logic vs. cubase on a mac? why is logic better?

its all about what works best for you

if cubase works great and no problems plus it gets the job you need done, then i wouldn't be switching

on the other side if you are a user with more need than just the basics, then logic is the best for you

logic requires more than being a good musician, there is soo many features in logic that even the pro musicians don't know it existed

it took about 6 months learning cubase inside out, 3 months on fruityloops, 6 months on protools, and 2 months with Garageband 🙂

yet there is alot i don't even know about logic 4 or 5 or even 6

I'm on logic 7, and i feel like I'm half way with 7, but i can do incredibly crazy things that I'll never imaging doing with cubase, fruityloops, BG, and protools

first few months on logic is horrible and i can say that every user here will agree with me, but after a while you get surprises all the time ( good ones too )

you start to work fast with bunch of key commands as you go along, building autoload also makes logic even easier to use

this is my point of view and so as other logic users,
but other users will say that all they want to do is record audio and add a few midi instruments along side, them people don't really need to switch to logic

protools and cubase is far better than logic when it comes to that

so the question is what do you do and what do you want out of the two app that both don't have compare to each other

in terms of logic working better than cubase on mac is a lie, every user knows their trick for making things work

some people works better with logic 5 on windows but perform crap on mac
others perform better on mac using cubase than logic, it depends on

1: the system ( G5 dual 1.8 - 2.7 and rams 2 - 4 gb)
2: the user ( what the user is planing to do )
3: knowledge ( building good skills on one application is better than buying mac worth of $5,000 and switching applications to find the best one )

using logic express is like using garageband except with logic gui ( if you get a bit use to express and you start to love it, then upgrade to pro, this forum will be able to help you get you on your running shoes

but if you feel like express is slowing you down and too complicated then don't waste money going to pro and take some more time with cubase, you might perform better than someone using logic pro

stash

full logic is what you need. if you are familiar with cubase you can make logic behave in a similar way by customizing the key commands. logic has its holes and bugs, just like any other program, but it is fantastically deep and customizable. what you would be looking for from logic is it's range of plug-ins, and i think esx24 is worth price of admission. it is very cpu efficient. real world, it will be about features and flexibility that will make the difference. if sx does it for you stay with that and concentrate on getting good on it to make good music.

but if you are looking over the shoulder of a logic user and find that it can offer you more, then think about the upgrade. i think i can confidently say that most people here would tell you would not look back - even those who use both that complain about some of logic's niggles.

you need to be taken through logic by some one who can show you around. how "efficiently" one operates from the other i think is not as critical - i doubt there would be enough difference for that to make you switch.

i realize in my last post that it sounds like logic is unstable - it's not. its really really stable.

i'd stay with cubase. You know it and the learning curve for logic is huge.

if you plan on using reason, stick with cubase. cubase is a better program overall in my oppinion as far as workflow and productivity, and intuitive, more so than logic. i bought logic (ouch) to get away from having to rewire reason to cubase for every song. afterall, logic comes with a drum machine, a bunch of instruments, bla bla bla. turns out, the instruments do sound a lot better than the ones in the previous version of reason, however there is no usable loop utility included and the drum machine is a bit bulky and overdone in my opinion. so i was forced to try to rewire reason to logic to use those tools, and the cycle mode hangs if i have the wrong instrument going in logic (all the good ones, and all third party) so that put a huge damper on work flow. not to mention, reason 3.0 sounds a LOT better than 2.5 used to, and now i only use logic to record audio.... a GIANT waste of money. i miss cubase, but i have no money to drop on it... oh by the way i was using cubase sl. and like that better than logic PRO.

I really love Logic, but I did the Cubase to Logic switch and whilst I don't regret it, I don't recommend it.

Are you a techy type of user? Coz Logic is Techy. Once you figure it out, it's great, but it's 'logic' is a different world to Cubase. Cubase does alot of the thinking for you, and gives you utilities, such as rewire, with a certain protocol to use it. Logic, whilst you can do way more with Rewire, is much more longwinded in it's application. I've now got a foolproof template for it, but it took a while, and is still easier in Cubase.

So, basically, if you've got a powerful system, Cubase will be fine, if you like the workflow in Cubase, don't bother switching.

And Logic doesn't sound better, but does sound different. If anything, it's a bit more 'tapey' i've found. Less highs and less clarity than cubase, but more warmth, but that's just my experience.

I can compare! I am long time Cubase user, I have all versions of SX and I am working with both platforms, Mac and WinXP PC.
I can give you my experience but it is up to you-to choose from it the point that is important for you...

1/ Forget the PC and Windows. I do not want to argue about that, but everytime I have to turn the PC on, I am looking forward to switch it OFF again!

2/ Why should be Logic on Mac better than Cubase?
I see a few reasons:
-money. Some might say I am crazy, but I mean it! BECAUSE: Logic Pro7 comes with a pack of proffessional plugins and Instruments (equivalent of VST Instruments in Cubase) and theese are good enough for professional use. You have all basic plugins for EQing, (the "matching" EQ included), dynamics, modulation and filtering etc. and some more! Than you find the ESX24 sampler (class of it's own) AND a very good Reverb Sound Designer which is working with Impulse responses. On the other side Cubase comes with less plugins and none of them are good. You can not compare them to the Emagic ones, simply no. So you have to buy plugins for Cubase. I remember the times when there were only Waves, than Waves than TC Works than nothing and than the rest. You can find A LOT of plugin developers theese days. You do not have to pay the prices as for Waves to get very good quality plugins and still obtain quality (definitely better than Cubase ones). BUT still you have to pay. And in case of IR Reverbs (Waves or Wizzoo for example) or if you want to have a sampler in Cubase (Halion), you have to pay a lot if you compare the price for CubaseSX itself-when compared to price for Logic Pro.

-stability. I like Logic for it's stability. But it is probably that when I am on Mac, I use Logic and not Cubase 99% of times and my Cubase-crash courses are more Windows related...

- CubaseSX has A BIG BIG PROBLEM which occurs if you work with I/0 device with different latency on input/output (RME or Yamaha devices to name a few...). The recorded audio is recorded with random offset, so forget sample accuracy here !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This affects more than recorded audio in "first stage". Once you use outboard hardware effects, you can expect a missmatch between dry and wet signal.

- Logic looks nice. It is more friendly to my eyes than Cubase

-Logic routing capabilities are far better than the Cubase ones. The question is whether you need them.

- Accuracy again, now MIDI. If you know how to handle with plugin delay compensation if recording MIDI (just turn it OFF) than from my experience Logic is more accurate when it comes to recording MIDI.

-Logic sounds better. This is probably nonsense. BUT! I compared the same projects recorded to CubaseSX and than mixed in Cubase or exported to Logic and overdubbed and mixed in Logic. The Logic ones are MUCH MUCH better.

-icons for the tracks and instruments (and all theese track and instrument names). Theese are real time savers for me! You have nothing like that in Cubase!

NOW The things CubaseSX has BETTER:

- the "ping" function of External Plugin (for Logic users : that is I/O Helper plugin) which automatically measures the latency of audio pth to External Hardware Effect and back to Logic. However it works properly ONLY with devices (sound cards) which input/output latency is the same.

-zooming in cubase by grabbing SPL and move your mouse. Hmmmm that is GREAT. Even all shortcuts and keycommands and screensets in Logic can not beat this way of zooming.

-the Drum Editor in Cubase is unbeatable. In Logic you'll find it's equivalent-the Matrix Editor. But the CubaseSX Drum Editor is much better well-arranged and transparent. I think that the Matrix Editor was designed for creating MIDI drum tracks by drawing with pencil tool. Or by clicking a mouse or with step-input... But when it comes to editing a MIDI track of recorded MIDI drums from a real drumer who played on eDrums? Forget it. This Drum Editor is a good reason to keep cubase!

If you have any questions feel free to ask 🙂