Steinberg Cubase LE - 6.0, Cubase Elements - 6.0, Cubase AI - 6.0 Operation Manual

Operation Manual

Cristina Bachmann, Heiko Bischoff, Marion Bröer, Sabine Pfeifer, Heike Schilling, Benjamin Schütte Thanks to: Ashley Shepherd This PDF provides improved access for vision-impaired users. Please note that due to the complexity and number of im-

ages in this document, it is not possible to include text descriptions of images. The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part

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8 About this manual

9 Welcome!

10 Setting up your system

11 Setting up audio 15 Setting up MIDI 17 Connecting a synchronizer 17 Setting up video 17 Optimizing audio performance

21 VST Connections

22 About this chapter 22 The VST Connections window 22 Setting up busses 24 Routing 24 About monitoring 25 Editing operations

27 The Project window

28 Window Overview 29 The track list 29 The Inspector 32 The toolbar 33 The status line 33 The info line 34 The overview line 34 The ruler 35 The Snap function 37 Auto-Scroll

38 Working with projects

39 Creating new projects 40 Opening projects 40 Closing projects 40 Saving projects 42 The Archive and Backup functions 43 Startup Options 44 The Project Setup dialog 45 Zoom and view options 47 Audio handling 48 Auditioning audio parts and events 48 Scrubbing audio 48 Editing parts and events 55 Range editing 57 Region operations 57 The Edit History dialog 58 The Preferences dialog

60 Working with tracks

61 Setting up tracks 63 Editing tracks 64 Organizing tracks in folder tracks 66 Dividing the track list

67 Playback and the Transport panel

68 Background 69 Operations 71 Options and Settings 73 The Virtual Keyboard

74 Recording

75 Background 75 Basic recording methods 77 Audio recording specifics 82 MIDI recording specifics 86 Options and Settings

89 Quantizing MIDI and audio

90 Introduction 91 Quantize functions 91 Advanced Quantize functions 92 The Quantize Panel

95 Fades and crossfades

96 Creating fades 97 The Fade dialogs 98 Creating crossfades 99 The Crossfade dialog 100 Auto fades and crossfades

101 The arranger track

(Cubase Elements only)

102 Introduction 102 Setting up the arranger track 103 Working with arranger events 105 Flattening the arranger chain 106 Live mode 106 Arranging your music to video

108 Using markers

109 Introduction 109 The Marker window 111 The marker track 113 Marker key commands 113 Exporting and importing markers

Table of Contents

114 The Mixer

115 Overview 116 Configuring the Mixer 118 Basic mixing procedures 121 Audio-specific procedures 127 Routing 129 MIDI-specific procedures 130 Utilities

165 Audio processing and functions

166 Background 166 Audio processing 171 Freeze Edits 172 Detect Silence 173 The Spectrum Analyzer 175 Statistics 175 About time stretch and pitch shift algorithms

131 Audio effects

132 About this chapter 132 Overview 133 Insert effects 136 Send effects 140 Editing effects 140 Effect presets 142 Installing and managing effect plug-ins

145 VST instruments and instrument

tracks

146 Introduction 146 VST instrument channels vs. instrument tracks 146 VST instrument channels

(not in Cubase LE)

148 Instrument tracks 150 What do I need? Instrument channel or instrument

track?

150 Instrument Freeze 151 VST instruments and processor load 151 Using presets for VSTi configuration 154 About latency

156 Automation

157 Introduction 157 Working with automation curves 158 Enabling and disabling the writing of automation

data

158 Writing automation data 160 Editing automation events 161 Automation track operations 164 MIDI part data vs. track automation 164 Hints and further options

176 The Sample Editor

177 Window overview 180 General functions 185 Warping audio 186 Working with hitpoints and slices

190 The Audio Part Editor

191 Background 191 Opening the Audio Part Editor 191 Window overview 192 Operations 194 Options and Settings

195 The Pool

196 Background 196 Window overview 198 Operations

206 The MediaBay

207 Introduction 208 Working with the MediaBay 209 The Define Locations section 210 The Locations section 211 The Results list 213 Previewing files 215 The Filters section 217 The Loop Browser and Sound Browser windows 217 Preferences 218 Key commands 218 Working with MediaBay-related windows 220 Working with Volume databases

221 Working with track presets

222 Introduction 222 Types of track presets 223 Applying track presets 225 Creating a track preset 226 Creating tracks from track presets or VST presets

Table of Contents

227 Remote controlling Cubase

228 Introduction 228 Setting Up 229 Operations 230 The Generic Remote device 232 Apple Remote (Macintosh only)

233 MIDI realtime parameters

234 Introduction 234 The Inspector – general handling 234 The Inspector sections

238 Using MIDI devices

239 Background 239 MIDI devices – general settings and patch

handling

243 About Studio Connections

244 MIDI processing

245 Introduction 246 Making your settings permanent 247 Dissolve Part 248 Repeat Loop 248 Other MIDI functions

252 The MIDI editors

253 Introduction 253 Opening a MIDI editor 255 The Key Editor – Overview 257 Key Editor operations 273 The Drum Editor – Overview 274 Drum Editor operations 276 Working with drum maps 279 Using drum name lists 279 Working with SysEx messages 280 Recording SysEx parameter changes 280 Editing SysEx messages 282 The Score Editor – Overview 283 Score Editor operations

290 Editing tempo and signature

291 Background 291 Tempo and signature display 292 Editing tempo and signature 294 The Beat Calculator 294 Adjusting the audio to the project tempo

296 Export Audio Mixdown

297 Introduction 297 Mixing down to audio files 298 The Export Audio Mixdown dialog 299 The available file formats

303 Synchronization

304 Background 304 Timecode (positional references) 305 Clock sources (speed references) 306 The Project Synchronization Setup dialog 308 Synchronized operation 308 Working with VST System Link 311 Activating VST System Link

316 Video

317 Before you start 318 Preparing a video project in Cubase 319 Video files in the Project window 320 Playing back video 322 Editing video 322 Extracting audio from a video file 323 Replacing the audio in a video file

324 ReWire

(not in Cubase LE)

325 Introduction 325 Launching and quitting 326 Activating ReWire channels 326 Using the transport and tempo controls 327 How the ReWire channels are handled in Cubase 327 Routing MIDI via ReWire2 327 Considerations and limitations

328 File handling

329 Importing audio 332 Exporting and importing standard MIDI files 334 Exporting and importing MIDI loops

335 Customizing

336 Background 336 Using the Setup options 337 Customizing track controls 339 Appearance 339 Applying colors in the Project window 342 Where are the settings stored?

Table of Contents

343 Key commands

344 Introduction 344 Setting up key commands 347 Setting up tool modifier keys 347 The default key commands

351 Index

Table of Contents

About this manual

Welcome!

This is the Operation Manual for Steinberg’s Cubase. Here you will find detailed information about all the features and functions in the program.

About the program versions

The documentation covers three program versions, Cubase Elements, Cubase AI, and Cubase LE, for two different operating systems or “platforms”, Windows and Mac OS X. Whenever the program is only called “Cubase” in this document, this refers to all three program versions.

Some features described in the documentation are not applicable to all three Cubase versions. Whenever this is the case, it is clearly indicated in the heading of the related subject. For example, if a heading is followed by “ (Cubase Elements only)”, the corresponding feature is not available in Cubase AI and Cubase LE. Likewise, if you see “ (not in LE)”, the corresponding feature is only available in Cu base Elements and Cubase AI.

Some features and settings are also specific to one of the platforms. This is clearly stated in the applicable cases. If nothing else is said, all descriptions and procedures in the documentation are valid for all Cubase versions for both Windows and Mac OS

The screenshots are taken from the Windows version of Cubase Elements.

Ö This manual often refers to right-clicking, for example, to open context menus. If you are using a Mac with a singlebutton mouse, hold down [Ctrl] and click.

Key command conventions

Many of the default key commands in Cubase use modifier keys, some of which are different depending on the oper ating system. For example, the default key command for Undo is [Ctrl]-[Z] under Windows and [Command]-[Z] un der 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]”.

About this manual

Setting up your system

Setting up audio

Make sure that all equipment is turned off before making any connections!

Connecting audio

Exactly how to set up your system depends on many different factors, e. g. the kind of project you wish to create, the external equipment you want to use, or the computer hardware available to you. Therefore, the following sec tions can only serve as examples.

How you connect your equipment, i. e. whether you use digital or analog connections, also depends on your indi vidual setup.

Stereo input and output – the simplest connection

If you only use a stereo input and output from Cubase, you can connect your audio hardware, e. g. the inputs of your audio card or your audio interface, directly to the input source and the outputs to a power amplifier and speaker.

Multi-channel input and output

Most likely however, you will have other audio equipment that you want to integrate with Cubase, using several input and output channels. Depending on the equipment available to you, there are two ways to go: either mixing using an external mixing desk, or mixing using the Mixer in side Cubase.

• External mixing means having a hardware mixing device with a group or bus system that can be used for feeding inputs on your audio hardware.

In the example below, four busses are used for feeding signals to the audio hardware’s inputs. The four outputs are connected back to the mixer for monitoring and playback. Remaining mixer inputs can be used for

connecting audio sources like microphones, instruments, etc.

A multi-channel audio setup using an external mixer

Ö When connecting an input source (like a mixer) to the audio hardware, you should use output busses, sends or similar that are separate from the mixer’s master output to avoid recording what you are playing back. You may also

A simple stereo audio setup

have mixing hardware that can be connected via FireWire.

This is probably the simplest of all setups – once you have set up the internal input and output busses, you can con

nect your audio source, e. g. a microphone, to your audio interface and start recording.

Setting up your system

• When using the Mixer inside Cubase, you can use the

inputs on your audio hardware to connect microphones and/or external devices. Use the outputs to connect your monitoring equipment.

(-10

dBV) or professional line level (+4 dBV), or you may be able to adjust input characteristics on the audio interface or in its control panel. Please check the audio hardware documentation for details.

Using the correct types of input is important to avoid distortion or noisy recordings.

Cubase does not provide any input level adjustments for the signals coming in to your audio hardware, since these are handled differently for each card. Ad justing input levels is either done in a special application included with the hardware or from its control panel (see below).

Mixing inside Cubase

Recording from a CD player

Most computers come with a CD-ROM drive that can also be used as a regular CD player. In some cases the CD player is internally connected to the audio hardware so that you can record the output of the CD player directly into Cubase (consult the audio hardware documentation if you are uncertain).

• All routing and level adjustments for recording from a CD (if available) are done in the audio hardware setup application (see below).

• Cubase Elements only: You can also grab audio tracks directly from a CD in Cubase (see the chapter

“File han-

dling” on page 328).

Word clock connections

If you are using a digital audio connection, you may also need a word clock connection between the audio hard

ware and external devices. Please refer to the documentation that came with the audio hardware for details.

It is very important that word clock synchronization is done correctly or there might be clicks and crackles in recordings that you make!

About recording levels and inputs

When you connect your equipment, you should make sure that the impedance and levels of the audio sources and inputs are matched. Typically, different inputs may be designed for use with microphones, consumer line level

Making settings for the audio hardware

Most audio cards come with one or more small applications that allow you to configure the inputs of the hardware to your liking. This includes:

• Selecting which inputs/outputs are active.

• Setting up word clock synchronization (if available).

• Turning monitoring via the hardware on/off (see “About moni-

toring” on page 15).

• Setting levels for each input. This is very important!

• Setting levels for the outputs, so that they match the equipment you use for monitoring.

• Selecting digital input and output formats.

• Making settings for the audio buffers.

In many cases all available settings for the audio hardware are gathered in a control panel, which can be opened from within Cubase as described below (or opened separately, when Cubase isn’t running). In some cases, there may be several different applications and panels – please refer to the audio hardware documentation for details.

Plug and Play support for ASIO devices

The Steinberg MR816 hardware series supports Plug and Play in Cubase. These devices can be plugged in and switched on while the application is running. Cubase will automatically use the driver of the MR816 series and will re-map the VST connections accordingly.

Setting up your system

Steinberg cannot guarantee that this will work with other

hardware. If you are unsure of whether your device supports plug and play, please consult its documentation.

If a device that does not support Plug and Play is connected/disconnected while the computer is running, it may get damaged.

Selecting a driver and making audio settings in Cubase

The first thing you need to do is select the correct driver in Cubase to make sure that the program can communicate with the audio hardware:

1. Launch Cubase and select Device Setup from the Devices menu.

2. In the Devices list to the left, click on “VST Audio System”.

The VST Audio System page is shown.

3. On the ASIO Driver menu, select your audio hardware driver.

There may be several options here that all refer to the same audio hardware. When you have selected a driver, it is added to the Devices list.

Under Windows, we strongly recommend that you access your hardware via an ASIO driver written specifically for the hardware. If no ASIO driver is installed, we recommend that you check with your audio hard

ware manufacturer if they have an ASIO driver available, for example, for download via the Internet. You can use the Generic Low Latency ASIO driver if no specific ASIO driver is available.

4. Select the driver in the Devices list to open the driver settings for your audio hardware.

5. Bring up the control panel for the audio hardware and adjust the settings as recommended by the audio hard

ware manufacturer.

• Under Windows, you open the control panel by clicking the Control Panel button.

The control panel that opens when you click this button is provided by the audio hardware manufacturer – not Cubase (unless you use DirectX, see below). Hence it will be different for each audio card brand and model. The control panels for the ASIO DirectX driver and the Generic Low Latency ASIO Driver (Windows only) are exceptions, in that they are provided by Steinberg and described in the dialog help, opened by clicking the Help button in the dialog. See also the notes on DirectX below.

• Under Mac OS X, the control panel for your audio hardware is opened by clicking the “Open Config App” button on the settings page for your audio device in the Device Setup dialog.

Note that this button is available only for some hardware products. If “Open Config App” is not available in your setup, refer to the documen tation that came with your audio hardware for information on where to make hardware settings.

6. If you plan to use several audio applications simultaneously, you may want to activate the “Release Driver when Application is in Background” option on the VST Audio System page. This will allow another application to play back via your audio hardware even though Cubase is running.

The application that is currently active (i. e. the “top window” on the desktop) gets access to the audio hardware. Make sure that any other audio application accessing the audio hardware is also set to release the ASIO (or Mac OS X) driver so Cubase can use it when it becomes the active application again.

7. If your audio hardware receives clock signals from an external sample clock source, you may want to activate the “Externally Clocked” option on the page for the driver.

This is described in detail in the section “If your hardware setup is based

on an external clock source” on page 14.

Setting up your system

8. If your audio hardware and its driver support ASIO

Direct Monitoring, you may want to activate the Direct Monitoring checkbox on the page for the driver.

Read more about monitoring later in this chapter and in the chapter “Re-

cording” on page 74.

9. Click Apply and then OK to close the dialog.

If your hardware setup is based on an external clock source

For proper audio playback and recording, it is essential that you set the project’s sample rate to the sample rate of the incoming clock signals. If you load a project with a sample rate that is different from your clock source, the program will try to change the settings of the clock source, which may not be what you want.

By activating the “Externally Clocked” option, you “tell” Cubase that it receives external clock signals and therefore derives its speed from that source. The program will not try to change the hardware sample rate any longer. The sample rate mismatch is accepted and playback will therefore be faster or slower. For more information about the Sample Rate setting, see

“The Project Setup dialog”

on page 44. Ö When a sample rate mismatch occurs, the Record

Format field on the status line is highlighted in a different color.

If you are using audio hardware with a DirectX driver (Windows only)

When the ASIO DirectX Full Duplex driver is selected in the Device Setup dialog, you can open the ASIO Control Panel and adjust the following settings (for more details, click the Help button in the control panel):

• Direct Sound Output and Input Ports

In the list on the left in the window, all available Direct Sound output and input ports are listed. In many cases, there will be only one port in each list. To activate or deactivate a port in the list, click the checkbox in the left column. If the checkbox is ticked, the port is activated.

• You can edit the Buffer Size and Offset settings in this list if necessary, by double-clicking on the value and typing in a new value.

In most cases, the default settings will work fine. Audio buffers are used when audio data is transferred between Cubase and the audio card. While larger buffers ensure that playback will occur without glitches, the latency (the time between the moment Cubase sends out the data and when it actually reaches the output) will be higher.

• Offset

If a constant offset is audible during playback of Audio and MIDI recordings, you can adjust the output or input latency time using this value.

Setting up the input and output ports

Once you have selected the driver and made the settings as described above, you need to specify which inputs and outputs will be used and name these:

1. In the Device Setup dialog, select your driver in the Devices list on the left to display the driver settings for your audio hardware.

A DirectX driver is the next best option to a specific ASIO driver and the Generic Low Latency ASIO driver.

Cubase comes with a driver called ASIO DirectX Full Duplex, available for selection on the ASIO Driver pop-up menu (VST Audio System page).

Ö To take full advantage of DirectX Full Duplex, the audio hardware must support WDM (Windows Driver Model) in combination with DirectX version 8.1 or higher. In all other cases, the audio inputs will be emulated by DirectX (see the dialog help for the ASIO DirectX Full Duplex Setup di

alog for details about how this is reported). Ö During the installation of Cubase, the latest DirectX

version will be installed on your computer.

Setting up your system

All input and output ports on the audio hardware are listed.

2. To hide a port, click in the “Visible” column for the port

(deselecting the checkbox).

Ports that are not visible cannot be selected in the VST Connections window where you set up your input and output busses – see the chap ter “VST Connections” on page 21.

If you attempt to hide a port that is already used by a bus you will be asked whether this is really what you want – note that this will disable the port!

3. To rename a port, click on its name in the “Show as” column and type in a new name.

• It is a good idea to give your ports names that are related to the channel configuration (rather than to the actual hardware model)!

4. Click OK to close the Device Setup dialog and apply your changes.

About monitoring

In Cubase, monitoring means listening to the input signal while preparing to record or while recording. There are three ways to monitor:

ASIO Direct Monitoring

If your audio hardware is ASIO 2.0 compatible, it may support ASIO Direct Monitoring (this feature may also be

available for audio hardware with Mac OS X drivers). In this mode, the actual monitoring is done in the audio hard ware, by sending the input signal back out again. However, monitoring is controlled from Cubase. This means that the audio hardware’s direct monitoring feature can be turned on or off automatically by Cubase.

Monitoring is described in detail in the chapter “Record-

ing” on page 74. However, when setting up, there is one

thing to note:

• If you want to use the external monitoring via your audio hardware, make sure that the corresponding functions are activated in the card’s mixer application.

Ö If you are using RME Audio Hammerfall DSP audio hardware, make sure that the pan law is set to -3 card’s preferences.

Setting up MIDI

dB in the

External monitoring

External monitoring (listening to the input signal before it goes into Cubase) requires an external mixer for mixing the audio playback with the input signal. This can be a classic mixing desk or a mixer application for your audio hardware, if this has a mode in which the input audio is sent back out again (usually called “Thru”, “Direct Thru” or similar).

Via Cubase

In this case, the audio passes from the input into Cubase, possibly through Cubase effects and EQ and then back to the output. You control monitoring via settings in Cubase.

This allows you to control the monitoring level from Cubase and add effects to the monitored signal only.

Setting up your system

Make sure that all equipment is turned off before making any connections!

This section describes how to connect and set up MIDI equipment. If you have no MIDI equipment, you can skip this section. Note that this is only an example – you might need or want to hook things up differently!

Connecting the MIDI equipment

When “MIDI Thru” is active in Cubase, MIDI data received is immediately “echoed” back out.

When you press a key, it is sent out via MIDI to Cubase.

MIDI data coming in to the instrument is played by the “Synth” inside it.

When Local Control is turned on in the instrument, the keys you press will be played by the “Synth” inside the instrument. When Local Control is turned off, this connection is cut off.

“Synth”

In this example we assume that you have a MIDI keyboard and an external MIDI sound module. The keyboard is used both for feeding the computer with MIDI messages for recording and for playing back MIDI tracks. The sound module is used for playback only. Using Cubase’s MIDI Thru feature (described later) you will be able to hear the correct sound from the sound module while playing the keyboard or recording.

Setting MIDI Thru and Local On/Off

On the MIDI page in the Preferences dialog (located on the File menu under Windows and on the Cubase menu under Mac OS X), you will find a setting called “MIDI Thru Active”. This is related to a setting in your instrument called “Local On/Off” or “Local Control On/Off”.

• If you use a MIDI keyboard instrument, as described earlier in this chapter, MIDI Thru should be activated and that instrument should be set to Local Off (sometimes called Local Control Off – see the instrument’s operation manual for details). The MIDI signal from the keyboard will be recorded in Cubase and at the same time be re-routed back to the instrument so that you hear what you are playing, without the keyboard “trig gering” its own sounds.

A typical MIDI Setup

If you want to use even more instruments for playback, simply connect MIDI Thru on the sound module to MIDI In on the next instrument, and so on. In this hook-up, you will al ways play the first keyboard when recording. But you can still use all your devices for providing sounds on playback.

If you plan to use more than three sound sources, we recommend that you either use an interface with more than one output, or a separate MIDI Thru box instead of the Thru jacks on each unit.

• If you use a separate MIDI keyboard – one that does not produce any sounds itself – MIDI Thru in Cubase should also be activated, but you don’t need to look for any Local On/Off set ting in your instruments.

• The only case where MIDI Thru should be deactivated is if you use Cubase with only one keyboard instrument and that instrument cannot be set to Local Off mode.

• MIDI Thru will be active only for MIDI tracks that are record enabled and/or have the Monitor button activated. See the chapter “Recording” on page 74 for more information.

Setting up your system

Setting up MIDI ports in Cubase

The Device Setup dialog lets you set up your MIDI system as follows:

Ö When you change MIDI port settings in the Device Setup dialog, these are automatically applied.

Showing or hiding MIDI Ports

The MIDI ports are listed in the Device Setup dialog on the MIDI Port Setup page. By clicking in the “Visible” column for a MIDI input or output, you can specify whether or not it is listed on the MIDI pop-up menus in the program.

If you are trying to hide a MIDI port which is already selected for a track or a MIDI device, a warning message will appear, allowing you to hide – and disconnect – the port or to cancel the operation and keep the MIDI port visible.

Setting up the “All MIDI Inputs” option

When you record MIDI in Cubase, you can specify which MIDI input each recording MIDI track should use. How ever, you can also select the “In ‘All MIDI Inputs’” option for an input port, which causes any MIDI data from any MIDI input to be recorded.

The “In ‘All MIDI Inputs’” option on the MIDI Port Setup page allows you to specify which inputs are included when you select All MIDI Inputs for a MIDI track. This can be es pecially useful if your system provides several instances of the same physical MIDI input – by deactivating the dupli cates you make sure only the desired MIDI data is recorded.

Ö If you have a MIDI remote control unit connected, you should also make sure to deactivate the “In ‘All MIDI Inputs’” option for that MIDI input. This will avoid accidentally recording the data from the remote control when the “All MIDI Inputs” option is selected as input for a MIDI track.

Connecting a synchronizer

Make sure that all equipment is turned off before making any connections!

When using Cubase with external tape transports, you will most likely need to add a synchronizer to your system. All connections and setup procedures for synchronization are described in the chapter

“Synchronization” on page 303.

Setting up video

Cubase plays back video files in a number of formats, such as AVI, QuickTime, or MPEG. QuickTime is used as playback engine. Which formats can be played back de pends on the video codecs installed on your system, see the chapter

There are several ways to play back video, e. g. without any special hardware, using a FireWire port, or using dedicated video cards, see

If you plan to use special video hardware, install it and set it up as recommended by the manufacturer.

Before you use the video hardware with Cubase, we recommend that you test the hardware installation with the utility applications that came with the hardware and/or the

QuickTime Player application.

“Video” on page 316.

“Video output devices” on page 317.

Optimizing audio performance

This section gives you some hints and tips on how to get the most out of your Cubase system, performance-wise. Some of this text refers to hardware properties and can be used as a guide when upgrading your system. This text is very brief. Look for details and current information on the Cubase web site.

Two aspects of performance

There are two distinct aspects of performance with respect to Cubase.

Tracks and effects

Simply put: the faster your computer, the more tracks, effects and EQ you will be able to play. Exactly what constitutes a “fast computer” is almost a science in itself, but some hints are given below.

Setting up your system

Short response times (latency)

Another aspect of performance is response time. The term “latency” refers to the “buffering”, i. e. the temporary storing, of small chunks of audio data during various steps of the recording and playback process on a computer. The more and larger those chunks, the higher the latency.

High latency is most irritating when playing VST instruments and when monitoring through the computer, i. e. when listening to a live audio source via the Cubase Mixer and effects. However, very long latency times (several hundred milliseconds) can also affect other processes like mixing, e.

g. when the effect of a fader movement is heard

only after a noticeable delay. While Direct Monitoring and other techniques reduce the

problems associated with very long latency times, a sys

tem that responds fast will always be more convenient to work with.

• Depending on your audio hardware, it may be possible to “trim” your latency times, usually by lowering the size and the number of buffers.

For details, refer to the audio hardware documentation, or, if you are using a DirectX driver under Windows, the dialog help.

System factors that affect performance

RAM

Generally speaking, the more RAM is installed in your computer, the better.

On computers running a Windows 32-bit operating system, a running application can address a maximum of 2 GB of RAM. On a Macintosh computer running Mac OS sions of Windows and Mac OS X are able to assign considerably more than 4 64-bit application.

This limitation is imposed by the operating system, and it is independent of the amount of RAM that you may have installed in your computer.

X, this limit is 4 GB.The 64-bit ver-

GB of RAM to a running

Some program functions may “eat up” all the available memory, e. g. recording, the use of effect plug-ins, and the pre-loading of samples.

When a function has used up all the memory made available by the operating system, the computer will crash.

Always keep in mind the RAM limitation of your operating system when setting up your projects.

CPU and processor cache

It goes without saying that the faster the computer processor, the better. But there are a number of factors that affect the apparent speed of a computer: the bus speed and type (PCI is strongly recommended), the processor cache size and of course, the processor type and brand. Cubase relies heavily on floating point calculations. When shopping for a processor, please make sure that you get one that is pow erful in calculating floating point arithmetics.

Note also that Cubase features full support for multi-processor systems. So, if you own a computer system with more than one processor, Cubase can take advantage of the total capacity and evenly distribute the processing load to all available processors. For further information,

“Multi processing” on page 19.

see

Hard disk and controller

The number of hard disk tracks you can record and play back at the same time also depends on the speed of your hard disk and hard disk controller. If you use E-IDE disks and controllers, make sure that the transfer mode is DMA Busmaster. Under Windows, you can check the current mode by launching the Windows Device Manager and looking for properties of the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controller’s primary and secondary channel. DMA transfer mode is en abled by default, but may be turned off by the system should hardware problems occur.

Setting up your system

Audio hardware and driver

The hardware and its driver can have some effect on regular performance. A badly written driver can reduce the performance of your computer. But where the hardware driver design makes the most difference is with latency.

Again, we strongly recommend that you use audio hardware for which there is a specific ASIO driver!

This is especially true when using Cubase for Windows:

• Under Windows, ASIO drivers written specifically for the hardware are more efficient than the Generic Low Latency ASIO Driver or a DirectX driver and produce shorter latency times.

• Under Mac OS X, audio hardware with properly written Mac OS X (Core Audio) drivers can be very efficient and produce very low latency times.

However, there are additional features currently only available with ASIO drivers, such as the ASIO Positioning Protocol.

Making settings that affect performance

Audio buffer settings

Audio buffers affect how audio is sent to and from the audio hardware. The size of the audio buffers affects both the latency and the audio performance. Generally, the smaller the buffer size, the lower the latency. On the other hand, working with small buffers can be demanding for the computer. If the audio buffers are too small, you may get clicks, pops or other audio playback problems.

• Under Mac OS X, you can adjust the size of the buffers on the VST Audio System page in the Device Setup dialog.

You may also find buffer settings in the control panel for the audio hardware.

• Under Windows, you adjust the buffer size settings in the control panel for the audio hardware (opened by clicking the Control Panel button on the driver page in the Device Setup dialog).

Optimizing processor scheduling (Windows only)

To get the lowest possible latencies when using ASIO under Windows (on a single-CPU system), the “system performance” has to be optimized for background tasks:

1. Open the Control Panel and select the System settings.

2. On the left, select the “Advanced system settings”

option.

The System Properties dialog opens.

3. Select the Advanced tab and click the “Settings…” button in the Performance section.

The Performance Options dialog opens.

4. Select the Advanced tab and activate the “Adjust for best performance of: Background services” option.

5. Click OK to close the dialogs.

Multi processing

On the VST Audio System page you will find the “Advanced options” section. Here you find advanced settings for the VST Engine, including a Multi Processing option. When this is activated and there is more than one CPU in your system, the processing load is distributed evenly to all available CPUs, allowing Cubase to make full use of the combined power of the multiple processors.

About the VST Performance window

The VST Performance window is opened from the Devices menu. The window shows two meter displays: The ASIO meter, which indicates CPU load, and the Disk me ter, which shows the hard disk transfer rate. It is recommended that you check this from time to time, or keep it always open. Even if you have been able to activate a number of audio channels in the project without getting any warning, you may run into performance problems when adding EQ or effects.

Setting up your system

• The ASIO meter (at the top) shows the ASIO time usage, i. e. the time required to complete the current processing tasks. The more tracks, effects, EQ, etc. you use in your project, the longer processing will take, and the longer the ASIO meter will show activity.

If the overload indicator (on the far right) lights up, you need to decrease the number of EQ modules, active effects, and/or audio channels playing back simultaneously.

• The lower bar graph shows the hard disk transfer load.

If the overload indicator (on the far right) lights up, the hard disk is not supplying data fast enough to the computer. Cubase Elements only: You may need to reduce the number of tracks playing back by using the Dis able Track function (see “About track disable/enable (Cubase Elements

only)” on page 71). If this does not help, you need a faster hard disk.

Ö The overload indicator may occasionally blink, e. g. when you locate during playback. This does not indicate a problem, but happens because the program needs a mo ment for all channels to load data for the new playback position.

Ö The ASIO and Disk load meters can also be shown on the Transport panel (as “Performance”) and on the Project window toolbar (as “Performance Meter”). There they are shown as two miniature vertical meters (by default at the left side of the panel/toolbar).

Setting up your system

VST Connections

About this chapter

This chapter focuses on the settings you can perform in the VST Connections window. Here you can set up input and output busses.

Since input and output busses are vital for working with Cubase, a large part of this chapter concentrates on busses and this is also the reason why you find this chapter at the beginning of the Operation Manual.

The VST Connections window

The VST Connections window is opened from the Devices menu. It contains an Inputs and an Outputs tab, which allow you to set up your busses.

Setting up busses

Cubase 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.

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.

Strategies

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

plate” on page 41).

“Save as Tem-

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

“Presets” on page 24). The templates can of course

(see 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 will 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 can 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

• You probably want one or several stereo output busses for monitoring and listening to stereo mixes.

• 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 in puts and outputs names according to the setup (rather than names based on the audio hardware model), Cubase will automatically find the correct inputs and outputs for your busses and you will be able to play and record with out having to change the settings.

VST Connections

To assign names to the inputs and outputs of your audio hardware, proceed as follows:

1. Open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu.

2. On the VST Audio System page, make sure that the

correct driver for your audio hardware is selected.

If this is the case, your audio card is listed in the Devices list on the left of the Device Setup window.

3. In the Devices list, select your audio card.

The available input and output ports on your audio hardware are listed on the right.

4. To rename a port, click on its name in the Show As column and enter a new name.

• If needed, you can also disable ports by deactivating them in the Visible column.

Disabled ports are not shown in the VST Connections window. 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. 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 output ports are active. This allows you to use the Microphone input instead of the Line input or even to deactivate the audio card input or output completely, if required.

Ö This function is only available for Built-In Audio, standard USB audio devices and a certain number of other audio cards.

Adding input and output busses

Depending on whether you have selected the Inputs or the Outputs tab in the VST Connections window, the corresponding busses are listed, with the following information:

Column Description

Bus Name Lists the busses. You can select and rename busses by

Speakers Indicates the speaker configuration (mono, stereo) of

Audio Device This shows the currently selected ASIO driver. Device Port If a bus entry is expanded to show all speaker channels,

Click (Outputs tab only)

To add an input or output bus, proceed as follows:

1. Open the Inputs or Outputs tab depending on the type

of bus that you want to add.

2. Click the Add Bus button.

A dialog opens.

3. Select a (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. For each of the speaker channels in the bus, click in

the Device Port column to select a port on your audio hardware.

The pop-up menu that opens lists the ports with the names you have assigned in the Device Setup dialog.

clicking on them in this column.

each bus.

this column shows which physical inputs/outputs on your audio hardware are used by the bus. If the bus entry is col lapsed, only the first port used by this bus is visible here.

You can route the click to a specific output bus.

VST Connections

Setting the Main Mix bus (the default output

bus)

The Main Mix is the output bus that each new audio, group or FX channel is automatically routed to.

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 it as the Main Mix bus.

Setting the default output bus.

The Main Mix is indicated by an orange colored speaker icon next to its name.

Presets

On the Inputs and Outputs tabs you will find a Presets menu. Here you can find three different types of presets:

• A number of standard bus configurations.

• Automatically created presets tailored to your specific

hardware configuration.

On startup, Cubase analyzes the physical inputs and outputs provided by your audio hardware and creates a number of hardware-dependent presets with the following possible configurations:

• One stereo bus.

• Various combinations of stereo and mono busses.

• A number of mono busses.

• Your own user presets that you can save by clicking the Store button (“+” symbol). 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 Delete button (“-” symbol).

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 Inspector

using the Input and Output Routing pop-up menus. Ö For audio-related channel types other than audio track

channels (e.g. VST instrument 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.

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 24). You can adjust the monitoring level in

the Mixer.

VST Connections

Editing operations

On the different tabs of the VST Connections window the corresponding busses are shown in a table containing a tree view with expandable entries. After you have set up all the required busses for a project it might be necessary to edit the names and/or change port assignments. Cubase provides a number of features to make such tasks easier.

Expanding and collapsing entries

• Bus entries can be expanded or collapsed to show or hide the corresponding speaker channels or sub-busses by clicking the “+” or “-” sign in front of the corresponding list entry.

• To expand or collapse all entries on a tab at the same time, use the “+ tively) above the tree view.

Determining how many busses a device port is connected to

To give you an idea how many busses a given port is already connected to, the busses are shown in square brackets on the Device Port pop-up menu, to the right of the port name.

Up to three bus assignments can be displayed in this way. If more connections have been made, this is indicated by a number at the far right.

Therefore, if you see the following: Adat 1 [Stereo1] [Stereo2] [Stereo3] (+2)… this means that the Adat 1 port is already assigned to

three stereo busses plus two additional busses.

Identifying exclusive port assignments

In some cases (i. e. for certain channel types), the port assignment is exclusive. Once a port has been assigned to such a bus or channel, it must not be assigned to an other bus, otherwise the connection to the first bus will be broken.

To help you identify such exclusive port assignments and avoid accidental reassignment, the corresponding ports are marked in red on the Device Port pop-up menu.

All” button or the “- All” button (respec-

Selecting/Deselecting multiple entries

• Using the key commands [Ctrl]/[Command]-[A] (Select

All) and [Shift]-[Ctrl]/[Command]-[A] (Select None), you can select and deselect all entries in the Bus Name column.

Note that for this to work, the table on the current tab needs to have the focus. This can be achieved by clicking anywhere on the background of the table.

• By holding [Shift] when selecting entries in the Bus

Name column, you can select multiple entries at the same time.

This is useful for automatic renaming or changing the port assignments globally, see below.

Ö If you select a subentry (e. g. a speaker channel in a bus) the parent entry is automatically selected as well.

Selecting entries by typing the name

In the Bus Name list you can jump to an entry by typing the first letter of the bus name on the keyboard.

This will only work if the table has the focus. To do this, simply select any list entry.

Navigating the Bus Name list using the [Tab] key

By pressing the [Tab] key you can jump to the next entry in the Bus Name list, allowing you to rename your busses quickly. Similarly, by pressing [Shift]-[Tab] you can return to the previous list entry.

Automatically renaming selected busses

You can rename all the selected busses at once using incrementing numbers or letters.

• To use incrementing numbers, select the busses that

you want to rename and enter a new name for one of the busses, followed by a number.

For example, if you have eight inputs that you want to be named “In 1, In

2, …, In 8”, you select all the busses and enter the name “In 1” for the

first bus. All other busses are then renamed automatically.

• To use letters from the alphabet, proceed as with num-

bers, but enter a capital letter instead of a number.

For example, if you have three FX channels that you want to be named “FX A, FX B, and FX C”, you select all the channels and enter the name “FX

A” for the first. All other channels are then renamed automatically. The last letter that can be used is Z. If you have more selected entries than there are letters available, the remaining entries will be skipped.

VST Connections

When using letters instead of numbers, it is important to note that these must be preceded by a space. If you leave out the space before the letter or if you do enter neither a letter nor a number, only the first selected entry is renamed.

Ö You do not have to begin renaming with the topmost selected entry. The renaming will start from the bus where you edit the name, will go down the list to the bottom and then continue from the top until all selected busses have been renamed.

Changing the port assignment for a single bus

To change the port assignment for a single bus, you proceed as when you added it: Make sure that the channels are visible and click in the Device Port column to select ports.

Changing the port assignment for multiple busses

To change the port assignment (or the output routing in case of groups/FX channels) for multiple entries in the Bus Name column at the same time, you need to select the corresponding busses first.

• To assign different ports to the selected busses, press [Shift], open the Device Port pop-up menu for the first se lected entry (i. e. the topmost bus) and select a device port.

All subsequent busses are automatically connected to the next available port.

• To assign the same port to all selected busses, press [Shift]-[Alt]/[Option], open the Device Port pop-up menu for the first selected entry (i.

e. the topmost bus) and select

a device port. Ö You can also set all selected busses or channels to

Not Connected.

Removing busses

To remove a bus you do not need, select it in the list, rightclick and select Remove Bus from the pop-up menu, or press [Backspace].

VST Connections

The Project window

Window Overview

Project

overview

The event display, showing audio parts and events, MIDI parts, automation, markers, etc.

Inspector

Ruler

Status line

Toolbar

The track list with various track types

Info line

The Project window is the main window in Cubase. This provides you with an overview of the project, allowing you to navigate and perform large scale editing. Each project has one Project window.

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 FX

parts. Each audio track has a corresponding audio channel in the Mixer. An audio track can have any number of automation tracks 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

“Organizing tracks in folder tracks” on page 64.

channel can contain up to eight effect processors – by rout ing 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 131.

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 any number of automation tracks for automating Mixer channel parameters, effect settings, etc.

The Project window

Track type Description

Group Channel

Instrument This allows you to create a track for a dedicated instrument,

MIDI For recording and playing back MIDI parts. Each MIDI track

Marker Marker tracks display markers which can be moved and re-

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 128).

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 corre sponding channel strip in the Mixer. In the Project window, Group channels are organized as tracks in a special Group Tracks folder.

making VST instrument handling easier and more intuitive. In strument tracks have a corresponding channel strip in the Mixer. Each instrument track can have any number of auto mation tracks in the Project window. However, Volume and Pan are automated from within the Mixer. For more informa tion on instrument tracks, see the chapter “VST instruments

and instrument tracks” on page 145.

has a corresponding MIDI channel strip in the Mixer. A MIDI track can have any number of automation tracks for automating Mixer channel parameters, insert and send ef fect settings, etc.

named directly in the Project window (see the chapter “Us-

ing markers” on page 108). A project can have only one

marker track.

Track type Description

Arranger (Cubase Ele ments only)

Ruler Ruler tracks contain additional rulers, displaying the time-

Video For playing back video events. A project can only have one

The arranger track is used for arranging your project, by

marking out sections in the project and determining in which order they are to be played back. See the chapter

“The arranger track (Cubase Elements only)” on page 101

for details.

line from left to right. You can use any number of ruler tracks, each with a different display format if you wish. See

“The ruler” on page 34 for more information about the ruler

and the display formats.

video track.

About parts and events

The tracks in the Project window contain parts and/or events. Events are the basic building blocks in Cubase. 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 edi tor (see “The MIDI editors” on page 252).

• 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.

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 available controls, you may have to resize the track in the track list (see

The track list showing a MIDI track, an audio track with an automation track, and a VST instrument track

“Resizing tracks” on page 62).

• Using the Track Controls Settings dialog you can decide which controls are visible for each track type, see

“Customizing track controls” on page 337.

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, the Inspector shows the setting for the first (topmost) selected track.

An audio event and an audio part

Getting on-the-fly info with the Arrow tool

If the “Select Tool: Show Extra Info” option is activated in the Preferences dialog (Editing–Tools page), a tooltip will be shown for the Arrow tool, displaying information de

pending 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 are pointing at.

The Project window

Opening the Inspector

To show the Inspector, proceed as follows:

1. On the toolbar, click the “Set up Window Layout” button.

A transparent pane appears, covering the Project window.

2. In the gray area in the middle, activate the Inspector option.

Inspector handling

For most track classes, the Inspector is divided into a number of sections, each containing different controls for the track. Which sections are available in the Inspector depends on the selected 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]/[Op tion]-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 344.

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.

Not all Inspector tabs are shown by default. You can show/hide Inspector sections by right-clicking on an Inspector tab and activating/deactivating the desired options on the Inspector Setup context menu.

Ö Make sure that 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.

Inspector sections

The Inspector contains the controls that can be found on the track list, plus some additional buttons and parame ters. 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

Opens a dialog in which you can make separate Auto Fade settings for the audio track, see

settings for individual tracks” on page 100.

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 122.

setting will move the track’s fader in the Mixer window, and vice versa. See

118 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.

This lets you specify the input bus or MIDI input for the track. See tion about input busses.

“Setting volume in the Mixer” on page

“Setting up busses” on page 22 for informa-

“Making Auto Fade

The Project window

+ 330 hidden pages