VST is 30 years old, and Steinberg is giving away some of its earliest plugins

It’s the format that changed software music making forever: the VST plug-in format turns 30 this year. Steinberg is giving away updated versions of Neon, CS-40, Karlette, VB1, and LM7 — some of its earliest plug-ins — to celebrate. And that means you can run these vintage instruments (plus one tape delay) on your modern Mac or PC.

What happens when AI-synthesized vocals meet choral notation?

Tokyo-based startup Dreamtonics is doing unparalleled work with AI-powered voices; their Synthesizer V Studio enables a level of precision that combines that of recording and synthesis. Add that to Steinberg’s Dorico scorewriter, and you get a machine mockup of solo singers and choirs that we’ve never heard before. But there are a lot of details involved — so let’s hear from an expert.

Peter Kirn - November 26, 2025

Cubase is Japan’s biggest DAW, and you need to watch this Japanese review

Yamaha Vocaloid-based voices in Cubase? It better be able to sing in Japanese, right? Well, I’ve got some more on the engine, and the folks at SLEEP FREAKS have your Japanese-language review. Surprise: that is trippy as hell to watch with the machine learning English-language track. Jump into a must-watch set of tips and tricks for Cubase fans.

Peter Kirn - November 6, 2025

Cubase 15: Expression Maps, rich patterns, updated Modulators, plug-ins

Peter Kirn - November 5, 2025

Open Steinberg: VST3 and ASIO SDKs now have open source licenses

Peter Kirn - October 29, 2025

Steinberg Dorico 6 notation tool adds cutaways, font, layout features, more

Peter Kirn - April 30, 2025

Three free spectral synths to try after the new Serum spectral oscillator

Peter Kirn - March 19, 2025

Finale music notation software discontinued; devs embrace Dorico

Peter Kirn - August 26, 2024

Free, ultra-deep spectral synth from Steinberg: X-Stream

Peter Kirn - July 4, 2024