Steinberg Pro16 sequencer from '86 | Cubase's Grandmother

From 1984 to 1986 Steinberg (Research) developed a sequencer for the Commodore 64, a sequencer that would be known as the Pro16. Which in turn evolved into the well known Pro24 for the Atari ST platform a couple of years later, which in turn saw the birth of Cubase, the mother of all Cubase versions we have now.
Steinberg also built their own MIDI interface cartridge for the C64.
The Pro16 is very rudimentary by today's standards, but still a very fast, easy and fun program to use to flesh out ideas for new songs.
Huge thanks to Chris Wareham for the donation of both the program and MIDI interface for the C64!
The program itself can be found online and run from a floppy emulator for the C64.
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Growing up I listened to so much synth-pop and it's only natural that my own music takes inspiration from many of the acts I loved back then. I still love them and listen to them!
Howard Jones, Depeche Mode, Pet Shop Boys, New Order, Erasure, Thompson Twins, Tears for Fears, The Human League, Propaganda. FGTH, Ultravox, OMD, Eurythmics, Duran Duran, Giorgio Moroder, Jean Michel Jarre, Jan Hammer, Alphaville, A-ha as well as loads of artists doing what is now called Italo Disco. And many more great acts like Nik Kershaw, Spandau Ballet, Wham, Dire Straits ++

[@Heisenberg2097]

PROFESSIONAL SEQUENCER!!! I'm glad they mentioned that. 'Certified DISKETTE' reveals it's roots well enough.

[@WoodyPianoShack]

it was an almost magical experience to sequence a synth from a home computer for the first time!

[@EspenKraft]

I remember it vividly. I suddenly realized I had all the power to do whatever I wanted. The reality dawned upon me a little later, but still.. ;-)

[@audiolego]

My first taste was Cubase SX3 in 2006

[@Sandelec-gm2cl]

I think that with the Apple2 in the early 80's there was already a software sequencer. Maybe the cubase 1.0 was created for the Machintosh in 1984. But I'm not sure..

[@NinoCotonato]

C64 pound for pound is the best personal computer ever...

[@MariusGarage]

With a C64 We will return on the moon! Thanks Espen about these great trips in the past of computer music making

[@VisionAssoc]

Awesome,....You are the 80s Espen 😊👍

[@EspenKraft]

I hope so.. :P Thanks!

[@nicklaslundgren]

You're right about the C64 being a time machine. Takes you to wonderful places. 👍

[@EspenKraft]

I love time travel. ;-)

[@MercuryK52]

What a greit video! The C64 reallt is a marvelous piece of hw! Affordable and extremely versatile...anything from being a sequencer, to a webserver (with some modern day hacks..ahem). A very slick and simple interface, no processing, but still, this is a C64, and it was mid 80's! Good stuff! I smiled wide when I saw the figure there, great stuff Espen, as always! :)

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks man! The C64 can do so much and with just a little time and effort, almost anyone can program it to do just that too. ;-)

[@MercuryK52]

@@EspenKraft Indeed! Those were the days! :D

[@chriswareham]

I can answer a couple of questions posted in the comments. Pro-16 cost around £150 when new,, and came with very minimal instructions - just a couple of crudely printed A4 sheets as I recall. Version 2, which is what I gave to Espen, included a second application that provides a graphical editor for note by note editing and step entry. It seems to use some kind of overlay technique to replace the main sequencer application in the limited memory of the C64. Finally, Steinberg have officially blessed its release as freeware, and it's included on the awesome Kerberos cartridge.

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks for the info Chris! :) I just commented in a post below where someone asked just that and I replied €145 so I wasn't totally off then. :P I know Steinberg also "allowed" for the D64-file to be out there online, and I tried it from a floppy emulator connected to another C64, just to have my words intact from the video description, and it worked perfectly as well. Gonna need a midi interface of course. ;-) Cheers man and thanks again! It seems the video is enjoyed by many people. :)

[@AndrewAHayes]

I can remember reading a C64 magazine where it was announced that the first MIDI interface for the C64 had been released, I was buzzing and got out the yellow pages directory and rang all the computer stores in my area to see if I could get hold of one, not one of those stores had the interface in stock so I called the magazine but that number turned out to be the publisher's number who I asked if they could give me the magazines number, they did not have it to hand but after explaining why I wanted it the woman who answered the phone agreed to try to find it and call me back. I didn't think she would call back but a couple of hours later someone from the magazine called with a number of a store that stocked it, after calling them and ordering a unit I sat in anticipation, about a week later it arrived with some bundled sequencer software that was looking back on it not very good but at the time it was all I could get so it was great. I don't remember how long after it was that I discovered Pro 16 being used in the keyboard section of the local music superstore but I went straight home to get my bank savings book to withdraw the money to buy a copy. Watching this video has brought back so many great memories of my youth. Thanks, Espen!

[@EspenKraft]

What a great story. Thanks for sharing Andrew! I think we all (us synth freaks with some age to us) have similar stories from our lives. ;-)

[@amonster8mymother]

I've never used it

[@PSL1969]

Incredible explanation at the end 👍👍

[@_P_M_]

Wow. I love the colors. In 86 I was just learning what MIDI was.

[@EspenKraft]

I love the color scheme myself. So C64 in a way. ;-)

[@ErikHawk]

Wow, really cool! I love how simple and uncluttered the workflow and GUI are. Neat!

[@EspenKraft]

I could easily have used this for most of my midi needs. ;-)

[@forbiddenera]

​@@EspenKraft right? this was one of the first digital music things I ever played with and was too young to really understand (no interface or synths or midi anything but I was like 7..)..much much later it finally clicked why I never got it to make any sounds unlike the other c64/128 program I vaguely remember having..then trackers in DOS..then finally midi based stuff later.. the more new stuff that comes out (mainly software) the more I never want to upgrade. I got Cubase 8.5 and just..think I still prefer 3.1sx..Last update for Logic, some stuff feels weird maybe and the color is off (but no choice on my new main machine mac studio which seems like a powerhouse for production)..plus I miss a lot of old vsts..been trying lately to reacquire what I can of old software and stuff. Have a PowerMac G5 I want to get loaded up with some old school stuff eventually. Always wanted to get a Pro16 setup too just for fun

[@JeffBoen]

My first computer sequencer was Master Tracks on my C-64 back in 86. Good times. I kinda miss how simple it was then.

[@bonsai-multimedia]

Incredible! This was my start into electronic music production! I had worked all summer to afford my first synth, a Roland D-10, but I wasn't able to record anything multitimbrally. So I got a used Steinberg Pro-16 Floppy and the MIDI interface for my C-128 (while everybody else already had Atari STs and Notator). You just gave me a great blast from the past, so thanks! :)

[@EspenKraft]

Cheers!

[@fromoutwest]

I got my start with Music-X on the Amiga. Brings me back watching these vids.

[@wreckage-vs5jv]

I bought my C64 a week after it came out. Later it got a nice black paint red stripes costumization. Even later I gave it to my bro who used it for sequencing a DX7 - it was like sci-fi.

[@dosgos]

Fantastic tutorial Espen! Steinberg had a such a logical, simple and inspiring UI.

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks man! It's a nifty little sequencer. Rock solid too.

[@ManfredElsingBielefeld]

yes,old and very nice remembers!Thx fpr your work!Amazing!

[@JimAlfredson]

I had a rudimentary sequencer for the C64 back in the day and a MIDI interface made by Sonus. The only problem was that I only had a DX7, the original brown model, which was monotimbral! Eventually my dad brought home an Ensoniq ESQ-1 and I finally had another sound source, but it also had an onboard sequencer, so I just used that. Later, he sold both boards and bought a Yamaha SY77, which is 16 part multitimbral with an onboard sequencer. So I never really used the C64 for music. I did play a lot of games on it, though! One of the most surprising things to me about this video is that the click sound in Pro16 is the same as the default in Cubase to this day! Did they sample the C64 click sound? Amazing.

[@EspenKraft]

It seems they've kept the click for all these years. ;-)

[@marcpinion]

I loved this software. I had it on a Rom so the C64 only ran pro 16 from boot up. The rom version had sync out to tape with midi and an output that ran my wasp synth. In all I had an FZ 1 a CZ 1000 an fbo1 and the Roland MT32 the Wasp and a Korg poly800 mk2 with a Tascam for guitar bass and vocals.. I uses studio one today but in may ways that was the best setup I have had.

[@EspenKraft]

That would have been even nicer, the program on cartridge back then.

[@ECHQ]

And you have to play in realtime - no editing single events. A workflow that got often lost nowadays.

[@anthonybrett]

Yes true. Workflow was something I totally overlooked in my rush to build a studio in a box. Now Im going in reverse.

[@pianokeyjoe]

@@anthonybrett lol! Me too, and I am actually BUILDING a keyboard workstation so any ideas would be helpful and appreciated!

[@AQ-sy9nu]

If you like this workflow, grab a MPC.

[@pianokeyjoe]

@@AQ-sy9nu Ah yes MPC drum machines. I would love to have another MPC 1000 upgraded and I do have a Yamaha RM1x. That sucker is not sampler, all midi and has alot more bars per patterns. I think simplicity is sometimes preferred over many features when you just want to get a song down quick and in the moment. Not all Computer Daws allow that.

[@AQ-sy9nu]

@@pianokeyjoe yes, I've used a 1000 as the main sequencer on many records over the years. I think people forget how powerful the MPC's are in that regard. Much better than elektron which seems to be the favorite these days. The thing is, you have to play the parts and not step sequence, which I prefer greatly. Seems not many agree these days.

[@victornoagbodji]

🙏 🙏 😅 this is impressive how far cubase has come. thanks for making this video!

[@EspenKraft]

Quite the journey. Thanks!

[@solidrate]

Still have the Card 32 / Pro-16 bundle on C64... use it to this day ;o)

[@EspenKraft]

Cool!

[@jonasnitz7678]

I had the Pro 16 (even the midi interface). I used this a lot and just 10 years later I had Pro Tools 3 NuBus.

[@synthverkstad2093]

It's interesting that the count-in sound has survived over all the different versions and still sound the same today :-)

[@EspenKraft]

It's been with them since day one it seems. ;-)

[@davidryle]

Wow that would have been a real treat to have back in the day. I had to write my own midi sequencer software for the Commodore64. I did have a midi interface cartridge but I can't remember who made it and it wasn't as complete as the one you showed here. Great memories Espen.

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks David! I bet you learned a ton from writing your own programs. I did that too, not sequencers, but other types of programs.

[@DIPProjectIOFFICIALCHANNEL]

Simple and effectively 👍🏻steinberg is great !

[@peterj.9713]

Again a little treasure from the 80s . I still have the original package within the first Cubase for PC on a 3.5" Floppy Disk and the thick Manual for it

[@EspenKraft]

I regret selling my original Cubase VST back in the day. Would have been cool to have now.

[@peterj.9713]

Cubase VST 3.5 was the name if I`m right for the first VST Version. I also bought Native instruments Pro Five back the days and some other plugins. But I had problems running it on Win XP. But it was a milestone when VST started

[@DamienPaulLabonte]

Love the shirt! These tools are still as powerful as the day they were created! Keep up the great work! I have all the new toys, but its overwhelming how much you can do. Simple is better at times for sure. Cheers Espen! You taught me something! Time Machine for the win!

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks! Yes, today we can do everything, but that's also all we can do. ;-)

[@kaivincenzigginemeth2789]

My First SEQ. used it back in 1994...

[@klinkske]

Pure luxery to use other workflows. I do that too. There is way more fun outside a new daw. I still fantasize about doing newbeat the way it was done in 88

[@EspenKraft]

:D

[@Merchantmond]

Love this

[@DaraM73]

You spoil us!

[@EspenKraft]

:O)

[@TheJesterboy1969]

Oh the memories...

[@LegionMiniatureGames]

It’s funny, I’ve been a retro PC guy for years but never owned a Synth until just recently I got interested in them. Now I want to build a 64 Reloaded and buy all kinds of Amigas and DX7s, Roland 50s and Korg M1’s, what the heck happened !

[@EspenKraft]

Excellent news!

[@kevincoffield1787]

Brilliant Espen. I had Steinberg Pro 12 on Atari ST. I think that's an ST above your DX. Your videos are great and really fun to see the old 80 gear. Great work. I bet you've got a SpecDrum somewhere? 👍

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks Kevin! I have no SpecDrum though. ;-)

[@terryraymond7984]

Yeah the C64 can do it and it was so amazing that way, still is. Nice C64 song. 🙂

[@yzimsx]

FWIW, the Pro16 sequencer can be used with the Kerberos MIDI interface for the C64 by Frank Buss. If you have an actual C64, that is! I have one, but it looks like the Kerberos is currently sold out. Anyway, having used the Pro16 a little bit, I must say Espen makes it look easier than it actually is. ;)

[@EspenKraft]

I grew up with this stuff so that's probably it. ;-)

[@pianokeyjoe]

You said it! inspiration and taking you back! That is what happens when I play on and record on certain old gear! In 86 I was 12 going on 13 and was just starting out with keyboards! Oh what a wonderful strange new world of technical delights THAT was! I actually like the simple rudimentary workflow of that old sequencer! Mind you I love my Korg PA 600QT keyboard with all its bells and whistles and simple to use sequencer too, but those basic looking and very fast midi sequencers were so good, once you got the hang of the lingo! I always played songs straight through when I recorded on the more modern sequencers with more note capacity per song/track, but I had to LEARN the trick of "phrase",sequence", "pattern" and "SONG" recording when I bought my first pro midi sequencer, the Brother PDC100 which uses "UNITS" as the basic pattern or sequence phrase recording that then get CHAINED into a SONG.. Oh those old fashioned midi gear buzz words! LOL! Love it!

[@EspenKraft]

Happy to hear it man! Sometimes using a sequencer like this, will just open the gates of fun and beautiful songs emerge from heaven. ;-)

[@rdoetjes]

I too find that sitting behind a high powered Mac or PC stifles my creativity more then it aids it. It’s too easy to get lost and start to focus on arrangement instead of scratching down ideas that will become the arrangement. I now tend to record onto my Model24 the rudimentary ideas on the SD card. And I also found that helps with what I innately like, is syncopated licks. Quantized digital recording really screws me because I see where the beat supposed to go. And when I nudge it over or quantize it. It looses that humanistic flair. And with the SD recording it’s like being back in my late teens with a tascam multitrack. In away I ho back to my roots with that. Like you go back to your creative roots on the midi sequencers. And I bet there are people that grew up making beats on this stuff we have now. That are comfortable with that workflow and will grab back to it 30 years from now; to get intouch with their innate creativity.

[@EspenKraft]

Exactly. In 30 years, what the "young" do now will be retro and a cumbersome workflow some turn to to get the creativity flowing. It's nostalgia thing. ;-)

[@amonster8mymother]

Right, it's true. Now I am com0letely lost and have been for over a decade. I tell you something, I have complete songs sitting here and I can't figure out how to record them. They are not all the same. They need a different approach for each one 9f them.

[@rdoetjes]

amonster8mymother it’s not hard, it’s just a bit differently but you can even treat your daw as a multitrack session on steroids. I mean if 12 year olds can make beats, without any computing, recording and music knowledge, then you’ll do fine. Just don’t fall in the pitfalls to let the computer capture your creativity.

[@ericmaher4756]

Aaah, Tascam. The secret’s out. I sold everything 25 years back and regret it to this day. The quality was awful, but if I only had one to hear those ideas flow again..

[@maurumsynthwave618]

Excelente. Nunca había visto ese sequencer. Es muy divertido de verdad, cambiar las formas dd trabajar la música... 😎👍🏻

[@EspenKraft]

Gracias!

[@maddogmcrae]

My MIDI interface was made by Passport, but I am sure the Steinberg software would have worked with it. I had no idea the Steinberg went all the way back to the Commodore 64 days.

[@EspenKraft]

Yes, Passport were pretty big back then. I remember them.

[@JeffBoen]

Passport interface on a C-64 here too!

[@CraigRodmellMusic]

I started out using Master Tracks Pro on an Atari ST. The Atari is long since dead, but I still use Master Tracks Pro.

[@EspenKraft]

I remember that too. ;-)

[@CraigRodmellMusic]

@@EspenKraft The Atari or Master Tracks Pro? The latter is still sold today, and still the best MIDI sequencer I've ever come across.

[@EspenKraft]

Yes, Master Tracks Pro. Had a couple of friends that used that. It wasn't my favorite, but I guess that's why there are and were lots of options when it came to sequencers. We had different ways of working. ;-)

[@CraigRodmellMusic]

@@EspenKraft Yes, the Atari version I had was the last they made. It did lack certain features that I now take for granted, but on the PC it did get better. Then in the 2000s it got worse again under new ownership when its creator went bust. But then it got better again when its creator got ownership back again. And yes, it is certainly good that there are plenty of different sequencers around. As you say, it's Horses for Courses.

[@cvader7]

great as usual!

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks again! :)

[@suadcokljat1045]

10:11 Ultimate respect!

[@christofferainek]

Love it 👌 - have you ever tried working with the Mssiah64 sequencer?

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks! Sure, I have the Mssiah cartridge. I don't like it very much though. The sequencer I mean. The synths and the rest of the Mssiah is great!

[@chenguefer156]

Fantastic!

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks! :)

[@rolandgerard6064]

Excellent!

[@EspenKraft]

Cheers! :)

[@mramir1238]

Don't know if anyone has mentioned it, but you say "BPM" instead of "BPMS". It's not called "beats per minutes", but "beats per minute". Awesome video though. Gotta love the C64 :)

[@EspenKraft]

Old habits die hard. ;-)

[@torstenH78]

Much easier then today, i would be happy to have an easy usable sequencer like this. Today i hate Cubase, because much to much functions for fast working for me.

[@EspenKraft]

Know what you mean. I use Cubase as a DAW, or strictly speaking Nuendo, but its over 13 years old. I don't have the need for any functionality that came after that.

[@bendecaf]

Cool stuff. Here are some more ideas: midi with Mist/Mister FPGA Atari ST or Amiga emulation (Cubase for Atari, Octamed). Using the XFM2 FPGA board.

[@EspenKraft]

Don't ask me to do anything involving emulators. ;-)

[@costasaroniadis3376]

Hello my friend very nice the video please do you know where i.can find the manual i have a c128 and steinberg 32 cadrige but not the manual when i turn the computer on the c128 boot with this software but i dont know how to use it ..thanks

[@EspenKraft]

Thanks! If not online I then I have no idea.

[@pablovega6937]

I've been looking for a floppy disk of the Pro 16 for many years... If someone could sell it to me or tell me where yo find it I would be very grateful.

[@fakshen1973]

In Paula Abdul's "Cold Hearted Snake" music video there is some sort of sequencing software that's shown counting in the beginning of the music. While the software is just being used in the video as a prop, it still looks like legitimate software. Does anyone know what that is and on what platform it is running? kzbin.info/www/bejne/pWjEhJuZoqqeqdk

[@sagantiworrior5284]

Please again I need your help on how to make my Atari at work with my Korg M1

[@EspenKraft]

Try asking on a forum on Facebook or Gearslutz, pretty busy at the moment.

[@GeraldreiDaniel]

Steinberg made VST, am i right?

[@linasmak9199]

yes

[@RoyMaya]

Yes they did. I still remember the first day I launched Cubase VST for the first time and tried the minimoog and drum machine that came with it. Looking back they sounded like crap but I was amazed at what was about to come. It was like watching the first moon landing in realtime. lol

[@EspenKraft]

That they did!

[@astraton2001]

Awesome, I know there was Midi-Interface for C64 in the 80s. But never heard of the Steinberg Software. Anyway, even it works great, Steinberg will never win a price for that aweful UI Design ;) Just remember Chris Hülsbecks Soundmonitor for C64 or the Soundtracker for the Amiga. They were all created from a developer perspective but not from a user perspective.

[@EspenKraft]

I love that design myself. ;-)

[@Roboprogs]

It’s using the 25 line by 40 column text mode. Using graphics would have squandered the minimal resources on that little machine. As a computer programmer who was working in the mid 80s on, I’ve stripped out eye candy to support actual functionality so software would run (fit) on computers from that era. Bigger, better, computers aren’t always available or affordable. Edit: you’re not hating on it, it just hit a sore spot for me :-)

[@astraton2001]

@@Roboprogs Thats bullshit. I created a lot of demos for that machine in the 80s which brought the machine to it's limits. The most simple thing which even would work in a simple Basic programm would be a font with special symbols. No additional rastertime or cpu-power needed for it. Just a few bytes.

[@wreckage-vs5jv]

Don't worry the one downvote is from the Atari guy.

[@tinnitusthenight5545]

Hey all, I had to do a full reinstall of windows on my PC and I lost S-10 Manager. Unfortunately the links on the site are all dead now, this was the only place I could think to find S-10 folks. Does anyone know where I can get it or could possibly upload it somewhere? My S-10 is a glorified midi controller until I get a hold of that software again, fingers crossed.

[@tinnitusthenight5545]

I found the link on one of your previous vids, thanks again bud! kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHqzaoyva614qac

[@EspenKraft]

Excellent! :) Thanks

[@AMChebli]

Is it OK If you can team up to make a NEW WAVE song with a guitarist you know?

[@EspenKraft]

I have no plans to do that in the immediate future. ;-)

[@AMChebli]

@@EspenKraft OK

[@amonster8mymother]

What is a 64 G?

[@EspenKraft]

That is the last C64 model made. If you check out the video where I use the Mssisah software i go through the differences between this and the first model. They use two different SID chips. Among other things. Not that that makes any difference when using a sequencer like this. ;-)

[@shadowrage2593]

How many notes per channel?

[@EspenKraft]

I don't understand the question, this is a MIDI sequencer.

[@shadowrage2593]

@@EspenKraft When you record you can press up to 10 keys at the same time obviously, so how many simultaneous "notes" a single MIDI channel can handle?

[@EspenKraft]

I still don't get what you're referring to? A midi sequencer can record as much midi information as the computer has available RAM. It has nothing to do with how many "notes" you play. You record as many notes as you want to make your music. Up until the memory of the computer runs out.

[@shadowrage2593]

@@EspenKraft So it dynamically allocates the memory across all the channels?

[@EspenKraft]

It's not like that. You record your MIDI information into a sequencer. How much you can record is dependent on the computer's memory. It has nothing to do with channels. I suggest you Google basic information about how MIDI works and how sequencers work in general. There are lots of good info about this topic out there.

[@ahmedalshalchi]

Hi Espen ... You were COMMODORE C64 fan community but I was MSX ( v1.0 & v2.0 ) and SINCLAIR ZX SPECTRUM fan communities so did you involve with these machines before and if YES then did you have a review with MSX sound chip AY-3-8910 ?

[@EspenKraft]

Hey, I think I have a MSX sound chip in here somewhere. I will have a look. ;-)

[@ahmedalshalchi]

@@EspenKraft ... To have the IC without the uP system , it means nothing to do with so do you have an MSX machine basically ?

[@GeraldreiDaniel]

1:43 Is that Izuku Midoriya??????

[@EspenKraft]

Yes it is. ;-)

[@GeraldreiDaniel]

@@EspenKraft how i did not know about that??

[@ГеоргийВальтер-э5я]

Колоссально!!👍🏻✌🏻✌🏻

[@EspenKraft]

:D

[@klaasj7808]

can you upload the software here. thx

[@EspenKraft]

No, I can't do that.

[@klaasj7808]

or is this a case of see me being special i have this awesome 1985 software and you dont.

[@EspenKraft]

Take that attitude somewhere else. I don't make copies of programs and put online.

[@AndersEngerJensen]

Dude, the software is a google search away. Why would Espen or anyone else of us putting software or other IP like this up for free? It’s not for him to give away. Sure, it may be considered avandonware, but just do like the rest: Google it. Took me 2 sek to find some downloads. 🤷🏼‍♂️😂

[@klaasj7808]

@@AndersEngerJensen yes but something is wrong with that version. reed the replies.

[@RoyMaya]

I still have my copy of Pro24 for the Atari ST. Those were exciting times, when sequencing was so new and cutting edge.

[@pianokeyjoe]

Yes! Very FUTURISTIC and impossible dream for a poor teenager in the 80s!

[@RoyMaya]

@@pianokeyjoe Very true! I was fortunate that my dad was a musician and would buy all this cool gear.

[@pianokeyjoe]

@@RoyMaya Oh Roy, My dad too was a musician but he was a classical guitar musician(Think classical gas here and Gypsy Kings). He did NOT like my music or my playing keyboards.. Sad, but true. I was on my own then as far as my talents were concerned. But in the end I have a house full of gear at 46! So it all worked out in the end! Not famous and would not want to be in 2020 ya kidding? All the politics and me too movements, No it is all about the MUSIC for me! My beginnings with Computer sequencing was Power Tracks and Cake Walk. I never did use or enjoy Steinberg software till much later in life and it was plug ins, not sequencers even then. Cake Walk and now Energy XT for PC are what I would use. And of course now in 2020 it is FL Studio. My nostalgia in Computer based midi is still Cake Walk and Power tracks.. Both apps did the job nicely but upon using both recently I found out how buggy and crash prone both are! No wonder I want to try simpler and OLDER software lol! I have not been so blessed as to know the joys of sequencing on a Atari or C64 or Amiga with their nice fast and stable ROM based OSs! Ah well.. Maybe in another life

[@otisobl]

Doesn't it kind of suck that everyone can do this on their cell phone now?

[@perditaolio4163]

Have had this software for years on the C64. Very good piece of software, escpecially on a 64K computer.

[@solidrate]

Actually have the Cart version. Still use it and somewhat modernized it for use in a modular synth. Best timing ever!

[@superviewer]

Great. I always wanted to see the humble beginnings of Steinberg in action and you did that very well. A challenge could be to control software instruments from say a Mac over midi by the C64 and Pro16 😁

[@EspenKraft]

Cheers!

[@ChrisCebelenski]

The screen video of the C64 came out nice, ghetto camera tripod not withstanding! I never used my C64 for sequencing, and instead had a Yamaha CX5m, which was a different workflow entirely. I can see how the workflows (and "mood" for a lack of a better word) can influence the output. Did you ever use any of the rudimentary samplers available for the C64? I had something (made by Covox IIRC) that allowed low-fidelity sampling on the C64, which I wound up using as a distortion effect more than anything else.

[@EspenKraft]

I never used the C64 for sequencing at all. I had sold my C64 collection by the time I got interested in sequencers. My first computer with a sequencer was the Atari ST with C-lab Creator on it.

[@kaivincenzigginemeth2789]

Still own all of that

[@Robin23576]

Well, basically this is everything I need from cubase. And I presume there is no annoying eLicenser which breaks down when you need your software the most.

[@EspenKraft]

No dongle on this. ;-)

[@fredscalliet]

... and Pro24 preceeded Cubase 1.0 on Atari ST ;-). Then Cubase 2.0 is when things really got exciting!

[@terryraymond7984]

I tried Steinberg Pro 16 with my NTSC C64 I think the Pal is incompatible with USA Midi interfaces it wouldnt even utter a peep.

[@vanselm66]

I had an Atari STE with an old Cubase copy (1992). Unfortunately that computer got broken.

[@CineGobs]

The midi-interface I had for my c64 was bundled with a program from Steinberg. It was a very simple multitrack midi-recorder/player. I can't remember what it was called, but it was like a much simpler and much less colorful version of the Pro16.

[@mrdali67]

A true classic, tho the Pro24 for the Atari ST wich i started with is much more user friendly. This is not much more advanced than the avg pattern sequencer on drum machines and early hardware sequencers. Still fun to see how things have evolved to all the ecsessive functions in todays DAW's

[@EspenKraft]

I don't think it was meant to be more advanced. At this time. This was more than enough to get the job done. ;-)

[@gertlungmaskin1210]

The best experience was when the programming was almost complete and the Pro16+ software crashed. The song was gone forever and the software saluted the event by giving of a happy little sound.

[@elwro07]

An example from 1986 of Pro16 being used in live performance by a Polish band Kombi: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sJC6iGeBbst0oZo

[@wreckage-vs5jv]

I leave this for the watch spotters. He wears a Seiko 5 Sports SKZ211. Very nice and yet affordable 200 m diver.

[@DavidB-rx3km]

Bomb the bass used this to record their first album Into The Dragon.

[@robbiewabisabi]

That is pretty amazing. I certainly would miss having an actual arrange window. This looks similar to the Fairlight Page R sequencer. Which is why in the 80s you had synth programmers getting paid top dollar to make tracks with this sort of gear.

[@EspenKraft]

They sure did invoice hard. ;-)

[@Roboprogs]

Nostalgic! We had a C64 setup like this back at my college in early 89: DX7ii as controller, C64 for patch editing and sequencing, and a Roland polytimbral rompler box (u220???) as backup, out to a 4 track reel to reel tape.

[@nemisysone]

Oh wow!!! I had no idea that such a sequencer existed for the C64!!! My friend and I used it for BASIC programming and playing games like Zork and Battletech: The Crescent Hawks' Inception. And then I find out through online research that there is also a full-size keyboard with its own software that connects to the C64 (not the keyboard overlay that mounts on top of the alphanumeric keyboard) made by Sequential called the Music Mate?!! I love these classic MIDI setups!!! These are where it all started! Too bad I missed out on them back then. Just how expensive is the Steinberg Pro 16 Sequencer software these days and how rare is it to find? Is the Sequential Music Mate's sequencer + keyboard setup just as good? The Pro 16 seems very user-friendly, and I would love to try it out if I could...Of course, I'll probably need a working C64 with a working 1541 first...

[@EspenKraft]

There's several manufacturers of full length keyboards that plugs into the cartridge port on a C64, from back then. Siel made one as well. The Steinberg Pro16 with cartridge cost around £150 in 1986. Today you can find the software online and run it from a floppy emulator, so you don't need the real 1541 or anything.

[@decaystar]

This is super cool, thank you for this video Espen!

[@EspenKraft]

Cheers!

[@kenb6870]

Everything is so complicated nowadays, you have to tweak even further, but because things are so raw, you do require more processing power and equipment, which is also very expensive

[@terryraymond7984]

Does the Steinberg sequencer let you use the SID sound or the keyhboards instruments?

[@EspenKraft]

This is a Midi sequencer.

[@mrclaytron]

Mixing up workflow and process are definitely great for inspiration... Especially with nostalgic gear that takes you back to a different time and place! I used Amigas in the late 80s, and through the 90s - I loved writing music on those machines. I feel the convenience of modern DAW and hardware sequencers has actually made me lazy! I love your channel man. Always inspiring! Cheers!!

[@EspenKraft]

Cheers man!

[@amonster8mymother]

You mentioned a "pro24?". This is " pro16?". If you are using 16 midi channels why would you need 24 channels recording? Wouldn't 16 be ok? For one port? What else would you do with the extra 8 channels? Drums? One drum on each channel?🤔

[@EspenKraft]

Exactly. I'd use 10-16 MIDI tracks just for drums back then. Pro24 is a lot more advanced than this version, so it needed a faster, bigger machine like the Atari ST to run.

[@MZ-tm1tw]

Simple and fast and you got to play live 😎👍. A bit off topic how good is the SSL siX mixer 🤔 it have a lot of features for small format mixer 2ch SSL preamps with two-band Eq Hi and Low and a compressor. Two stereo line inputs G-series master-buss compressor and one stereo input routeable to the masterbuss for mixdown off 6 (8-)channels.

[@EspenKraft]

The SSL has become a cornerstone here with me now. So flexible and versatile and it sounds so good. It's my monitor system, preamps, mixing and analog summing hub now. I use the inserts into my series 500 rack and it just works like a charm.

[@Rickynoxe]

I didn’t know that Pro 16 was firstly released on C64. I am very surprised because I was sure that MIDI, Pro24 ... were born at the same period of Atari ST and that no other computer had MIDI extension. So I wonder how the MIDI was used and implemented before. I guess only to connect hardware like synth to synth or synth to expander or synth to hard sequencer if it exist.

[@EspenKraft]

1986 was three years into MIDI so there were plenty og midi interfaces for different computers by then. ;-)

[@sagantiworrior5284]

On Cubase 2.0 Atari format.

[@808music3]

And I thought all of the music was actually done in the fairlight back in the day. Suppose many musicians couldn’t afford the fairlight workstation, so this came along as a cheap alternative to what was available at the time.👆😬

[@EspenKraft]

There were plenty of alternatives to the gear for only the super rich. Hundreds of options for MIDI sequencing emerged after 1983.

[@amonster8mymother]

Is it recording velocity?

[@jonfroin]

amonster8mymother Yes, shown by the bars at the bottom of the screen.

[@EspenKraft]

Yes.

[@amonster8mymother]

@@EspenKraft then it's doing a lot 9f work. Can you turn the recording velocity off?

[@Matt-bo7kb]

Excellent video! Thank you for sharing your artistry.

[@EspenKraft]

Many thanks! :)

[@chaton51]

I began on the pro24 on atari, cubase on 1040st, cubase audio on the Falcon030... until now cubase 10.5 on pc. I must admit that the best period was Cubase on Atari, so stable... but now there is a lot more power with all the VSTs and audio treatment...

[@EspenKraft]

Now we can do everything, but that's also all we can do. ;-)

[@rhill109]

I had a C64 back in 86’ but was completely unaware of this software. Imagine this paired with my new S-10 sampler. Anyone know how much this program and interface retailed for back in the day? My quick search came up empty.

[@EspenKraft]

Yes, this exact package (software and midi interface) retailed for about £145 in 1986. In the UK.

[@nicovanliempt1179]

Did "doctorMix" see this video? 🤔 I think he loves this tutorial 🤣

[@EspenKraft]

We KZbinrs have very little time to watch KZbin..;-)

[@테헤디]

That’s lit !