Steinberg Announces Nuendo 10

[Guy Rowland]

At GDC 2019, we are going to preview Nuendo 10 — the upcoming release of our leading post-production and game audio DAW. Celebrating the 10th version of Nuendo since its introduction in 2000, this iteration is a landmark in every aspect.

Nuendo 10 boasts more than 40 new features and improvements, ranging from major workflow enhancements such as Field Recorder Audio Import, Video Rendering and Video Cut Detection, to sound design tools, including VoiceDesigner and Doppler effects, to DearVR Spatial Connect integration, making it the most comprehensive VR authoring DAW in the market.

And it doesn’t stop there: Nuendo 10 comes with a redesigned user interface, new and improved plug-ins, a reworked channel strip and more than 30 other features and improvements, among various tools for music composing.

https://www.steinberg.net/en/products/n ... _page.html

A few more specifics at KVR:

Head of the Pro Audio Team Timo Wildenhain commented: "Consider Nuendo 10 a milestone release: it's a very special version with many special enhancements and additions. To celebrate this distinction, we are dramatically reducing the price for full and update licenses of Nuendo 10 to give back to the many professionals who already benefit from Nuendo and those who are toying with the idea to switch. Basically, everyone needs to understand why we believe that Nuendo 10 is the most cutting-edge digital audio workstation today."

New features in Nuendo 10:

• Field Recorder Audio Import for searching and matching field recorder audio files to selected events in the project.
  ADM Import support, complete with intact object automation data, for further mixing or editing.
  Video Cut Detection for analyzing video files for edits and inserting markers for each cut.
  Doppler effect for simulating the movement, distance and perception of a sound as its source passes you.
  VoiceDesigner for modifying voices and creating out-of-this-world sound effects in powerful and innovative ways.
  Video rendering for exporting a video file, or a section of a project including audio and video (available in a later maintenance update).
  Cue Sheet Export for creating a report of all music pieces, or all VO clips of a narrator, used in the project (available in a later maintenance update).
  dearVR support to create and mix immersive 3D audio content directly in the VR environment.
  Music features including VariAudio 3, Distroyer effect, MixConsole Snapshots, Groove Agent SE 5 and more sound content.
  Enhanced workflow and performance including ARA support (available in a later maintenance update), new features for Direct Offline Processing, new modes for the AmbiDecoder, Audio Alignment panel, high-DPI support, redesigned channel strip, GUI and more.

Availability & Pricing

Nuendo 10 will be available through resellers and the Steinberg Online Shop in Q2 2019. The suggested retail price for the boxed version of Nuendo 10, which includes the required dongle, will be 999 euros, whereas the download version will be available for 979 euros. These prices include German VAT.

Various downloadable updates and upgrades will exclusively be available through the Steinberg Online Shop.

Customers who have activated Nuendo 8 or previous versions since March 13, 2019, are eligible for a free, downloadable Grace Period update to Nuendo 10 as soon as it is available.

Looks to me like the overall strategy is to become dominant in VR and gaming, knowing that this could be areas where they make inroads into PT's market share.

[Daryl]

Wow, that's a huge price drop. Even with no new features, it makes getting another licence way cheaper if I wait.

[Lawrence]

What was it before this, something like $2500?

[Daryl]

Yes, really expensive.

[Lawrence]

I can crossgrade for a ridiculous price ($350) but would have to give up my Cubase license. Don't think I want to do that.

[Guy Rowland]

I know I should know this, but... what features are in Cubase that are not in Nuendo?

[heisenberg]

Guy,

There is almost feature parity between Cubase and Nuendo in terms of music making (MIDI related). The NEK extension for Nuendo that disappeared a couple of years ago, when those composing related features were added to the standard Nuendo. Cubase releases have been about 9 months ahead of Nuendo so you would have to look at the new features in Cubase to parse that out.

In terms of Nuendo only features, I have linked to a post from the Steinberg > Nuendo forum that lists Nuendo only features but some of that may have changed as Steinberg has recently started sharing Nuendo features with Cubase.

https://www.steinberg.net/forums/viewto ... 87#p843181

There are some that claim Steinberg has botched the implementation of VCAs in Nuendo. There has been a large effort to correct this over the past 2 years. If that concerns you there is lots of information on the Steinberg forum on this. Personally, I think most of the complaining and critique is overstated by a wide margin.

[Guy Rowland]

Thanks Andrew, really useful summary... it's quite tempting, even if only for a few specific features. I too got this crazy upgrade price of about £330. I simply don't understand why they don't allow you to run Cubase on a Nuendo license, just one at a time, nothing fancy. If they did that I'd likely do it right now, as it is... it feels more like a curiosity than anything else. If I didn't have Pro Tools Ultimate, I may feel differently.

[heisenberg]

You have to effectively surrender your Cubase license.

[Guy Rowland]

You have to effectively surrender your Cubase license.

Precisely. I think combined with the price drop, they would see a massive increase in Nuendo sales if that Neundo license also opened Cubase. So you can’t split the two, just that Nuendo opens both, much like any Cubase license opens all previous versions.

Apart from actively wishing to keep Nuendo in an exclusive club, I cannot imagine what benefit Steinberg gets from the current policy.

[heisenberg]

It appears it is simple and corporate a decision as it is. Cubase and Nuendo are separate business units. They are competing within the corporate culture that is Yamaha. They compete in a way. Nuendo has garnered more marketshare over the past couple of years. They have hired more developers to work on it, they continue to be aggressive in picking up new users and adding new features.

They have this 50% off sale every year around this time. The new elements are, they did this during the grace period to Nuendo version 10 and they have added all this new stuff in the "dot upgrades during version 8 to Dolby Atmos/immersive/gaming audio that have made it a compelling product in the past 12 months or so.

[Lawrence]

Still, let me default back to Cubase when or if I want and they could:

1. Suck some more dough outa me.
2. Maybe get me on a more expensive Nuendo upgrade path.