Feature:
One of the reasons Cubase is worth the money is because of it's comprehensive feature set. It is definately a professionally geared program. From start to finish and from just about every angle in between Cubase has one covered with the tools for engineering the highest quality recordings. There is the sensible and clean, customizable screen layout. The control room bus routing sub menu feature. The transport panel for quick recording control and event location as well as set up for play order tracks. All of the common engineering tools found in a professional sequencer from plug in menus to extended mixer views to surrond mixing capabilities to audio bus templates to automation. In fact there are too many features to mention. One can even work with syncing audio to film. Cubase also sports a well designed and fully functional midi and score editor, which seems to come as an afterthought in a lot of sequencers even Pro Tools. In Cubase however the focus is squarely on having both audio and midi data fully workable in the same program environment.

Quality:
Cubase is exceptionally well designed. Stienberg has been working with the basic product for well over a decade so there are no gaping holes in the design that I have noticed. I say that the quality is second only to Pro Tools HD.(and that's only because in HD the dsp processing is outboard and digidesign supplies dedicated hardware which is truly awesome) But the vast majority of this review's readers will not be able to realistically get involved with an HD system, so among the remaining native seqencers out right now I say the quality in Cubase 4 is the finest. I have not so far had any technical issues with the sequencer itself that were not due to user error.

Value:
Cubase 4 is worth the money it cost. As the best native system out right now there is no reason to expect a better deal.

Desirability:
I'm not big on sex appeal with a sequencer since they are not toys and if you're serious about it you don't care about the sexiness as much as the work it can efficiently do. It's not as sexy to look at in my opinion as Logic or Digital Performer but it does do just as much if not more. As far as sexiness compares to Pro Tools well that depends on if you like a blonde versus a brunette, (Cubase being the brunette). I wanted it becase of it's ease of use and broad range of capabilities.

Sound:
Since Cubase is a sequencer program that works with the ones and zeroes of digital binary code there is no "sound" to speak of. However, if by "sound" one means the way in which the various included plugin effects shape the recorded sound that you put in it then I say that the plugins are as effective as a user is at skillfully and artfully dialing them in. If you want to record and tweak the sound with Cubase's native reverbs, eq and dynamics, all of the tools of the trade are there and much more improved from a graphic user interface standpoint. They are not boutique plugin processors that with relatively basic operation will drastically "improve" or beef up your material but they are very good indeed and if you want plugins that do what Waves or Universal Audio plugins do then I suggest that you buy them. They will work just fine with Cubase. The rule holds fast with sequencers; Garbage in Garbage out. The seqencer is not to blame.

Ease of Use:
Using any daw to it's full capabilities is not a beginner's task, especially if the program in question professionally aimed. That being said, it's going to take some time before a novice can unleash the potential in a maturely developed and deeply concieved program such as Cubase 4. However, the basic task of recording audio is intuitive for one with prior experience. This is not a prgram for a beginner. It is for serious professionals who know what they are doing with a sequencer. From a professional standpoint though, Cubase 4 is a breeze to use. With a basic rundown in the fairly comprehensive pdf manual included, an experienced engineer can work their way around Cubase with little trouble. Once acquainted with the features and experienced with their use Cubase is very natural and as simple as can be.

Support:
Stienberg support is terrible. They truly don't want to pay for phone time so they go as far as possible to direct you to the forums or the instruction manual. This is understandable due to excessive cost but I can't help but be annoyed at having to call Yamaha (the parent company), long phone wait times and almost rude tech support guys that frisk me for my product registration when I call. They definately need improvement here.

Overall:
If the goal is professional audio production. Cubase has you covered. If at some point your budget gets big enough to go HD, I'm willing to bet the you will still keep Cubase 4 in your studio somewhere just because It's so usefull. For the features, for the price, for the possibilities it's a win. We need to lobby Stienberg for some great dedicated hardware and peace would finally reign on earth.

Feature:
The features are astounding. 5.1 Surround Sound has definitely changed my approach to composition. There are many plugins that bring it far above it's predecessors. The time warp tool, in-place editing, grouped folders and input channel strips bring the product that much closer to a decked out professional hardware based studio. The automation is much more reliable than previous versions. The archiving and general file handling is quite improved. If only the basic reverb plugins were better and it supported Dolby AC3 and DTS encoding... (I suspect that an update to support the encoders is around the corner.) I don't use the score feature, but it looks very comprehensive for those who are so inclined.

Quality:
The programmers at Steinberg have obviously been doing their homework. In the world of mix and match PC components, it is surprising that this group designed a product that plays nice with almost any combination of components. Having looked extensively at Cubase user forums, I have seen so few complaints regarding hardware compatibility problems. Compare that with ProTools, which requires certain expensive add-on hardware to run well. Plus, the company seems commited to solving any problems that do crop up. The look is both funcional and aesthetically pleasing, plus it's very modifiable. The adjustment options take into account an amazing array of possible configuration needs. Again, with earlier versions (including SX1), if you installed poorly written free plugins, the program would sometimes choke on startup, leaving you to figure out which plugin was jamming it up. SX3 manages to load right up no matter what. (It's probably better to buy good plugins anyway, but...) I never worry about whether the program will make it through the boot process.

Value:
Forget ProTools! Cubase SX3 is a much better value. And it is so much more flexible than a hardware DAW.

Desirability:
Indispensible. Beautiful. The best looking computer DAW I've seen. The most flexible and reliable. I love it.

Sound:
I have used Cubase since it was only a midi sequencer. I've owned Cubase 3.7, SX1 and worked extensively with Cubase 5. SX3 blows them all away. The eq's are much sweeter and musical; the engine seems somehow to provide a cleaner, richer sound than it's predecessors (except SX1 - it seems the same); the new roomworks reverb finally satisfies. And the included Magneto is definitely better than Cubase 5's truetape. If Steinberg would only improve their other included fx plugins, this would be a 10.

Support:
You might not get an email response for a minor problem, but Steinberg has an excellent user forum that some of the programmers participate in, and there are other user forums, books, tutorials, etc. And there is a good update page on the Steinberg website. After 5 years of Cubase use, my impression is that though you might not get an answer to your email, it's because the techs are too busy already solving your problem to answer every email they get.

Overall:
My friend has Nuendo (basically Cubase with some multimedia features) in his professional studio. He also has a 24 track Studer w/ Dolby SR. Clients use the Studer about once every three months. There are some deals he didn't get because he didn't have Protools. He and I both believe that those people simply did not know that they could get at least as good a sound with Cubase/Nuendo. Cubase does almost everything I need and is flexible enough to do the rest with a few more purchase. It has proven to be the best DAW value available. Steiberg has set many new standards in the DAW world and in my book is now the leader in the computer music world. Even if someone gave me a Studer w/ Dolby SR and a 10 year supply of 2" tape, I'd still be using Cubase for years to come.

Feature:
It comes LOADED. I mean loaded, actually way too much stuff. Holy crap. It was counter productive to me for the first few weeks. But now I've stettled in a certain plug-in combination tool set.

Quality:
Very high quality!

Value:
I've upgraded since Cubase VST 3. Not so expenisve to upgrade, but brand new it's almost obscene. But I tell you the audio quality is worth it, I've never regretted a single penny spent on it. Pro-Tools can kiss my **s.

Desirability:
I own it!

Sound:
I used garage band to record an R & B singer with a very short attention span for about 2 months. I had Cubase 4 installed but I always fired up garageband because it saved me about the odd 10 - 30 secs extra to set up a new session so she wouldn't loose the thought. One day I imported the audio that garageband recorded into Cubase for mastering and OH MY GOD!! did it sound SO MUCH better. The difference was ASTONISHING! It made garageband sound like garbage. Same sound card, same computer, nothing else was changed. I haven't touched garageband since. She noticed the difference immediately and now she totally REFUSES to record using anything else but Cubase 4 lol. The Cubase audio engine is OUTSTANDING!! Enough said!

Ease of Use:
I'll be honest here Cubase 4 is not for sissies. Real men do Cubase, chumps do Pro-Tools. You will have to become one with the manual for a couple of weeks. No way around it, Cubase isn't a click and figure it out program. It's like driving a manual transmission, it may seem impossible at first, but then it's no big deal.

Support:
When compared to competitors they just suck at support! They need to fix that! End of story. Good news is Cubase 4 is STABLE, nothing irrates me more than a sequencer that crashes mid session. Non of that going on with Cubase 4 :) I'm very happy!

Feature:
If you can't, won't, or don't know how to read a book use a mouse. It comes with a book, however there is tons of available information to guide you in the process of making beautiful music. Web sites, plenty of books, CD-ROM's, online help, forums. People complain about tech support.....well with all the support thats out there, who needs them. I guess Steingberg made a reasonable assumption that when you purchased the audio software, you were computer literate.

Quality:
I had this software for about 6 months now and so far no freeze ups, shut downs, lies, or anything. IT WORKS PEOPLE!!! Quality is really a subjective thing. however, I havent had any complaints. Most audio software is susceptible to the creative ability of the user. I've used Pro Tools, Sonar, Nuendo, and to be honest, its the equipment that is used with it that made the difference...including the right side of my brain...

Value:
Great price.......nuff said.

Desirability:
WANT IT.....Bought it....love it!!!!!!! Highly customizable..if thats a word. Works like a charm.

Sound:
A lot of people complain about the sound, but people, if you suck...you just suck. Crappy mics create crappy sounds. There is no amount of effect thats going to change that. Well, unless you're Brittney or Ashanti or someone like that. The sound is awesome quality, especially when you combine it with quality.

Support:
Only because this is what other people experience. Me, personally, I havent needed them...I just do my own research. You can find alot of your solutions to your problems by going throught the forums. Unfortunately, a lot of people try to operate Cubase with minimum or less than minimum requirements....WORD TO THE WISE......Recommended is normally minimum.....

Overall:
So far I'm satisfied...The dongle concept is very disconcerting, but whatever. I dont really like how technology advances and leaves you dangling in the wind, but whatever. I have made very good demo quality material with this software. Me changing up would be premature to say the least.