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.
Table of Contents
7 About this manual 85 Audio effects 8 Welcome! 9 VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses 10 10 12 13 About this chapter Setting up busses Using the busses About monitoring 86 86 87 90 94 94 96 About this chapter Overview Insert effects Send effects Editing effects Effect presets Installing and managing effect plug-ins 99 14 The Project window VST Instruments and Instrument tracks 15 17 21 40 Background Window Overview Operations Options 42 Playback and the Transport panel 10
138 The Audio Part Editor 181 The MIDI editors 139 139 139 141 142 142 182 182 184 186 199 200 202 205 206 207 210 211 211 213 214 Background Opening the Audio Part Editor Window overview Operations Common methods Options and Settings 143 The Pool 144 144 146 Background Window overview Operations 155 Working with Track Presets 156 156 157 158 159 159 Introduction Types of track presets Applying track presets Creating a track preset Creating tracks from track presets or VST presets Previewing MIDI, i
261 Customizing 262 262 263 265 265 267 Background Using the Setup options Customizing track controls Appearance Applying track and event colors Where are the settings stored? 268 Key commands 269 269 271 272 Introduction Setting up key commands Setting up tool modifier keys The default key commands 275 Index 6 Table of Contents
1 About this manual
Welcome! This is the Operation Manual for Steinberg’s Cubase AI. 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.
2 VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses
About this chapter • 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.
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. The VST Connections window You add and set up busses in the VST Connections window, opened from the Devices menu. This allows you to manually re-route ports used in the project to ports available in your system.
• Alternatively you can right-click in the VST Connections window and add a bus in the desired format directly from the context menu. • 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. The new bus appears with the ports visible. 4.
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: Output channels • 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.
3 The Project window
Background The Project window is the main window in Cubase AI. 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 Track type Description Audio For recording and playing back audio events and audio 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.
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.
Window Overview Toolbar Info line Ruler Inspector The event display, showing audio parts and events, MIDI parts, automation, markers, etc. The Track list with various track types 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 23).
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 26), the Inspector shows the setting for the first (topmost) selected track. 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).
Parameter Description Equalizers section Lets you adjust the EQs for the track. You can have up to four bands of EQ for each track, see “Making EQ settings” on page 77. The Edit button at the top of the section opens the Channel Settings window for the track. Channel section 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.
The toolbar The toolbar contains tools and shortcuts for opening other windows and various project settings and functions: Constrain delay compensation (see “Constrain Delay Compensation” on page 106). Show/hide info line Active project indicator Open Pool 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).
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 Project Setup dialog Setting Description General settings for the project are made in the Project Setup dialog. This is opened by selecting “Project Setup…” from the Project menu. Display Offset Offsets the time positions displayed in the ruler etc., allowing you to compensate for the Start position setting. Typically, if you synchronize Cubase AI to an external source starting at a frame other than zero, you set the Start position to this value.
Option Description Resizing tracks in the Track list Zoom to Selection (Horiz) Zooms in horizontally so that the current selection fills the screen. Zoom to Event This option is available only in the Sample Editor (see “Zooming” on page 128). • You can change the height of an individual track by clicking on its lower border in the Track list and dragging up or down. Zoom In Vertically Zooms in one step vertically. Zoom Out Vertically Zooms out one step vertically.
The Enlarge Selected Track option 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.
• 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 38. ! Only the cycle markers you create in the current project are available on the menu. Option Description Show Waveforms Determines whether audio waveforms should be shown at all. Background Color Modulation When this is activated, the backgrounds of audio waveforms are displayed in a different way, reflecting the waveform dynamics.
Handling tracks • To select a track, click on it in the Track list. 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. A selected track is indicated by a light gray color in the Track list. This track is selected. • The items on the “Add Track” submenu are also available on the context menu. This is accessed by right-clicking in the Track list.
Disabling audio tracks • By drawing. 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 33), 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.
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. 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.
Selecting events • Note that in the Preferences (Editing page), you can find the option “Use Up/Down Navigation Commands for selecting Tracks only”. Selecting events is done using any of the following methods: 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.
Moving events • Use the Nudge buttons in the toolbar. To move events in the Project window, use the following methods: These move the selected events to the left or right. The amount of movement depends on the selected display format (see “The Project Setup dialog” on page 22) and the value set on the Grid pop-up menu. • 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.
Note: Using Cut, Copy and Paste • When you duplicate audio events, the copies are always shared. This means that shared copies of audio events always refer to the same audio clip (see “Audio processing” on page 118). You can cut or copy selected events, and paste them in again, using the functions on the Edit menu. • You can convert a shared copy to a real copy by selecting “Convert to Real Copy” from the Edit menu.
Ö If you split a MIDI part so that the split position intersects one or several MIDI notes, the result depends on the option “Split MIDI Events” in the Preferences (Editing–MIDI page). To select one of the resizing modes, select the Arrow tool and then click again on the Arrow tool icon on the toolbar. This opens a pop-up menu from which you can select one of the resizing mode options. If the option is activated, the intersected notes will be split (creating new notes at the beginning of the second part).
• It is also possible to resize events by using the Trim buttons (located in the Nudge palette) on the toolbar. This will move the start or end position of the selected Event(s) by the amount set on the Grid pop-up menu. The sizing type currently selected applies to this method too, with the exception of “Sizing Applies Time Stretch” which is not possible with this method. You can also use key commands for this (by default, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and use the left and right arrow key). 4.
• You can mute events by selecting them and selecting “Mute” from the Edit menu. Similarly, you can unmute the selected events by selecting “Unmute” from the Edit menu. • You can also change the mute status of selected events on the info line. Muted events can be edited as usual (with the exception of adjusting fades), but are not played back. Creating new files from events An audio event plays a section of an audio clip, which in turn refers to one or more audio files on the hard disk.
When the Range Selection tool is selected, the Select submenu on the Edit menu has the following items for making selection ranges: • By using the Trim buttons on the toolbar. The left Trim buttons will move the start of the selection range and the right buttons will move the end. The edges will be moved by the amount specified on the Grid pop-up.
Making selection ranges for several non-contiguous tracks You can create selection ranges that cover several tracks by pressing [Alt]/[Option]-[Shift]. However, it is also possible to exclude tracks from a selection range: 1. Create a selection range from the first to the last desired track. 2. Press [Alt]/[Option] and click in the selection range on the tracks you want to exclude from the selection.
The Preferences dialog Handling folder tracks • Creating a folder track Select “Add Track” from the Project menu and select “Folder” from the submenu that appears, or right-click in the Track list and select “Add Folder Track” from the context menu to create a folder track. • Moving tracks into a folder In the Track list, click on a track that you want to move into a folder and drag it onto a folder track.
• Using cut, copy and paste. • Deleting a folder part. This will delete its contained events and parts. • Splitting a folder part with the Scissors tool. • Gluing folder parts together with the Glue tube tool. This will only work if the adjacent folder parts contain events or parts on the same track. • Resizing a folder part resizes the contained events and parts according to the selected resizing method, see “Resizing events” on page 32. • Muting a folder part.
The following actions can be performed in the Marker window: • Selecting markers • Adding markers • Drawing markers Click the Add button or press [Ins] (Windows only) on the computer keyboard to add position markers at the current project cursor position. Select “Cycle Markers” from the Show pop-up menu and click the Add button to add a cycle marker between the left and right locator. Use the Pencil tool (or press [Alt]/[Option] and use the Arrow tool) to draw position markers.
Options The Snap function The Snap function helps you to find exact positions when editing in the Project window. It does this by restricting horizontal movement and positioning to certain positions. Operations affected by Snap include moving, copying, drawing, sizing, splitting, range selection, etc. • You turn Snap on or off by clicking the Snap icon in the toolbar. Snap activated.
Autoscroll “Autoscroll” and “Suspend Autoscroll when Editing” are activated When the Autoscroll option is activated, the waveform display will scroll during playback, keeping the project cursor visible in the window. You can find the Autoscroll button in the toolbars of the Project window and all editors.
4 Playback and the Transport panel
Background Metronome click on/off This chapter describes the various methods available for controlling Playback and Transport functions in Cubase AI. Tempo track on/off The Transport panel Synchronization on/off Below you can find a brief description of each item on the Transport panel. Show Markers (opens Marker window) Precount on/off The tempo and time signature display Jump to Marker Clipping indicators The pictures below show the Transport panel with all controls visible.
The numeric keypad The following functions are available: In the default Key Command settings, various Transport panel operations are assigned to the numeric keypad on the computer keyboard. The keypads are slightly different on PC and Macintosh computers: Function Description Locate Selection/Locate Selection End Moves the project cursor to the beginning or end of the current selection. For this to be available, you must have selected one or more events or parts, or made a selection range.
The left and right locators • You can also adjust the locators numerically on the Transport panel. The left and right locators are a pair of position markers used for specifying punch-in and punch-out positions during recording, and as boundaries for cycle playback and recording. Clicking the L/R buttons in the locator section on the Transport panel will move the project cursor to the respective locator.
Playback functions You now play back the song. It begins with the piano sound and then switches to the string sound. In the middle of the chorus you stop and rewind to some point between the beginning and the second program change. The synth will now still play the string sound although in this section it really should be a piano! Apart from the standard transport controls on the Transport panel, you can also find a number of functions on the Transport menu that can be used to control playback.
The Virtual Keyboard • You can also press several keys simultaneously to enter polyphonic parts. The maximum number of notes that can be played at one time varies between the different operating systems and hardware configurations. The Virtual Keyboard can be displayed in the Transport panel. It allows you to play and record MIDI notes by using your computer keyboard or mouse. This is useful if you have no external MIDI instrument at hand and you do not want to draw in notes with the Pencil tool.
5 Recording
Background This chapter describes the various recording methods that you can use in Cubase AI. As it is possible to record both audio and MIDI tracks, both recording methods are covered in this chapter. Before you start This chapter assumes that you are reasonably familiar with certain basic recording concepts, and that the following initial preparations have been made: Record Enable in the Inspector, Track list and mixer • You have properly set up, connected and calibrated your audio hardware.
Activating recording in Sync mode • If the Punch Out button is activated on the Transport panel, recording will be deactivated when the project cursor reaches the right locator. If you are synchronizing the Cubase AI transport to external equipment (Sync is activated on the Transport panel) and you activate recording, the program will go into “record ready” mode (the record button on the Transport panel will light up).
Audio recording specifics Setting up the track Creating a track and selecting the channel configuration Selecting a recording file format Audio tracks can be configured as mono or stereo tracks. This allows you to record or import a file containing multiple channels and treat it as one entity, with no need to split it up into several mono files etc.
Selecting an input bus for a track 4. Adjust the output level of your audio source so that the meters go reasonably high without reaching 0.0dB. Here we assume that you have added and set up the required input busses (see “Setting up busses” on page 10). Before you record, you need to specify from which input bus the track should record. You can do this in the Inspector. Check the numerical peak level indicator below the meter in the bus channel strip. To reset the peak level indicator, click on it.
When monitoring via Cubase AI, you can select one of four Auto Monitoring modes in the Preferences (VST page): 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 hardware, by sending the input signal back out again. However, monitoring is controlled from Cubase AI.
Recording • In “Normal” or “Merge” mode, recording where something has already been recorded creates a new audio event that overlaps the previous one(s). Recording is done using any of the general recording methods (see “Basic recording methods” on page 49). When you finish recording, an audio file is created in the Audio folder within the project folder. In the Pool, an audio clip is created for the audio file, and an audio event that plays the whole clip appears on the recording track.
MIDI recording specifics Naming MIDI ports in Cubase AI Activating MIDI Thru MIDI inputs and outputs are often displayed with unnecessarily long and complicated names. However, you can rename your MIDI ports to more descriptive names: Normally, when working with MIDI, you will have MIDI Thru activated in Cubase AI, and Local Off selected in your MIDI Instrument(s).
Selecting a sound • If you hold down [Shift]-[Alt]/[Option] and select a MIDI input, this will be used for all selected MIDI tracks. You can select sounds from within Cubase AI by instructing the program to send Program Change and Bank Select messages to your MIDI device. This is done using the “Patch Selector” and “Bank Selector” fields in the Inspector or Track list.
About punch in and out on MIDI tracks 4. On the next lap, you wait until bar seven and start playing. Performing and setting up manual and automatic punch in/out recording for MIDI tracks is done in exactly the same way as for audio tracks. There is one thing to note, however: This way you will overwrite the last two bars only. 5. Make sure you stop playing before the next lap begins – otherwise you will overwrite the entire take.
Retrospective Record Say, for instance, that you record one or several bass parts on track 2. If you now set another track, like track 55, to the same output and MIDI channel as track 2, you can make a separate recording of just pitchbends for the bass parts on track 55. This means that you activate recording as usual and only move the pitchbend wheel during the take.
• Solo Record in MIDI Editors If this is activated and you open a part for editing in a MIDI editor, its track is automatically record-enabled. Furthermore, Record Enable is deactivated for all other MIDI tracks until you close the editor again. This makes it easier to record MIDI data when you’re editing a part – you will always be sure the recorded data ends up in the edited part and not on any other track.
• By setting a post-roll value, you instruct Cubase AI to play back a short section after automatic punch out before stopping. • To activate the precount, click the Precount button on the Transport panel. You can also activate the “Precount On” option on the Transport menu or set up a key command for this. This is only relevant when punch out is activated on the Transport panel and “Stop after Automatic Punch Out” is activated in the Preferences (Transport page).
Precount Options Description Precount Bars Sets the number of bars the metronome will count in before it starts recording if precount is activated on the Transport panel. Use Time Signature at Record Start Time When this is activated, the precount will automatically use the time signature and tempo set at the position where you start recording. Use Time Signature at Project Time When this is activated, the precount will be in the time signature set on the tempo track.
6 Fades, crossfades and envelopes
Creating fades • If the option “Show Event Volume Curves Always” is activated in the Preferences (Event Display–Audio page), the fade curves will be shown in all events, regardless of whether they are selected or not. There are two main types of fade-ins and fade-outs in audio events in Cubase AI: fades created by using the fade handles (see below) and fades created by processing (see “Fades created by processing” on page 64).
Creating and adjusting fades with the Range Selection tool Removing fades To remove the fades for an event, select the event and select “Remove Fades” from the Audio menu. You can also use the Range Selection tool to remove fades and crossfades within the selected range this way. “Handle-type” fades can also be created and adjusted with the Range Selection tool, in the following way: Fades created by processing 1. Select a section of the audio event with the Range Selection tool.
The Fade dialogs Restore button The Fade dialogs appear when you edit an existing fade or use the Fade In/Fade Out functions on the Process submenu on the Audio menu. The picture below shows the Fade In dialog; the Fade Out dialog has identical settings and features. The Restore button (to the right above the fade display) is only available when editing fades made by dragging the fade handles. Click this to cancel any changes you have made since opening the dialog.
Preview, Apply and Process • If the events do not overlap but are directly consecutive (lined up end-to-start, with no gap) it is still possible to crossfade them – provided that their respective audio clips overlap! In this case, the two events are resized so that they overlap, and a crossfade of the default length and shape is applied.
The Crossfade dialog Play buttons • The “Play Fade Out” and “Play Fade In” buttons allow you to audition the fade-out or fade-in part only, without the crossfade. • The “Play Crossfade” button plays back the whole crossfade. You can also use the Transport panel controls to play back the crossfaded audio events. However, that method will play back all unmuted audio events on other tracks as well.
Default buttons 2. Use the checkboxes in the upper right corner to activate or deactivate Auto Fade In, Auto Fade Out and Auto Crossfades, respectively. • Clicking the “As Default” button stores all of the current settings as the default crossfade. These settings will then be used whenever you create new crossfades. 3. Use the Length value field to specify the length of the Auto Fade or Crossfade (1–500ms). • The Crossfade Length setting is included in the Default settings.
7 The mixer
About this chapter • By clicking the Mixer button in the Devices panel. You open the Devices panel by selecting Show Panel from the Devices menu.
The common panel Showing/hiding individual channels (the “Can Hide” setting) The common panel appears to the left in the mixer window and contains settings for changing the look and behavior of the mixer, as well as global settings for all channels. Global Mute and Solo buttons Global automation Read/ Write buttons Reset Mixer/ Reset Channels Channel settings copy/ paste, see “Copying settings between audio channels” on page 79.
About the Command Target • To remove a stored channel view set, select it and click the “Remove View Set” button (the minus sign). Command targets let you specify which channels should be affected by the “commands” (basically all the functions that can be assigned key commands) when working with the Mixer, e.g. the width setting of the channel strips, etc. You can set command targets using the Mixer common panel or the context menu.
The audio-related channel strips Narrow/Wide button Pan control The common panel (see “The common panel” on page 71) The Can Hide State for the channel Level fader Level meter Edit button (opens the Channel Settings window) Record Enable and Monitor buttons Channel name Channel automation controls Opens the control panel for the VST Instrument All audio-related channel types (audio, instrument track, output channels, group, effect return, VST Instrument) basically have the same channel strip layout,
The output channels Basic mixing procedures The output busses you set up in the VST Connections window are represented by output channels in the mixer. They are shown in a separate “pane” (to the right of the regular channel strips), with its own divider and horizontal scrollbar. The output channel strip is very similar to other audio channels. Setting volume in the mixer In the mixer, each channel strip has a volume fader.
About the level meters for audio channels MIDI tracks set to the same MIDI channel and output When playing back audio in Cubase AI, the level meters in the mixer show the level of each audio channel. If you have several MIDI tracks set to the same MIDI channel (and routed to the same MIDI output), making volume and pan settings for one of these MIDI tracks/mixer channels will also affect all other mixer channels set to the same MIDI channel/output combination.
Audio-specific procedures Setting pan in the mixer This section describes the options and basic procedures regarding audio channels in the mixer. The pan control Using Channel Settings The pan controls in the mixer are used to position a channel between the left and right side of the stereo spectrum. By default for stereo audio channels, pan controls the balance between the left and right channels. You can change this in the Preferences.
Every channel has its own channel settings window (although you can view each in the same window if you like – see below). You can also select a channel manually (thereby changing what is shown in the open Channel Settings window). Proceed as follows: 1. Open the Channel Settings window for any channel. Click the Edit button to open the Channel Settings window. 2. Open the Choose Edit Channel pop-up menu by clicking the arrow button to the left of the channel number at the top of the Fader view. 3.
The Equalizers + Curve pane in the Channel Settings window consists of four EQ modules with parameter sliders, an EQ curve display and some additional functions at the top. Using the curve display When you activate EQ modules and make settings, you will see that your settings are automatically reflected in the curve display above. You can also make settings directly in the curve (or combine the two methods any way you like): 1. To activate an EQ module, click in the curve display.
• In the Inspector (Equalizers tab) and in the Channel Settings window, click the Bypass button (next to the EQ button) so that it turns yellow. Click again to deactivate EQ Bypass mode. EQ bypass in the mixer, the Channel Settings window and the Inspector EQ reset The channel overview in the Inspector On the Presets pop-up menu in the Channel Settings window and in the Inspector, you will find the Reset command. Select this to turn off all EQ modules and reset all EQ parameters to their default values.
Initialize Channel and Reset Mixer Settings for group channels The Initialize Channel button can be found in the lower part of the Control Strip section in the Channel Settings window (if this section is not shown in the Channel Settings window, open the context menu and select “Control Strip” on the Customize View submenu). Initialize Channel resets the selected channel to the default settings. The group channel strips are (almost) identical to audio channel strips in the mixer.
About output busses • To change the order of the panels, select “Setup” on the Customize View pop-up menu and use the “Move up” and “Move Down” buttons in the dialog that opens. Cubase AI uses a system of input and output busses which are set up using the VST Connections dialog. This is described in the chapter “VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses” on page 9. Every MIDI channel has its own channel settings window.
Utilities • Any individual channel settings you have made before linking will remain until you alter the same setting for any of the linked channels. Link/Unlink channels For example, if you link three channels, and one of them was muted at the time you applied the Link Channel function, this channel will remain muted after linking. However, if you mute another channel all linked channels will be muted.
Saving mixer settings • Mixer settings will be applied in the same order as they were in the mixer. It is possible to save complete mixer settings for all or all selected audio-related channels in the mixer. These can later be loaded into any project. Channel settings are saved as mixer settings files. These have the file extension “.vmx”.
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 meter, 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.
8 Audio effects
About this chapter VST Preset management Overview From a user perspective, the main difference between VST 2 and VST 3 is in the effect preset management. The “.fxp/.fxb” files used in VST 2 have been replaced by VST 3 Presets (extension “.vstpreset”). Using the preset management features, you can assign various attributes to your effect presets to help you quickly find the right patch. You can also preview effect presets before you load them.
Insert effects About plug-in delay compensation A plug-in effect may have some inherent delay or latency. This means that it takes a brief time for the plug-in to process the audio fed into it – as a result, the output audio will be slightly delayed. This especially applies to dynamics processors featuring “look-ahead” functionality. Background As the name implies, insert effects are inserted into the audio signal path – this means that the audio channel data will be routed through the effect.
Routing an audio channel or bus through insert effects Deactivating vs. bypassing If you want to listen to the track without having it processed by a particular effect, but do not want to remove this effect completely from the insert slot, you can either deactivate or bypass it. Insert effect settings are available in the Channel Settings window and the Inspector.
Insert effects in the channel overview Dithering If the “Channel” section is selected in the Inspector, you will get an overview of which insert effects, EQ modules and effect sends are activated for the channel. Dithering is a method for controlling the noise produced by quantization errors in digital recordings. The theory behind this is that during low level passages, only a few bits are used to represent the signal, which leads to quantization errors and hence distortion.
4. Make sure the plug-in is set to dither to the correct resolution. Send effects This would be the resolution of your audio hardware (on playback) or the desired resolution for the mixdown file you want to create (as set in the Export Audio Mixdown dialog, see the chapter “Export Audio Mixdown” on page 226). Background As their name implies, send effects are outside of an audio channel’s signal path, i.e.
Setting up send effects Adding and setting up effects Adding an FX channel track As mentioned above, you can add a single insert effect when you create the FX channel track. To add and set up effects after the FX channel track is created, you can either use the Inspector for the track (click the Inserts tab) or the VST FX Channel Settings window: 1. Pull down the Project menu and select “FX Channel” from the “Add Track” submenu. A dialog appears. 1.
• You can reorder the effects by clicking in the area above the name field and dragging the effect onto another slot. 2. Pull down the Routing pop-up menu for a send by clicking in the empty slot, and select the desired routing destination. • You can copy an effect into another effect slot (for the same channel or between channels) by holding down [Ctrl]/ [Command] and dragging it onto another effect slot.
• In the mixer, you can use the level fader for the FX channel to set the effect return level. Ö You can choose whether a send in pre-fader mode should be affected by the channel’s Mute button or not. By adjusting the return level, you control the amount of the signal sent from the FX channel to the output bus. This is done with the option “Mute Pre-Send when Mute” in the Preferences dialog (VST page). • When one or several sends are activated for a channel, the Send Effects buttons light up in blue.
Effect presets 2. You can now solo any of the audio channels without having the effect return (the FX channel) muted. Effect preset management in Cubase AI is very versatile. In the Save Preset dialog you can assign attributes to presets which allow you to organize and browse them according to various criteria. Cubase AI comes with categorized track and VST presets that you can use straight out of the box.
2. Select “Save Preset…” from the pop-up menu. 5. Double-click on the desired preset (or click outside the Presets browser) to apply the preset. This opens a dialog where you can save the current settings as a preset. • To return to the preset that was selected when you opened the Presets browser, click the Reset button. • You can also open the Presets browser by clicking the button to the right of the preset field an selecting “Load Preset” from the Preset Management pop-up menu.
Installing and managing effect plug-ins About earlier VST effect presets As stated previously, you can use any VST 2.x plug-ins in Cubase AI. For a description of how to add VST plug-ins, see “Installing and managing effect plug-ins” on page 96. Cubase AI supports two plug-in formats; the VST 2 format (with the file name extensions “.dll” on the PC and “.VST” on the Mac) and the VST 3 format (extension “.vst3” on both platforms).
Ö If an effect plug-in comes with its own installation application, you should use this. The Plug-in Information window On the Devices menu, you will find an item called “Plug-in Information”. Selecting this opens a dialog listing all the available VST compatible plug-ins in your system (including VST Instruments). As a general rule, always read the documentation or readme files before installing new plug-ins.
Column Description SDK Shows with which version of the VST protocol a plug-in is compatible. Latency This shows the delay (in samples) that will be introduced if the effect is used as an Insert. This is automatically compensated for by Cubase AI. I/O This column shows the number of inputs and outputs for each plug-in. Path The path and name of the folder in which the plug-in file is located.
9 VST Instruments and Instrument tracks
Introduction VST Instrument channels VST Instruments are software synthesizers (or other sound sources) that are contained within Cubase AI. They are played internally via MIDI. You can add effects or EQ to VST Instruments, just as with audio tracks. You can access a VST Instrument from within Cubase AI by creating a VST Instrument channel and associating this channel with a MIDI track.
4. If you now look in the Project window Track list, you will find that a dedicated folder for the chosen instrument has been added, within a “VST Instruments” folder (where all your VST Instrument channels will be listed). 9. Play the VST Instrument from your MIDI keyboard. You can use the mixer settings to adjust the sound, add EQ or effects, etc., just as with regular audio channels. Of course, you can also record or manually create MIDI parts that play back sounds from the VST Instrument.
Instrument tracks • To open the control panel for the VST Instrument, click the “Edit Instrument” button in the Inspector. An instrument track is a combination of a VST Instrument, a MIDI track, and a VST Instrument channel, in other words: it is a track coupled with a sound – it allows you to think in terms of sounds rather than in terms of track and instrument settings.
Using presets for VSTi configuration • Due to the limitation to one output channel, instrument tracks play only the first voice of a multi-timbral VST Instrument. If you want to use all voices, you have to load the instrument via the VST Instruments window and set up a MIDI channel to play it. About track presets and VST presets Track presets and VST presets allow you to quickly set up tracks or instruments with all the settings required for the sound you want.
For example, if you are looking for a bass sound, simply select the Bass category and you can browse and preview all bass sounds for all instruments. If you know you want a synth bass sound, select Synth Bass as sub-category and all synth bass sounds will be shown, etc. 4. The Presets browser is opened. It contains three sections (Browser, Search & Viewer and Filter). By default, only the Search & Viewer section is shown. Note that it may take a moment before all available sounds appear in the Viewer.
2. When you have found the right sound, click OK to close the dialog. • You can also open the Presets browser by clicking in the preset name field in the control panel of a VST Instrument or by clicking the button next to the Preset name in the control panel and selecting “Load Preset…” from the pop-up menu. An instrument track is created with all track and/or instrument settings that were saved in the preset.
Extracting sounds from Track Presets • After importing, you can convert the current program list to VST presets by selecting “Convert Program List to VST Presets” from the Preset Management pop-up. You can extract a sound from a Track preset (disregarding any track/channel settings) and save it as a VST preset. Proceed as follows: When the presets are converted, they will be available in the Presets browser. The presets will be stored in the VST3 Preset folder. 1.
• In the Preferences dialog (VST page) you will find a setting called Delay Compensation Threshold. Only plug-ins with a delay higher than this setting will be affected by the Constrain Delay Compensation function. • VST plug-ins (with higher delay than the threshold value) which are activated for VST Instrument channels, audio track channels that are record enabled, group channels and output channels will be turned off when you activate Constrain Delay Compensation.
10 Automation
Ö Note that the Read button is automatically enabled when you enable the Write button. This allows Cubase AI to read existing automation data at any time. Introduction In essence, automation means finding and recording, for each and every moment of your project, the right values for a particular mixer parameter. When you create your final mix, you will not have to worry about having to adjust this particular parameter control yourself – Cubase AI will do it for you.
There are two approaches you can use to create automation curves: • By using write automation in the mixer you do not have to manually select parameters from the Add Parameter list. • “Offline”, by manually drawing the curves on automation tracks in the Project window. You can work much like you would using a “real” physical mixer. Every action you perform is automatically recorded on automation tracks which you can later open for viewing and editing. See “Editing automation events” on page 115.
About automation undo However, when punching out, the reduction function will remove all break-points that are not needed. The automation curve will contain only the break-points necessary to reproduce your actions. Every automation write operation you perform creates its own event in the undo history, so you can undo or redo any of your automation moves at any time.
• By clicking along the left edge of the track in the Track list. (Also, when you position the mouse pointer over the lower left corner of the track, a corresponding arrow icon (“Show/Hide Automation”) appears.) 3. Select “More…”. The Add Parameter dialog appears. This dialog shows a list with all parameters that can be automated for the selected channel (sorted into different categories), including the parameters for any assigned insert effects.
Removing automation tracks • If you copy an event or part, the automation events will be duplicated as well. To remove all automation for the selected parameter, click the parameter name and select “Remove Parameter” from the pop-up menu. This will delete any automation events on the automation track, and the track will be closed.
Recording plug-in automation Where did the automation data I recorded end up? Every parameter for every assigned effect or VST Instrument can be automated in much the same manner as described above. When using global Write automation, you can write automation data on the automation tracks of all channels. In the previous write operations, you probably added automation events for many different channels and parameters.
Editing automation events 7. Simply redo the operation if you are not happy with the result. Drawing automation events If you draw over existing events, a new curve is created. By using write automation in the mixer, you generate automation events by moving parameter encoders and faders in the mixer. You can also add them manually by drawing automation curves on an automation track.
Selecting automation events Editing automation events • To select a single automation break-point, click on it with the Arrow tool. Automation events can be edited much like other events. You can use cut, copy and paste, and nudge events, etc. The break-point turns red, and you can drag it in any horizontal or vertical direction between two points. MIDI Part Data vs Track Automation • To select multiple break-points, you can either [Shift]click or drag a selection rectangle with the Arrow tool.
11 Audio processing and functions
Background Audio processing in Cubase AI can be called “non-destructive”, in the sense that you can always undo changes or revert to the original versions. This is possible because processing affects audio clips rather than the actual audio files, and because audio clips can refer to more than one audio file. This is how it works: Select “New Version” if you want the processing to affect the selected event only. Select “Continue” if you want the processing to affect all shared copies. 1.
Pre/Post-Crossfade • To apply a stored preset, select it from the pop-up menu. Some processing functions allow you to gradually mix the effect in or out. This is done with the Pre/Post-Crossfade parameters. If you activate Pre-Crossfade and specify a value of e.g. 1000ms, the processing will be applied gradually from the start of selection, reaching full effect 1000ms after the start.
Merge Clipboard Attack Time The time it takes for the gate to open fully after the audio level has exceeded the threshold level. Min. Opening Time This is the shortest time the gate will remain open. If you find that the gate opens and closes too often when processing material that varies rapidly in level, you should try raising this value. This function mixes the audio from the clipboard into the audio selected for processing, starting at the beginning of the selection.
Normalize axis”. DC offsets do not affect what you actually hear, but they affect zero crossing detection and certain processing, and it is recommended that you remove them. ! It is recommended that this function is applied to complete audio clips, since the DC offset (if any) is normally present throughout the entire recording. Reverse The Normalize function allows you to specify the desired maximum level of the audio. It then analyzes the selected audio and finds the current maximum level.
Option Description Resulting Length section Merge Merges both channels on each side for mono sound. Subtract Subtracts the left channel information from the right and vice versa. This is typically used as a “Karaoke effect”, for removing centered mono material from a stereo signal. These settings are used if you want to stretch the audio to fit within a specific time span or tempo. The values will change automatically if you adjust the Time Stretch Ratio (see below).
Freeze Edits The Freeze Edits function on the Audio menu allows you to make all processing and applied effects permanent for a clip: 1. Select the clip in the Pool or one of its events in the Project window. 2. Select “Freeze Edits…” from the Audio menu.
12 The Sample Editor
Background The Sample Editor allows you to view and manipulate audio by cutting and pasting, removing or drawing audio data or processing audio (see “Audio processing and functions” on page 117). This editing can be called “non-destructive”: The actual file (if created or imported from outside the project) will remain untouched. The Sample Editor also contains most of the AudioWarp related functions, i.e. the realtime time stretching functions in Cubase AI.
Window overview The Elements menu The toolbar The toolbar contains the following tools: The Sample Editor tools Audition, Loop & Volume controls Solo Editor Show Info Autoscroll Suspend Autoscroll when Editing Show Inspector Show Audio Event If you hold [Alt]/[Option] and right-click in the Sample Editor to bring up the context menu, you will find a submenu called “Elements”. By activating or deactivating options on this submenu, you specify what is shown in the editor window.
The thumbnail display • Selecting “Setup…” from the context menu allows you to rearrange sections on the toolbar, store toolbar presets, etc., see “Using the Setup options” on page 262. Event Start Event End The info line Snap Point If you activate the Show Info button on the toolbar, the info line will show information about the edited audio clip: The thumbnail display provides an overview of the whole clip.
• When the level scale is shown, you can select whether the level should be shown as a percentage or in dB. • The following options relevant to the Sample Editor are available on the Zoom submenu of the Edit menu or the context menu: This is done by right-clicking the level scale and selecting an option from the context menu. This also allows you to hide the level scale.
Using key commands • You can adjust the response of the Scrub tool with the Scrub Response (Speed) setting in the Preferences (Transport–Scrub page). If you activate the “Playback Toggle triggers Local Preview” option in the Preferences (Transport page), you can start/ stop auditioning by pressing [Space]. This is the same as clicking the Audition icon on the toolbar. You will also find a separate Scrub Volume setting on this page.
• It is also possible to define a snap point for a clip (for which there is no event yet). To open a clip in the Sample Editor, double-click it in the Pool. After having set the snap point using the procedure described above, you can insert the clip into the project from the Pool or the Sample Editor, taking the snap point position into account. ! Events and clips can have different snap points. If you open a clip from the Pool you can edit the clip snap point.
• Selecting Paste copies the data on the clipboard into the clip. Creating a new clip or audio file from the selection You can extract a selection from an event and either create a new clip or a new audio file, in the following way: If there is a selection in the editor, this will be replaced by the pasted data. If there is no selection, the pasted data will be inserted starting at the selection line. The section to the right of the line will be moved to make room for the pasted material. 1.
Options and settings Snap to Zero Crossing Show Audio Event ! Snap to Zero Crossing activated. This is only available if you opened the Sample Editor by double-clicking an audio event in the Project window or the Audio Part Editor and not, if you opened the audio event from within the Pool. This setting is linked to the Snap to Zero Crossing setting in the Project window, see the section “Snap to Zero Crossing” on page 41.
When you have correctly set a tempo or length for an audio clip, this information is saved with the project. This allows you to import files into the project with Musical mode already activated. The tempo (if set) is also saved when exporting files. ! Cubase AI supports ACID® loops. These loops are standard audio files but with embedded tempo/length information. When ACID® files are imported into Cubase AI, Musical mode is automatically activated and the loops will adapt to the tempo set in the project.
Working with hitpoints and slices Which audio files can be used? Here are some guidelines as to what type of audio files are suited for slicing using hitpoints: Hitpoint detection is a special feature of the Sample Editor. It detects attack transients in an audio file and then adds a type of marker, i.e. a “hitpoint”, at each transient.
4. Verify the Tempo and Bars values in the toolbar. • If the project tempo is higher than the loop’s original tempo, you may want to activate auto crossfades for the track. 5. On the Hitpoints tab, click on the Slice & Close button or select “Create Audio Slices from Hitpoints” from the Hitpoints submenu on the Audio menu to create audio slices from the hitpoints. You can use the Close Gaps functions in this case as well, see “Close Gaps” on page 136. The following happens: • The Sample Editor closes.
4. Audition the slices by pointing and clicking in any slice area. • To activate Q-points, open the Preferences (Editing– Audio page) and activate the option “Hitpoints have Q-Points”. The pointer changes to a speaker icon and the corresponding slice will be played back from the beginning to the end. Next time you use the Calculate Hitpoints function, the hitpoints will have Q-points.
3. Select “Close Gaps” from the Advanced submenu on the Audio menu. Time stretch is applied to each slice to close the gaps. Depending on the length of the part and the algorithm set in the Preferences (Editing–Audio page), this can take a little while. 4. The waveform is redrawn and the gaps are closed! • Note that this feature creates new clips in the Pool, one for each slice. • Close Gaps can also be used when the project tempo is higher than the original loop tempo.
13 The Audio Part Editor
Background Window overview The Audio Part Editor allows you to view and edit the events inside audio parts. Essentially, this is the same type of editing that you do in the Project window, which means that this chapter contains a lot of references to the chapter “The Project window” on page 14. Audio parts are created in the Project window in one of the following ways: • By selecting one or several audio events on the same track, and selecting “Events to Part” from the Audio menu.
About lanes • To move an event to another lane without accidentally moving it horizontally, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and drag it up or down. If you make the editor window larger, this will reveal additional space below the edited events. This is because an audio part is divided vertically in lanes. This is the default modifier key for this – you can adjust this in the Preferences if you like.
Operations ! By using regular playback You can of course use the regular playback controls while in the Audio Part Editor. Furthermore, if you activate the Solo Editor button on the toolbar, only the events in the edited part will be played back. Zooming, selecting and editing in the Audio Part Editor are done just as in the Project window (see “Operations” on page 21). • Note that if a part is a shared copy (i.e.
• The button “Show Part Borders” can be used if you want to see clearly defined borders for the active part. Assembling a take 1. Double-click the part to open the Audio Part Editor. When this is activated, all parts except the active one are grayed out, making the borders easily discernible. There are also two “markers” in the ruler with the name of the active part, marking its beginning and end. These can be moved freely to change the part borders.
14 The Pool
Background The content of the Pool is divided into three main folders: • The Audio folder Every time you record on an audio track, a file is created on your hard disk. A reference to this file – a clip – is also added to the Pool. Two general rules apply to the Pool: This contains all audio clips currently in the project. • The Video folder This contains all video clips currently in the project. • All audio and video clips that belong to a project are listed in the Pool.
How clips are displayed in the Pool Column Description • Audio clips are represented by a waveform icon followed by the clip name. Path This column shows the path to the location of a clip on the hard disk. Reel Name Audio files may include this attribute, which is then shown in this column. The Reel Name describes the “physical” reel or tape from which the media was originally captured. • Video clips are represented by a camera icon followed by the clip name.
Customizing the view Operations • You can specify which of the columns are shown or hidden by opening the View/Attributes pop-up menu on the toolbar and selecting/deselecting items. Ö Most of the Pool-related main menu functions are also available on the Pool context menu (opened by right-clicking in the Pool window). Renaming clips in the Pool To rename a clip in the Pool, select it and click on the existing name, type in a new name and press [Return].
• Note that the clip will be positioned so that its snap point is aligned with the selected insert position. You can also open the Sample Editor for a clip by double-clicking it, and perform the insert operation from there. This way you can set the snap point before inserting a clip. 3. The clip is inserted on the selected track or on a new audio track. If you cancel, neither the clip nor the associated events are deleted. 2. In the window that appears, select “Remove from Pool”.
Locating events and clips 3. Use the Location pop-up menu to specify where to search. Locating events via clips in the Pool The pop-up menu will list all your local drives and removable media. If you want to find out which events in the project refer to a particular clip in the Pool, proceed as follows: • If you want to limit the search to certain folders, choose “Select Search Path” and select the desired folder in the dialog that appears. 1. Select one or more clips in the Pool.
2. Move the mouse pointer over the “Name” text to the right of the name field and click on the arrow that appears. • You can save presets of your search filter settings. To do this, click Save Preset on the Presets submenu and enter a name for the preset. Move the mouse pointer over the “Name” text to the right of the name field and click… Existing presets can be found at the bottom of the list. To remove a preset, click on the preset to activate it, then select Remove Preset.
Locate missing files Proceed as follows: 1. Select “Find Missing Files…” from the Media or context menu. 1. Open the Pool and locate the clip(s) for which files are missing. The Resolve Missing Files dialog opens. 2. Check the Status column – if it says “Reconstructible”, the file can be reconstructed by Cubase AI. 3. Select the reconstructible clips and select “Reconstruct” from the Media menu. The editing is performed and the edit files are recreated.
If you have activated the Audition Loop button before you audition, the following will happen: • • • • AIFF and AIFC (Compressed AIFF) REX or REX 2 (see “Importing ReCycle files” on page 258) SD2 (Sound Designer II) MPEG Layer 3 (mp3 files – see “Importing compressed audio files” on page 258) • Windows Media Audio (Windows – see “Importing compressed audio files” on page 258) • When you click the Audition button to audition a clip, the clip is repeated indefinitely until you stop playback by clicking the
It contains the following options: 4. Select “Set Pool Record Folder” on the Media or context menu, or click in the Status column of the new folder. • Copy File to Working Directory The new folder now becomes the Pool Record folder, and any audio recorded in the project will be saved in this folder. Activate this if you want a copy of the file to be made in the Audio folder of the project, and have the clip refer to this copy.
Minimize File Once you have performed a Prepare Archive, you can copy the project file, the Audio folder and any other audio material you saved in the project folder to a different location, e.g. a backup disk. The option “Minimize File” on the Media or context menu allows you shrink the audio files according to the size of the audio clips referenced in a project. The files produced using this option only contain the audio file portions actually used in the project.
Options When you convert a file, you can use the Options pop-up to set one of the following options regarding what to do with the new file: Option Description New Files Creates a copy of the file in the audio folder and converts this new file according to the chosen attributes. The new file is added to the Pool, but all clip references will still point to the original, unconverted file. Replace Files Converts the original file without changing clip references.
15 Working with Track Presets
Introduction • Staff settings • Color settings • Drum map settings Track presets are templates from audio, MIDI or instrument tracks that can be applied to newly created or existing tracks of the same type. They contain sound and channel settings, thus allowing you to quickly browse, preview, select and change sounds, or reuse channel settings across projects. MIDI track presets MIDI tracks should be used for multi-timbral VST Instruments.
VST effect plug-ins are available in VST3 and VST2 format. Presets for these effects are also saved as VST presets. These that can be part of audio track presets (see “Audio track presets” on page 156). Ö In this manual, “VST presets” stands for VST3 Instrument presets, unless stated otherwise. Applying track presets When you apply a track preset, all saved settings are applied, see “Types of track presets” on page 156. Track presets can be applied to tracks of their own type only, i.e.
Ö The VST instrument of an instrument track does not show up in the VST Instrument window but only in the Plug-In Information window, see the section “The Plug-in Information window” on page 97. Applying Inserts and EQ settings from track presets Instead of handling complete track presets, it is also possible to apply Insert or Equalizer settings from track presets: Creating a track preset 1.
Track presets are saved within the application folder in the “Track Presets” folder (in default subfolders named according to their track type: audio, MIDI, instrument and multi). ! • If you want to see the contents of presets subfolders within the VST Sound node, click the “Show Location” option to open the Browser section. 3. Select a track or VST preset. You cannot change the default folders, but you can add further subfolders, e.g. “drums” and “choir”. 4. Click OK to create the track.
16 Remote controlling Cubase AI
Introduction Selecting a remote device 1. Pull down the Devices menu and select Device Setup. It is possible to control Cubase AI via MIDI. A large number of MIDI control devices is supported. This chapter describes how to set up Cubase AI for remote control. The supported devices are described in the separate PDF document “Remote Control Devices”. A dialog window opens with a list of device categories and devices shown in the left part of the window. 2.
Writing automation using remote controls • In the Project window (Track list) and the mixer (bottom of channel strips) you will now see white stripes indicating which channels are currently linked to the remote control device. Automating the mixer using a remote control device is done in the same way as when you operate on-screen controls in Write mode.
Assigning remote key commands The Generic Remote device For some of the supported remote devices, you can assign any Cubase AI function (to which a key command can be assigned) to generic buttons, wheels or other controls. As of this writing, these devices are: If you have a generic MIDI controller, you can use this for remote control of Cubase AI by setting up the Generic Remote device: • • • • • 1. Open the Device Setup dialog on the Devices menu.
• If you are uncertain of which MIDI message a certain controller sends, you can use the Learn function. 5. Use the pop-up menu to the right to select a bank. Banks are combinations of a certain number of channels, and are used because most MIDI devices can control only a limited number of channels at a time (often 8 or 16). For example, if your MIDI control device has 16 volume faders, and you are using 32 mixer channels in Cubase AI, you would need two banks of 16 channels each.
Apple Remote (Macintosh only) 9. When you are finished, close the Device Setup window. Now, you can control the specified Cubase AI parameters from the MIDI remote device. To select another bank, use the pop-up menu in the Remote Status window (or use a control on the MIDI remote device, if you have assigned one for this). Many Apple computers come with an Apple Remote Control, a small hand-held device akin to TV remote controls. It allows you to remotely control certain features in Cubase AI.
17 MIDI realtime parameters
Introduction • You can fold or unfold the sections individually by clicking on the section name. For each MIDI track, you can set up a number of track parameters, or modifiers. These affect how the MIDI data is played back, “transforming” MIDI events in realtime before they are sent to the MIDI outputs. Clicking the name for a hidden section brings it to view and hides the other sections. [Ctrl]/[Command]-clicking the tab allows you to hide or show a section without affecting other sections.
Parameter Description Delay This adjusts the playback timing of the MIDI track. Positive values delay the playback while negative values cause the track to play earlier. The values are set in milliseconds. In/Out/Chn pop-ups This is where you select MIDI input, MIDI output and MIDI channel for the track. Edit Instrument button If the MIDI track is routed to a VST instrument, clicking this button opens the control panel for the VST instrument.
An example: 2. Set the desired range of random deviation by entering values in the two number fields. Let’s say you have three notes with the velocity values 60, 90 and 120, and wish to “even out” the velocity differences somewhat. If you set the Velocity Compression value to 1/ 2, the notes will play back with the velocities 30, 45 and 60. By adding 60 in the Velocity Shift field, the notes will play back with the velocities 90, 105 and 120, meaning you have compressed the velocity range.
Mode Description Note Limit This function allows you to specify a pitch range, and forces all notes to fit within this range. Notes outside the specified range are transposed up or down in octave steps until they fit within the range. Note: If the range is too “narrow”, so that some notes cannot be fit within the range by octave-transposing, these notes will get a pitch in the middle of the range.
18 MIDI processing and quantizing
Introduction • In the Project window, the MIDI functions apply to all selected parts, affecting all events (of the relevant types) in them. This chapter describes the various MIDI processing functions available on the MIDI menu. They offer various ways to edit MIDI notes and other events, either in the Project window or from within a MIDI editor. • In the MIDI editors, the MIDI functions apply to all selected events. If no events are selected, all events in the edited part(s) will be affected.
Setting up quantize on the toolbar Swing At its most basic, setting up quantizing consists of selecting a note value from the Quantize pop-up menu on the toolbar (in the Project window or a MIDI editor). The Swing slider is only available when a straight note value is selected for the grid and Tuplet is off (see below). It lets you offset every second position in the grid, creating a swing or shuffle feel. When you adjust the Swing slider, the result is shown in the grid display.
Presets The Iterative Strength setting The controls in the lower left corner of the dialog allow you to store the current settings as a preset, which will then be available on the Quantize menus on the toolbars. The usual preset procedures apply: Here you specify how much the notes should be moved towards the grid when using the Iterative Quantize function, see below. • To store the settings as a preset, click the Store button.
Iterative Quantize Another way to apply “loose” quantization is to use the Iterative Quantize function on the MIDI menu. It works like this: Instead of moving a note to the closest quantize grid position, Iterative Quantize moves it only part of the way. You specify how much the notes should be moved towards the grid with the “Iterative Strength” setting in the Quantize Setup dialog. 3. Here, the quantize value has been set to straight 16th notes with Swing at 100 %.
Transpose OK and Cancel The Transpose item on the MIDI menu opens a dialog with settings for transposing the selected notes. Clicking OK performs the transposition. Clicking Cancel closes the dialog without transposing. Permanent settings with Freeze MIDI Modifiers The MIDI Modifier settings in the Inspector do not change the MIDI events themselves, but work like a “filter”, affecting the music on playback. Therefore, you may want to make them permanent, i.e.
Dissolve Part Now, for each MIDI channel used in the selected parts, a new MIDI track is created and set to the corresponding MIDI channel. Each event is then copied into the part on the track with the corresponding MIDI channel. Finally, the original parts are muted.
Other MIDI functions Delete Controllers This function removes all MIDI controllers from the selected MIDI parts. The following items can be found on the Functions submenu of the MIDI menu: Delete Continuous Controllers Legato This function removes all “continuous” MIDI controller events from the selected MIDI parts. Therefore, “on/off” events such as sustain pedal events are not removed. Extends each selected note so that it reaches the next note.
Minimum Velocity Velocity When the Minimum Velocity checkbox is activated, the velocity of notes is taken into account, allowing you to remove weak notes. You specify the minimum velocity (for notes to be kept) in the value display. This function opens a dialog that allows you to manipulate the velocity of notes in various ways. Remove when under This setting is only available when both Minimum Length and Minimum Velocity is activated.
Fixed Velocity Reverse This function sets the velocity of all selected notes to the Insert Velocity value on the toolbar in the MIDI editors. This function inverts the order of the selected events (or of all events in the selected parts), causing the MIDI music to play backwards. Note that the effect is different from reversing an audio recording. With MIDI, the individual notes will still play as usual in the MIDI instrument – it is only the order of playback that is changed.
19 The MIDI editors
Introduction • Double-click a part to open it in the default editor. Which editor opens depends on the Default Edit Action setting in the Preferences (Event Display–MIDI page). There are several ways to edit MIDI in Cubase AI. You can use the tools and functions in the Project window for largescale editing, or the functions on the MIDI menu to process MIDI parts in various ways (see “What is affected by the MIDI functions?” on page 172).
• The button “Edit Active Part Only” lets you restrict editing operations to the active part only. For example, if you select “All” from the Select submenu on the Edit menu with this option activated, only events in the active part will be selected. Similarly, if you select notes by dragging with the Arrow tool (making a selection rectangle), only the notes in the active part will be selected. “Edit Active Part Only” is activated on the toolbar.
The Key Editor – Overview Toolbar Info line Ruler Note display Controller display The toolbar The info line As in other windows, the toolbar contains tools and various settings. You can specify which toolbar items should be shown and store/recall different toolbar configurations – see “Using the Setup options” on page 262. Solo Editor button Key Editor tools Autoscroll The info line shows information about selected MIDI notes.
• If “Time Linear” is selected, the ruler, note display and controller display will be linear in relation to time. The chord recognition function Cubase AI features a handy chord recognition function that helps you identify chords in the Key Editor note display. To find out which chord is formed by simultaneously played notes, place the project cursor over the notes.
Key Editor operations Velocity values are shown as vertical bars in the controller display, with higher bars corresponding to higher velocity values. Zooming Zooming in the Key Editor is done according to the standard zoom procedures, using the zoom sliders, the Zoom tool or the Zoom submenu on the Edit menu. • When you drag a rectangle with the Zoom tool, the result depends on the option “Zoom Tool Standard Mode: Horizontal Zooming Only” in the Preferences (Editing–Tools page).
• If you press [Ctrl]/[Command] while dragging, you will get a vertical trim line, allowing you to set the same start or end time for all edited notes. Acoustic Feedback You can change the Trim tool key commands in the Preferences (Editing–Tool Modifiers page). If the speaker icon on the toolbar is activated, individual notes will automatically be played back (auditioned) when you move or transpose them, or when you create new notes by drawing. This makes it easier to hear what you’re doing.
Coloring notes and events • If you click once, the created note will have the length set on the Length Quantize pop-up menu on the toolbar. By using the Colors pop-up menu on the toolbar, you can select a color scheme for the events in the editor. The following options are available: You can create a longer note by clicking and dragging. The length of the created note will be a multiple of the Length Quantize value.
Setting velocity values Selecting notes When you draw notes in the Key Editor, the notes will get the velocity value set in the insert velocity field on the toolbar. Selecting notes is done using any of the following methods: • Use the Arrow tool. The standard selection techniques apply, like selecting by clicking on the note or using a selection rectangle. Note that when you press [Shift] and click on notes or draw a selection rectangle, these notes will be added to the overall selection.
Toggle selections • Use the Move buttons in the Nudge palette on the toolbar. If you want to toggle the selected elements within a selection rectangle, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and enclose the same elements within a new selection rectangle. Once you release the mouse button, the previous selection is deselected and vice versa. This moves the selected note(s) by the amount set on the Quantize popup menu.
Using cut and paste Splitting notes You can use the Cut, Copy and Paste options on the Edit menu to move or copy material within a part or between different parts. When you paste copied notes, you can either use the regular Paste function or the function “Paste Time” from the Range submenu of the Edit menu. There are three ways to split notes: • “Paste” inserts the copied notes at the project cursor position without affecting existing notes.
Deleting notes In Cubase AI, the name of the drum sound is displayed in the following locations: To delete notes, either click on them with the Erase tool or select them and press [Backspace]. In the info line, in the Pitch field. In the Mouse Note Value field. Editing on the info line The info line shows the values and properties of the selected event(s). If a single event is selected, its values are displayed on the info line.
Ö If Move Insert Mode is activated, all notes to the right of the step input position will be moved to “make room” for the inserted note or chord. • If you want another try, select the note again (e.g. by pressing the left arrow key on the computer keyboard) and again play a note on your MIDI instrument. Step input Step input, or step recording, is when you enter notes one at a time (or one chord at a time) without worrying about the exact timing. This is useful e.g.
• If you remove all lanes, the controller display will be completely hidden. • Each MIDI track has its own controller lane setup (number of lanes and selected event types). To bring it back again, select “Create New Controller Lane” from the context menu. When you create new tracks, they get the controller lane setup used last.
• You can use the Pencil tool to change the velocity of a single note: click on its velocity bar and drag the bar up or down. • The remaining three Line tool modes (Sine, Triangle and Square) align the velocity values to continuous curve shapes (see below). While you drag, the current velocity value is shown in the display to the left. Ö If there is more than one note at the same position (e.g. a chord), their velocity bars will overlap in the controller lane.
Ö With the Pencil tool and the Line tool in Paint mode, the quantize value determines the “density” of created controller curves (if Snap is activated, see “Snap” on page 187). • In Parabola mode, you can use modifier keys to determine the shape of the parabola curve. For very smooth curves, you should use a small quantize value or turn off Snap. However, this will create a very large number of MIDI events, which can cause MIDI playback to “stutter” in some situations.
[Option] if you want to change the existing events rather than creating new ones. Again, the snap value for the positioning will be a quarter of the quantize value. Deleting events in the controller display You delete events by clicking on them with the Erase tool or by selecting them and pressing [Backspace]. Please note: Moving and copying events • Deleting a controller event makes the last event before this valid up until the next event. It does not “zero” any controller changes.
Adding and editing Poly Pressure events Poly Pressure events are special, in that they “belong to” a specific note number (key). That is, each Poly Pressure event has two editable values: the note number and the amount of pressure. Therefore, when Poly Pressure is selected on the event type pop-up menu, there are two value fields to the left of the controller display, one for the note number and one for the amount. To add a new Poly Pressure event, proceed as follows: 1.
The Drum Editor – Overview Toolbar Ruler Drum sound list Note display Drum Maps Controller display The toolbar and info line The drum sound list These are much the same as the toolbar and info line in the Key Editor (see “The Key Editor – Overview” on page 184), with the following differences: • The Drum Editor has no Pencil tool – instead there is a Drumstick tool (for entering and removing notes) and a Line tool with various line and curve modes (for drawing several notes in one go or editing contro
Drum Editor operations The note display The basic handling (zooming, playback, auditioning, etc.) is the same as in the Key Editor (see “Key Editor operations” on page 186). The following sections describe the procedures and features specific to the Drum Editor. Creating and editing notes The note display of the Drum Editor displays notes as diamond symbols.
Ö You can also adjust the position of notes by quantizing (see “The Quantizing functions” on page 172). Setting velocity values The notes you enter will get the insert velocity value set in the insert velocity field on the toolbar – to speed up things you may want to assign key commands to the insert velocity options, see “Setting velocity values” on page 189. Again, which quantize value is used depends on whether Global Quantize is used.
Working with drum maps Now, take a look at the drum sound list (you may have to drag the divider between the list and the note display to the right to see all columns). The columns show the settings of the drum map for each sound. Background A drum kit in a MIDI instrument is most often a set of different drum sounds with each sound placed on a separate key (i.e. the different sounds are assigned to different MIDI note numbers). One key plays a bass drum sound, another a snare and so on.
About Pitch, I-note and O-note Usage This can be a somewhat confusing area, but once you have grasped how it all works it is not very complicated. Going through the following “theory” will help you make the most out of the drum map concept – especially if you want to create your own drum maps. Again, the purposes are different for I-notes and O-notes: Ö Changing the I-note settings allows you to choose which keys will play which drum sounds, when playing or recording from a MIDI instrument.
Ö The settings for the drum sounds are exactly the same as in the Drum Editor (see “Drum map settings” on page 202). It can also be useful to select different channels and/or outputs for different sounds. This allows you to construct drum kits with sounds from several different MIDI devices, etc. As in the Drum Editor, you can click the leftmost column to audition a drum sound.
O-Note Conversion This function on the MIDI menu goes through the selected MIDI part(s) and sets the actual pitch of each note according to its O-note setting. This is useful if you want to convert a track to a “regular” MIDI track (with no drum map) and still have the notes play back the correct drum sound.
The List Editor – Overview Toolbar Ruler Value display Event list Event display The toolbar The event display The toolbar contains several items that are the same as in the Key Editor (edit solo, snap, quantize settings, etc.). These are described earlier in this chapter. The following toolbar items are unique to the List Editor: This shows the events graphically. The vertical position of an event in the display corresponds to its entry in the list (i.e.
List Editor operations • Notes will get the insert velocity value set in the insert velocity field on the toolbar, see “Setting velocity values” on page 189. Customizing the view You can click and drag the divider between the list and the event display to make one area wider and the other narrower. Furthermore, the list can be customized in the following ways: Editing in the list The list allows you to perform detailed numerical editing of the events properties.
Filtering • You can edit several events at once. If several events are selected and you edit a value for one event, the other selected events’ values will be changed as well. Normally, any initial value differences between the events will be maintained – i.e. the values will change by the same amount. If you press [Ctrl]/ [Command] when you edit, however, all events will get the same value.
Masking Editing in the value display The value display to the right of the event display is a tool for quick viewing and editing of multiple values, e.g. velocities or controller amounts. The values are shown as horizontal bars, with the bar length corresponding to the value. The Mask function is similar to the filter view but allows you to hide events based on other criteria as well. Proceed as follows: 1. Select an event (or several events) of the type you want to view. 2.
• The value display can be hidden from view by clicking the “Show List Value View” button on the toolbar, so that it is not lit. 2. Make sure that recording of SysEx data is not filtered, by deactivating the SysEx checkbox in the Record section. The SysEx checkbox in the Thru section can be left as it is (by default activated). Working with System Exclusive messages SysEx (System Exclusive) messages are model-specific messages for setting various parameters of a MIDI device.
3. Make sure the device is set up to receive SysEx messages (often, receiving SysEx is turned off by default). 1. Open the Preferences dialog from the File menu, select the MIDI–MIDI Filter page and make sure that SysEx is recorded, i.e. the SysEx checkbox in the Record section is deactivated. 4. If necessary, put the device in “Standby to Receive System Exclusive” mode. 5. Play back the data. 2. Make sure the instrument is actually set to transmit changes of front panel controls as SysEx messages.
Selecting and viewing values To select a value, either click on it or use the cursor keys. The selected byte is displayed in various formats: • In the main display, values are shown in hexadecimal format. • To the right of this, values are shown in ASCII format. • At the bottom of the dialog, the selected value is shown in binary and decimal formats. Editing a value The selected value can be edited directly in the main display or in the decimal and binary displays.
The Score Editor – Overview Toolbar Info line Extended Toolbar The Score Editor shows the MIDI notes as a musical score. The window contains the following sections and items: Note value buttons Click one of these to select a note value for input. The “T” and “.” options are for triplet and dotted note values. You can also press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click one of the note value buttons – this will resize all selected notes to the note value you choose.
• If you are editing parts on several tracks, they are put on a grand staff (multiple staves, tied together by bar lines). The active staff • The number of bars across the screen depends on the size of the window and the number of notes in each bar. The maximum number of bars across the page is four. • The end of the last part is indicated by a double bar line. • Unlike the other MIDI editors, the Score Editor does not have a ruler. To change the active staff, click on the staff you want to activate.
Here is a description of the functions: Staff Mode Parameter Description Notes Determines the smallest note value to be displayed and the “smallest position” to be recognized and properly displayed. Set this to the smallest significant note position used in your music. For example, if you have notes on odd sixteenth note positions, you should set this value to 16. The “T” values are for triplet note values. This setting is partly overridden by Auto Quantize (see below).
Display Transpose Some instruments, for example a lot of brass instruments, are scored transposed. For this purpose, the Staff Settings dialog allows you to specify a separate Display Transpose setting for each staff (track). This transposes the notes in the score (i.e. how they are displayed) without affecting how the notes play back. This allows you to record and play back a multi staff arrangement, and still score each instrument according to its own transposition.
Positioning on screen is controlled by the current Quantize value. If, for example, you set this to 1/8 you can only insert and move notes to eighth note positions, at quarter notes, at half bars or at bar positions. It is a good strategy to set the Quantize value to the smallest note value in the piece. This does not stop you from inputting notes at “coarser” positions. However, if you set the Quantize value to too small a note value, it is easier to make mistakes. 6.
• If you want to use other keys for selecting notes, you can customize the settings in the Key Commands dialog (in the Navigate category). • You can also move selected notes by using key commands, as assigned in the Nudge category in the Key Commands dialog. Deselecting everything When moving notes to the left or right using key commands, the notes will be moved in steps according to the current Quantize value. The keys assigned for up/down nudging will transpose notes in semitone steps.
By using the note value icons on the extended toolbar Working with text Using the extended toolbar is another quick way to set a number of notes to the same length: You can use the Text tool to add comments, articulation or instrumentation advice and other text strings anywhere in the score: 1. Select the notes you want to change. Adding a text string 2. Hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on one of the note icons on the extended toolbar. 1. Select the Text tool from the toolbar or context menu.
3. When you have made your settings, click Apply. If you like, you can leave the Font Settings dialog open, select another text block and adjust the settings for that – just remember to click Apply before you select a new text block. • If you make settings in the Font Settings dialog with no text selected, the settings will be used as default for all new text.
20 Editing tempo and signature
Ö To make an already recorded audio track follow the tempo changes, you can use the Sample Editor, see the chapter “The Sample Editor” on page 124. Background Whenever you create a new project, Cubase AI will automatically set the tempo and time signature for this project. The tempo and signature settings can be displayed in the Tempo Track Editor. How well this works depends on the character of the audio recordings, since the hitpoint detection feature works best with fairly rhythmical material.
Editing tempo and signature The toolbar The toolbar contains various tools and settings: Editing the tempo curve Activate Tempo Track Tools ! Snap on/off Show Info Snap pop-up Autoscroll This section assumes that you are working in tempo track mode, i.e. the Tempo button must be activated on the Transport panel. Adding tempo curve points Curve type for new tempo events 1.
Selecting tempo curve points Adjusting the curve type Curve points can be selected as follows: You can change the curve type of a tempo curve segment at any time, using the following method: • Using the Arrow tool. 1. With the Arrow tool, select all curve points within the segment you want to edit. The standard selection techniques apply. • Using the Select submenu on the Edit menu. The options are: Option Description All Selects all curve points on the tempo track.
Adding and editing time signature events • To add a time signature event, click in the time signature area with the Pencil tool. This adds a default 4/4 time signature event at the closest bar position. • To edit the value of a time signature event, select it and adjust the value on the info line, or double-click the event and enter a new value. Note that there are two controls for the signature display; the left one adjusts the numerator and the right one adjusts the denominator.
21 Export Audio Mixdown
Introduction The available settings and options differ depending on the selected file format (see “The available file formats” on page 228). The Export Audio Mixdown function in Cubase AI allows you to mix down audio from the program to a file on your hard disk. 4. In the Channel Selection section to the left, select the channel you want to mix down. The list contains all output channels available in the project (see “About the Channel Selection section” on page 228).
Ö Most of the settings described below for AIFF files are available for all file types. Where this is not the case, you will find additional information in the corresponding section. 10. If you activate Update Display, the meters will be updated during the export process. This allows you to check for clipping, for example. 11. Click Export. MP3 Export A dialog with a progress bar is displayed while the audio file is created.
Option Description Option Description Edit button By clicking this button the “Broadcast Wave Chunk” dialog opens where you can enter additional information that will be embedded in the exported files. Note that in the Preferences (Record–Audio–Broadcast Wave page) you can enter default text strings for author, description and reference that will automatically be displayed in the “Broadcast Wave Chunk” dialog.
MPEG 1 Layer 3 files Windows Media Audio files (Windows only) MPEG 1 Layer 3 files have the extension “.mp3”. By use of advanced audio compression algorithms, mp3 files can be made very small, yet maintaining good audio quality. This is a format developed by Microsoft Inc. Due to the advanced audio codecs and lossless compression used, WMA files can be decreased in size with no loss of audio quality. The files have the extension “.wma”.
• Mode ever, that it is usually not recommended to change the Average value, since this affects the overall volume level of the audio and therefore can have a negative effect on the audio quality. The WMA encoder can use either a constant bit rate or a variable bit rate, or it can use lossless encoding for encoding to stereo. The options on this menu are as follows: Mode Description Constant Bitrate This will encode to a file with a constant bit rate (set in the Bit Rate/Channels menu, see below).
22 Synchronization
Background Synchronization signals What is synchronization? Basically there are three types of synchronization signals for audio: timecode, MIDI clock and word clock. Synchronization is said to exist when you make two pieces of equipment agree on time or tempo and position info.
MIDI Clock Synchronizing Cubase AI’s playback MIDI Clock is a tempo-based type of synchronization signals, i.e. it is related to the number of “beats per minute”. MIDI Clock signals are suitable for synchronizing two devices that agree on tempo, such as Cubase AI and a drum machine. Let’s assume now that we use external timecode synchronization with Cubase AI. For example, we might synchronize playback to a tape recorder.
If you aim to perform synchronization to external signals, we strongly recommend that you obtain proper synchronization equipment. This encompasses: In the Project Setup dialog are two settings for frame rates: • An audio card that can be slaved to external word clock. • A synchronizer that can read timecode (and possibly house clock) and generate the required sync signals from that, such as the Steinberg TimeLock Pro.
• Set up the synchronizer and make sure the frame rate settings are in accordance with the master clock. • Activate “MIDI Clock Follows Project Position” if you want the other device to follow when you loop, jump and locate during playback. When this is activated, the sent MIDI Clock signals will follow the sequencer time and tempo position at all times. ! Please note that some external devices may not react smoothly to these repositioning messages.
Setting Up MIDI Timecode 1. Connect the desired MIDI Outputs from Cubase AI to the device(s) that you plan to synchronize. In this mode, Cubase AI is the slave and the timecode is sent by the MIDI Timecode Source specified in the corresponding section. 2. Open the Project Synchronization Setup dialog from the Transport menu. Setting up Cubase AI for external sync to timecode 1. In the Project Synchronization Setup dialog, set Timecode Source to MIDI Timecode. Settings for sync to internal timecode 2.
8. Start the tape (or video, or other master device) that contains the timecode. Cubase AI starts playing when it receives timecode with a position “higher” than or equal to the project Start frame. A typical situation is when transferring material from a digital multi-track tape recorder to Cubase AI (for editing) and then back again.
4. Open the Project Setup dialog from the Project menu and use the Start value to set which frame on the external device (e.g. a video tape) should correspond to the beginning of the project. Setting up the audio card for external synchronization 1. Open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu and, on the VST Audio System page, select the name of your audio interface. 2. Click the Control Panel button to open the card’s proprietary setup dialog.
Sync Options chine). VST System Link can send its networking signal over any type of digital audio cable, including S/PDIF, ADAT, TDIF, or AES, as long as each computer in the system is equipped with a suitable ASIO compatible audio interface.
Using a KVM switchbox The Clock Mode or Sync Mode is set up in the ASIO control panel of the audio hardware. In Cubase AI, you proceed as follows: If you want to set up a multi-computer network, or even a small network in a limited space, it is a good idea to invest in a KVM (Keyboard, Video, Mouse) switchbox. With one of these you can use the same keyboard, monitor, and mouse to control each computer in the system, and switch between computers very rapidly.
mode, and make sure that each of them is listening for the signal coming from the synchronizer, usually passed through your ADAT cables or Word Clock connectors in a daisy chain fashion. Streaming digital audio between applications 1. Create input and output busses in both applications and route these to the digital inputs and outputs. The number and configuration of the busses depends on your audio hardware and on your needs.
• If your audio hardware has a mixer application allowing you to adjust the levels of digital inputs and outputs, make sure that this mixer is disabled or that the levels for the VST System Link channels are set to ± 0dB. • Similarly, make sure no other forms of DSP (pan, effects, etc.) are applied to the VST System Link signal.
Putting the network online Using MIDI After each computer’s name you will see whether it is online or not. When a computer is online, it will receive transport and timecode signals, and its sequencer application can be started and stopped by remote control. If it is off-line, it can only be started from its own keyboard – it is effectively an independent machine, although it is still on the network.
you can no longer use this ASIO channel for audio transfer (do not connect it to a speaker!), thus leaving you only 7 channels of audio in our ADAT cable example. Depending on how you work this might be a reasonable compromise. 8. Activate monitoring for the four tracks. If you now start playback, the audio from computer 2 will be sent “live” to the new tracks on computer 1, allowing you to hear them together with any tracks you play back on computer 1.
Once you have done this, the transmission of all the transport, sync, and MIDI information to the whole network is handled pretty much automatically. However, where you may run into confusion in a large network is in the transmission of audio signals back to a central mix computer. 6. Assign the MIDI input of the track to be VST System Link port 1. Now, the MIDI track on computer 1 is routed to the MIDI track on computer 2, which in turn is routed to the VST Instrument. 7.
8. Open the Send Routing pop-up menu for one of the sends, and select the VST System Link bus assigned to the reverb in step 3. 9. Use the Send slider to adjust the amount of effect as usual. The signal will be sent to the track on computer 2 and processed through its insert effect, without using any processor power on computer 1. You can repeat the steps above to add more effects to the “virtual effect rack”.
23 Video
Background ! Trying to import or play back a file not supported by the selected video playback engine leads to unpredictable results – if no information on the number of frames, the length and the pixel resolution is available in the Import Video dialog or the Pool, you cannot import/play this file properly with this particular video playback engine. ! You can change the video playback engine in the Device Setup dialog.
• Under Mac OS X, only the QuickTime playback engine is available, supporting the formats AVI, MPEG, QuickTime and DV. If your system has a FireWire port, there is also a FireWire option – see below. ! In the Track list and Inspector, you will find the following controls for video tracks: QuickTime as a video playback engine is available only if you have QuickTime 7.1 (or higher) installed on your computer. If you do not have QuickTime, or if a version lower than 7.
Playing back video file using video hardware Video import preferences Under Windows, multi-head graphics cards that support overlay functionality can be used to display the video picture on an external TV or computer monitor in full screen mode. The manufacturers nVIDIA and Matrox have working (and tested) solutions available. Check the card’s documentation for information on how it handles video output and how to set it up for multi-monitor display.
Generating thumbnail cache files during video import After the file is created, the window will be closed and the thumbnail cache file is used when necessary, i.e. under high load. A thumbnail cache file will be created automatically before the file is inserted in the Project window, if you activated “Generate Thumbnail Cache on Import Video File” in the Preferences (Editing–Video page). ! A window will be displayed, showing you the progress and the estimated time for the process.
24 File handling
Working with Projects Choosing a template In the category bar of the Project Assistant dialog, the available factory templates are sorted into the predefined categories Recording, Production, Scoring, and Mastering. Furthermore, there is a More category which contains the default project template (see “Setting up a default template” on page 256) and all templates that are not assigned to any of the other categories.
Open Other About the “Missing Ports” dialog The “Open Other” button allows you to open any project file on your system. This is identical to using the Open command from the File menu, see below. If you open a Cubase AI project created on a different system (other audio hardware), the program tries to find matching audio inputs and outputs for the i/o busses (this is one of the reasons why you should use descriptive, generic names for your input and output ports – see “Preparations” on page 10).
Save New Version Setting up a default template This function is only available as a key command, by default [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Alt]/[Option]-[S]. When you use this function, an identical, new project file is being created and activated. If you always want the same default project to open when you launch Cubase AI, you can save a default template. Proceed as follows: 1. Set up a project. The new file will get the same name as the original project, but with an incremental number attached.
This dialog contains the following options: Option Description Project Name Enter a project name if you want to change it from the default (the current name of the project). Keep Current Project Active When this option is activated, the current project will still be the active project after clicking OK. If you wish to switch to the new backup project instead, you need to deactivate this option.
Importing audio Unlike a regular audio file, the imported REX file will consist of several events, one for each “slice” in the loop. The events will automatically be placed in an audio part on the selected track and positioned so that the original internal timing of the loop is preserved. In Cubase AI audio can be imported in a variety of different formats. For example, you can import audio files saved in different formats (compressed and uncompressed).
Exporting and importing standard MIDI files Option Description Export Automation If this is activated, the automation data (as heard during playback) are converted to MIDI controller events and included in the MIDI file, see the chapter “Automation” on page 108. Note that if a continuous controller (e.g. CC7) has been recorded but the Read button is deactivated for the automation track (i.e.
Importing MIDI files Option Description To import a MIDI file from disk, proceed as follows: Auto Dissolve Format 0 If this is activated and you import a MIDI file of type 0 into the project, the file will automatically be “dissolved”: For each embedded MIDI channel in the file, a separate track will be inserted in the Project window. If this is deactivated, only one MIDI track will be created.
25 Customizing
Background The following general options are available on the setup context menus: The user can customize the appearance and functionality of Cubase AI in various ways. • “Show All” makes all items visible. • “Default” resets the interface to the default setting. User configurable items described in this chapter are: • “Setup…” opens the Setup dialog (see below). • Setup dialogs If presets are available, they can be selected on the lower half of the menu.
• You can change the current show/hide status by selecting items in one section and then use the arrow buttons in the middle of the dialog to move them to the other section. Click here to open the pop-up menu. Changes are applied directly. • By selecting items in the “Visible Items” list and using the Move Up and Move Down buttons, you can reorder the items list. Changes are applied directly. To undo all changes and revert to the standard layout, select “Default” on the setup context menu.
Removing, adding and moving track controls About Wrap Controls The dialog is divided into two sections. The left section displays controls currently visible on the Track list, and the right section displays the controls currently hidden. This is activated by default. Wrap Controls allows the controls to be dynamically repositioned when resizing the Track list. That is, as many controls as possible will be displayed depending on the current size of the Track list.
Appearance 2. To bring up the color palette, click the Track Color Selector. In the Preferences dialog, you will find a page called Appearance. The following settings are available: • Basic Appearance Scheme Click the arrow in the track name title bar or… By selecting an option from this pop-up menu you can adjust the general look of the program. After selecting an Appearance Scheme and clicking Apply or OK, you need to restart the program for the changes to take effect.
Coloring parts and events • When this is activated, the events and parts in the event display will have the selected background color. There are two ways to color parts and events in the Project window: • When this is deactivated, the event “content”, e.g. MIDI events and audio waveforms, are displayed in the selected color and the event background is gray. Using the color selector 1. Select the desired parts or events. The Event Colors dialog 2. Choose a color from the Color Selector in the toolbar.
4. Click the Apply button in the Standard Colors section. • Under Mac OS X, preference files are stored in the folder “/Library/Preferences/Cubase AI 5/” under your home directory. The color setting is applied to the selected color field in the Event Colors section. The full path would be: “/Users//Library/Preferences/ Cubase AI 5/”. You can edit every existing event color in the same way.
26 Key commands
Introduction functions. When you open a category folder by clicking the plus sign beside it, the items and functions it contains are displayed with the currently assigned key commands. Most of the main menus in Cubase AI have key command shortcuts for certain items on the menus. In addition, there are numerous other Cubase AI functions that can be performed via key commands. These are all default settings.
6. When you have found and selected the desired item, click in the “Type in Key” field and enter a new key command. 3. To search for more commands containing the word(s) you entered, click the Search button again. 4. When you are done, click OK to close the dialog. You can choose any single key or a combination of one or several modifier keys ([Alt]/[Option], [Ctrl]/[Command], [Shift]) plus any key. Just press the keys you want to use.
About the “Reset” and “Reset All” functions Loading key command presets To load a key command preset, simply select it from the Presets pop-up menu. Ö Note that this operation may replace existing key commands! These two buttons in the Key Commands dialog will both restore the default settings. The following rules apply: The key command settings you load will replace the current key command settings for the same functions (if any).
Devices category 2. Select an option in the Categories list, and locate the action for which you want to edit the modifier key. Option For example, the “Copy” action mentioned above resides in the category “Drag & Drop”. 3. Select the action in the Action list. 4. Hold down the desired modifier key(s) and click the Assign button. The current modifier keys for the action are replaced.
Option Key command Option Key command Undo [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Z] [Shift]-[U] Left: Select next in the Project window/ Key Editor [Left Arrow] Unmute Events Right: Select next in the Project window/ Key Editor [Right Arrow] Up: Select next in the Project window/ Move selected event in the Key Editor one semitone up [Up Arrow] Bottom Select bottom track in the Track list [End] Top: Select top track in the Track list [Home] Toggle Selection [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Space] Editors category Option Ke
Tool category Option Key command Key command Play Selection Range [Alt]/[Option]-[Space] [5] Recall Cycle Marker 1 to 9 [Shift]-Num [1] to Num [9] [8] Record Num [*] Drumstick tool [0] Retrospective Record [Shift]-Num [*] Glue tool [4] Return to Zero Num [.
Index
A ACID® loops 133 Acoustic Feedback 187 Activate Next/Previous Part 183 Activate project button 255 Active Part 182 Active Staff 214 Add Bus 11 Add Track 26 Adjust Fades to Range 64 Advanced Quantize 175 Aftertouch Deleting 197 Editing 195 Recording 57 AIFF files 228 Alt/Option key 8 Always Send Start Message 236 Any (MIDI channel settings) 56 Appearance 265 Apple Remote 165 Archiving 153 ASIO 2.
Busses About 10 Adding 11 Mixing down to file 227 Routing to and from 12 Viewing in the mixer 13 Bypass Effect sends 93 Inserts 88 C Channel (MIDI) Setting 56 Channel Overview Insert effects 89 Channel Settings Audio tracks 76 Copying 79 MIDI tracks 81 Channel Settings windows Customizing 262 Channel view sets 72 Channels (MIDI) 55 Chase events 46 Chord Recognition 185 Clean Lengths 216 Cleanup 258 Clef 215 Click 60 Clips, see “Audio clips” Close Gaps Sample Editor 136 Close project 255 Color pop-up menu M
Drag&drop Inserts Automation 114 Draw Hitpoints 135 In Sample Editor 131 Markers 39 MIDI controllers 195 MIDI notes 188 Parts 28 Drop Out Frames 240 Drum Editor Creating and editing notes 200 Muting drum sounds 201 Selecting drum maps 204 Drum maps About 202 Making settings 202 MIDI channel and output 203 Selecting 204 Setup dialog 204 Drum name lists 205 Drum Sound Solo 201 Drumstick tool 200 Duplicate Events and parts 30 MIDI notes 190 Duplicate tracks 26 EQ Bypassing 78 Presets 79 Setting 77 Erase Tool
Info line Customizing 262 Drum Editor 199 Key Editor 184 Pool 144 Project window 20 Sample Editor 127 Score Editor 213 Inhibit Restart 240 Initialize Channel 80 I-Note 203 Input busses About 10 Adding 11 Routing to channels 12 Input levels 52 Input selection Multiple MIDI channels 56 Inputs (Audio) 10 Inputs (MIDI) 55 Insert effects (Audio) 87 Insert into Project 149 Insert pop-up menu 207 Insert Silence Project window 36 Sample Editor 131 Insert Velocity (MIDI Editors) 189 Inserts Bypassing vs.
MIDI Input button 192 MIDI inputs Renaming 55 Selecting for tracks 55 MIDI Modifiers 168, 172 MIDI notes Deleting 192 Drawing 188 Editing velocity 194 Moving 190 Muting 191 Muting in Drum Editor 201 Quantizing 172 Resizing 191 Selecting 189 Splitting and gluing 191 Transpose (Function) 176 Transposing (in editor) 190 MIDI outputs In drum maps 203 Renaming 55 Selecting for tracks 56 MIDI parts About 15 Drawing 28 Editing 182 Sliding contents 33 MIDI Record Catch Range 59 MIDI reset 58 MIDI Thru 55 MIDI track
Phase Reverse 121 Piano keyboard display Virtual Keyboard 47 Pitchbend Deleting 197 Editing 195 Recording 57 Virtual Keyboard 47 Play tool Project window 28 Plug-in delay compensation 87 Plug-in Information window VST plug-ins 97 Plug-ins Automating 114 Getting info 97 Installing VST 2.
S S button 34 Sample Editor Audio clip information 127 Audition 128 Elements menu 126 Hitpoints tab 127 Info line 127 Inspector 127 Toolbar 126 Zooming 128 Sample rate 22 Sample size 51 Save 255 Save New Version 256 Scissors tool MIDI editors 191 Project window 31 Score Editor 219 Score Displaying 214 Printing 220 Scrubbing Events in Project window 28 Events in Sample Editor 129 Resizing events by 32 While setting snap point 129 Search Functionality in Pool 148 Search key commands 270 Select Tool Show Extra
System Exclusive About 210 Bulk Dumps 210 Editing 211 Recording parameter changes 211 T T button (Score Editor) 213 Templates 256 Tempo About 222 Editing 223 Setting in Fixed mode 224 Thin Out Data 180 Time display 44 Time format 21 Time Linear MIDI editors 185 Time Signature About 222 Editing 225 Time Stretch 122 Timecode About 233 Frame rates 235 Synchronizing to 237 Tool modifier keys 271 Toolbar Audio Part Editor 139 Customizing 262 Drum Editor 199 Key Editor 184 List Editor 206 Pool 144 Project window
VST Instruments Activating 101 Browsing for sounds 103 Channels 101 Presets for instruments 103 Saving Presets 105 Using VST System Link 246 VST Performance window 84 VST plug-ins Getting info 97 Installing 96 VST Ports 10 VST presets Removing 157 VST System Link About 239 Activating 243 Connections 241 Latency 242 MIDI 244 Putting computers online 244 Requirements 240 Setting up sync 241 Settings 242 Z Zero Crossings 41 Zoom About 22 Presets 24 Sample Editor 128 Track height 23 Waveforms 23 Zoom N Tracks
