Cubase – Plugin Not Showing Up (Mac)

Problem: You installed Safari Plugins but they don’t appear in Cubase.

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Step 1: Open VST Plug-in Manager

1. Open Cubase → Studio → VST Plug-in Manager.

2. The window will display all currently detected plugins.

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Step 2: Verify Plugin Paths

1. Click the gear (settings) icon in the VST Plug-in Manager.

2. Check that the paths where Safari Plugins installed are included:

   • VST3: /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3/ (macOS)

3. If the plugin folder isn’t listed, click Add Path and select it.

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Step 3: Rescan Plugins

1. In the VST Plug-in Manager, click Rescan All to force Cubase to scan all directories.

2. Go to the Blocklist tab:

   • If your Safari plugin is blacklisted, select it → click Reactivate.

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Step 4: Clear Cache and Blacklist (macOS, VST3)

If the plugin still doesn’t appear, manually clear the VST3 cache:

Steps (Cubase 12 example):

1. Close Cubase.

2. Open Finder and navigate to:

   ~/Library/Preferences/Cubase 12/Cubase Pro VST3 Cache/

3. Delete these files:

   • vst3blacklist.xml → removes the blacklist

   • vst3plugins.xml → forces a full plugin rescan

4. Reopen Cubase; it will rebuild the plugin cache and rescan all VST3 plugins.

Notes for Cubase 13, 14, 15:

• Replace the version number in the path with your Cubase version:

  • Cubase 13: ~/Library/Preferences/Cubase 13/Cubase Pro VST3 Cache/

  • Cubase 14: ~/Library/Preferences/Cubase 14/Cubase Pro VST3 Cache/

  • Cubase 15: ~/Library/Preferences/Cubase 15/Cubase Pro VST3 Cache/

• The rest of the steps remain the same for each version.

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Step 5: Verify Installation

1. Open Finder and navigate to the plugin installation paths:

   • VST3: /Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3/

2. Confirm that the plugin files exist (.vst3).

3. If missing, reinstall Safari Plugins using the installer.

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Step 6: Restart Cubase

• Close Cubase and reopen it to refresh the plugin list.

• Open the VST Instruments or Insert Effects browser to confirm Safari Plugins are available.

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Tips / Troubleshooting

• Make sure your plugin formats match what Cubase is set to scan (VST3).

• Remove old or conflicting plugin versions to avoid duplicates.

• Always check Cubase version compatibility with macOS and Safari Plugins.

• Use the manual cache reset if the plugin was blocked or previously failed validation.