Cubase Artist 16 Upgrade from Elements 12-15

Cubase Artist 16 is a powerful music production environment for musicians, songwriters and producers ready to take their creativity further. Make beats, create melodies, record vocals and instruments, and turn ideas into complete productions with advanced MIDI, audio editing and mixing tools. Explore inspiring instruments, effects and sounds, shape performances with VariAudio and VocalTouch, and build rich layers with Instrument Stacks. Whether you are producing electronic music, making beats, writing songs, recording instruments or composing, Cubase Artist gives you the creative freedom and production tools to develop your ideas, refine your sound and make your music sound like you.

Every song starts somewhere new. Cubase gives you the tools and freedom to bring your ideas to life and make it sound like you.

Why Cubase?

Create Without Limits

Turn your ideas into finished music with everything you need to compose, record, edit, and mix in one production environment.

Made for Your Music

From electronic music and songwriting to recording, orchestral composition, and scoring, Cubase feels at home across genres and production styles.

Bring Ideas to Life

Create beats, chords, melodies, and sounds with tools that help you experiment, explore new possibilities, and turn inspiration into music that feels like your own.

Make Cubase Your Own

Shape Cubase around the way you work, with an environment that adapts to your workflow, experience, and ambitions.

Highlights

Everything you need to make music

Cubase combines MIDI composition, audio recording and editing, mixing, scoring, and mastering tools in one production environment.

Made for every genre

From electronic music and songwriting to band recording, orchestral composition, and scoring, Cubase adapts to your music and your workflow.

A complete studio from the start

Explore a wide range of included VST instruments, effects, sounds, and samples to start creating right away.

Professional sound and performance

Experience pristine sound quality and ultra-low latency performance. Cubase provides a powerful audio engine for demanding music production workflows.

Mixing excellence made easy

Shape your mix with MixConsole, combining channel strips, effects, automation, and flexible tools for everyday music production.

MIDI is at the heart

Powerful Key and Drum Editors, controller editing, MIDI tools, and detailed quantization make Cubase especially capable for MIDI-heavy production.

The home of VST

Built by the company behind VST, Cubase provides deep VST 3 integration for third-party instruments and effects.

VariAudio pitch correction

Perfect vocals and other audio with ease, using Cubase's advanced VariAudio for pitch and timing correction tools.

Turn ideas into music

Explore chords, harmonies, and melodies with Chord Pads, Chord Track, and Scale Assistant, whether you’re starting with an idea or developing a full arrangement.

Built for demanding projects

ASIO-Guard, multi-core processing, plug-in delay compensation, and scalable project architecture support demanding productions with large track and plug-in counts.

Compose for picture

Compose with confidence using Cubase's comprehensive scoring and notation features, designed for film, TV, and orchestral arrangements.

Features

• Audio Engine — 64-bit floating point processing and up to 192 kHz sample rate for high-quality audio.
• VariAudio — Advanced vocal editing and pitch correction for precise control over pitch, timing, and intonation.
• MixConsole — Professional mixing desk with high-end channel strip, offering extensive routing and automation capabilities.
• ARA support — Seamless integration with third-party plugins like SpectraLayers for enhanced audio editing.
• Pattern Sequencer — Program thrilling beats and explore new rhythmic worlds.
• Melodic Pattern Sequencer — Create melodic sequences and evolving patterns with an intuitive step-based workflow.
• Drum Track — Design your own drum sounds or import samples directly from MediaBay.
• Drum Machine — Harness powerful drum synthesis and sample capabilities to design custom drum sounds or import samples directly from MediaBay.
• Sampler Track — Create sampler instruments from any audio with advanced editing and modulation options.
• Chord Pads — Compose music quickly with chord suggestions and real-time performance features.
• MIDI Remote — Integrate and control MIDI devices efficiently with customizable mapping.
• Comping — Create the perfect version from multiple takes with intuitive editing tools.
• Virtual Instruments and Sound Library — Over 3000 sounds and 18 sample and loop packs for diverse music production.
• HALion Sonic — Versatile workstation with Sonic Selection for a wide range of sounds.
• Groove Agent SE — Comprehensive drum production software with a wide range of sounds and patterns.
• Retrologue — Vintage synthesizer for classic analog sounds and modern tones.
• Padshop — Granular synthesis for creating complex, evolving soundscapes.
• Iconica Sketch — Orchestral library with high-quality orchestral sounds for realistic compositions.
• Verve — Felt piano for warm, intimate piano tones.
• Writing Room Synths — A collection of inspiring synth sounds designed for songwriting, composition, and modern music production.
• Scale Assistant — Quantize and play to the scale, ensuring harmonic consistency.
• SuperVision — Advanced metering and analysis suite for detailed audio monitoring.
• FX Modulator — Modulate any parameter with LFOs and envelopes for dynamic effects.
• MultiTap Delay — Create complex delay effects with multiple taps and modulation options.
• Score Editor — Produce great-looking, legible performance material, based on state-of-the-art Dorico technology.
• Event Volume Curves — Optimize audio with powerful volume curve editing.

New in Cubase 16

• Instrument Stacks — Layer multiple instruments inside one playable stack with per-layer filtering and unified control.
• VocalTouch — Fast, intuitive vocal shaping.
• DrumChain — Fast drum enhancement for punch, clarity, and low-end weight.
• Tempo Detection — A redesigned workflow for faster, more reliable tempo matching.
• Key Editor Strum — Add more natural timing and feel to programmed chords.
• Key Editor Stretch — Stretch melodies, basslines, and chord progressions to the length you need.
• Module FM Library — More than 200 new HALion Sonic presets for modern FM-based production sounds.
• Rename Controller — Replace generic MIDI controller message names with labels that match your instruments and hardware.
• Redesigned Settings — Searchable, consolidated setup and customization in one non-modal window.
• Quick Help — Context-aware in-app guidance in the Left Zone or a floating window.
• Mastering Presets — New technical and genre-based FX presets for faster finishing.
• New Sounds and Loops — Five new sample packs to spark new ideas.
• Pitch Detection and Phase Inversion — Faster sample tuning and tighter drum layering in Sampler Track and Drum Machine.
• Omnivocal Basic — A lightweight tool for quickly developing vocal ideas.
• Workflow Refinements — Faster insert handling and more flexible drag-and-drop.
• Windows MIDI Support — Built on the latest Windows MIDI platform for next-generation MIDI technologies in Windows 11.
• Expanded MIDI 2.0 Support — Support for MIDI 2.0 expressions for more expressive performances and orchestral articulation.
• Redesigned Audio Pool — Cleaner media management.
• Key Editor Lyrics — Add and edit lyrics directly alongside MIDI notes, with fast step entry and pronunciation controls.
• Extended ASIO-Guard — More processing headroom for demanding projects with large track counts and CPU-intensive plug-ins.
• AAC and M4A Import — Extended audio file support.
• Guided Tours — A friendlier onboarding experience for new users.
• Ableton Link — Easier sync with other compatible music apps.