Cubase Elements 16 is the ideal starting point for making music on a computer: build beats, develop melodies and chords, record vocals and instruments at home, edit audio and MIDI, and bring everything together in a mix.

The education version is aimed at students and teachers; proof of eligibility is required, according to Steinberg a valid ID showing current enrolment for students and proof of employment for teachers. The feature set comprises 48 audio, 64 MIDI and 24 instrument tracks, over 1500 instrument sounds and over 20 GB of samples and loops; the instruments include HALion Sonic, Groove Agent SE, Iconica Sketch and Sampler Track. Chord Pads, the Chord Track and Scale Assistant help you develop chord progressions and arrangements, while MixConsole, channel effects, automation and mastering presets help you finish the mix. New in Cubase 16 are VocalTouch for quick vocal processing, Omnivocal Basic for vocal ideas with synthesized voices, Strum and Stretch in the Key Editor, Guided Tours, contextual Quick Help and a redesigned, searchable Settings window, among others.

Features

• 48 audio, 64 MIDI and 24 instrument tracks
• HALion Sonic, Groove Agent SE, Iconica Sketch, Flux, Trip and Sampler Track
• Over 1500 instrument sounds and over 20 GB of samples and loops
• Chord Pads, Chord Track, Scale Assistant and Score Editor
• MixConsole with channel effects, automation and mastering presets
• New: VocalTouch, Omnivocal Basic, Strum and Stretch in the Key Editor, Guided Tours and Quick Help

Technical details

• Type: DAW software (education version)
• Operating systems: Windows, macOS
• Architecture: 64-bit
• Licensing: Steinberg Licensing (account-based), activation on up to three computers at a time, Internet connection required once for activation
• Content: over 1500 instrument sounds, over 20 GB of samples and loops

System requirements

• macOS 15 Sequoia, macOS 26 Tahoe or macOS 27 Golden Gate (native on Apple silicon or via Rosetta 2)
• Windows 10 (64-bit) version 22H2 or later, or Windows 11 (64-bit) version 25H2 or later
• Processor Windows (minimum): Intel Core i5 8th generation, AMD Ryzen 3000 series or Windows on Arm processor
• Processor Mac (minimum): Intel Core i5 (late 2018 or later) or Apple silicon
• CPU cores: 4 or more; RAM: at least 16 GB
• Disk space: 89 GB (core installation: 1.5 GB)
• Display resolution: at least 1440 x 900 at 100% UI scaling
• Graphics Windows: graphics card with native Windows 10 support, AMD R/RX series or NVIDIA 700 series and later recommended
• Graphics Mac: graphics card with Metal support
• Audio hardware: OS-compatible; ASIO-compatible hardware recommended for low latency

The licence is registered with the manufacturer at https://steinberg.net/sda. You will receive your serial number and the download link by e-mail immediately after purchase.