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New tools, fresh sounds and workflow upgrades to keep your creativity moving.

Steinberg has launched the next generation of Cubase, bringing a new Expressions Maps system, Melodic Pattern Sequencer and set of six extra Modulators to its well-established flagship DAW, along with AI-powered stem separation and a raft of new plugins.

Cubase’s Pattern Editor has been upgraded with a Melodic Pattern Sequencer, joining the beat-focused Pattern Sequencer introduced with Cubase 14. With step input, custom scales, shape generators, randomization, it’s designed for crafting expressive melodies in both polyphonic and monophonic modes.

Also introduced in Cubase 14 were a set of six Modulators that can be used to modulate parameters across instruments, effects and the DAW itself. Cubase 15 brings six more Modulators to the table, spanning randomization, wavefolding, crossfading, sample and hold and more.

Cubase’s revamped Expression Maps are now easier to create, with a streamlined workflow, integration with both the Key and Score Editors, and per-articulation timing offset for improved realism.

Version 15 brings a healthy update to Cubase’s arsenal of instruments and effects, updating the Groove Agent SE drum machine with a new mixer, enhanced effects and a scalable UI and introducing a new Writing Room Synths plugin that features a selection of “production-ready, authentic vintage synths” sampled in “the world’s best songwriting rooms”.

The headline in the plugin department has to be Omnivocal, a versatile vocal synthesis plugin based on Yamaha technology. Currently in beta, Omnivocal offers a variety of different vocal styles with fine-grained control over timbre and expression, and lyric input is easy thanks to integration with Cubase’s Key Editor.

Alongside Omnivocal, Cubase 15 ships with two new effects: UltraShaper, an advanced dynamics processor with transient shaping, clip limiting and EQ built in, and PitchShifter, which does what you’d expect, with the addition of formant preservation and saturation options. All stock effect plugins now also support user interface scaling, which is a welcome update.

Finally, Cubase is playing catch-up with the competition with its new AI-powered stem separation feature, a tool that’s fast becoming a standard requirement for the modern DAW. Capable of splitting stereo mixes into four stems covering vocals, drums, bass and other instruments directly from the Timeline, Cubase’s stem separation will be useful for anyone sampling, remixing or editing mixed tracks.

And, Cubase 15 brings an array of new sounds and content along with a host of workflow upgrades and interface tweaks. Another warmly received addition is support for the DAWproject format, meaning that you’re able to easily transfer projects created in Cubase to PreSonus Studio One and Bitwig Studio, and vice versa.

“We worked closely with our community to refine what matters most, turning valuable feedback into meaningful improvements that make everyday workflows smoother and more intuitive,” says Steinberg’s Senior Marketing Manager Matthias Quellmann. “This release builds naturally on the foundation of the previous version – it feels like the perfect evolution, marking a major leap forward for Cubase.”

Cubase 15 is available in three editions: Pro is priced at $579.99, Artist is priced at $329.99 and Elements will set you back $99.99. Crossgrade and upgrade discounts are available for owners of previous versions.

Find out more on Steinberg website.

You can now purchase Ableton Live 12 Suite on a rent-to-own plan.

Ableton has announced that Live 12 Suite, the top-tier version of its flagship DAW, is now available on a rent-to-own plan, placing the software within reach of music-makers on a limited budget.

Live 12 Suite is priced at £539/€599/$749. The rent-to-own plan spreads the cost of the DAW over 24 monthly payments of £22.46/€24.96/$31.21, with no extra charges, and the remaining balance can be paid off at any time. (An educational license for Live 12 Suite, which is 50% cheaper, can also be paid off in 12 monthly payments.)

Ableton’s rent-to-own plan can be paused at any time with no penalty, and users will be able to access the software until the end of the current billing cycle. You can then pick up where you left off and resume the plan at any time. Users have the option of extending their rent-to-own plan to cover the cost of an upgrade when a new version of Live is released.

You won’t need to be online constantly to use Live with a rent-to-own plan, but Live will periodically verify that the plan is active. Users can use Live offline for up to 3 days between verification checks – if you stay offline longer than that, saving and exporting will be disabled until you verify.

Currently, Ableton’s rent-to-own plan is only available for Live 12 Suite. The DAW is available in three editions (Intro, Standard and Suite) with Suite at the top end, bundled with 20 software instruments, 58 audio effects and 71GB of presets, samples and loops.

Rent-to-own plans are a popular alternative to the increasingly prevalent subscription model. Unlike a subscription, once all payments in the plan have been made, a customer owns their Live 12 license in full, in perpetuity.

To purchase Ableton Live 12 Suite on a rent-to-own plan, head to Ableton online store.

Bitwig takes its flagship DAW to ‘another level’ with Bitwig Studio 6, bringing improved automation, key signature awareness and a host of workflow enhancements.

Bitwig has introduced Bitwig Studio 6, a major update that they say improves and expands on core DAW functions.

Launching today in public beta, Bitwig Studio 6 brings with it an overhaul of automation editing, a new Clip Alias feature, project-wide key signature support, a visual refresh and much more.

Apparently, the most noteworthy of Bitwig Studio 6’s updates is the software’s new approach to automation editing, which completely revamps the way that automation is handled within the DAW, making it both more sophisticated and more flexible.

Bitwig Studio 6 introduces a dedicated Automation Mode that instantly overlays every track on the timeline with an automation lane for the most recently tweaked parameter. The Detail Editor Panel now provides access to all of the automation on any given track, replacing the standalone Automation Editor Panel.

A trio of improved automation gestures make editing quicker and more intuitive, while new behaviours open up new avenues for creative automation. The Spread feature applies a randomised value within a chosen range to individual automation points on each pass, while the Hold option tells a point to remain at a flat value until the next one is reached.

These are complemented by an upgraded algorithm that translates automation drawn with the Pencil tool into smooth and easily editable curves.

In addition, Bitwig Studio 6 introduces Automation Clips, which store automation data in a self-contained format. This makes it possible to access the same clip features as Audio and Note Clips, such as stretching, looping and setting independent start times, and Automation Clips can even be saved to Bitwig’s library to be used in other projects.

Bitwig’s latest update also brings with it a long-requested feature that streamlines the arrangement process and solves one of the software’s most common workflow gripes: Clip Aliases. These are specialised duplicates of a Clip that share the same content, or Pattern – when one clip is edited, all clips sharing that Pattern across the Project will be updated accordingly. Clip Aliases can be used in both the Clip Launcher and Arranger, and can be created for Audio, Note and Automation Clips.

Another major new feature in Bitwig Studio 6 is project-wide key signature awareness, which opens up a variety of creative possibilities for working within scales and keys.

A project’s key signature can now be selected alongside tempo and time signature in the Transport section. Users are able to choose between a selection of 23 scales for any root note, including modes and blues scales, along with traditional major and minor scales. Key signature can also be automated or even modulated using Project Modulators, unlocking tons of potential for tonal experimentation.

Scales are now visible when editing notes in the Piano Roll, and existing notes can be quantized to sit within the relevant scale or snapped to a chosen scale when drawn in. Six Note FX devices have been updated to work in tandem with Bitwig’s new scale awareness, including the Key Filter device, a note transposition device that filters incoming notes to match a particular scale or key, alongside Arpeggiator, Randomize and more.

Bitwig’s visual interface has also received a refresh in version 6, becoming more customisable and efficient to use. Editing tools are now accessible from a slim window on the right-hand side, including three new tools, Audition, Spray Can and Step Input. Audition does what it says on the tin, enabling you to preview any track or clip individually with a single click. Spray Can sprays a row of notes or automation points at the currently selected beat interval, while Step Input lets you enter notes in the Piano Roll via MIDI input without hitting record.

Major changes include:

• An extensive upgrade to automation editing, touching everything from smoother editing gestures to new behaviors such as spread and hold.
• Automation clips, which open up new possibilities in a familiar format.
• Clip Aliases – a new way to handle repetition and structure
• Project-wide key signatures.
• Bitwig Studio’s visual interface has been improved, making it easier to adjust to specific workflow needs.
• New and improved tools, such as the Spray Can and Audition tool, join enhanced editors for both expression editing and layered editing of audio and notes.

Overall, Bitwig Studio 6 looks like a comprehensive update that makes this already-capable DAW even more powerful, bringing Bitwig users a bundle of long-requested features that promise to dramatically enhance workflows and make composition and arrangement faster and more intuitive.

Though Bitwig has a reputation as a forward-thinking DAW geared towards electronic and experimental music-makers, this update expands its appeal for a more conventional audience, focusing deeply on core DAW functionality rather than flashy new devices and modules (though users got plenty of those in recent updates) and making Bitwig Studio an even stronger competitor for more established rivals like Ableton Live and Logic Pro.

The official preview for Bitwig Studio 6:

Bitwig Studio 6 is now available as a beta release. The beta is free to all Bitwig Studio, Producer, and Essentials users with an active Upgrade Plan (as of August 27, 2025). Users will find the beta installers in their user profile.

The company is planning releasing version 6 this fall. Visit the Bitwig site for details.