Steinberg has announced that support for VST2 plug-ins will be phased out in its host applications within 24 months. This means that you’ll no longer be able to use VST2 plug-ins in upcoming versions of Cubase, Nuendo, Dorico and Wavelab. Furthermore, Steinberg’s own plug-ins will be available as VST3 versions only.
Steinberg discontinues VST2 support
If you’re still using VST2 plug-ins in Cubase, Nuendo, Dorico or Wavelab, it’ll soon be time to switch to VST3 for good. Steinberg announced yesterday that it plans to phase out support for VST2 plug-ins over the next 24 months, marking the final step in the transition to VST3.
It’s long been known that Steinberg was moving towards supporting VST3 only. Which shouldn’t come as a surprise, as VST3 has been around since 2008 – an eternity in the world of software. But some developers have been slow to adopt the new platform, even though the VST2 SDK (software development kit) hasn’t been updated in a long time. To my knowledge, Steinberg hasn’t given out VST2 licenses to new developers since at least 2018.
Meanwhile, Cubase and the company’s other host applications continued to offer support for VST2 plug-ins, and Steinberg also continued to compile VST2 versions of some of its own plug-ins like HALion, for example. That is now coming to an end. Within 24 months, all of Steinberg’s hosts and plug-ins will support VST3 only.


What happens to your older projects?
So what does this mean if you rely on VST2 plug-ins for your workflow? I think that most popular plug-ins by major developers shouldn’t really present an issue. There’s hope that those that have yet to transition to VST3 will do so in light of Steinberg’s announcement. The problem is, if you’re like me, you probably have a couple of older plug-ins in your plug-in folder whose developers have discontinued support or – even worse – ceased to exist. As of now, it looks like those will become obsolete for good when they’re no longer supported in Steinberg’s host applications.
Users on the Steinberg forum were quick to compile a list of plug-ins that have yet to transition to VST3. You can find the thread here.
What do you think? I’m a bit torn – I’m not usually one to oppose change, and I think it’s understandable that Steinberg wants to move on and devote the resources needed for VST2 support to new developments, especially since VST3 has been around for so long. But backwards compatibility is always an issue, and everybody knows that trying to open older DAW projects can be a huge PITA. With support for VST2 now ending, that’s not going to get any better.

https://helpcenter.steinberg.de/hc/en-us/articles/4409561018258

 

Thanks for the info @Deceptive. I'm glad I'm not a Steinberg user.
Support costs money and that is now being rationalized away in the course of profit maximization.

 

Why not do what I do? Keep back an old version of your DAW exclusively for what wont work under the new version.

 

Well, f#ck it. They just cracked Powercore and I could use it again, with Jbridge. Now this bullsh#t. Any solutions? Like wrappers that host a VST2 inside? Anybody?

 

What's the point of discontinue VST2?
Is VST3 dramatically better?
Is VST2 tragically worse?

 

Last edited: Jan 22, 2022

Take that answer and add steroids.
Our projects (old and new) should be regarded as infinitely more valuable than any of the platforms they run on.
So, just do whatever it takes to always maintain the viability of your projects.
That typically means viewing the endless pointless updates treadmill in hardware and software as just a luxury, not a necessity.
If we can't open a twenty year old project today or open today's project in twenty years from now - our priorities are probably screwed up.

Personally, I will never get caught stranded or held hostage by any company or any technology
(other than maybe electricity and someone manufacturing guitar strings ).
And that attitude makes it easy to see announcements like Steinberg's and just say "so what - who cares".
Making music is the goal - technology should always be just a useful but subservient tool.

 

Hi there!
I'm after reading this thread:
https://audiosex.pro/threads/steinberg-discontinues-support-for-vst2-plug-ins.62954/
and I am thinking about Bitwig. I believe (correct me if I'm wrong) that the support for VST2 plugins has more to do with the DAW you're working in than with the specification itself.

So, said that: does anybody know if Bitwig has pronounced about VST2 support in the long term?
It could be a pity to lose the possibility of using VST2 plugins into Bitwig, mainly to open old projects.

Thanks!

 

For Steinberg users, download all previously released Steinberg versions and protect all versions on another data carrier.
In the future, we could use a second PC or a third PC, to keep old operating systems or old versions alive.

It's big business for the software companies, they don't even need an office, there are
no more freight charges and you no longer have to rent a warehouse for your goods.

Because everything now and in the future will only be digital. Workers can program software from anywhere in the world.

 

couldn't you use some type of wrapper?

 

Last edited: Jan 20, 2022

Steinberg has been warning for quite some time that support for VST2 & x86/32 bit would be coming to an end.
Personally have not used any 32 bit plugins for years. I also do not use any x86 based software for audio/MIDI work (even on Linux).

If you are not preparing for a 64 Bit, VST3 future, you could find yourself in a sea of frustration.

 

i dont think this means that DAW's will stop supporting VST2,
but rather Steinberg will stop providing tools, support, SDK's and licensing to new developers or products to use and create projects,
which means every plugin manufacturer will have to transition to VST3 eventually - and thats a good thing

and DAW's and hosts will have to adapt to fully support VST3.
thats a great thing too, while the road there may be bumpy - it will help standardize the VST3 format

 

In my experience VST2 are far better than VST3 in terms of stability. For example, less crashes, less glitches. Too bad for VST2.

 

These views are a developer's nightmare but heck, I'm still using win 7 on my music pc, and have absolutely no intention of upgrading it.

 

That's a giant "who gives a flying f#ck" in my book. Software AND hardware come and go.
It's just the nature of the beast. If I need/want to use something I use it. If I need to build
a legacy machine and/or use a legacy OS that's what I do. Steinberg, (let's be real YAMAHA),
and their new DAWS can take a flying leap. Bandit mentioned TC Powercore. I never stopped
using mine. And as far as VST2 is concerned. If Steinie is no longer supporting it who's to stop
other devs from continuing to code new VST2 plugs. 32bit has all but been phased
out but plenty of devs still produce 32bit VST2 pluggies. So.....whatevs.

 

I see it this way. If I cant make a hit song with everything at our disposal at this moment in time? then nothing that comes out in the next 20 years will improve my chances.

 

This is going backwards now. A DAW should work FOR the user not against it with such bullshit maneuvers.
Its not like we are talking about analog hardware, this is digital, no costs here, implementation of VST2 should be imo mandatory for at least a few decades more.
Logical question for a potential buyer. Will you buy a DAW that offers among others also VST2 support or only VST3?
This is just one of those moves that makes me believe Steinberg DAW department is run by total egotistical imbeciles.

This is a very egotistical move, since many developers still offer only VST2. They are telling us you are either with us or against us. Idiots.

 

If they drop the support, I want a free VST2 to VST3 wrapper to be able to continue using all of my VST2 plugins.

 

This has been coming for a few years now. They've been warning everyone to transition and I am somewhat expecting a VST4 in the next five years as MIDI2 gets fleshed out. Yamaha having a big hand in the definition of both standards probably means they just don't see the point of spending the money to maintain VST2 when the advantages of transitioning off it will be valuable in terms of productivity and features of their paying clientele.

 

I've never regretted spending money on hardware, but all my software comes from those reliable purveyors at R2R.

 

Meanwhile, in open source land, Clap will rise ...