Cubase 14: Using DAWproject To Exchange Projects Between Cubase & Cubasis

With my demo ready to be moved to Cubase, Cubasis’ Media page now offers the DAWproject format for sharing projects.

The new DAWproject file format promises straightforward project transfers between Cubasis and Cubase.

The act of moving a music project between DAWs isn’t always straightforward, and even though most DAWs offer one or more project export formats the transition can still be somewhat cumbersome and frustrating — especially when it comes to configuring any virtual instruments or effects plug‑ins you want included in the process. In late 2023, Bitwig and PreSonus introduced the DAWproject file format, a new project ‘container’ designed to transfer all of the most important elements (audio tracks, MIDI tracks, mixer and plug‑in configurations included) between any DAWs that support the file format.

In late 2023, Bitwig and PreSonus introduced the DAWproject file format, a new project ‘container’ designed to transfer all of the most important elements (audio tracks, MIDI tracks, mixer and plug‑in configurations included) between any DAWs that support the file format.

While warmly welcomed by many users, relatively few developers have so far added support — but, happily, Steinberg are now one of them. DAWproject import/export was added to Cubase Pro and Artist in v14.0.20 and, wonderfully, Steinberg added the same support to Cubasis 3.7.5. So if you like the idea of moving projects between your mobile and desktop working environments, DAWproject now has the potential to make that easy. In use, it’s a remarkably straightforward process — but, understandably, there are still some ‘gotchas’ to be aware of, so below I’ll take you through the pros and more obvious cons.

To There...

A common use case is transferring an idea started on Cubasis on an iPad, while working away from your studio, to ‘full‑fat’ Cubase for development or completion in the studio. As you’ll see in a moment, the transfer process is very straightforward. But Cubasis is now a pretty feature‑rich recording environment in its own right — so, just how much detail from your Cubasis project might arrive intact in Cubase via the DAWproject container?

A common use case is transferring an idea started on Cubasis on an iPad... to ‘full‑fat’ Cubase for development or completion in the studio.

Let’s assume we’ve created a typical project in Cubasis for a new musical idea. It consists of a number of virtual instrument tracks (drums, bass, piano and synths, for example) and a few audio tracks recorded on a compact, mobile‑friendly audio interface. Perhaps a guitar part or three and a vocal demo. Within the Cubasis mixer, the tracks have been routed to Group Channels (buses for drums, bass, keyboards, guitars) to keep things organised, and to make it easier to create a static mix balance from the...