Cubase 12 licensing without dongle: Released!!

[@LanewoodStudios]

Are you running Cubase 12 already? If so, how do you feel about the new licensing system so far?

[@boiki9663]

Everything went in order and it's working fine👍🏽 Thank you🙏🏽 Question: can i run it without being connected to the internet?

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@boiki9663 after activation you can run without internet connection yes.

[@boiki9663]

Great, i'm happy about this because the internet might go offline one day. Thank you and greetings from the Netherlands

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@boiki9663 not likely 😉. I’m also in the Netherlands by the way!

[@boiki9663]

Hahaha toppie man, bedankt voor je hulp. Mijn mixes klinken vaak heel zuigend op de radio. Wat doe ik verkeerd?

[@Byron101_]

Best Cubase ever! ♥️ Best DAW. No doubt.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Nice :)

[@haydenlakemedia2982]

Great video!! Thank you!

[@LanewoodStudios]

Thanks!

[@djpuxo]

Steinberg gives up one of the best protections of all time, 13 years of unbroken Mcfact encryption. Its licensing system is so smooth that it was cracked the same day Cub12 was released. I could have followed that protection but without a dongle. I suppose there are commercial reasons but in my opinion it is a big mistake. I have updated my Cub12 and Dorico4 without problems although I have to say I thought that without a dongle it would improve performance but it is not something very noticeable. Greetings.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Thanks for your opinion. Great that you had a smooth upgrade experience.

[@andremanduca7941]

Thanks, bro 欄☺️

[@LanewoodStudios]

You are welcome!

[@HoaPierre]

11months later Cubase still haven't made the full offline activation mode, u still need to be connected to another pc online to generate the file... I haave just one pc lol and it won't connect to the browser when trying to log in in Steinberg Activation Manager

[@nayanmoniboruah7099]

Sir, What to do, if my computer is dead! How to activate again the same license in another computer? Hope you answer me. Thank you

[@LanewoodStudios]

For now, you need to contact Steinberg support.

[@LESHED1]

Thanks for simple & clear video. I like your explinations especuially that you go down to all small details. Thank you! (BTW what is your name?)

[@LanewoodStudios]

Thanks for your comment. My first name is Maarten (quite Dutch so I don't use it a lot on the channel).

[@angelinagargano3940]

Hi, thanks for the videos...I will I be able to open old projects from 11 and 10 ect?

[@LanewoodStudios]

Yes Cubase has always been very good about that. You usually even can open projects from a newer version with an older version.

[@angelinagargano3940]

@@LanewoodStudios ...great that's what I remembered but just felt uneasy about it because I have hundreds of projects that go to sync licensing and I need to be able to access them in the future. Also I have heard as long as I have the old dongle elicensor plugged in that I will still be able to access all the plugins and vst instruments...do you know if this is true? Ps... Would love to learn how to transfer user profile manager profile, user settings, track settings, user presets, fx presets, templates, preferences ect. to cubase 12. Blessings. Hope you have a nice day. I am off to go record some vocals.

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@angelinagargano3940 I always still keep the old version of Cubase on my system until I’m very sure that the new version will fully work for me. Just for the reasons you mention. And yes, the previous version will keep working the way you are used to as long as you keep using the dongle. As for transferring settings and such, Cubase 12 has done better than any previous version to transfer these automatically. But just in case you are still missing something, I have a video about doing it manually: Install and migrate Cubase, plugins and tune DAW performance; DAW PC upgrade 2021 (part 3) kzbin.info/www/bejne/fWPWhYmQjs17jrs Enjoy the vocal recording!

[@angelinagargano3940]

@@LanewoodStudios ...very nice to meet you ...thanks for getting back so fast and answering my questions. Really appreciate your time and help. Going to go and watch the video below. Thanks again!

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@angelinagargano3940 you’re welcome!

[@paulinhodomumu]

Hello , I upgraded my ssd on my PC and now I can not use Cubase 12 pro , I get a message that I have exceeded the number of activations , I found it strange because I only use two machines , a Macbook and the Pc , is there any way to reset these licenses on all machines? I have already deactivated the license on Mac and PC, but it still shows that Cubase is activated on two machines

[@LanewoodStudios]

That's very annoying. Somehow your Cubase 12 activations got lost on your hardware changes apparently. I have to remember to deactivate my Cubase 12 before I do a hardware change :/.The way I understand it is that for now, you have to contact Steinberg support to get this resolved. Hopefully they will be able to get it quickly fixed for you!

[@Eppie55]

Last week I finally did the upgrade and I must say it did not go easy for the first time in 8 years. This is the first upgrade for me that did not taker all my preferences and setting of Cubase 11 to the new version. I never, never had to do anything about my settings in a new upgrade since Cubase 8. Very disappointing. Eveything was lost , ins and outs, external hardware, saved insert-chains, colourpallet and so on. Took me some hours to find out where these were all saved and to copy all of it to the "12" folder. And today I started C12 and I got the a warning "no lincense found". Nothing changed since the last time I used Cubase. If this is going to be that uncertain, I would rather be staying with the dongle/C11,m which I still have to use for other software from Steinberg. So far, not that enthousiastic about 12.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Ouch, that does not sound like a very smooth experience at all no. For me it was actually one of the first upgrades that DID migrate all my preferences. Somehow it never did before 🤔. I did have problems upgrading the Cubase 11 license on the dongle but that got fixed the next day after running maintenance in the eLicenser control center. I have also not had any warnings about licenses from Cubase 12 yet, but that might still come then 😬 .... fingers crossed. Hopefully your ride will be more smooth from now on!

[@paulovpan1]

Nice video ,Can someone please help me out ? When you install the upgrade from 11 to 12 ,do you actually need your dongle plugged in to your usb with your Cubase 11 license on ? Probably a dumb question but can't seem to find this information online.

[@LanewoodStudios]

I know I left it in and it is probably required as it changes the license on your dongle to non upgradeable after you’ve upgraded.

[@Mixfootage]

Is it true that the new Cubase doesn’t require a dongle…? I have Cubase 9.5. So now if i upgrade 13 pro from 9.5 will i need dongle for 13 pro…? Or do I have to get the new Cubase 13 Pro …? Which don’t need dongle…? The new Cubase 13 Pro will upgrade to a laptop. So it becomes difficult to handle the laptop by connecting the dongle. So when I go from 9.5 to Cubase 13 Pro I won’t need to attach the dongle right…?

[@LanewoodStudios]

Correct, for Cubase 13 you do not need a dongle anymore. Check the video how it works.

[@thephoenixchant]

I am confused. In the Download Manager, what can you install with no dongle and what has to wait?

[@LanewoodStudios]

All items in the Cubase category can be installed and run without dongle. I believe the latest version of Wavelab can also be used without dongle now, as well as Dorico.

[@thephoenixchant]

@@LanewoodStudios I tried and some VSTs from Cubase 8.5 need the dongle. But if, after the Cubase 12 update one uninstalls the previous software and installs everything on the installation tool list, one needs no dongle. So yes, I can confirm your info :)

[@LanewoodStudios]

Ah yes, it does only pertain to the latest versions of these applications of course. For cubase as of version 12. Good that you verified though.

[@cederickforsberg5840]

I just wish it was backwads compitable. I would love to use Cubase 7.5 without the usb dongle.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Ha yes, well they're not going to to that of course. That's what you need to purchase Cubase 12 for 😎😀

[@patlecat]

Sadly #Steinberg still tortures us customers with insanely complicated processes which are not or not well explained. Add to that the usual outages of their licensing servers with each new release of a product. The download Assistant is also kinda only almost useful since it doesn't show you where you have new upgrades/updates available and other missing useful features.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Actually the new licensing method should prevent those license server problems in the future. It is just on first installation of Cubase 12, any existing Cubase 11 license still needs to be adjusted via the old licensing system. And that still caused quite some headaches when everyone was trying to upgrade to Cubase 12 at the same time when it was just released.

[@Anulzkie]

Hi I just wanna ask , Can I install cubase in 2 or 3 computer?

[@LanewoodStudios]

You can install it on as many computers as you like. But you can activate it only on 3 computers at the same time.

[@VirendraKumar-ys7ms]

Thank sir I'm from India

[@LanewoodStudios]

You are welcome!

[@zekolino1]

Hello! Thank you so much for this video, very informative! I was wondering however, how would you license cubase 12 pro if you've previously installed and licensed cubase 12 pro trial? I've recently bought an upgrade to 12pro, but my 12 pro trial is still running. I've of course recieved a download code with my upgrade purchase, but i guess i don't need it, since i've already downloaded the software. What should i do next? Basically, i need to transform my license from trial to full. Thank you so much in advance! Kristina

[@LanewoodStudios]

Well Kristina I've never been in that situation because I upgraded from the previous version to Cubase 12 when there was no trial yet. I'm sure though that you don't need to download and install everything again. Don't you have the Steinberg activation manager installed as part of the trial? That small application allows you to activate your license on the machine you want to run Cubase on. If you say that you purchased an upgrade though, that means you are coming from an older version of Cubase which still has its license on the dongle. In that case the old license on the dongle needs to be converted to a non-upgradeable license as part of the upgrade process. For that I would actually just start with the download access code in the Steinberg download manager. It will probably see that you downloaded the software already and start the upgrade process of your old license. Another option would be to just wait till your trial license expires, which will probably kick off a process to activate a full license. And if all of that fails, you can always contact Steinberg.

[@zekolino1]

@@LanewoodStudios Thank you very much for your reply. Yes, that helps and makes sense to me, i also thought of somethung similar to your suggestions. Thanks Lanewood! ❤️

[@SoundGates]

I thought that this was done already but no. I still need to use the #&*$)@ dongle for HALion, HALion Sonic, GA5 and all the additional purchased libraries. Crap … but I think Steinberg will change that soon. I really hate to have to remember everyday to bring the dongle back and forth between my work and home.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Yes they will gradually change over all their applications to use the new licensing. But depending on what you have it may be quite e a while until everything is changed over.

[@kamaldesang4032]

Sir i wan purchase cubase pro 9.5 dongle free update verson.recnetly have download and install cubase pro 12.but not open daw.how can open sir please give positive solution.

[@LanewoodStudios]

Sorry but I don't understand your question.

[@CAESARMUSIC]

Hello, thanks for this video... how do you do the update so that it deletes the old version?? because I remember the last time I updated from Cubase 9 to 10.5 I had to uninstall Cubase 9 and reinstall all of Cubase 10.5, the two programs appeared duplicated and they created conflicts.??? Thank you very much

[@LanewoodStudios]

Well I like to install it in addition to the previous version. I keep the old version installed until I’m sure that the new version works ok for me. Then I uninstall the old version. Has never given problems for me.

[@amulbhandari1156]

Hi, So, if I am using a DAW for the first time i.e. cubase 12, do I need a USB elicenser? I mean do I have to purchase an elicenser along with cubase 12? Ps: I’m new into studio recording and I’ve been trying to learn to use cubase! Thanks

[@LanewoodStudios]

No for Cubase 12 you do not need an elicenser. It’s the first versio that does not need it anymore.

[@amulbhandari1156]

@@LanewoodStudios thanks much! Good health to you. Appreciated it

[@ronsolemn]

How do I transfer Cubase 12 from one laptop to a new computer?

[@LanewoodStudios]

You can just install it and activate it on the new computer. If you’re talking about migrating your Cubase settings, checkout my 3rd video on building a new DAW PC: Install and migrate Cubase, plugins and tune DAW performance; DAW PC upgrade 2021 (part 3) kzbin.info/www/bejne/fWPWhYmQjs17jrs

[@ronsolemn]

@@LanewoodStudios so I can use the same activation code that I used when I installed cubase 12 on my initial laptop?

[@iwasakikou5545]

Hi. how if my dongle was registered by another email, which is I don't know, cos I bought my Cubase 11 (Used and registered by another person). Can it still use any new steinberg account on Activation Manager to activate Cubase 12 Upgraded from Cubase 11?

[@LanewoodStudios]

I would contact Steinberg support for that question. I think it doesn't matter because your Cubase 11 license is on your dongle and the e-mail you registered that to does not matter, but not 100% sure.

[@darwaishalikarbalailive]

Hi sir you have Cubase 12 with license key

[@LanewoodStudios]

Without dongle with online activation yes.

[@darwaishalikarbalailive]

@@LanewoodStudios price

[@darwaishalikarbalailive]

Crack or original??

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@darwaishalikarbalailive Obviously I'm running an official license. See the Steinberg website for pricing.

[@darwaishalikarbalailive]

@@LanewoodStudios thanks SIR

[@boiki9663]

Can i remove Cubase pro 11? because i upgraded to pro 12 . Can i work offline from the internet with pro 12? Thank u👍🏽

[@LanewoodStudios]

Yes you can! But I would first make sure that Cubase 12 works fine for you and that it plays all your important older projects correctly before completely getting rid of the previous Cubase version. That's the way I always deal with new versions anyway. Initially there may still be some bugs in any new version.

[@boiki9663]

Yes the version 12 is working fine. I bought the 11 version 2 months ago and Just made 2 songs only. I really like the new version. Thanks for your advise

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@boiki9663 good to hear!

[@rvmusic1352]

Can we use cubase 12 in laptops

[@LanewoodStudios]

Absolutely!

[@MrTrilian9]

Hello Can a man run Cubase 12 on two computers at the same time? Thx!

[@LanewoodStudios]

Technically you can but according to the license you are only alllowed to use one activated instance at the same time.

[@MrTrilian9]

@@LanewoodStudios I haven't installed it yet. That's why I'd like to know if I can run cubase 12 on two computers, because I'd like to give my friend (who is in another country) the opportunity to work on my license :)

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@MrTrilian9 the multiple activations on your license are definitely not meant for that. I’m afraid your friend should get his own license 😬.

[@svenisaksson3970]

A WARNING TO ALL MAC USERS!!!!!! Cubase 12 won't install unless you use OS X 10.15! It’s waste of money upgrading if you run an earlier OS version.

[@LanewoodStudios]

I have heard reports of MAC users with earlier versions but better to go for the officially supported OS.

[@svenisaksson3970]

@@LanewoodStudios Unfortunately, there are non! What Steinberg calls supported OS versions is simply the two generations they've tested to app on. It's does NOT mean "does only work on". The installer let's you install Cubase on Catalina. Catalina is nowhere mentioned as a supported system! Catalina is actually the only OS that Cubase is fully usable on. There are lots of plugins that are NOT yet Monterey certified. There are even plugins that work on Monterey, but NOT on Big Sur! GForce impOSCar 2 is one such plugin (according to the developers site). The issue isn't so much that Steinberg has imposed a stupid OS limitation, that excludes thousands of their pro users. That's just a bad buisness desition. The issue is that they've done this WITHOUT INFORMING THEIR CUSTOMES that they are not allowed to use the product they've bought and paid for! If you are aware of this issue, I suggest you show reponsibility to your viewers and make a video about it. That is if you don't condone Steinbergs users being defrauded!!

[@LanewoodStudios]

@@svenisaksson3970 I’m not so into the MacOS ecosystem since I’m a Windows user but I just checked Steinberg’s system requirements for Cubase 12 Pro. They state Big Sur and Monterey officially. As for plugin compatibility, isn’t that something to take up with the plugin manufacturers? I also see that people’s experiences on other OS versions are a mixed bag: forums.steinberg.net/t/will-cubase-pro-12-be-compatible-with-mac-os-catalina/769772/15 I don’t know why Steinberg decided to no longer support older OS’es now but do understand that at some point you always have to as a software company. It’s like windows 7 is no longer supported and VST2 will also be slowly phased out on all platforms.

[@svenisaksson3970]

@@LanewoodStudios How many times must I explain the same thing? What Steinberg claims as requirements is no such things! It's just the OS's thay they've (hopefully) tested the software with. Nowhere Catalina is mentioned as a supported OS, just the same Cubase installs under Catalina! Neither is it mentioned anywhere that Cubase won't even istall under Mojave or earlier. Preventing Cubase from installing under an OS version that is used by thousands of users, is just bad buisness. NOT INFORMING THE SAME USERS OF THIS BEFORE PURCHASE is actually ILLEAGAL (sorry for the all caps, but is aprears to be necessary). " I’m not so into the MacOS ecosystem since I’m a Windows". This is a copout! You're first and foremost making videos about Cubase, not Windows. I've seen you (and other Windowsbased reviewers) mention MacOS on several occations. You have also confirmed that you've had reports of this issue from other sources. If you care about your credibility among your viewers, you should mentioned this serious issue in your videos. That would be appreciated by them, I've been thanked by several people, for warning them from wasting their money. I don't have the impact of a KZbin channel. You do!!!

[@hunghoangmusic]

OMG, I almost buy Cubase, thanks a lot for the warning, I probably will invest in a PC before making the switch

[@TracingFlares]

moved to Reaper which is better faster, more stable and much much customizable than Steinberg who cares a shit about customers. 1000s of users are complaining about things that Reaper just got right!!!😊

[@LanewoodStudios]

I don’t know Reaper but I still love Cubase too much 😉.

[@michaelambanier1706]

Gave me cubase 11

[@Binmoebi]

Fvck cubase 10 - 12, very annoying elicenser

[@LanewoodStudios]

The latest version does not use the elicenser anymore, so all is good :).