Steinberg Cubase 5 Operation Manual

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The mixer
If Stereo Dual Panner is selected, there will be two pan 
controls with the upper controlling pan for the left channel, 
and the lower controlling pan for the right channel.
This allows you set pan independently for the left and right channels. 
Note that it is possible to reverse the left and right channels, i.e. the left 
channel can be panned to the right and vice versa. You can also “sum” 
two channels by setting them to the same pan position (i.e. mono) – note 
that this will increase the volume of the signal.
If Stereo Combined Panner is selected, the left and 
right pan positions are shown as two lines with a blue/gray 
area between them.
If you reverse the left and right channels, the area between the pan controls 
will be red instead of blue/gray.
In this mode, the left and right pan controls are linked, and 
can be moved left and right like a single pan control (keep-
ing their relative distance).
Stereo Combined mode also allows you set pan inde-
pendently for the left and right channels. This is done by 
holding down [Alt]/[Option] and dragging the correspond-
ing pan control.
When moving combined pan controls so that the left or 
right pan control reaches its maximum pan value, it natu-
rally cannot go any further. If you continue to move further 
in the same direction, only the other pan control will move, 
thus altering the set relative pan range until both channels 
are panned fully to one side. If you move the pan controls 
in the opposite direction without releasing the mouse, the 
previously set pan range will be restored.
ÖThe pan settings made with the Dual Panner are re-
flected in the Combined Panner and vice versa.
ÖYou can specify the default pan mode for inserted au-
dio tracks in the Preferences (VST page).
About the “Stereo Pan Law” setting (audio channels only)
In the Project Setup dialog there is a pop-up menu named 
“Stereo Pan Law”, on which you can select one of several 
pan modes. This is related to the fact that without power 
compensation, the power of the sum of the left and right 
side will be higher (louder) if a channel is panned center 
than if it is panned left or right. 
To remedy this, the Stereo Pan Law setting allows you to 
attenuate signals panned center, by -6, -4.5 or -3 dB (de-
fault). Selecting the 0 dB option effectively turns off con-
stant-power panning. Experiment with the modes to see 
which fits best in a given situation. You can also select 
“Equal Power” on this pop-up menu, which means that the 
power of the signal will remain the same regardless of the 
pan setting.
Audio-specific procedures
This section describes the options and basic procedures 
regarding audio channels in the mixer.
Options for the extended audio channel strip
When using the extended channel strip view options, the 
upper panel can be set to show different views for each 
audio channel strip. You can select what to display in the 
extended panel individually for each channel or globally for 
all channels (see “Selecting what to display in the exten-
ded channel strips” on page 113).
The following views are possible:
The 8 insert effect slots.
The inserts can also be found in the Inspector and the Channel Settings 
window, see “Using Channel Settings” on page 122.
The 8 sends, with pop-ups and send level value sliders.
The sends can also be found in the Inspector and the Channel Settings 
window, see “Using Channel Settings” on page 122.
You also have the option of displaying four sends at a 
time (the Sends 1–4 and 5–8 menu items). 
These modes offer the additional benefit of displaying send levels as dB 
values.
ÖThere are no sends for Input/Output channels. 
						

							122
The mixer
The EQ section, either with value sliders (“EQs”) or as 
numerical settings with a curve display (“EQs curve”).
These two views have exactly the same controls but different graphic lay-
outs. The EQ section is also available in the Channel Settings window. 
For EQ parameter descriptions, see “Making EQ settings” on page 123.
The SurroundPanner section (where applicable).
If the channel is routed to a surround bus you can view a compact ver-
sion of the SurroundPanner in the extended panel – double-click to open 
the full SurroundPanner panel.
The “Meter” option shows large level meters in the ex-
tended panel. 
These operate exactly like the regular meters.
Cubase only: The User Panel option displays Device 
panels for the audio track, including panels for inserted 
VST effects, see “Audio tracks” on page 30. You can ac-
cess User panels by clicking on the tab at the top of the 
User Panel display in the extended mixer.
For information on Device Panels, see the separate PDF document “MIDI 
Devices”.
Selecting the “Empty” option will display a blank panel 
in the extended strip.
You can also select the “Overview” option – this shows 
a graphic overview of which insert effect slots, EQ mod-
ules and effects sends are activated for the channel.
You can click the indicators to turn the corresponding slot/EQ module/
send on or off.
ÖIf you have selected a parameter for the extended 
channel strip and then switch to “narrow” mode, only the 
channel overview and the Meter can be shown in the ex-
tended channel strip. When you switch back to “wide” 
mode, the parameter settings are displayed again.
Using Channel Settings 
For each audio channel strip in the mixer and in the Inspec-
tor and Track list for each audio track, there is an Edit but-
ton (“e”).
Clicking this opens the VST Audio Channel Settings win-
dow. By default, this window contains:
 A section with eight insert effect slots (see “Audio effects” on 
page 150).
 Four EQ modules and an associated EQ curve display (see 
“Making EQ settings” on page 123).
 A section with eight sends (see “Audio effects” on page 150). A duplicate of the mixer channel strip (without the extended 
panel but with the input and output settings panel).
You can customize the Channel Settings window, by 
showing/hiding the different panels and/or by changing 
their order:
 To specify which panels should be shown/hidden, right-click 
in the Channel settings window, and activate/deactivate the 
respective options on the Customize View submenu on the 
context menu.
 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.
For further information, see the chapter “Customizing” on 
page 468.
Every channel has its own channel settings window (al-
though you can view each in the same window if you like – 
see below).
The Channel Settings window is used for the following 
operations:
 Apply equalization, see “Making EQ settings” on page 123.
 Apply send effects, see “Audio effects” on page 150.
 Apply insert effects, see “Audio effects” on page 150.
 Copy channel settings and apply them to another channel, see 
“Copying settings between audio channels” on page 125.
!All channel settings are applied to both sides of a 
stereo channel.
Click the Edit button to open the Channel Settings 
window. 
						

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The mixer
Changing channels in the Channel Settings window
You can view any channel’s settings from a single window. 
If the option “Sync Project and Mixer Selection” is acti-
vated in the Preferences (Editing–Project & Mixer page), 
this can be done “automatically”:
Open the Channel Settings window for a track and po-
sition it so that you can see both the Project window and 
the Channel Settings window.
Selecting a track in the Project window automatically se-
lects the corresponding channel in the mixer (and vice 
versa). If a Channel Settings window is open, this will im-
mediately switch to show the settings for the selected 
channel. This allows you to have a single Channel Settings 
window open in a convenient position on the screen, and 
use it for all your EQ and channel effect settings.
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.
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.Select a channel from the pop-up to show the settings 
for that channel in the open Channel Settings window.
Alternatively, you can select a channel in the mixer by 
clicking its channel strip (make sure not to click on a con-
trol as this will change the respective parameter setting in-
stead).
This selects the channel, and the Channel Settings window is updated.
To open several Channel Settings windows at the same 
time, press [Alt]/[Option] and click the Edit buttons for the 
respective channels.
Making EQ settings
Each audio channel in Cubase has a built-in parametric 
equalizer with up to four bands. There are several ways to 
view and adjust the EQs:
By selecting one of the EQ display modes (“EQs” or 
“EQs Curve”) for the extended channel strip in the mixer.
These modes contain the same settings but present them 
in different ways:
By selecting the “Equalizers” or “Equalizer Curve” tab in 
the Inspector.
The “Equalizers” section is similar to the “EQs” mode in the extended 
mixer or the “Equalizers” section in the Channel Settings window, while 
the “Equalizer Curve” section shows a display in which you can “draw” 
an EQ curve. Setting EQ in the Inspector is only possible for track-based 
audio channels.
ÖNote that by default, only the Equalizers tab is shown. 
To display the Equalizer Curve tab, right-click on an In-
spector tab (not in the empty area below the Inspector) 
and activate the “Equalizer Curve” option.
By using the Channel Settings window.
This offers both parameter sliders and a clickable curve display (the 
Equalizer + Curve pane) and also lets you store and recall EQ presets.
Below we describe how to set up EQ in the Channel Set-
tings window, but the parameters are the same in the mixer 
and Inspector (apart from the presets and reset function, 
which are not available in the mixer).
In “EQs” mode, the top value slider controls the gain, 
the middle controls frequency and the lower sets the 
filter type and the Q parameter for each EQ band.
In “EQs Curve” mode, EQ settings are shown as a 
curve. Parameters are set by clicking on the value 
and adjusting with the fader that appears. 
						

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The mixer
The Equalizers + Curve pane in the Channel Settings win-
dow consists of four EQ modules with parameter sliders, an 
EQ curve display and some additional functions at the top.
Using the parameter controls
1.Activate an EQ module by clicking its on/off button.
Although the modules have different default frequency values and differ-
ent Q names, they all have the same frequency range (20Hz to 20kHz). 
The only difference between the modules is that you can specify different 
filter types for each individual module (see below).
2.Set the amount of cut or boost with the gain control – 
the upper slider.
The range is ± 24 dB.
3.Set the desired frequency with the frequency slider.
This is the center frequency of the frequency range (20Hz to 20kHz) to 
be cut or boosted.
4.Click on the lower slider (to the left) to open the filter 
type pop-up menu and select the desired filter type.
The “eq1” and “eq4” bands can act as parametric, shelving or high/low-
pass filters, while “eq2” and “eq3” will always be parametric filters.
5.Set the Q value with the lower slider (to the right).
This determines the width of the affected frequency range. Higher values 
give narrower frequency ranges.
6.If needed, you can activate and make settings for up to 
four modules.
Note that you can edit the values numerically as well, by 
clicking in a value field and entering the desired gain, fre-
quency or Q value.
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.
This adds a curve point and one of the modules below are activated.
2.Make EQ settings by dragging the curve point in the 
display.
This allows you to adjust gain (drag up or down) and frequency (drag left 
or right).
3.To set the Q parameter, press [Shift] and drag the 
curve point up or down.
You will see the EQ curve become wider or narrower as you drag.
You can also restrict the editing by pressing [Ctrl]/
[Command] (sets gain only) or [Alt]/[Option] (sets fre-
quency only) while you drag the curve point.
4.To activate another EQ module, click somewhere else 
in the display and proceed as above.
5.To turn off an EQ module, double-click its curve point 
or drag it outside the display.
6.To mirror (“inverse”) the eq curve on the x axis, click 
the button to the right of the curve display.
The Inverse Equalizers button
EQ bypass
Whenever one or several EQ modules are activated for a 
channel, the EQ button will light up in green in the mixer 
channel strip, Inspector (Equalizer and Channel sections), 
Track list and Channel Settings window (top right corner 
of the EQ section).
You can also bypass all EQ modules. This is useful, as it 
allows you to compare the sound with and without EQ. 
Proceed as follows:
In the mixer, the Track list and in the Channel section in 
the Inspector, click the EQs state button so that it turns 
yellow.
To deactivate EQ Bypass, click the button again, so that it turns green 
again. 
						

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The mixer
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
On the Presets pop-up menu in the Channel Settings win-
dow and in the Inspector, you will find the Reset command. 
Select this to turn off all EQ modules and reset all EQ pa-
rameters to their default values.
Using EQ presets
Some useful basic presets are included with the program. 
You can use them as they are, or as a starting point for fur-
ther “tweaking”. 
To call up a preset, pull down the presets pop-up menu 
in the Channel Settings window or in the Inspector and 
select one of the available presets.
To store the current EQ settings as a preset, select 
“Store Preset” on the presets pop-up menu and enter the 
desired name for the preset in the dialog that appears.
To rename the selected preset, select “Rename Preset” 
on the pop-up menu and enter a new name.
To delete the selected preset, select “Remove Preset” 
on the pop-up menu.
ÖYou can also apply EQ (and Inserts) settings from 
Track presets, see “Applying Inserts and EQ settings from 
track presets” on page 291.
EQ in the channel overview
If the “Channel” section is selected in the Inspector or the 
“Overview” view mode is selected in the extended mixer, 
you will get an overview of which EQ modules, insert ef-
fects and effect sends are activated for the channel.
By clicking the respective indicator (1 to 4), you can turn 
the corresponding EQ module on or off.
The channel overview in the Inspector
The option “Use Cubase 3 EQ settings as default”
In the Preferences (VST page) you will find the option “Use 
Cubase 3 EQ settings as default”. When you activate this 
option, the EQ settings from Cubase 3 will be used by de-
fault. This means that when you create a new track, the four 
EQ modules will be set to the EQ band types as follows:
Copying settings between audio channels
It is possible to copy all channel settings for an audio chan-
nel and paste them to one or several other channels. This 
applies to all audio-based channel types. For example, you 
can copy EQ settings from an audio track and apply these 
to a group or VST Instrument channel, if you want them to 
have the same sound. 
This EQ module… …will be set to
EQ1 Low Shelf 1
EQ2 Parametric 1
EQ3 Parametric 1
EQ4 High Pass 1 
						

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The mixer
Proceed as follows:
1.In the mixer, select the channel you want to copy set-
tings from.
2.Click the “Copy First Selected Channel’s Settings” 
button on the common panel.
3.Select the channel(s) you want to copy the settings to 
and click the “Paste Settings to Selected Channels” but-
ton (below the “Copy First Selected Channel Settings” 
button).
The settings are applied to the selected channel(s).
You can copy channel settings between different types of 
channels, but only those channels will be used for which 
corresponding settings are available in the target channel:
 For example, since input/output channels do not have send ef-
fects, copying from them will leave the Sends settings in the 
target channel unaffected.
 Also, in case of Surround Sound (Cubase only), for example, 
any Insert effects routed to surround speaker channels will be 
muted, when the settings are pasted to a mono or stereo 
channel.
Initialize Channel and Reset Mixer
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 Set-
tings window, open the context menu and select “Control 
Strip” on the Customize View submenu). Initialize Channel 
resets the selected channel to the default settings. 
Similarly, the mixer common panel holds a Reset Mixer/
Reset Channels button – when you click this, you will be 
asked whether you want to reset all channels or just the 
selected channels.
The default settings are:
 All EQ, Insert and Send effect settings are deactivated and re-
set.
 Solo/Mute is deactivated.
 The fader is set to 0 dB.
 Pan is set to center position.
Changing the meter characteristics 
In the Mixer context menu, opened by right-clicking any-
where on the mixer panel, there is a submenu named “Glo-
bal Meter Settings”. Here you can make settings for the 
preferred meter characteristics, with the following options:
If “Hold Peaks” is activated, the highest registered levels 
are “held” and are shown as static horizontal lines in the 
meter.
Note that you can turn this on or off by clicking in any audio level meter in 
the mixer.
If “Hold Forever” is activated, the peak levels will be 
shown until meters are reset (by clicking the numerical 
peak display below the meter).
If “Hold Forever” is off, you can specify for how long the peak levels will 
be held with the parameter “Meters’ Peak Hold Time” in the Preferences 
(VST–Metering page). The peak hold time can be between 500 and 
30000 ms.
If “Meter Input” is activated, meters will show input lev-
els for all audio channels and input/output channels. 
Note that the input meters are post input gain (Cubase only).
If “Meter Post-Fader” is activated, meters will show 
post-fader levels.
This is the default setting for channels in the mixer.
In Cubase, there is also a “Meter Post-Panner” mode.
This is similar to “Meter Post-Fader”, but the meters will reflect pan set-
tings as well.
If “Fast Release” is activated, the meters respond very 
quickly to level peaks. If “Fast Release” is deactivated, the 
meters respond more like standard meters.
You can set the time it takes for the meters to “fall back” in the Preferen-
ces (VST–Metering page).
Hold Peaks is activated. The 
highest registered level is dis-
played in the meter. 
						

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The mixer
Using group channels
You can route the outputs from multiple audio channels to 
a group. This enables you to control the channel levels us-
ing one fader, apply the same effects and equalization to all 
of them etc. To create a group channel, proceed as follows:
1.Select Add Track from the Project menu and select 
“Group Channel” from the submenu that appears.
2.Select the desired channel configuration and click OK.
A group channel track is added to the Track list and a corresponding 
group channel strip is added to the mixer. By default the first group chan-
nel strip is labeled “Group 1”, but you can rename it just like any channel 
in the mixer.
3.Pull down the Output Routing pop-up for a channel 
you want to route to the group channel, and select the 
group channel.
The output of the audio channel is now redirected to the selected group.
4.Do the same for the other channels you wish to route 
to the group.
Settings for group channels
The group channel strips are (almost) identical to audio 
channel strips in the mixer. The descriptions of the mixer 
features earlier in this chapter apply to group channels as 
well. Some things to note:
You can route the output of a group to an audio channel 
(see “Recording from busses” on page 71), to an output 
bus or to another group.
You cannot route a group to itself. Routing is done with the Output Rou-
ting pop-up menu in the Inspector (select the subtrack for the Group in 
the Track list) or in the Routing section at the top of each channel strip.
There are no Input Routing pop-ups, Monitor buttons or 
Record Enable buttons for group channels.
This is because inputs are never connected directly to a group.
Solo functionality is automatically linked for channels 
routed to a group and the group channel itself.
This means that if you solo a group channel, all channels routed to the 
group are automatically soloed as well. Similarly, soloing a channel 
routed to a group will automatically solo the group channel.
Mute functionality depends on the setting “Group Chan-
nels: Mute Sources as well” in the Preferences (VST page). 
By default, when you mute a group channel no audio will pass through 
the group. However, other channels that are routed directly to that group 
channel will remain unmuted. If any of those channels have aux sends 
routed to other group channels, FX channels or output busses, those will 
still be heard. 
If the option “Group Channels: Mute Sources as well” is activated in the 
Preferences (VST page), muting a group channel will cause all other 
channels directly routed to it to be muted as well. Pressing mute again 
will unmute the group channel and all other channels directly routed to it. 
Channels that were muted prior to the group channel being muted will 
not remember their mute status and will be unmuted when the group 
channel is unmuted.
One application of group channels is to use them as “effect 
racks” – see the chapter “Audio effects” on page 150.
About output busses
Cubase uses a system of input and output busses which 
are set up using the VST Connections dialog. This is de-
scribed in the chapter “VST Connections: Setting up input 
and output busses” on page 13.
Output busses let you route audio from the program to the 
outputs on your audio hardware. 
Routing audio channels to busses
To route the output of an audio channel to one of the ac-
tive busses, proceed as follows:
1.Open the mixer.
2.Make sure the routing panel is visible – see “Normal 
vs. Extended channel strips” on page 112.
3.Pull down the Output Routing pop-up menu at the top 
of the channel strip and select one of the busses.
This pop-up menu contains the output busses configured in the VST 
Connections window, as well as available group channels (provided that 
the busses and groups are compatible with the speaker configuration for 
the channel – see “Routing” on page 18).
!You can select a group channel as an Input for an 
audio track, e.g. to record a downmix of separate 
track outputs routed to a group (see “Recording 
from busses” on page 71).
!The option “Group Channels: Mute Sources as well” 
does not affect how mute automation is written. Writ-
ing mute automation on a group channel only affects 
the group channel and not channels routed to it. 
When writing the automation, you will see the other 
channels being muted when this option is activated. 
However, upon playback, only the group channel will 
respond to the automation. 
						

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The mixer
You can also make routing settings in the Inspector.
For details on routing surround channels (Cubase only), 
see “Surround in the mixer” on page 182.
Viewing the output busses in the mixer
Output busses are shown as output channels in a sepa-
rate pane to the right in the mixer. You show or hide this 
pane by clicking the Hide Output Channels button in the 
mixer’s common panel.
Each output channel resembles a regular audio channel 
strip. Here you can do the following:
 Adjust master levels for all configured output busses using the 
level faders.
 Adjust input gain and input phase of the output busses (Cu-
base only).
 Add effects or EQ to the output channels (see the chapter 
“Audio effects” on page 150).
MIDI-specific procedures
This section describes basic procedures for MIDI chan-
nels in the mixer.
Selecting what to show in the extended MIDI 
channel strip
When using the extended channel strip view options (see 
“Normal vs. Extended channel strips” on page 112), the 
upper panel can be set to show different views for each 
MIDI channel strip. You select what to display for each 
channel by using the View options pop-up menu at the top 
of each channel strip. The following views are possible:
The MIDI insert effects.
MIDI inserts can also be found in the Inspector and the Channel Settings 
window for MIDI channels. How to use MIDI insert effects is described in 
the chapter “MIDI realtime parameters and effects” on page 305.
The MIDI send effects.
The sends can also be found in the Inspector and the Channel Settings 
window for MIDI channels. How to use MIDI send effects is described in 
the chapter “MIDI realtime parameters and effects” on page 305.
The “Meter” option shows large level (velocity) meters in 
the extended panel.You can also select the “Overview” option – this shows 
a graphic overview of which insert effect slots and effect 
sends are activated for the channel.
You can click the indicators to turn the corresponding slot/send on or off.
Cubase only: The “User Panel” option allows you to im-
port MIDI device panels – this is described in the separate 
PDF document “MIDI Devices”.
Selecting “Empty” will display a blank panel in the ex-
tended strip.
By selecting from the View options pop-up on the com-
mon panel, you can set the view for all channels in the 
mixer.
Selecting EQ or SurroundPanners (which apply to audio channels only) 
will not change the view for MIDI channels. Selecting inserts or send ef-
fects from the common panel will change the view for all channel types.
Using Channel Settings
For each MIDI channel strip in the mixer (and MIDI track in 
the Track list or the Inspector), there is an Edit (“e”) button. 
Clicking this opens the MIDI Channel Settings window. 
By default, this window contains a duplicate of the mixer 
channel strip, a section with four MIDI inserts and a sec-
tion with four MIDI send effects. 
You can customize the Channel Settings window, by 
showing/hiding the different panels and/or by changing 
their order:
 To specify, which panels should be shown/hidden, right-click 
in the Channel settings window, and activate/deactivate the 
respective options on the Customize View submenu on the 
context menu.
 To change the order of the panels, select “Setup” on the Cus-
tomize View pop-up menu and use the “Move up” and “Move 
Down” buttons in the dialog that opens. 
						

							129
The mixer
Every MIDI channel has its own channel settings window.
The MIDI Channel Settings window
Utilities
Link/Unlink channels
This function is used to “link” selected channels in the 
mixer so that any change applied to one channel will be 
mirrored by all channels in that group. You can link as 
many channels as you like, and you can also create as 
many groups of linked channels as you like. To link chan-
nels in the mixer, proceed as follows:
1.Press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on all the channels 
you want to link.
[Shift]-clicking allows you to select a continuous range of channels.
2.Right-click somewhere on the gray mixer panel.
The Mixer context menu appears.
3.Select “Link Channels” from the context menu.
To unlink channels, select one of the linked channels and 
select “Unlink Channels” from the Mixer context menu.
The channels are unlinked. Note that you do not have to select all the 
channels that are linked, only one of them.
ÖIt is not possible to remove individual channels from 
Link status. 
To make individual settings to a linked channel, press [Alt]/[Option] when 
changing the setting.
What will be linked?
The following rules apply for linked channels:
Only level, mute, solo, select, monitor and record enable 
will be linked between channels.
Effect/EQ/pan/input and output routing settings are not linked.
Any individual channel settings you have made before 
linking will remain until you alter the same setting for any of 
the linked 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. Thus, the individual setting for one channel is lost as soon as 
you change the same parameter setting for any of the linked channels.
Fader levels will be “ganged”.
The relative level offset between channels will be kept if you move a 
linked channel fader.
The three channels shown are linked. Pulling down one fader changes 
the levels for all three channels, but keeps the relative level mix.
By pressing [Alt]/[Option], you can make individual set-
tings and changes for channels that are linked. 
						

							130
The mixer
ÖLinked channels have individual automation tracks. 
These are completely independent, and are not affected 
by the Link function.
The Window submenu
The Mixer context menu, opened by right-clicking anywhere 
on the Mixer window background, provides the Window 
submenu. Its options are handy for quickly switching to an-
other open mixer window, showing/hiding the different 
mixer panes etc. It contains the following options:
Show Routing View
Allows you to show/hide the topmost section of the mixer which contains 
the input/output routing settings.
Show Extended View
Allows you to show/hide the middle section of the mixer, where you can 
display different settings for the channels (EQs, Send effects, etc.).
Next Mixer
This displays the next mixer window (if you have several mixer windows 
open).
Saving mixer settings
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”. 
Right-clicking somewhere in the mixer panel or in the 
Channel Settings window brings up the context menu 
where the following Save options can be found:
“Save Selected Channels” will save all channel settings 
for the selected channels.
Input/output routings are not saved.
“Save All Mixer Settings” saves all channel settings for 
all channels.
When you select any of the above options, a standard file 
dialog opens where you can select a name and storage lo-
cation on your disk for the file.
Loading mixer settings 
Loading Selected Channels
To load mixer settings saved for selected channels, pro-
ceed as follows:
1.Select the same number of channels in the new project 
to match the number of channels you saved settings for in 
the previous project.
For example, if you saved settings for six channels, select six channels in 
the mixer.
Mixer settings will be applied in the same order as they 
were in the mixer.
Thus, if you save settings from channels 4, 6 and 8 and apply these set-
tings to channels 1, 2 and 3, the settings saved for channel 4 would be 
applied to channel 1, the settings saved for channel 6 to channel 2 and 
so on.
2.Right-click the mixer panel to open the context menu, 
and select “Load Selected Channels”.
A standard file dialog appears, where you can locate the saved file.
3.Select the file and click “Open”.
The channel settings are applied to the selected channels.
!Saving mixer settings does not apply to MIDI chan-
nels in the mixer – only audio-related channels 
(group, audio, instrument, effect return, VSTi and Re-
Wire) are saved with this function!
!Loading mixer settings does not apply to MIDI chan-
nels in the mixer – only audio-related channels (group, 
audio, instrument, effect return, VSTi and ReWire) are 
saved and can be loaded with this function!
!If you choose to apply mixer settings to fewer chan-
nels than you saved, the order of the saved channels 
in the mixer applies – i.e. the saved channels that are 
“left over” and not applied will be the channels with 
the highest channel numbers (or furthest to the right 
in the mixer).