Steinberg CC121 Advanced Integration Controller

The integration with Cubase is seamless (makes sense since it's a Steinberg controller). Sometimes, I miss additional knobs/buttons to assign to specific parameters I constantly use but I realize the more assignable knobs/buttons are available, the more confusing it can get. Keeping it simple is somewhat a blessing in disguise. So at the end, it works for me. I love the AI knob, I place the mouse over anything and can control it with it (a few VST plugins and VST instruments don't respond to it but the majority does)The only drawback is the price. I think the price could be a bit lower. (for example, $329 instead of $429 - the latter being the price at the time I'm writing this review)

Worked out of the box (Cubase 8.5). Great for EQing.

I'm a sound engeneer and I like this controler so much. Great relation cost benefit. I recomended for home stúdios.

This controller is missing something simple for its extraordinary cost.In all the marketing pics for the products, all of the buttons are lit up. In reality, buttons only light up if you engage them. This is terrible for my studio environment, which is dimly lit. The transport buttons are impossible to see, as they are black on black. All buttons should be illuminated at all times, and then change in some way when they are engaged (get brighter, turn a different color, flash, etc.)There are things I like about this controller, but Yamaha sort of has a lot of nerve selling a ten year old product without proper back lighting for $430 in 2020.It's worth about half what it sells for.Giant EQ section ONLY works with the default channel eq! NO third party eq control. I haven't even gotten it to work with other Cubase native EQ's.

Great controller. I have been looking at this unit for a long time. I finally bought it and love it.

Works perfectly!

I finally got the bucks together to buy the CC121 unit, and to spoil it rightaway, i was dissapointed enough to return it.The installation process was smooth, and that is about all the good stuff i have to say.Here are my personal show stoppers:1.The fader is cheap and noisy.I'm used to work with mixing boards like Mackie, Soundcraft and Neve. I know the feel of a decent fader. This one is a flimsy piece of plastic that starts audible stuttering when following slow volume automations.2.The EQ section is unusable.First, the layout does not mimic the layout in Cubase. Who ever overlooked this should be slapped in the by the Batman.Also, the knobs respond with an annoying delay that causes jumps in the DAW's EQ section. literally un-usable.3.One of the great features, the posibility to assign the big knob to any parameter in VST plugins, does not always work. Even one plug-in from Steinberg itself is not responding.4.The big knob is a flimsy piece of plastic. Try it, and then go and try ANY volume knob on an hifi amplifier or receiver from the 70s and you know what i mean.5.No custom assignments.For example the "jump to..." knobs are assigned to the beginning and the end of the project you're working on.When do i need to jump to the end of my project? NEVER.But i need to jump to the left and right locators all the f***ing time. But no way of customizing the unit.It makes no sense to me to own such an expensive piece of hardware, if i have to still use the mouse and keyboard/number pad all the time.Sorry Steinberg, but in my book the CC121 is a lost opportunity.

I recently bought a Presonus Faderport, but had to return it because the recording punch-in mode didn't work with Cubase 7 64-bit. Since having punching capability was vital to my recording process, I bit the bullet and bought the Steinberg CC121 to ensure I wouldn't run into similar incompatibility problems, even though the CC121 was more advanced of a controller than what I needed. But then I started working with the CC121, and realized it was not too advanced at all. In fact, it was exactly what I needed.To have instant rotary control over a channel strip's EQ section is a real boon to the mixing process in Cubase. In the mixer window, as you turn the knobs, you'll see your adjustments represented graphically in real time across all four bands. Very nice. (Please note that in order for the EQ knobs to function on the CC121, don't bother installing the Tools from the enclosed CD-ROM. Download the latest Tools from Steinberg's website instead.)Nearly all of the functions of the CC121 work perfectly, including punching with a foot pedal, which was my main concern. The only problem I encounter once in a great while is that the fader can be fussy at times. I'll select a track, and instead of the fader instantly sliding that track's volume, it offers resistance and must be bumped loose before it starts working properly. The fader also feels rather flimsy.So what's the design flaw to which I alluded in the subject? You can probably figure it out for yourself just by looking at the photo. The center of the CC121 is painted black. That may look cool from a design perspective, but the EQ knobs and transport buttons are also black. They're nearly impossible to see at arm's length under typical control room lighting conditions. The channel strip buttons on the left (mute, solo, effects, etc) are easy to see, but the transport controls are dark buttons with black icons on a black background. Who's the genius that came up with that design? Louis Braille? Of the eight transport buttons, only three of them have backlighting, and are lit only when in use. The other five buttons remain dark. C'mon Steinberg, what were you thinking?!? This blunder is such a senseless hindrance to workflow, I cannot rate the CC121 five stars until Steinberg fixes it.