Steinberg Cubase 4 Operation Manual

							441
Video
Operations
About the QuickTime video playback engine
In Cubase for Windows, you select a playback engine in 
the Device Setup–Video Player page:
Make sure to read the section “Before you start” on 
page 440.
Generally, you can expect most Windows hardware to 
work with DirectShow.
On a Windows system, the DirectShow and Video for Windows players 
are provided by the operating system, so you don’t have to install any ad-
ditional software.
Under Windows, QuickTime 7.1 must be installed on 
your computer for QuickTime playback to be available.
There is a freeware version (a QuickTime installer is included on the Cu-
base DVD if required, or you can download it from www.quicktime.com) 
and a “pro” version, which offers additional video cutting options. The 
player engine is the same in both versions, so for mere playback in Cu-
base there is no need to purchase the “pro” version.
Under Mac OS X, only the QuickTime playback engine 
is available, supporting the formats AVI, MPEG, Quick-
Time and DV. If your system has a FireWire port, there is 
also a FireWire option – see below.
Importing a video file
Video files are imported in the same manner as audio files.
By using the File menu (Import–Video File).
By using drag and drop from the Windows Explorer/
Mac OS Finder, the Pool or the MediaBay.
This requires that a video track has been added to the Project and that 
you drop the video file onto this track.
By importing the file to the Pool first and then dragging 
it into the Project window (see the chapter “The Pool” on 
page 270 for details).
Note:
 You can only have one video track in each project. The Video 
track is added like other tracks in the Project window by using 
the Add Track submenu on the Project menu. If a project does 
not contain a video track when you import a video file via File–
Import–Video file, this is added automatically.
 All video files on the track must be of the same size and com-
pression format.
 The Import dialog has an option for extracting the audio from a 
video file (see “Extracting audio from a video file” on page 
443) and for generating a thumbnail cache file for the video 
file, see below.
Video import preferences
In the Preferences dialog (Editing–Video page), there are 
two options that affect the import of video files:
Extract Audio on Import Video File
When this is activated, the audio will automatically be extracted and im-
ported into the project when you import a video file. This way, the audio 
will also be included when you insert a video e.g. by using drag and drop. 
When you import video files by using the File menu, you can activate this 
option separately for each imported video file on the Import dialog.
Generate Thumbnail Cache on Import Video File
When this is activated, a thumbnail cache file will be created automati-
cally when you import a video file. This is handy, as a cache file will also 
be created when you import a video file using drag and drop. When you 
import video files by using the File menu, you can activate this option 
separately for each imported video file on the Import dialog, see below.
!QuickTime as a video playback engine is available 
only if you have QuickTime 7.1 (or higher) installed 
on your computer. If you don’t have QuickTime, or if a 
version lower than 7.1 is installed, this option will not 
be available in Cubase. 
						

							442
Video
Advantage of thumbnail cache files
ÖTo display video thumbnails in the Project window, the 
option “Show Video Thumbnails” has to be activated in 
the Preferences dialog (Event Display–Video page).
When working with video in Cubase, video files are dis-
played as events/clips on the video track with thumbnails 
representing the frames in the film. These are calculated in 
real time, i. e. they have to be redrawn during scrolling or 
moving. As this consumes quite a lot of processor power, 
reaction sometimes may be sluggish. To remedy this, you 
can generate a thumbnail cache file.
The cache file is used in situations where the processor 
load is very high and the correct redrawing or real-time 
calculation might use system resources necessary for ed-
iting or processing. When the cache file is used and you 
zoom in on the thumbnails, you will see that they are in a 
lower resolution, i. e. the pictures are not as clean as when 
they are calculated. When the processes that rely heavily 
on the computer CPU are finished, the frames will be au-
tomatically recalculated, i.e. the program automatically 
switches between real-time calculation of the pictures and 
using the cache file.
The generated thumbnail cache file will be stored in the 
same folder as the video file and will get the name of the 
file with the suffix “.videocache”.
Generating thumbnail cache files during video import
A thumbnail cache file will be created automatically before 
the file is inserted in the Project window, if:
the option “Generate Thumbnail Cache” in the Import 
video dialog is activated when you click “Open”.
you activated “Generate Thumbnail Cache on Import 
Video File” in the Preferences (Editing–Video page). 
The Generate Thumbnail Cache option in the Import Video dialog.
A window will be displayed, showing you the progress 
and the estimated time for the process.
The thumbnail cache file is created.
After the cache file is created, the window will be closed 
and the video clip is inserted as usual. When you now 
start video playback and perform processor consuming 
operations, the thumbnail file is used to display the video 
frames in the Project window. When enough processor 
power is available, the “real” calculated thumbnail frames 
are displayed again.
Generating thumbnail cache files from within the Pool
When you have video files without thumbnail cache files 
(e.g. if you did not create a thumbnail cache file during im-
port or if you are working with an older project), you al-
ways have the possibility to generate the thumbnail cache 
file at a later stage. This is done from within the Pool.
Proceed as follows:
1.Open the Pool window and locate the video file you 
want to create a thumbnail cache file for.
2.Right-click on the file to open the context menu and 
select “Generate Thumbnail Cache”, or select “Generate 
Thumbnail Cache” from the Media menu.
Just as when creating the file during import, the status window opens 
(see above).
After the file is created, the window will be closed and the 
thumbnail cache file is used when necessary, i.e. under 
high load.
!Please note that the cache file will not be automati-
cally updated if a video file is edited. Whenever you 
change a video file (e.g. in a video editing applica-
tion), you need to create a new thumbnail cache file 
manually, as described above. (To refresh the “real” 
thumbnails of an edited video file, resize the video 
track so that they are calculated again.) 
						

							443
Video
Extracting audio from a video file
If a video file contains audio, it can be extracted. Regard-
less of the audio format in the actual file, the resulting au-
dio file will always be in the format (Sample Rate and 
Record Format) that is specified for the Project in the 
Project Setup dialog.
There are several ways to extract audio from a video file:
By activating “Extract Audio” in the Import Video dialog.
This will add the audio on the active or on a new audio track. The new 
track and the clip will get the name of the video file. The new audio event 
will start at the same time as the video event, so that they are in sync with 
each other.
By activating “Extract Audio on Import Video File” in the 
Preferences (Editing–Video page).
This will automatically extract the corresponding audio from a video file 
during import. This is also true if you import files using drag and drop.
By using “Import Audio from Video File” from the File–
Import submenu.
This will add the audio to the currently active or a new audio track. How-
ever, in this case no video clip is created, only an audio event (starting at 
the project cursor position).
By using Extract Audio from Video File on the Media 
menu.
When a video file is selected in the pool, the audio is extracted and 
added to the Pool as a clip. When no video file is selected, the “Import 
audio tracks from video” dialog is opened, in which you can select a 
video file from which the audio data is to be extracted and imported into 
the project.
ÖPlease note audio extraction is not possible for Quick-
Time video files containing compressed audio.
Playing back a video file
Video files are displayed as events/clips on the video 
track, with thumbnails representing the frames in the film 
(if the option Show Video Thumbnails is activated in the 
Preferences, Event Display–Video page).
A video event on a video track.
In the track list and Inspector, you will find the following 
controls for video tracks:
To view the video on the computer screen (as opposed to 
on an external monitor, see below), proceed as follows:
If you’re running Mac OS X, open the Device Setup dia-
log from the Devices menu, click “Video Player” in the list 
and make sure “Onscreen Window” is selected in the 
Video Output section of the dialog. 
Under Windows, either pull down the Devices menu 
and select Video, or use a key command – by default [F8], 
or double-click the video clip.
A video window appears. In Stop mode, this displays the video frame at 
the project cursor position.
The video will be played back together with any other 
events in the Project window as usual.
Video quality in QuickTime
When you are using QuickTime as your video player, you 
can select “High Quality” from the Video window context-
menu, or “Use high-quality video settings when available” 
in the Device Setup dialog, Video Player page, in the 
Video Properties section for QuickTime).
When your QuickTime video was recorded with the cor-
responding quality settings, selecting the “Use high-qual-
ity video settings when available” or the “High Quality” 
option will make the video display sharper and smoother. 
Note that this will also lead to increased processor load.
Button Description
Lock When this is activated, the video event will be locked, see 
“Locking events” on page 51.
Show Frame 
NumbersWhen this is activated, each thumbnail is shown with the 
corresponding video frame number.
Snap 
ThumbnailsWhen this is activated, the individual thumbnail images 
will be positioned exactly at their respective start time po-
sition. Also, no more than one thumbnail per frame will be 
shown, even if you zoom in a lot.
Mute Video When this is activated, video playback will be stopped, 
but playback of any other events in the project will con-
tinue (to decrease the processor load). You may have to 
use the Track Controls Settings dialog to make this but-
ton visible in the Track list. 
						

							444
Video
Setting the Window size
If you are playing back video in a window on your com-
puter screen, you may want to adjust the size. 
For the QuickTime player (Windows and Mac), you can 
drag the borders, just like resizing other windows.
For the DirectShow video player (Windows) and for the 
QuickTime player (Windows and Mac), you can also pro-
ceed as follows:
For the DirectShow video player, open the Device 
Setup dialog from the Devices menu, click Video Player in 
the Devices list and use the buttons in the Video Proper-
ties section to select a size.
For QuickTime, right-click in the video window to open 
the Video window context-menu and select one of the 
Size options.
Playing back video in full screen mode
When viewing video on the computer screen, you can 
choose to let the video occupy the whole screen during 
playback or in Stop mode:
For DirectShow video, right-click in the video window to 
switch to full screen. Right-click again to exit full screen.
For DirectX and QuickTime (Windows and Mac), right-
click in the video window to open the Video window con-
text-menu and select Full Screen Mode. Right-click again 
or press the [Esc] key on your computer keyboard to exit 
full screen mode.
Playing back video file using graphics cards
(Windows only) 
Multi-head graphics cards that support overlay functional-
ity can be used to display the video picture on an external 
TV or computer monitor in full screen mode. The manufac-
turers nVIDIA and Matrox have working (and tested) solu-
tions available. Check the card’s documentation for 
information on how it handles video output and how to set 
it up for multi-monitor display.
Playing back a video via FireWire (Mac OS X only)
For Apple computers equipped with a FireWire port, you 
can easily connect external video hardware via this, as 
OS X has built-in video support for the most common for-
mats (NTSC/PAL/DVCPRO). FireWire is capable of high 
data-transfer speed and is the most common standard for 
communicating with video-related peripheral equipment.
To play back a video file via hardware connected to the 
FireWire port, select “FireWire” in the Outputs pop-up of 
the Device Setup–Video Player dialog.
When FireWire is selected as output, a number of format options appear 
on the Format pop-up, allowing you to select between various video for-
mats and resolutions.
Replacing the audio in a video file
(Cubase only)
Cubase only: Cubase has a special function for replacing 
the audio in a video file:
1.Pull down the File menu and select “Replace Audio in 
Video File”.
2.In the file dialog that appears, locate and select the 
video file on your hard disk and click Open.
A new file dialog appears.
3.Locate and select the audio file that you want to insert 
into the video file and click Open.
The audio is added to the video file, replacing its current audio track
(if any).
By combining the functions Extract Audio, Export Audio 
Mixdown and Replace Audio in Video File, you can create 
a completely new audio track for a video file.
Video playback preferences
In the Preferences (Event Display–Video page), there are 
two options for video playback:
Show Video Thumbnails.
When this is activated, thumbnail frames of the video contents are shown 
in the track.
Video Cache Size.
This determines how much memory is available for video thumbnails. If 
you have long video clips and/or work with a large zoom factor (so that a 
lot of frames are shown in the thumbnails), you may have to raise this 
value. 
						

							36
ReWire 
						

							446
ReWire
Introduction
ReWire and ReWire2 are special protocols for streaming 
audio between two computer applications. Developed by 
Propellerhead Software and Steinberg, ReWire provides 
the following possibilities and features:
Real-time streaming of up to 64 separate audio chan-
nels (256 with ReWire2), at full bandwidth, from the “syn-
thesizer application” into the “mixer application”.
In this case, the “mixer application” is of course Cubase. An example of a 
“synthesizer application” is Propellerhead Software’s Reason.
Automatic, sample accurate synchronization between 
the audio in the two programs.
The possibility to have the two programs share one audio 
card and take advantage of multiple outputs on that card.
Linked transport controls that allow you to play, rewind, 
etc., either from Cubase or from the synthesizer applica-
tion (provided it has some kind of transport functionality).
Automatic audio mixing functions of separate channels 
as required.
In the case of Reason, for example, this allows you to have separate 
mixer channels for the different devices.
Additionally, ReWire2 offers the possibility to route MIDI 
tracks in Cubase to the other application, for full MIDI con-
trol.
For each ReWire2 compatible device, a number of extra MIDI outputs 
will be made available in Cubase. In the case of Reason, this allows you 
to route different MIDI tracks in Cubase to different devices in Reason, 
having Cubase serve as main MIDI sequencer.
The overall load on your system is much reduced, com-
pared to when using the programs together in the conven-
tional way.
Launching and quitting
When using ReWire, the order in which you launch and 
quit the two programs is very important:
Launching for normal use with ReWire
1.First launch Cubase.
2.Enable one or several ReWire channels in the ReWire 
Device dialog for the other application.
This is described in detail in the section “Activating ReWire channels” on 
page 447.
3.Launch the other application.
It may take slightly longer for the application to start when you are using 
ReWire.
Quitting a ReWire session
When you are finished, you also need to quit the applica-
tions in a special order:
1.First quit the synthesizer application.
2.Then quit Cubase.
Launching both programs without using 
ReWire
We cannot think of any scenario, in which you would need 
to run Cubase and the synthesizer application simulta-
neously on the same computer, without using ReWire, but 
you can:
1.First launch the synthesizer application.
2.Then launch Cubase.
ÖPlease note that the two programs now compete for 
system resources such as audio cards, just as when run-
ning either with other, non-ReWire audio applications. 
						

							447
ReWire
Activating ReWire channels
ReWire supports streaming of up to 64 separate audio 
channels, while ReWire2 supports 256 channels. The ex-
act number of available ReWire channels depends on the 
synthesizer application. Using the ReWire Device panels 
in Cubase, you can specify which of the available chan-
nels you want to use:
1.Pull down the Devices menu and select the menu item 
with the name of the ReWire application. All recognized 
ReWire compatible applications will be available on the 
menu.
The ReWire panel appears. This consists of a number of rows, one for 
each available ReWire channel.
The ReWire panel for Reason.
2.Click on the power buttons to the left to activate/de-
activate the desired channels.
The buttons light up to indicate activated channels. Please note that the 
more ReWire channels you activate, the more processing power is re-
quired.
For information about exactly what signal is carried on 
each channel, see the documentation of the synthesizer 
application.
3.If desired, double-click on the labels in the right col-
umn, and type in another name.
These labels will be used in the Cubase mixer to identify the ReWire 
channels.
Using the transport and tempo 
controls
Basic transport controls
When you run ReWire, the transports in the two programs 
are completely linked. It doesn’t matter in which program 
you Play, Stop, Fast Forward or Rewind. However, record-
ing (if applicable) is still completely separate in the two 
applications.
Loop settings
If there is a loop or cycle facility in the synthesizer applica-
tion, that loop will be completely linked to the cycle in Cu-
base. This means that you can move the start and end 
point for the loop or turn the loop on or off in either pro-
gram, and this will be reflected in the other.
Tempo settings
As far as tempo goes, Cubase is always the master. This 
means that both programs will run in the tempo set in Cu-
base.
However, if you are not using the Tempo track in Cubase, 
you can adjust the tempo in either program, and this will 
immediately be reflected in the other.
!This is only relevant if the synthesizer application has 
some sort of built-in sequencer or similar.
!If you are using the Tempo track in Cubase (i.e. the 
Tempo button is activated on the Transport panel), 
you should not adjust the tempo in the synthesizer 
application, since a tempo request from ReWire will 
automatically deactivate the Tempo track in Cubase! 
						

							448
ReWire
How the ReWire channels are 
handled in Cubase
When you activate ReWire channels in the ReWire De-
vice panels, they will become available as channel strips in 
the mixer. The ReWire channel strips have the following 
properties:
ReWire channels appear to the right of the other audio 
and MIDI channel strips in the mixer.
ReWire channels may be any combination of mono and 
stereo, depending on the synthesizer application.
ReWire channels have the same functionality as regular 
audio channels.
This means you can set volume and pan, add EQ, insert effects and 
sends and route the channel outputs to groups or busses (done in the In-
spector – or in the mixer, Cubase only). However, ReWire channels have 
no monitor buttons.
All ReWire channel settings can be automated using 
the Read/Write buttons.
When you write automation, channel automation tracks will automatically 
appear in the Project window. This allows you to view and edit the auto-
mation graphically, just as with VST Instrument channels, etc.
You can mix down the audio from ReWire channels to a 
file on your hard disk with the Export Audio Mixdown func-
tion (see “Mixing down to an audio file” on page 414).
You can export the output bus to which you have routed the ReWire 
channels. Cubase only: you can also export individual ReWire channels 
directly – “rendering” each ReWire channel to a separate audio file.
Routing MIDI via ReWire2
When using Cubase with a ReWire2-compatible appli-
cation, additional MIDI outputs will automatically appear 
on the MIDI Output pop-up menus for MIDI tracks. This 
allows you to play the synthesizer application via MIDI 
from Cubase, using it as one or several separate MIDI 
sound sources.
The MIDI outputs for a Reason song. Here, each output goes directly to 
a device in the Reason rack.
The number and configuration of MIDI outputs depends 
on the synthesizer application.
Considerations and limitations
Sample rates
Synthesizer applications may be limited to audio playback 
in certain sample rates. If Cubase is set to a sample rate 
other than those, the synthesizer application will play back 
at the wrong pitch. Consult the documentation of the syn-
thesizer application for details.
ASIO drivers
ReWire works well with ASIO drivers. By using the Cubase 
bus system you can route sounds from the synthesizer 
application to various outputs on an ASIO compatible audio 
card.
!This feature is only available with ReWire2-compati-
ble applications. 
						

							37
File handling 
						

							450
File handling
Working with Projects
New Project
The New Project command on the File menu allows you to 
create a new project, either empty or based on a template:
1.Select New Project from the File menu.
The templates list is displayed. When you install Cubase, templates for 
various purposes are included, but you can also create your own (see 
“Save as Template” on page 451).
2.Select a template from the list or select “Empty”.
A file dialog opens, allowing you to specify a folder for the new project.
3.Select an existing project folder or click on Create and 
enter a name for a new one in the dialog that opens.
A new, untitled project is created.
Open
The Open command on the File menu is used for opening 
saved project files. Project files created with Cubase (file 
extension “.cpr”), Nuendo (file extension “.npr”) and Se-
quel (extension “.steinberg-project”) can be opened. Note 
that program-specific settings which cannot be applied in 
Cubase will be ignored.
1.Select “Open…” from the File menu.
A file dialog opens, allowing you to select a project.
2.Click Open.
The project opens in the Project window.
Several projects can be open at the same time.
This is extremely useful, if you want to copy parts or entire sections from 
one project to another.
3.If a project is already opened, opening another project 
brings up a warning.
Click “No” to open the other project inactive.
This significantly reduces load times, especially for large projects. 
Click “Activate” to open and activate the new project.
The active project is indicated by the blue Activate button in the upper 
left corner of the Project window. To make another project active, simply 
click its Activate button.
An active project.
You can also open project files by selecting an entry 
from the “Recent Projects” submenu on the File menu.
This submenu lists the projects you have recently worked with, with the 
most recent one at the top of the list.
Projects can also automatically be opened when you 
launch Cubase (see “Startup Options” on page 452).
You can drag projects from the MediaBay into the Cu-
base application window (not into an existing Project win-
dow) to open them.
About the “Pending Connections” dialogs
If you open a Cubase project created on another setup 
(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 15).
If the program cannot resolve all audio/MIDI inputs and 
outputs used in the project, a Pending Connections dialog 
will open. This will allow you to manually re-route any ports 
specified in the project to ports available in your system.
Close
The Close command on the File menu closes the active 
window. If a Project window is active, selecting Close will 
close the corresponding project.
If the project contains unsaved changes, you will be 
asked whether you want to save the project before closing 
it.
If you select “Don’t Save” and have recorded or created new audio files 
since saving, you get the choice to delete or keep these.