Steinberg Cubase LE - 5.0 Operation Manual
Operation Manual
Cristina Bachmann, Heiko Bischoff, Marion Bröer, Sabine Pfeifer, Heike Schilling
The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part
of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. The software described by this document is subject to a License Agreement
and may not be copied to other media except as specifically allowed in the License Agreement. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission
by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH.
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Microsoft Corporation. Windows Vista is a registered trademark or trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United
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registered in the US and other countries, and are used under license from Thomson Licensing SAS.
Release Date: November 18, 2009
© Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, 2009.
All rights reserved.
Table of Contents
6 About this manual
7 Welcome!
8 VST Connections: Setting up input and
output busses
9 About this chapter
9 Setting up busses
11 Using the busses
12 About monitoring
13 The Project window
14 Background
16 Window Overview
20 Operations
38 Options
84 Audio effects
85 About this chapter
85 Overview
86 Insert effects
89 Send effects
93 Editing effects
93 Effect presets
95 Installing and managing effect plug-ins
98 Instrument tracks
99 Introduction
99 Instrument tracks
100 VST instruments and processor load
100 Using presets for VSTi configuration
101 About latency
41 Playback and the Transport panel
42 Background
43 Operations
45 Options and Settings
46 The Virtual Keyboard
48 Recording
49 Background
49 Basic recording methods
51 Audio recording specifics
54 MIDI recording specifics
59 Options and Settings
61 Recovery of audio recordings after system failure
62 Fades, crossfades and envelopes
63 Creating fades
65 The Fade dialogs
66 Creating crossfades
67 The Crossfade dialog
68 Auto Fades and Crossfades
69 The mixer
70 About this chapter
70 Overview
70 Configuring the mixer
73 The audio-related channel strips
73 The MIDI channel strips
74 The output channels
74 Basic mixing procedures
76 Audio-specific procedures
81 MIDI-specific procedures
81 Utilities
103 Automation
104 Introduction
104 Enabling and disabling the writing of automation
data
105 What can be automated?
106 Hints and further options
106 Automation track operations
109 Working with automation curves
111 MIDI Part Data vs Track Automation
112 Audio processing and functions
113 Background
113 Audio processing
118 Freeze Edits
119 The Sample Editor
120 Background
120 Window overview
122 General Operations
126 Options and settings
126 AudioWarp: Tempo matching audio
128 Working with hitpoints and slices
132 The Audio Part Editor
133 Background
133 Opening the Audio Part Editor
133 Window overview
135 Operations
136 Common methods
136 Options and Settings
4
137 The Pool
138 Background
138 Window overview
140 Operations
214 Export Audio Mixdown
215 Introduction
215 Mixing down to audio files
216 The available file formats
149 Remote controlling Cubase LE
150 Introduction
150 Setting Up
151 Operations
152 The Generic Remote device
154 Apple Remote (Macintosh only)
155 MIDI realtime parameters
156 Introduction
156 The Inspector – General handling
156 The Inspector sections
160 MIDI processing and quantizing
161 Introduction
161 The Quantizing functions
165 Permanent settings with Freeze MIDI Modifiers
166 Dissolve Part
167 Other MIDI functions
170 The MIDI editors
171 Introduction
171 Opening a MIDI editor
173 The Key Editor – Overview
175 Key Editor operations
188 The Drum Editor – Overview
189 Drum Editor operations
191 Working with drum maps
194 Using drum name lists
195 The List Editor – Overview
195 List Editor operations
198 Working with System Exclusive messages
200 Recording System Exclusive parameter changes
200 Editing System Exclusive messages
201 The Score Editor – Overview
202 Score Editor operations
209 Editing tempo and signature
210 Background
210 Tempo and signature display
211 Editing tempo and signature
220 Synchronization
221 Background
221 Synchronization signals
222 Synchronizing the transport vs. synchronizing
audio
223 Making basic settings and connections
224 Synchronization settings
228 Sync Options
228 Working with VST System Link
228 Preparations
231 Activating VST System Link
234 Application examples
235 Video
236 Background
236 Before you start
238 Operations
240 File handling
241 Working with Projects
244 Importing audio
245 Exporting and importing standard MIDI files
247 Customizing
248 Background
248 Using the Setup options
249 Customizing track controls
251 Appearance
251 Applying track and event colors
253 Where are the settings stored?
254 Key commands
255 Introduction
255 Setting up key commands
257 Setting up tool modifier keys
258 The default key commands
261 Index
5
1
About this manual
Welcome!
This is the Operation Manual for Steinberg’s Cubase LE.
Here you will find detailed information about all the features and functions in the program.
About the program versions
The documentation covers two different operating systems
or “platforms”; Windows and Mac OS X.
Some features and settings are specific to one of the platforms. This is clearly stated in the applicable cases. In other
words:
Ö If nothing else is said, all descriptions and procedures
in the documentation are valid for both Windows and Mac
OS X.
The screenshots are taken from the Windows version of Cubase LE.
Key command conventions
Many of the default key commands in Cubase LE use
modifier keys, some of which are different depending on
the operating system. For example, the default key command for Undo is [Ctrl]-[Z] under Windows and [Command]-[Z] under Mac OS X.
When key commands with modifier keys are described in
this manual, they are shown with the Windows modifier
key first, in the following way:
[Win modifier key]/[Mac modifier key]-[key]
For example, [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Z] means “press [Ctrl]
under Windows or [Command] under Mac OS X, then
press [Z]”.
Similarly, [Alt]/[Option]-[X] means “press [Alt] under Windows or [Option] under Mac OS X, then press [X]”.
Ö Please note that this manual often refers to right-clicking, e.g. to open context menus. If you are using a Mac with
a single-button mouse, hold down [Ctrl] and click.
About this manual
7
2
VST Connections: Setting up input and
output busses
About this chapter
Cubase LE uses a system of input and output busses to
transfer audio between the program and the audio hardware.
• Input busses let you route audio from the inputs on your audio
hardware into the program. This means that when you record
audio, you will always do this through one or several input
busses.
• Output busses let you route audio from the program to the
outputs on your audio hardware. When you play back audio,
you will always do this through one or several output busses.
As you can see, the input and output busses are vital
when you work with Cubase LE. This is why you find this
chapter at the beginning of the Operation Manual – once
you understand the bus system and know how to set up
the busses properly, it will be easy to go on with recording, playing back and mixing.
Setting up busses
Strategies
In Cubase LE, you can create up to 8 stereo busses or up
to 16 mono busses.
Ö The bus configuration is saved with the project –
therefore it is a good idea to add and set up the busses
you need and save these in a template project (see “Save
as Template” on page 242).
When you start working on new projects, you start from this template.
That way you get your standard bus configuration without having to make
new bus settings for each new project. If you need to work with different
bus configurations in different projects, you can either create several different templates or store your configurations as presets (see “Other bus
operations” on page 11). The templates can of course also contain other
settings that you regularly use – sample rate, record format, a basic track
layout, etc.
Input busses
• Most likely you need at least one stereo input bus assigned to
an analog input pair. This would let you record stereo material. If
you want to be able to record in stereo from other analog input
pairs as well, you add stereo input busses for these, too.
• Although you can record mono tracks from one side of a stereo input, it may be a good idea to add a dedicated mono input bus. This could be assigned to an analog input to which
you have connected a dedicated microphone pre-amp for example. Again, you can have several different mono busses.
• You probably want a dedicated stereo input bus assigned to
the digital stereo input, for digital transfers.
Output busses
• For digital transfers, you need a stereo bus assigned to the
digital stereo output as well.
Preparations
Before you set up busses, you should name the inputs and
outputs on your audio hardware.
The reason for this is compatibility – it makes it easier to
transfer projects between different computers and setups.
For example, if you move your project to another studio,
the audio hardware may be of a different model. But if
both you and the other studio owner have given your inputs and outputs names according to the setup (rather
than names based on the audio hardware model), Cubase
LE will automatically find the correct inputs and outputs
for your busses and you will be able to play and record
without having to change the settings.
Use the Device Setup dialog to assign names to the inputs and outputs of your audio hardware:
1. Open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu.
2. Make sure that the correct driver for your audio hard-
ware is selected on the VST Audio System page, so that
the audio card is listed in the Devices list.
3. Select your audio card in the list.
The available input and output ports on your audio hardware are listed on
the right.
4. To rename a port, click its name in the “Show as” col-
umn and enter a new name.
• If needed, you can also disable ports by deactivating
them in the “Visible” column.
Disabled ports will not show up in the VST Connections window when
you are making bus settings. If you attempt to disable a port that is used
by a bus, you will be asked whether this is really what you want – note
that this will remove the port from the bus!
5. Click OK to close the Device Setup dialog.
9
VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses
Ö If you open a project created on another computer and
!
the port names do not match (or the port configuration is
not the same), the Missing Ports dialog will appear.
This allows you to manually re-route ports used in the project to ports
available in your system.
Mac OS X only: Port selection and activation
On the settings page for your audio card (opened via the
Device Setup dialog, see above), you can specify which
input and which output port should be active. This allows
you, for example, to use the Microphone input instead of
the Line input or even to deactivate the audio card input or
output completely, if required.
Adding a bus
1. Click the Inputs or Outputs tab depending on which
you want to add.
2. Click the Add Bus button.
A dialog appears.
Ö This function is only available for Built-In Audio, standard USB audio devices and a certain number of other audio cards (e.g. Pinnacle CineWave).
The VST Connections window
You add and set up busses in the VST Connections window, opened from the Devices menu.
This window contains the Inputs and Outputs tabs for
viewing input busses and output busses.
Depending on which tab you have selected, the window
lists the current input or output busses, with the following
columns:
Column Description
Bus Name Lists the busses. You can select busses and rename
Speakers Indicates the speaker configuration (mono, stereo) of
Audio Device This shows the currently selected ASIO driver.
Device Port When you have “opened” a bus (by clicking its + button
Click You can route the click to a specific output bus.
them by clicking on them in this column.
each bus.
in the Bus Name column) this column shows which physical inputs/outputs on your audio hardware are used by
the bus.
3. Select the desired (channel) configuration.
You can add stereo and mono busses.
• Alternatively you can right-click in the VST Connections
window and add a bus in the desired format directly from
the context menu.
The new bus appears with the ports visible.
4. Click in the Device Port column to select an input/out-
put port for a channel in the bus.
The pop-up menu that appears lists the ports with the names you have assigned in the Device Setup dialog. Repeat this for all channels in the bus.
Setting the Main Mix bus (the default output bus)
The Main Mix is the output bus that each new channel in
the mixer will be assigned to when it is created.
Any of the output busses in the VST Connections window
can be the default output bus. By right-clicking on the
name of an output bus, you can set this bus as the Main
Mix bus.
Setting the default output bus in the VST Connections window.
When creating new audio, group or FX channels in the
mixer, they will automatically be routed to the default bus.
The default bus is indicated by an orange colored
speaker icon next to its name in the VST Connections window.
10
VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses
Presets
!
On the Inputs and Outputs tabs, you will find a Presets
menu. Here you can find the following types of presets:
• Automatically created presets tailored to your specific
hardware configuration.
On each startup, Cubase LE will analyze the physical inputs and outputs
provided by your audio hardware and create a number of hardwaredependent presets with the following possible configurations:
• one stereo bus
• various combinations of stereo and mono busses
• a number of mono busses
• You can also save your own setups as presets.
To store the current configuration as a preset, click the Store “+” button
and enter a name for the preset. You can then select the stored configuration directly from the Presets pop-up menu at any time. To remove a
stored preset, select it and click the “-” button.
Other bus operations
• To change the port assignment for a bus, you proceed
as when you added it: Make sure the channels are visible
(by clicking the “+” button next to the bus, or by clicking
the “+ All” button at the top of the window) and click in the
Device Port column to select ports.
• To remove a bus you do not need, select it in the list,
right-click and select “Remove Bus” from the pop-up
menu, or press [Backspace].
Using the busses
This section describes briefly how to use the input and output busses you have created. For details refer to the chapters “Recording” on page 48 and “The mixer” on page 69.
Routing
When you play back an audio track (or any other audio-related channel in the mixer), you route it to an output bus. In
the same way, when you record on an audio track you select from which input bus the audio should be sent.
• You can select input and output busses in the Inspec-
tor, using the Input and Output Routing pop-up menus.
Ö For audio-related channel types other than audio track
channels (i.e. Group channels and FX channels), only the
Output Routing pop-up menu is available.
When selecting an input bus for a track you can only select busses that correspond to the track’s channel configuration. Here are the details for input busses:
• Mono tracks can be routed to mono input busses or individual
channels within a stereo input bus.
• Stereo tracks can be routed to mono or stereo input busses.
For output busses any assignment is possible.
Assignments that will lead to feedback are not available in the pop-up menu. This is also indicated by a
one-way symbol.
To disconnect input or output bus assignments, select
“No Bus” from the corresponding pop-up menu.
11
VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses
Viewing the busses in the mixer
Hide Output Channels
Ö Note that only the output busses are available in the
mixer – not the input busses.
The available output busses are represented as output
channel strips in the mixer (shown in a separate pane to
the right). You can show or hide output channels by clicking the corresponding button in the mixer common panel:
Output channels
About monitoring
The Main Mix bus (the default output bus) is used for monitoring (see “Setting the Main Mix bus (the default output
bus)” on page 10).
You can adjust the monitoring level in the Mixer.
The output channels are shown to the right in the mixer.
Here you can do the following:
• Adjust the output level for the busses with the faders.
• Open the Channel Settings window to add effects or EQ.
These will affect the whole bus. Examples of effects you may want to add
here include compressors, limiters and dithering, see the chapter “Audio
effects” on page 84.
VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses
12
3
The Project window
Background
The Project window is the main window in Cubase LE.
This provides you with an overview of the project, allowing
you to navigate and perform large scale editing. Each
project has one Project window.
Track type Description
Marker The Marker track displays markers which can be moved
Video For playing back video events. A project can have only
and renamed directly in the Project window (see “Mark-
ers” on page 37). A project can have only one marker
track.
one video track.
About tracks
The Project window is divided vertically into tracks, with a
timeline running horizontally from left to right. The following track types are available:
Track type Description
Audio For recording and playing back audio events and audio
Folder Folder tracks function as containers for other tracks, mak-
FX Channel FX channel tracks are used for adding send effects. Each
Group
Channel
Instrument This allows you to create a track for a dedicated instru-
MIDI For recording and playing back MIDI parts. Each MIDI
parts. Each audio track has a corresponding audio channel in the mixer.
An audio track can have an automation track for automating mixer channel parameters, effect settings, etc.
ing it easier to organize and manage the track structure.
They also allow you to edit several tracks at the same time,
see “Folder tracks” on page 36.
FX channel can contain up to eight effect processors – by
routing effect sends from an audio channel to an FX channel, you send audio from the audio channel to the effect(s)
on the FX channel. Each FX channel has a corresponding
channel strip in the mixer – in essence an effect return
channel, see the chapter “Audio effects” on page 84.
All FX channel tracks are automatically placed in a special
FX channel folder in the Track list, for easy management.
An FX channel can also have an automation track for automating mixer channel parameters, effect settings, etc.
By routing several audio channels to a Group channel,
you can submix them, apply the same effects to them,
etc. (see “Using group channels” on page 80).
A Group channel track contains no events as such, but
displays settings and automation curves for the corresponding Group channel. Each Group channel track has
a corresponding channel strip in the mixer. In the Project
window, Group channels are organized as tracks in a
special Group Tracks folder.
ment. Instrument tracks have a corresponding channel
strip in the mixer. Each instrument track can have an automation track in the Project window. However, Volume
and Pan are automated from within the mixer. For more
information on instrument tracks, see the chapter “Instru-
ment tracks” on page 98.
track has a corresponding MIDI channel strip in the mixer.
A MIDI track can have an automation track for automating
mixer channel parameters, etc.
About parts and events
The tracks in the Project window contain parts and/or
events. Events are the basic building blocks in Cubase LE.
Different event types are handled differently in the Project
window:
• Video events and automation events (curve points) are always
viewed and rearranged directly in the Project window.
• MIDI events can always be found in MIDI parts, which are containers for one or more MIDI events. MIDI parts are rearranged
and manipulated in the Project window. To edit the individual
MIDI events in a part, you have to open the part in a MIDI editor (see “The MIDI editors” on page 170).
• Audio events can be displayed and edited directly in the
Project window, but you can also work with audio parts containing several events. This is useful if you have a number of
events which you want to treat as one unit in the project. Audio parts also contain information about the time position in
the project.
An audio event and an audio part
Audio handling
When you work with audio files, it is crucial to understand
how audio is handled in Cubase LE:
When you edit or process audio in the Project window,
you always work with an audio clip that is automatically
created on import or during recording. This audio clip refers to an audio file on the hard disk that itself remains untouched. This means, that audio editing and processing is
“non-destructive”, in the sense that you can always undo
changes or revert to the original versions.
14
The Project window
An audio clip does not necessarily refer to just one original audio file! If you apply e.g. some processing to a specific section of an audio clip, this will create a new audio
file containing only this section. The processing will then
be applied to the new audio file only, leaving the original
audio file unchanged. Finally, the audio clip is automatically adjusted, so that it refers both to the original file and
to the new, processed file. During playback, the program
will switch between the original file and the processed file
at the correct positions. You will hear this as a single recording, with processing applied to one section only. This
feature makes it possible to undo processing at a later
stage, and to apply different processing to different audio
clips that refer to the same original file.
An audio event is the object that you place on a time position in Cubase LE. If you make copies of an audio event
and move them to different positions in the project, they
will still all refer to the same audio clip. Furthermore, each
audio event has an Offset value and a Length value. These
determine at which positions in the clip the event will start
and end, i.e. which section of the audio clip will be played
back by the audio event. For example, if you resize the audio event, you will just change its start and/or end position
in the audio clip – the clip itself will not be affected.
Ö If you want to use one audio file in different contexts,
or if you want to create several loops from one audio file,
you should convert the corresponding regions of the audio clip to events and bounce them into separate audio
files. This is necessary since different events that refer to
the same clip access the same clip information.
15
The Project window
Window Overview
Inspector
Ruler
Info line
Toolbar
The Track list with various track types
The event display, showing audio parts and events, MIDI parts, automation, markers, etc.
Mute &
Solo
Record Enable &
Monitor
Track
name
Show/hide
automation
Indicate whether effect sends, EQ
or insert effects are activated for the
track. Click to bypass.
Automation
Read/Write
Track activity
indicator
Edit channel
settings
Automation Read/Write
Automation parameter (click to select parameter)
Mute
Record Enable &
Monitor
Track
name
MIDI Output
Bank Patch
MIDI channel
Drum map
Automation
Read/Write
Edit
channel
settings
Mute & Solo
Track activity
indicator
The Track list
The Track list displays all the tracks used in a project. It
contains name fields and settings for the tracks. Different
track types have different controls in the Track list. To see
all the controls you may have to resize the track in the Track
list (see “Resizing tracks in the Track list” on page 22).
• The Track list area for an audio track:
• The Track list area for an automation track (opened by
clicking the Show/Hide Automation button on a track):
• The Track list area for a MIDI track:
16
The Project window
The Inspector
The area to the left of the Track list is called the Inspector.
This shows additional controls and parameters for the track
you have selected in the Track list. If several tracks are selected (see “Handling tracks” on page 25), the Inspector
shows the setting for the first (topmost) selected track.
To hide or show the Inspector, click the Inspector icon in
the toolbar.
Ö Please note that not all Inspector tabs are shown by
default. You can show/hide Inspector sections by rightclicking on an Inspector tab and activating/deactivating
the desired option(s).
Make sure you right-click on an inspector tab and not on the empty area
below the Inspector, as this will open the Quick context menu instead.
The Inspector icon
• For most track classes, the Inspector is divided into a
number of sections, each containing different controls for
the track. You can hide or show sections by clicking on
their names.
Clicking the name for a hidden section brings it into view and hides the
other sections. [Ctrl]/[Command]-clicking the section name allows you
to hide or show a section without affecting the other sections. [Alt]/[Option]-clicking a section name shows or hides all sections in the Inspector.
• You can also use key commands to show different Inspector sections.
These are set up in the Key Commands dialog, see “Setting up key com-
mands” on page 255.
Ö Hiding a section does not affect its functionality.
For example, if you have set up a track parameter or activated an effect,
your settings will still be active even if you hide the respective Inspector
section.
Which sections are available in the Inspector depends on
the selected track.
The Inspector Setup context menu
Inspector sections
The Inspector contains the controls that can be found on
the Track list, plus some additional buttons and parameters. In the table below, these additional settings and the
different sections are listed. Which sections are available
for which track type is described in the following sections.
Parameter Description
Auto Fades
Settings
button
Edit Channel
settings
Volume Use this to adjust the level for the track. Changing this
Pan Use this to adjust the panning of the track. As with the
Delay This adjusts the playback timing of the audio track. Positive
Input Routing This lets you specify which Input bus or MIDI input the
Output
Routing
Inserts section Allows you to add insert effects to the track, see the
Opens a dialog in which you can make separate Auto
Fade settings for the audio track, see “Making Auto Fade
settings for a separate track” on page 68.
Opens the Channel Settings window for the track, allowing you to view and adjust effect and EQ settings, etc.,
see “Using Channel Settings” on page 76.
setting will move the track’s fader in the mixer window,
and vice versa. See “Setting volume in the mixer” on page
74 to learn more about setting levels.
Volume setting, this corresponds to the Pan setting in the
mixer.
values delay the playback while negative values cause the
track to play earlier. The values are set in milliseconds.
track should use. See “Setting up busses” on page 9 for
information about Input busses.
Here you decide to which output the track should be
routed. For audio tracks you select an output bus (see
“Setting up busses” on page 9) or Group channel, for
MIDI tracks you select a MIDI output and for Instrument
tracks, you select the Instrument to which it is routed.
chapters “Audio effects” on page 84 and “MIDI realtime
parameters” on page 155. The Edit button at the top of
the section opens the control panels for the added insert
effects.
17
The Project window
Parameter Description
Equalizers
section
Channel
section
Lets you adjust the EQs for the track. You can have up to
four bands of EQ for each track, see “Making EQ set-
tings” on page 77. The Edit button at the top of the sec-
tion opens the Channel Settings window for the track.
Shows a duplicate of the corresponding mixer channel
strip. The channel overview strip to the left lets you activate and deactivate insert effects, EQs and sends.
Audio tracks
For audio tracks, all settings and sections listed above are
available.
Instrument tracks
As Instrument tracks are combinations of MIDI tracks and
associated sounds (VST Instruments), the Inspector offers
sections with both MIDI and audio-related settings (basic
track settings, MIDI Modifiers, Inserts, Equalizers, Sends
and the Channel section).
MIDI tracks
When a MIDI track is selected, the Inspector contains a
number of additional sections and parameters, affecting the
MIDI events in realtime (e.g. on playback). Which sections
are available for MIDI tracks is described in the chapter
“MIDI realtime parameters” on page 155.
Folder tracks
When a folder track is selected, the Inspector shows the
folder and its underlying tracks, much like a folder structure in the Windows Explorer or Mac OS X Finder.
Ö You can click one of the tracks shown under the folder
in the Inspector to have the Inspector show the settings
for that track. This way, you don’t have to “open” a folder
track to make settings for tracks within it.
FX channel tracks
When an FX channel track is selected, the following controls and sections are available:
• Edit button
• Volume control
• Pan control
• Output Routing pop-up menu
• Inserts section
• Equalizers section
• Sends section
• Channel section
FX channel tracks are automatically placed in a special
folder, for easier management. When this folder track is
selected, the Inspector shows the folder and the FX channels it contains. You can click one of the FX channels
shown in the folder to have the Inspector show the settings for that FX channel – this way you don’t have to
“open” a folder track to access the settings for the FX
channels in it.
Group channel tracks
When a Group channel track is selected, the following
controls and sections are available:
• Edit button
• Volume control
•Pan control
• Output Routing pop-up menu
• Inserts section
• Equalizers section
• Sends section
• Channel section
Just like FX channel tracks, all Group channel tracks are
placed in a separate folder – when this is selected, the Inspector shows the folder and the Group channels it contains. You can click one of the Group channels shown in
the folder to have the Inspector show the settings for that
Group channel – this way, you don’t have to “open” a folder
track to access the settings for the Group channels in it.
Marker tracks
When the marker track is selected, the Inspector shows
the marker list. For more information, see the section
“Markers” on page 37.
Video tracks
When a video track is selected, the Inspector contains a
Mute button for interrupting video playback.
18
The Project window
The toolbar
Active project
indicator
Show/hide Inspector
Show/hide info line
Open Mixer
Open Pool
Constrain delay compensation (see “Constrain Delay Compensation”
on page 102).
Project window tools
Transport controls
(Previous/Next Marker, Cycle, Stop, Play, and Record)
Snap on/off
Snap mode
Grid pop-up
menu
Quantize
value
Color pop-up
menu
Snap to Zero
Crossing
Autoscroll and Suspend
Autoscroll when Editing
The toolbar contains tools and shortcuts for opening other
windows and various project settings and functions:
Ö In addition to these, the toolbar can contain a number
of other tools and shortcuts, not visible by default. How to
set up the toolbar and specify which tools should be displayed or hidden is described in the section “Using the
Setup options” on page 248.
The info line
The info line shows information about the currently selected
event or part in the Project window. You can edit almost all
values on the info line using regular value editing. Length
and position values are displayed in the format currently selected for the ruler (see “The ruler” on page 20).
• To hide or show the info line, click the Show Event Info
Line button on the toolbar.
The following elements can be selected for display and
editing on the info line:
• Audio events
•Audio parts
• MIDI parts
• Video events
•Markers
• Automation curve points
When several elements are selected
• If you have several elements selected, the info line will
show information about the first item in the selection. The
values will be shown in yellow to indicate that several elements are selected.
• If you edit a value on the info line, the value change is
applied to all selected elements, relatively to the current
values.
If you have two audio events selected and the first is one bar long and
the other two bars long, the info line shows the length of the first event
(one bar). If you now edit this value to 3 bars in the info line, the other
event will be resized by the same amount – and will thus be 4 bars long.
• If you press [Ctrl]/[Command] and edit on the info line,
the values will be absolute instead. In our example above,
both events would be resized to 3 bars. Note that [Ctrl]/
[Command] is the default modifier key for this – you can
change this in the Preferences (Editing–Tool Modifiers
page, under the Info Line category).
Editing Transpose and Velocity for MIDI parts
When one or several MIDI parts are selected, the info line
contains Transpose and Velocity fields.
• Adjusting the Transpose field transposes the selected
parts in semitone steps.
Note that this transposition doesn’t change the actual notes in the part –
it’s just a “play parameter”, affecting the notes on playback. The transposition you specify for a part on the info line is added to the transposition
set for the whole track.
• Adjusting the Velocity field shifts the velocity for the se-
lected parts – the value you specify is added to the velocities of the notes in the parts.
Again, this velocity shift only affects the notes on playback, and again,
the value you specify is added to the Vel.Shift. value set for the whole
MIDI track in the Inspector.
19
The Project window
Getting on-the-fly info with the Arrow tool
If the option “Select Tool: Show Extra Info” is activated in
the Preferences (Editing–Tools page), a tooltip will be
shown for the Arrow tool, displaying information depending
on where you point it. For example, in the Project window
event display, the tool will show the current pointer position
and the name of the track and event you’re pointing at.
The ruler
The ruler at the top of the event display shows the timeline.
Initially, the Project window ruler uses the display format
specified in the Project Setup dialog (see “The Project
Setup dialog” on page 21), as do all other rulers and posi-
tion displays in the project. However, you can select an independent display format for the ruler by clicking the arrow
button to the right of it and selecting an option from the
pop-up menu (you can also bring up this pop-up menu by
right-clicking anywhere in the ruler).
Option Positions and lengths displayed as
Bars+Beats Bars, beats, sixteenth notes and ticks. By default there
Seconds Hours, minutes, seconds and milliseconds.
Timecode This format displays hours, minutes, seconds and frames.
Samples Samples.
Time Linear When this is selected, the ruler will be linear relative to
Bars+Beats
Linear
are 120 ticks per sixteenth note.
The number of frames per second (fps) is set in the
Project Setup dialog (see “The Project Setup dialog” on
page 21). You can choose between 24, 25, 29.97 and
30fps or 29.97 and 30dfps (“drop frame”).
time. This means that if there are tempo changes on the
tempo track, the distance between the bars will vary in
Bars+Beats mode.
When this is selected, the ruler will be linear relative to
the meter position – bars and beats. This means that if
there are tempo changes on the tempo track, there still
will be the same distance between bars in Bars+Beats
mode. If the ruler is set to a time-based mode, the distance between seconds will vary depending on the
tempo changes.
• The selection you make here affects the ruler, the info
line and tooltip position values (which appear when you
drag an event in the Project window).
You can also select independent formats for other rulers and position
displays.
• To set the display format globally (for all windows), use
the primary display format pop-up on the Transport panel,
or hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and select a display format in any ruler.
• If you use the “Timecode” option and the option “Show
Timecode Subframes” is activated in the Preferences
(Transport page), the frames will also display subframes.
There are 80 subframes per frame.
Operations
Creating a new project
You create a new project in the following way:
1. Select “New Project” from the File menu.
A dialog appears, listing a number of project templates, including any
custom templates you may have created (see “Save as Template” on
page 242).
2. Select a template (or “Empty”) and click OK.
A file dialog appears, allowing you to specify a location for the project
folder. This will contain all files related to the project.
3. Select an existing folder or create a new one. Then
click OK.
A Project window opens. If you selected a template, the new project will
be based on this template, and include the corresponding tracks, events
and settings.
20
The Project window
The Project Setup dialog
!
General settings for the project are made in the Project
Setup dialog. This is opened by selecting “Project
Setup…” from the Project menu.
Ö If the “Run Setup on Create New Project” option is activated in the Preferences dialog (General page), the Project Setup dialog will open automatically when you create
a new project.
The following settings are available in the Project Setup
dialog:
Setting Description
Start The start time of the project. Allows you to have the project
Length The length of the project.
Frame Rate Used when synchronizing Cubase LE with external
Display Format This is the global display format used for all rulers and
start at another time than zero. Also used for setting the
sync start position when synchronizing Cubase LE to external devices (see “Setting up Cubase LE for external
sync to timecode” on page 225). When you change this
setting you will be asked whether you want to keep the
project content at its timecode positions. “Yes” means that
all events will stay at their original timecode positions – i.e.
they will be moved in relation to the start of the project.
“No” means that all events keep their position relative to
the project start.
equipment. If Cubase LE is slave, this value is automatically set to the frame rate of the incoming sync signal. If
Cubase LE is the master, this determines the frame rate
of the sent sync signal, see “Setting the Frame Rate” on
page 223.
position displays in the program. However, you can make
independent display format selections for the individual
rulers and displays if you like.
For descriptions of the different display format options,
see “The ruler” on page 20.
Setting Description
Display Offset Offsets the time positions displayed in the ruler etc., al-
Sample Rate The sample rate at which Cubase LE records and plays
Record
Format/
File Type
Stereo Pan
Law
lowing you to compensate for the Start position setting.
Typically, if you synchronize Cubase LE to an external
source starting at a frame other than zero, you set the
Start position to this value. However, if you still want the
display in Cubase LE to start at zero, set the Display Offset to the same value.
audio.
When you record audio in Cubase LE, the files that are
created will be of this resolution and file type, see “Se-
lecting a recording file format” on page 51.
Decides whether panning should use power compensation or not, see “About the “Stereo Pan Law” setting (au-
dio channels only)” on page 76.
While most Project Setup settings can be changed
at any time, you must select a sample rate once and
for all when starting with a new project! All audio files
must be of this sample rate to play back correctly.
Zoom and view options
Zooming in the Project window is done according to the
standard zoom techniques, with the following special notes:
• When you are using the Zoom tool (magnifying glass),
the result depends on the option “Zoom Tool Standard
Mode: Horizontal Zooming Only” in the Preferences (Editing–Tools page).
If this is activated and you drag a selection rectangle with the Zoom tool,
the window will only be zoomed horizontally (track height will not change).
If the option is off, the window will be zoomed both horizontally and vertically.
• When using the vertical zoom sliders, the tracks are
scaled relatively.
In other words, if you have made any individual track height adjustments
(see below), the relative height differences are maintained.
You find the following options are available on the Zoom
submenu on the Edit menu:
Option Description
Zoom In Zooms in one step, centering on the project cursor.
Zoom Out Zooms out one step, centering on the project cursor.
Zoom Full Zooms out so that the whole project is visible. “The
Zoom to
Selection
whole project” means the timeline from the project
start to the length set in the Project Setup dialog (see
above).
Zooms in horizontally and vertically so that the current
selection fills the screen.
21
The Project window
!
Option Description
!
Zoom to Selection (Horiz)
Zoom to Event This option is available only in the Sample Editor (see
Zoom In Vertically Zooms in one step vertically.
Zoom Out
Vertically
Zoom In Tracks Zooms in on the selected track(s) one step vertically.
Zoom Out Tracks Zooms out the selected track(s) one step vertically.
Zoom Selected
Tracks
Zooms in horizontally so that the current selection fills
the screen.
“Zooming” on page 122).
Zooms out one step vertically.
This zooms in vertically on the selected track(s) and
minimizes the height of all other tracks.
• If the option “Zoom while Locating in Time Scale” is activated in the Preferences (Transport page), you can also
zoom by clicking in the main ruler and dragging up or
down with the mouse button pressed.
Drag up to zoom out; drag down to zoom in.
• You can zoom the contents of parts and events vertically,
using the waveform zoom slider in the top right corner of
the event display.
This is useful when viewing quiet audio passages.
To get an approximate reading on the level of the audio events by viewing the waveforms, make sure this
slider is all the way down. Otherwise, zoomed waveforms may be mistaken for clipped audio.
• If you activate the option Quick Zoom in the Preferences (Editing page), the contents of parts and events will
not be continuously redrawn when you zoom manually.
Instead, the contents are redrawn once you have stopped changing the
zoom – activate this if screen redraws are slow on your system.
Resizing tracks in the Track list
• You can change the height of an individual track by
clicking on its lower border in the Track list and dragging
up or down.
To change the height of all tracks simultaneously, hold down [Ctrl]/
[Command] and resize one of the tracks in this way. If “Snap Track
Heights” is activated on the Track scale pop-up (see below), the track
height will change in fixed increments when you resize it.
This behavior is different when “Enlarge Selected
Track” is activated on the Edit menu (see below).
• You can also change the width of the Track list area, by
dragging the border between the Track list and the event
display.
• By default, the controls shown for tracks in the Track list
will adapt to the track size. This means that when resizing
a track’s height or width the controls will be placed where
they best “fit in”.
If you prefer to have the controls in fixed positions, you can deactivate the
option “Wrap Controls” in the Track Controls settings dialog (see “Cus-
tomizing track controls” on page 249).
• You can decide for each track type which controls
should be shown in the Track list – see “Customizing
track controls” on page 249.
• You can use the Track scale pop-up (opened by clicking
the arrow button above the vertical zoom control) to set the
number of tracks to view in the current Project window.
The track height will be adjusted to show only the number of tracks specified on the pop-up menu. By selecting “Zoom N Tracks” from the popup you can manually set the number of tracks to fit in the current Project
window.
22
The Project window
The Enlarge Selected Track option
!
Click here…
…to open the context
menu.
When this option is activated on the Edit menu (or in the
Preferences, Editing–Project & Mixer page), the selected
track is enlarged automatically. This is useful if you are
stepping through the tracks in the Track list, to check or
edit the settings. The tracks will revert to the size they had
before when they are deselected. You can adjust the size
directly in the Track list if the default enlargement factor
does not suit you.
While this is the program behavior you will want in most
cases, it may be a disadvantage when changing the track
height you started out with for one or more tracks (i.e. their
“original” height, before “Enlarge Selected Track” was activated). As soon as you try to resize a track, it is selected
and automatically enlarged. Instead of turning off “Enlarge
Selected Track”, resizing the desired track(s) and the activating “Enlarge Selected Track” again, you can resize a
track in the Track list without selecting it.
Proceed as follows:
1. Move the mouse pointer over the lower border of the
(unselected) track you want to resize.
The mouse pointer turns into a divider symbol.
2. Hold down [Alt]/[Option] and drag the lower border of
the track until it reaches the desired height.
Now, when you select this track, (and “Enlarge Selected Track” is activated), it will be enlarged. It will revert to the changed size, when you select a different track.
Zoom presets and Cycle markers
The pop-up menu to the left of the horizontal zoom control
allows you to select, create and organize zoom presets.
These are useful if you want to toggle between different
zoom settings (e.g. one where the whole project is displayed in the project window and another with a high zoom
factor for detailed editing). With this pop-up menu, you can
also zoom in on the area between cycle markers in the
project.
The upper part of the menu lists the zoom presets:
• To store the current zoom setting as a preset, select
Add from the pop-up menu.
A dialog appears, allowing you to type in a name for the preset.
• To select and apply a preset, select it from the pop-up
menu.
• The “Zoom Full” preset is always available. Selecting
this option zooms out so that the whole project is visible.
“The whole project” means the timeline from the project
start to the length set in the Project Setup dialog (see
“The Project Setup dialog” on page 21).
• If you want to delete a preset, select “Organize…” from
the pop-up menu.
In the dialog that appears, select the preset in the list and click the Delete button. The preset is removed from the list.
• If you want to rename a preset, select “Organize…”
from the pop-up menu.
In the dialog that appears, select the desired preset in the list and click
the Rename button. A second dialog opens, allowing you to type in a
new name for the preset. Click OK to close the dialogs.
Zoom presets are global for all projects, i.e. they are
available in all projects you open or create.
The middle part of the pop-up lists any cycle markers you
have added in the project:
• If you select a cycle marker from this menu, the event
display is zoomed in to encompass the marker area (see
“Markers” on page 37).
23
The Project window
• You cannot edit the cycle markers in this pop-up menu.
!
For information on editing markers, see “Editing markers in
the Marker window” on page 37.
Only the cycle markers you create in the current
project are available on the menu.
Adjusting how parts and events are shown
The Preferences on the File menu (the Cubase LE menu,
under Mac OS X) contains several settings for customizing the display in the Project window.
The Event Display page contains common settings for all
track types:
Option Description
Colorize Event
Background
Show Event
Names
Transparent
Events
Show Data on
Small Track
Heights
Determines whether the backgrounds or “contents”
(waveforms, etc.) of parts and events will be colorized,
see “Handling tracks” on page 25.
Determines whether the names of parts and events
should be shown in the Project window.
When this is activated, events and parts will be transparent, showing the waveforms and MIDI events only.
If this is activated, the contents of events and parts will be
shown, even if the height of a track is very small.
The Event Display–Audio page contains settings for audio
events:
Option Description
Interpolate
Audio Images
Wave Image
Style
Show Event
Volume Curves
Always
Fade Handles
always on top
Thick Fade
Lines
If the option is deactivated, single sample values are
drawn as “steps”. If the option is activated they are interpolated to form “curves”.
Determines whether audio waveforms will be displayed as
solid images, frames or “inverted” images (solid+frame).
This selection affects all waveform images in the Project
window, Sample Editor and Audio Part Editor.
Note that the “Framed” and “Solid and Framed” styles
are more demanding for the computer. If the system feels
slower in these modes, please switch back to “Solid”
wave image style.
If this is activated the “volume curves” created with the
volume and fade handles are always shown – if not, the
curves are only shown for selected events.
When this option is activated, the fade handles stay at
the top of the event, and vertical help lines indicate the
exact end or start points of fades.
If this option is activated, the fade lines and volume
curves are thicker, increasing their visibility.
Option Description
Show
Waveforms
Background
Color
Modulation
Determines whether audio waveforms should be shown
at all.
When this is activated, the backgrounds of audio waveforms are displayed in a different way, reflecting the
waveform dynamics. This is especially useful to get an
overview when working with small track heights.
The Event Display–MIDI page contains settings for MIDI
parts:
Option Description
Default Edit
Action
Part Data Mode Determines if and how events in MIDI parts should be
Show
Controllers
Edit as Drums
when Drum
Map is
assigned
Note Name
Style
Determines which editor should be opened when you
double-click a MIDI part or select it and press [Ctrl]/
[Command]-[E]: the Key, List, Drum or Score Editor.
Note that this setting is overridden for tracks with drum
maps if the option “Edit as Drums when Drum Map is assigned” (see below) is activated.
shown in the Project window: as score notes, as drum
notes or as lines. If “No Data” is selected, events will not
be shown at all. Note that this setting is overridden for
tracks with drum maps if the option “Edit as Drums when
Drum Map is assigned” (see below) is activated.
Governs whether non-note events (controllers, etc.)
should be shown in MIDI parts in the Project window.
If this is activated, parts on MIDI tracks with drum maps
assigned will be shown with drum note symbols in the
Project window. Also, the parts will automatically open in
the Drum Editor when double-clicked (overriding the Default Edit Action setting above).
Determines how MIDI note names (pitches) should be
displayed in editors, etc.
The Event Display–Video page contains settings for video
events:
Option Description
Show Video
Thumbnails
Video Cache
Size
When this is activated, thumbnail frames of the video
contents are shown on the Video track.
This determines how much memory is available for video
thumbnails. If you have long video clips and/or work with
a large zoom factor (so that a lot of frames are shown in
the thumbnails), you may have to raise this value.
24
The Project window
Handling tracks
This track is selected.
To add a track to the project, select “Add Track” from the
Project menu and select a track type from the submenu
that appears. The new track is added below the currently
selected track in the Track list.
• The items on the “Add Track” submenu are also available on the context menu.
This is accessed by right-clicking in the Track list.
• If you select Audio, MIDI, Group Channel or Instrument
from the Add Track submenu, a dialog opens, allowing
you to insert several tracks in one go.
Just enter the desired number of tracks in the value field.
• For audio and group channel tracks, the channel configuration – mono or stereo – can be set in the Configuration
pop-up.
• In the Preferences (Editing–Project & Mixer page), you
can find the option “Auto Track Color Mode”.
This offers you several options for automatically assigning colors to
tracks that are added to the project.
Once you have created tracks, you can manipulate and rearrange them in various ways:
• To rename a track, double-click in the name field and
type in a new name.
If you hold down any modifier key when pressing [Return] to close the
name field, all events on the track will get the name you entered.
• To select a track, click on it in the Track list.
A selected track is indicated by a light gray color in the Track list.
• To move a track, click and drag it up or down in the list.
• To duplicate a track, complete with all contents and
channel settings, right-click in the Track list and select
“Duplicate tracks” from the context menu, or select “Duplicate tracks” from the Project menu.
The duplicated track will appear below the original track.
• You can select a default color for a track by activating
“Show Track Colors” above the Track list and selecting a
color from the Color pop-up menu on the toolbar. This color
will be used for all events on the track and will also be
shown in the Mixer. You can override the default track color
for individual events and parts by using the Color tool or the
Color Selector pop-up menu. For more information, see
“Applying track and event colors” on page 251.
The option “Colorize Event Background” in the Preferences dialog
(Event Display page) determines whether the backgrounds or waveforms
of events will be colorized.
• To remove a track, right-click on it in the Track list and
select “Remove Selected Tracks” from the context menu.
You can also remove multiple selected tracks, by selecting “Remove Selected Tracks” either from the context menu or from the Project menu.
• To change the track height of an individual track, click
on its lower border in the Track list and drag up or down,
see “Resizing tracks in the Track list” on page 22.
Ö Note that you can also automatically enlarge the selected track, see “The Enlarge Selected Track option” on
page 23.
Disabling audio tracks
Audio tracks can be disabled by selecting “Disable Track”
from the Track list context menu. Disabling a track is similar to muting it (see “Muting events” on page 32), since a
disabled track will not be played back. However, disabling
a track not only “zeroes” the output volume from the track,
but actually shuts down all disk activity for it. See “About
track disable/enable” on page 45 for more information.
It is possible to select several tracks by pressing [Ctrl]/[Command] and
clicking on them. [Shift]-click to select a continuous range of tracks.
The Project window
25
Adding events to a track
There are a number of ways to add events to a track:
• By recording (see “Basic recording methods” on page
49).
• By dragging files and dropping them on the track at the
desired position.
You can create events by dragging and dropping from the
following locations:
•The desktop
•The Pool
• The “Find media” dialog
• The Project window of another open project
• The Audio Part Editor of any open project
• The Sample Editor – press [Ctrl]/[Command] and drag to create an event of the current selection.
While you drag the clip in the Project window, its position will be indicated by a marker line and a numerical position box (see also “Using
drag and drop” on page 140).
• By selecting “Audio File…” or “Video File…” from the
Import submenu on the File menu.
This opens a file dialog, allowing you to locate the file you wish to import.
When you import a file this way, a clip is created for the file and an event
that plays the whole clip is inserted on the selected track, at the position
of the project cursor.
You can also import MIDI files by using the Import submenu, but this
works in a slightly different way (see “Exporting and importing standard
MIDI files” on page 245).
• By using Copy and Paste on the Edit menu.
This allows you to copy all kinds of events between projects. You can
also copy events within the project, e.g. from the Sample Editor.
• By drawing.
Some types of events (markers and automation events) can be drawn directly into the Project window. For audio and MIDI tracks, you can draw
parts (see “Creating parts” on page 27).
Audio file import options
When you are importing audio files there are a number of
options concerning how the files should be treated by Cubase LE:
• You can choose to copy the file into the audio folder of the
project and have the project make reference to the copied file
rather than the original file. This helps you keep your project
“self-contained”.
• Furthermore, you may want all files in the project to have the
same sample rate and sample size (resolution).
The Preferences dialog (Editing–Audio page) contains a
setting that lets you decide which options to use. Select
one of the following options on the “On Import Audio
Files” pop-up menu:
• Open Options Dialog
An Options dialog appears when you import, allowing you to select
whether you want to copy the files to the Audio folder and/or convert them
to the project settings. Please note the following:
– When importing a single file of a format other than the project settings,
you can specify which properties (sample rate and/or resolution) should be
changed.
– When importing multiple files at the same time, you can select to convert
the imported files automatically if necessary, i.e. if the sample rate is different than the project’s or the resolution is lower than the project setting.
• Use Settings
No Options dialog will appear when you import. Instead, you can choose
to make any of the options below the pop-up the standard action(s). Activate any number of the following options to have them performed automatically each time you import audio files:
Option Description
Copy Files to
Working
Directory
Convert and
Copy to
Project If
Needed
If files are not already in the project’s audio folder they are
copied there before being imported.
If files are not already in the project’s audio folder they are
copied there before being imported. Furthermore, if the
files have a different sample rate or a lower resolution than
the project settings, they are automatically converted.
26
The Project window
Creating parts
!
Parts are containers for MIDI or audio events. If you record
MIDI, a MIDI part is automatically created, containing the
recorded events. You can also create empty audio or MIDI
parts and later add events to them.
There are two ways to do this:
• Draw a part on a MIDI or audio track with the Pencil tool.
You can also draw parts by pressing [Alt]/[Option] and using the Arrow
tool.
• Double-click with the Arrow tool on a MIDI or audio
track, between the left and right locator.
To add events to a MIDI part, you use the tools and functions in a MIDI editor (see “The Key Editor – Overview” on
page 173). Adding events to audio parts is done in the
Audio Part Editor (see “Window overview” on page 133)
by pasting or by using drag and drop.
• You can also gather existing audio events into a part, by
using the “Events to Part” function on the Audio menu.
This creates an audio part containing all selected audio events on the
same track. To remove the part and make the events appear as independent objects on the track again, select the part and use the “Dissolve
Part” function on the Audio menu.
Auditioning audio parts and events
Audio parts and events can be auditioned in the Project
window with the Play tool:
When auditioning, the Main Mix bus is used.
1. Select the Play tool.
Note that the Play tool and the Scrub tool share the same tool button. If the
tool icon on the toolbar doesn’t show a speaker symbol, first click on the
icon to select it, then click again and select “Play” from the pop-up menu.
2. Click where you want playback to start, and keep the
mouse button pressed.
Only the track on which you click is played back, starting at the click position.
3. Release the mouse button to stop playback.
Scrubbing
The Scrub tool allows you to locate positions in the audio
by playing back, forwards or backwards, at any speed:
1. Select the Scrub tool.
Note that the Play tool and the Scrub tool share the same tool button. If the
tool icon on the toolbar doesn’t show a “scrub symbol”, first click on the
icon to select it, then click again and select “Scrub” from the pop-up menu.
2. Click at the desired position and keep the mouse but-
ton pressed.
The project cursor is moved to the position at which you click.
3. Drag to the left or right.
The project cursor follows the mouse pointer and the audio is played back.
The speed and pitch of the playback depend on how fast you move the
pointer.
You can adjust the responsiveness of the Scrub function
in the Preferences (Transport–Scrub page).
Ö It is also possible to “scrub” the whole project with the
Jog wheel on the Transport panel.
See “Project scrubbing – the Jog Wheel” on page 44.
• Note that scrubbing can be quite a burden on your sys-
tem. To avoid playback problems, you will find the “CPU
Saving Scrub Mode” option in the Preferences (Transport–
Scrub page).
When you activate this option, scrubbing will be less demanding on the
processor. This can be very useful when scrubbing in a large project,
where the “normal” scrub behavior leads to processing overloads. When
“CPU Saving Scrub Mode” is activated, the effects are disabled for scrubbing and the resampling quality is lower.
27
The Project window
Editing parts and events
!
This section describes techniques for editing in the Project
window. If not explicitly stated, all descriptions apply to both
events and parts, even though we use the term “event” for
convenience.
Ö When you are using the tools for editing, you can in
many cases get additional functions by pressing modifier
keys (e.g. pressing [Alt]/[Option] and dragging with the
Arrow tool creates a copy of the dragged event).
On the following pages, the default modifier keys are described – you
can customize these in the Preferences (Editing–Tool Modifiers page),
see “Setting up tool modifier keys” on page 257.
Selecting events
Selecting events is done using any of the following
methods:
• Use the Arrow tool.
The standard selection techniques apply.
• Use the Select submenu on the Edit menu.
The options are:
Option Description
All Selects all events in the Project window.
None Deselects all events.
In Loop Selects all events that are partly or wholly between
From Start to
Cursor
From Cursor to
End
All on Selected
Tracks
Select Event This is available in the Sample Editor (see “Window
Left/Right Selection Side to Cursor
Note that these functions work differently when the
Range Selection tool is selected (see “Creating a
selection range” on page 33).
• Select all events on a track by right-clicking on it in the
Track list and selecting “Select All Events” from the context menu.
the left and right locator.
Selects all events that begin to the left of the project
cursor.
Selects all events that end to the right of the project
cursor.
Selects all events on the selected track.
overview” on page 120).
These two functions are only used for range selection
editing (see “Creating a selection range” on page 33).
• You can also use the arrow keys on the computer key-
board to select the closest event to the left, right, above or
below.
If you press [Shift] and use the arrow keys, the current selection will be
kept, allowing you to select several events.
• If the option “Auto Select Events under Cursor” is acti-
vated in the Preferences (Editing page), all events on the
selected track(s) that are “touched” by the project cursor
are automatically selected.
This can be helpful when rearranging your project, since it allows you to
select whole sections (on all tracks) by selecting all tracks and moving
the project cursor.
• It is also possible to select ranges, regardless of the
event and track boundaries.
This is done using the Range Selection tool (see “Range editing” on
page 33).
• Note that in the Preferences (Editing page), you can
find the option “Use Up/Down Navigation Commands for
selecting Tracks only”.
By default, tracks are selected with the up/down arrow keys on the computer keyboard. However, these are also used for selecting events (see
above) which can lead to confusing results in some cases. Since track
selection is a most vital operation in both editing and mixing, you have the
option to use the navigation controls for track selection only. The following applies:
• When this option is deactivated and no event/part is selected
in the Project window, the up/down arrow keys on the computer keyboard are used to step through the tracks in the
Track list – just as you would expect this to work.
• When this option is deactivated and an event/part is selected in
the Project window, the up/down arrow keys still step through
the tracks in the Track list – but on the currently selected track,
the first event/part will automatically be selected as well. If this is
not the desired behavior, you have to activate “Use Up/Down
Navigation Commands for selecting Tracks only”.
• When this option is activated, the up/down arrow keys are
only used to change the track selection – the current event/
part selection in the Project window will not be altered.
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The Project window
• Also in the Preferences (Editing–Tools page), you can
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find the Cross Hair Cursor options section.
This allows you to display a cross hair cursor when working in the Project
window and editors, facilitating navigation and editing, especially when
arranging in large projects. You can set up the colors for the line and the
mask of the cross hair cursor, and define its width. The cross hair cursor
works as follows:
• When the Selection tool (or one of its subtools) is selected,
the cross hair cursor appears when you start moving/copying
a part/event, or when using the event trim handles.
• When the Pencil tool, the Scissors tool or any other tool that
makes use of this function is selected, the cross hair cursor appears as soon as you move the mouse over the event display.
• The cross hair cursor is only available for tools where such a
function is of any use. The Mute tool for example does not use
a cross hair cursor, as you have to click directly on an event to
mute it.
Moving events
To move events in the Project window, use the following
methods:
• Click and drag to a new position.
All selected events will be moved, maintaining their relative positions. You
can only drag events to tracks of the same type. If Snap is activated, this
determines to which positions you can move the events (see “The Snap
function” on page 38).
Note also that you can restrict movement to be either horizontal or vertical
only, by holding down [Ctrl]/[Command] while dragging.
You will note that there is a slightly delayed response
when you move an event by dragging. This helps you
avoid accidentally moving events when you click on
them in the Project window. You can adjust this delay with the Drag Delay setting in the Preferences
(Editing page).
• Select the event and edit the Start position in the info
line.
• Use the “Move to” options on the Edit menu.
The following options are available:
Option Description
Cursor Moves the selected event to the project cursor position. If
there are several selected events on the same track, the
first event will start at the cursor, and the following will be
lined up end-to-start after the first one.
Option Description
Origin Moves the selected events to their original positions, i.e.
Front/Back This function doesn’t actually change the position of the
the positions at which they were originally recorded.
events, but moves the selected events to the front or
back, respectively. This is useful if you have overlapping
events, and want to see one that is partially obscured.
For audio events, this is an extra important feature, since
only the visible sections of events will be played back.
Moving an obscured audio event to front (or moving the
obscuring event to back) will allow you to hear the whole
event on playback (see also “Overlapping events” on
page 134).
Note that it is also possible to use the “To Front” function
on the event context menu for this.
• Use the Nudge buttons in the toolbar.
These move the selected events to the left or right. The amount of movement depends on the selected display format (see “The Project Setup di-
alog” on page 21) and the value set on the Grid pop-up menu.
When the Range Selection tool is used, the Nudge
buttons move the selection range (see “Moving and
duplicating” on page 35).
Ö The Nudge buttons are not visible in the toolbar by
default.
You can decide which items should be visible by right-clicking in the
toolbar and activating the corresponding option on the context menu.
See “The setup context menus” on page 248 for more information.
Duplicating events
Events can be duplicated in the following ways:
• Hold down [Alt]/[Option] and drag the event to a new
position.
If Snap is activated, this determines to which positions you can copy the
events (see “The Snap function” on page 38).
If you hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] as well, movement direction is restricted to either horizontal or vertical. That means if you drag an event vertically it
cannot be moved horizontally at the same time.
29
The Project window
• Audio and MIDI parts can also be duplicated by press-
ing [Alt]/[Option]-[Shift] and dragging.
This creates a shared copy of the part. If you edit the contents of a
shared copy, all other shared copies of the same part are automatically
edited in the same way.
• Selecting “Fill Loop” from the Edit menu creates a number of copies starting at the left locator and ending at the
right locator.
The last copy is automatically shortened to end at the right locator position.
Shared copies are indicated by showing the name in italic text and an
icon in the right corner of the part.
Note:
• When you duplicate audio events, the copies are al-
ways shared. This means that shared copies of audio
events always refer to the same audio clip (see “Audio
processing” on page 113).
• You can convert a shared copy to a real copy by select-
ing “Convert to Real Copy” from the Edit menu. This creates a new version of the clip (that can be edited independently) and adds this to the Pool. Note that no new files are
created by this operation – for that you need to use the
“Bounce Selection” function from the Audio menu.
• Selecting “Duplicate” from the Edit menu creates a
copy of the selected event and places it directly after the
original.
If several events are selected, all of these are copied “as one unit”, maintaining the relative distance between the events.
• Selecting “Repeat…” from the Edit menu opens a dia-
log, allowing you to create a number of copies (regular or
shared) of the selected event(s).
This works just like the Duplicate function, but you can specify the number of copies.
• You can also perform the Repeat function by dragging:
Select the event(s) to repeat, press [Alt]/[Option], click the
handle in the lower right corner of the last selected event
and drag to the right.
The longer to the right you drag, the more copies are created (as shown
by the tooltip).
Using Cut, Copy and Paste
You can cut or copy selected events, and paste them in
again, using the functions on the Edit menu.
• When you paste an audio event, it is inserted on the selected track, positioned so that its snap point is aligned
with the cursor position.
If the selected track is of the wrong type, the event will be inserted on its
original track. See “The Snap function” on page 38 for information about
the snap point.
• If you use the “Paste at Origin” function, the event is
pasted at its original position (the position from which you
cut or copied it).
Renaming events
By default, audio events show the name of their clip, but
you can enter a separate descriptive name for separate
events if you like. This is done by selecting the event and
typing in a new name in the “Description” field in the info
line.
• You can also give all events on a track the same name
as the track by changing the track name, holding down a
modifier key and pressing [Return].
See “Handling tracks” on page 25.
Splitting events
You can split events in the Project window in the following
ways:
• Click with the Scissors tool on the event you want to
split.
If Snap is activated, this determines the exact split position (see “The
Snap function” on page 38). You can also split events by pressing [Alt]/
[Option] and clicking with the Arrow tool.
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The Project window
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