’ll notice that we
link to our trial versions, and we invite you to explore other
Steinberg software titles, which will encourage you to
continue to push your creative envelope.
Please do not forget to register with us through MySteinberg
to gain access to online support offers and additional
exclusive services.
We wish you a lot of musical inspiration when working with
your brand-new Cubase DAW!
Your Steinberg Team
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What is new in Cubase Pro 8 and Cubase Artist 8?
To get an overview of the new features Cubase Pro 8 and
Cubase Artist 8 have to offer, please take a look at:
www.steinberg.net/cubase8
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Software license and system requirements
Software licensing
Please read the Software End User License Agreement
displayed on your screen when installing Cubase. By
installing the software you are declaring yourself to be in
agreement with the conditions in the contract.
If you want to read the Software End User License
Agreement independently from the installation process, or if
you want to print the contract, you’ll find the text file on the
DVD and downloaded medium in the “Additional
Content/License” folder. Please open the file in your
preferred language.
Minimum system requirements
Please make sure that your system meets at least the
following minimum system requirements.
PC Mac
Windows 7 / 8.x OS X versions 10.9 / 10.10
Intel or AMD dual core CPU
8 GB RAM (minimum: 4 GB)
15 GB free HD space
1920 x 1080 display resolution (minimum: 1366 x 768)
Graphics card with DirectX 10 and WDDM 1.1 support
(Windows only)
USB port for USB-eLicenser (license management)
OS compatible audio hardware
DVD-ROM dual-layer drive
Internet connection required for activation, account setup and
personal / product registration. Additional downloads may be
required for the installation.
For recommended systems and support of future
operating systems, please refer to the Support section
on our website www.steinberg.net.
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Installation and activation
Installation
DVD installation
Depending on your system, the Cubase Start Center
program on the DVD may start automatically. If no interactive
start menu appears, view the contents on the DVD and
double-click the file “Start Center” under Windows or “Start
Center” on a Mac computer. From here you can start the
installation of Cubase and browse through the additional
options and information.
Download installation for PC
The installers are also available as a download from:
http://www.steinberg.net/c8dl
Windows PC
After the download double-click the archive for self-
extraction. After extraction, open the resulting folder and
double-click the file “Start Center” to start the Cubase Start
Center application. From here you can start the installation of
Cubase and browse through the additional options and
information.
OS X
After the download open the disc image. Double-click the file
“Start Center” to start the Cubase Start Center application.
From here you can start the installation of Cubase and
browse through the additional options and information.
License activation
The retail version of Cubase ships with a USB-eLicenser
which is pre-loaded with a 25-hour license. It allows you to
use Cubase up to 25 hours of non-consecutive operation
time. The remaining time will be displayed each time you start
Cubase. Please make sure to activate your Cubase license
permanently within this timeframe, as it will not run without a
permanent license. For further details, please read:
http://www.steinberg.net/activate
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USB-eLicenser authorization is also covered in detail in the
printed Quick Start Manual as well as in the Operation
Manual PDF.
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Technical support and additional resources
Register your software first
Please register your version of Cubase with us through
MySteinberg to gain access to online support offers and
additional exclusive services. To do so, visit:
http://www.steinberg.net/mysteinberg
Technical support
Steinberg product specialists are also on hand to provide
individual assistance at:
http://www.steinberg.net/en/support
Please note that you are required to register your product
online to receive technical support and information.
Updates for download
Developing software is an ongoing process that perpetually
gets closer to perfection without ever achieving it, thus we
encourage you to make sure you are using the latest version
of Cubase at all times.
Download the current installer/patch from the respective
download page at:
http://www.steinberg.net/en/support/downloads
Hardware drivers
Cubase requires recent drivers and components for your
audio and remote controller hardware, so please make sure
that the latest versions are installed before you start working
with Cubase.
You can download the most recent drivers for all Steinberg
hardware from the respective download page at:
http://www.steinberg.net/en/support/downloads
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Steinberg USB-eLicenser
Should you experience any difficulties with your USB-
eLicenser, go to the “Additional Content/Copy Protection
Driver” folder on the DVD and double-click the included
installation setup file. Alternatively, you can download and
install the latest version of this software at:
http://www.elicenser.net/en/latest_downloads
DAW key command presets
Cubase is installed with key command presets for Pro Tools,
Logic and Sonar. These presets map common key
commands used on these DAWs to corresponding Cubase
functions.
Please take a look at the “Pro Tools Key Commands Preset”
document in the “Read Me Files” folder on the Cubase DVD
for more details.
The Steinberg user forum
Meet the global community of Cubase in the official
Steinberg forums for tons of tips and other useful information
at:
http://www.steinberg.net/forums/
Known issues in Cubase
For a list of known issues and solutions, please take a look
at:
https://www.steinberg.net/nc/en/support/knowledge
base_new/show_details/kb_show/cubase-8-version-
history-and-issues-and-solutions.html
The known issues and solutions list contains may only relate
to specific Cubase versions. Please be sure to read through
it before contacting the Steinberg support team.
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Additional technical information
Cubase 64-bit version
OS X
Cubase will start as 64-bit application by default. If you want
to start Cubase as 32-bit version, select the Cubase
application icon and then choose “Get Info” from the context
menu. In the “Get Info” window, check “Open in 32-bit
mode”.
W hen using C ubase in 6 4 -bit mode, the VST
Bridge allows you to load Intel-compiled 3 2 -bit VST
2 .4 plug-ins only. VST 3 3 2 -bit plug-ins are not
supported. Please check with the respective plug-in
manufacturer if and when your favorite plug-ins will be
available in native 6 4 -bit format. If not, switch to 3 2 -
bit mode as described.
Windows PC
Users of Windows 7 and Windows 8 64-bit editions have
the choice of installing either the 32-bit version and/or the
native 64-bit version (default). Both versions can also be
installed on one computer.
The 64-bit version of Cubase contains the VST Bridge,
which allows you to run VST 2.4 plug-ins and instruments, if
they’re not available in 64-bit format.
When working with the 64-bit version of Cubase, you may
encounter issues with third-party plug-ins if they are not in
compliance with the User Account Control (UAC) feature of
Windows. Affected plug-ins are, for example, based on the
“SynthEdit audio plug-in creator”. In such cases, please try
to start Cubase with administrator privileges.
Please note that VST 3 plug-ins in 3 2 -bit won’t
be available using the 6 4 -bit version of C ubase. 3 2 -bit
plug-ins based on W aves W aveshell are not supported.
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Plug-in compatibility with older Cubase projects
Groove Agent ONE is no longer included in installation
program of version 8. We recommend switching to Groove
Agent SE, which is included in versions of Cubase since 7.5.
If you still need Groove Agent ONE for projects in Cubase
Pro 8 or Cubase Artist 8, please follow these steps:
OS X
• Open the Cubase Pro 8 or Cubase Artist 8 DVD, or
mount the downloaded disc image.
• Open the folder “Cubase 8 for Mac OS X”, then
“Additional Content” > “Groove Agent One” > “Mac”.
• Copy the file “Groove Agent ONE.vst3”, then open your
Applications folder on your system drive, select “Cubase
8.app”, open the context menu and select “Show
Package Contents”, then browse to the folder
“Contents“ > “VST3” and paste the copied file into this
folder.
Windows PC
• Open the Cubase Pro 8 or Cubase Artist 8 DVD, or
mount the downloaded disc image.
• Open the folder “Cubase 8 for Windows”, then
“Additional Content” > “Groove Agent One” >
“Windows 32-bit” or “Windows 64-bit” (corresponding
to the Cubase version you have installed).
• Copy all files in the respective folder, then open your
system drive and paste them into this folder for 64-bit:
“Programs” > “Steinberg” > “Cubase 8” > “VST3”
For 32-bit: “Programs (x86)” > “Steinberg” > “Cubase
8” > “VST3”.
Outdated plug-ins from earlier C ubase versions
are available on the Steinberg website in case you
need them for compatibility reasons.
Old VST plug-ins
Outdated VST plug-ins may render the application
unresponsive. Please use only VST plug-ins built with VST
SDK 2.4 or higher.
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Notes about using SoundCloud
While uploading mixes from Cubase to your SoundCloud
account, your web browser will open and the SoundCloud
website will ask you to connect Cubase to your SoundCloud
account. Once you have confirmed this connection, it will be
valid for several hours, so you do not need to re-connect
Cubase with every other upload.
To disable the connection between Cubase and your
SoundCloud account, log in to SoundCloud and click on the
“Revoke access” button under “Settings” > “Connections”.
Please note that the web browser Opera is not
supported for uploading audio material from C ubase to
SoundC loud.
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