Steinberg Cubase 5 Operation Manual
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31 The Project window FX channel tracks are automatically placed in a special folder, for easier management. When this folder track is selected, the Inspector shows the folder and the FX chan- nels it contains. You can click one of the FX channels shown in the folder to have the Inspector show the set- tings for that FX channel – this way you don’t have to “open” a folder track to access the settings for the FX channels in it. Group channel tracks When a Group channel track is selected, the following controls and sections are available: Edit button Volume control Pan control Output Routing pop-up menu Inserts section Equalizers section Equalizer Curve section Sends section Studio Sends section (Cubase only) Surround Pan section (Cubase only) Channel section Just like FX channel tracks, all Group channel tracks are placed in a separate folder – when this is selected, the In- spector shows the folder and the Group channels it con- tains. You can click one of the Group channels shown in the folder to have the Inspector show the settings for that Group channel – this way, you don’t have to “open” a folder track to access the settings for the Group channels in it. Marker tracks When the marker track is selected, the Inspector shows the marker list. For more information, see the section “Markers” on page 54. Ruler tracks (Cubase only) For ruler tracks, the Inspector isn’t used. Transpose track When the transpose track is selected, the following con- trols and sections are available: Mute button Keep Transpose in Octave range Toggle Timebase button Lock button Notepad section The Transpose track controls are described in detail in the chapter “The Transpose functions” on page 103. Signature track and tempo track For the signature track and the tempo track, the Inspector displays a list of all time signature events or tempo events. See the chapter “Editing tempo and signature” on page 401 for details. Video tracks When a video track is selected, the Inspector contains a lock button for locking the track (see “Locking events” on page 48), a Mute button for interrupting video playback and two settings for how the video thumbnails are shown: Show Frame Numbers and Snap Thumbnails (see “Play- ing back a video file” on page 447). Video tracks make use of the Notepad Inspector tab. The toolbar The toolbar contains tools and shortcuts for opening other windows and various project settings and functions: Active project indicatorShow/hide Inspector Show/hide Info lineShow/hide OverviewOpen Mixer Open PoolAutomation mode Constrain delay compensation Project window tools Transport controls (Previous/Next Marker, Cycle, Stop, Play, and Record)
32 The Project window ÖIn addition to these, the toolbar can contain a number of other tools and shortcuts, not visible by default. How to set up the toolbar and specify which tools should be dis- played or hidden is described in the section “Using the Setup options” on page 471. The info line The info line shows information about the currently se- lected event or part in the Project window. You can edit al- most all values on the info line using regular value editing. Length and position values are displayed in the format cur- rently selected for the ruler (see “The ruler” on page 33). To hide or show the info line, click the Show Event Info Line button on the toolbar. The following elements can be selected for display and editing on the info line: Audio events Video events Automation curve points Transpose events Arranger events When several elements are selected If you have several elements selected, the info line will show information about the first item in the selection. The values will be shown in yellow to indicate that several ele- ments are selected.If you edit a value on the info line, the value change is applied to all selected elements, relatively to the current values. If you have two audio events selected and the first is one bar long and the other two bars long, the info line shows the length of the first event (one bar). If you now edit this value to 3 bars in the info line, the other event will be resized by the same amount – and will thus be 4 bars long. If you press [Ctrl]/[Command] and edit on the info line, the values will be absolute instead. In our example above, both events would be resized to 3 bars. Note that [Ctrl]/ [Command] is the default modifier key for this – you can change this in the Preferences (Editing–Tool Modifiers page, under the Info Line category). Editing Transpose and Velocity for MIDI parts When one or several MIDI parts are selected, the info line contains Transpose and Velocity fields. Adjusting the Transpose field transposes the selected parts in semitone steps. Note that this transposition doesn’t change the actual notes in the part – it’s just a “play parameter”, affecting the notes on playback. The transpo- sition you specify for a part on the info line is added to the transposition set for the whole track. For more information on transposing, see the chapter “The Transpose functions” on page 103. Adjusting the Velocity field shifts the velocity for the se- lected parts – the value you specify is added to the veloci- ties of the notes in the parts. Again, this velocity shift only affects the notes on playback, and again, the value you specify is added to the Vel.Shift. value set for the whole MIDI track in the Inspector. 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. Snap on/off Snap modeGrid pop-up menu Quantize valueColor pop-up menu Autoscroll and Suspend Autoscroll when EditingSnap to Zero Crossing Project Root Key
33 The Project window The ruler The ruler at the top of the event display shows the time- line. Initially, the Project window ruler uses the display for- mat specified in the Project Setup dialog (see “The Project Setup dialog” on page 34), as do all other rulers and position displays in the project. However, you can se- lect an independent display format for the ruler by clicking the arrow button to the right of it and selecting an option from the pop-up menu (you can also bring up this pop-up menu by right-clicking anywhere in the ruler). The selection you make here affects the ruler, the info line and tooltip position values (which appear when you drag an event in the Project window). You can also select independent formats for other rulers and position displays. To set the display format globally (for all windows), use the primary display format pop-up on the Transport panel, or hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and select a display for- mat in any ruler.If you use the “Timecode” or “User” options and the op- tion “Show Timecode Subframes” is activated in the Pre- ferences (Transport page), the frames will also display subframes. There are 80 subframes per frame. Using multiple rulers – ruler tracks (Cubase only) As described above, the Cubase Project window contains a main ruler at the top of the event display, displaying the timeline from left to right. If needed, you can have several rulers in the Project win- dow, by adding ruler tracks to the project. Each ruler track contains an additional ruler. To add a ruler track, select “Add Track” from the Project menu and from the submenu that appears, select “Ruler”. A ruler track showing an additional ruler is added to the Track list. A ruler track set to the display format “Seconds” You can add any number of ruler tracks to a project, and position them as needed by dragging them up or down in the Track list. Each of the rulers can show a separate dis- play format: To select a display format for a ruler track, click on its name in the Track list and select an option from the pop- up menu. Note that ruler tracks are completely independent from the main event display ruler, as well as rulers and position dis- plays in other windows. This means that: Each ruler track in a project can have its own display format. Ruler tracks are not affected by the display format setting in the Project Setup dialog (see “The Project Setup dialog” on page 34). Ruler tracks are not affected if you set the display format glo- bally with the primary time display in the Transport panel. ÖRuler tracks are affected by the option “Show Time- code Subframes” in the Preferences (Transport page, see above). Option Positions and lengths displayed as Bars+Beats Bars, beats, sixteenth notes and ticks. By default there are 120 ticks per sixteenth note but you can adjust this with the “MIDI Display Resolution” setting in the Prefer- ences (MIDI page). Seconds Hours, minutes, seconds and milliseconds. Timecode This format displays hours, minutes, seconds and frames. The number of frames per second (fps) is set in the Project Setup dialog (see “The Project Setup dialog” on page 34). You can choose between 24, 25, 29.97 and 30 fps or 29.97 and 30 dfps (“drop frame”). Samples Samples. User Hours, minutes, seconds and frames, with a user defin- able number of frames per second. You set the desired number of fps in the Preferences (Transport page). Time Linear When this is selected, the ruler will be linear relative to time. This means that if there are tempo changes on the tempo track, the distance between the bars will vary in Bars+Beats mode. Bars+Beats LinearWhen this is selected, the ruler will be linear relative to the meter position – bars and beats. This means that if there are tempo changes on the tempo track, there still will be the same distance between bars in Bars+Beats mode. If the ruler is set to a time-based mode, the dis- tance between seconds will vary depending on the tempo changes.
34 The Project window Operations Creating a new project You create a new project in the following way: 1.Select “New Project” from the File menu. A dialog appears, listing a number of project templates, including any custom templates you may have created (see “Save as Template” on page 457). 2.Select a template (or “Empty”) and click OK. A file dialog appears, allowing you to specify a location for the project folder. This will contain all files related to the project. 3.Select an existing folder or create a new one. Then click OK. A Project window opens. If you selected a template, the new project will be based on this template, and include the corresponding tracks, events and settings. The Project Setup dialog General settings for the project are made in the Project Setup dialog. This is opened by selecting “Project Setup…” from the Project menu. ÖIf the “Run Setup on Create New Project” option is ac- tivated in the Preferences dialog (General page), the Pro- ject Setup dialog will open automatically when you create a new project. The following settings are available in the Project Setup dialog: Setting Description Start The start time of the project. Allows you to have the project start at another time than zero. Also used for set- ting the sync start position when synchronizing Cubase to external devices (see “Setting up Cubase for external sync to timecode” on page 433). When you change this setting you will be asked whether you want to keep the project content at its timecode positions. “Yes” means that all events will stay at their original timecode positions – i.e. they will be moved in relation to the start of the project. “No” means that all events keep their position rel- ative to the project start. Length The length of the project. Frame Rate Used when synchronizing Cubase with external equip- ment. If Cubase is slave, this value is automatically set to the frame rate of the incoming sync signal. If Cubase is the master, this determines the frame rate of the sent sync signal. See “Setting the Frame Rate” on page 430. Display Format This is the global display format used for all rulers and position displays in the program, except ruler tracks (Cu- base only, see “Ruler tracks (Cubase only)” on page 31). However, you can make independent display format se- lections for the individual rulers and displays if you like. For descriptions of the different display format options, see “The ruler” on page 33. Display Offset Offsets the time positions displayed in the ruler etc., al- lowing you to compensate for the Start position setting. Typically, if you synchronize Cubase to an external source starting at a frame other than zero, you set the Start posi- tion to this value. However, if you still want the display in Cubase to start at zero, set the Display Offset to the same value. Bar Offset This works just like “Display Offset” described above, in that it offsets the time positions in the ruler by a number of bars, allowing you to compensate for the Start position setting. The difference is that Bar Offset is only used when the “Bars+Beats” display format is selected (see “The ruler” on page 33). Sample Rate The sample rate at which Cubase records and plays audio. Record Format/ File TypeWhen you record audio in Cubase, the files that are cre- ated will be of this resolution and file type. See “Selecting a recording file format” on page 69. Stereo Pan LawDecides whether panning should use power compensa- tion or not (see “About the “Stereo Pan Law” setting (au- dio channels only)” on page 121). !While most Project Setup settings can be changed at any time, you must select a sample rate once and for all when starting with a new project! All audio files must be of this sample rate to play back correctly.
35 The Project window Zoom and view options Zooming in the Project window is done according to the standard zoom techniques, with the following special notes: When you are using the Zoom tool (magnifying glass), the result depends on the option “Zoom Tool Standard Mode: Horizontal Zooming Only” in the Preferences (Edit- ing–Tools page). If this is activated and you drag a selection rectangle with the Zoom tool, the window will only be zoomed horizontally (track height will not change). If the option is off, the window will be zoomed both horizontally and verti- cally. When using the vertical zoom sliders, the tracks are scaled relatively. In other words, if you have made any individual track height adjustments (see below), the relative height differences are maintained. You find the following options are available on the Zoom submenu on the Edit menu: If the option “Zoom while Locating in Time Scale” is ac- tivated in the Preferences (Transport page), you can also zoom by clicking in the main ruler and dragging up or down with the mouse button pressed. Drag up to zoom out; drag down to zoom in. You can zoom the contents of parts and events verti- cally, using the waveform zoom slider in the top right cor- ner of the event display. This is useful when viewing quiet audio passages. If you activate the option Quick Zoom in the Preferences (Editing page), the contents of parts and events will not be continuously redrawn when you zoom manually. Instead, the contents are redrawn once you have stopped changing the zoom – activate this if screen redraws are slow on your system. Resizing tracks in the Track list You can change the height of an individual track by click- ing on its lower border in the Track list and dragging up or down. To change the height of all tracks simultaneously, hold down [Ctrl]/ [Command] and resize one of the tracks in this way. If “Snap Track Heights” is activated on the Track scale pop-up (see below), the track height will change in fixed increments when you resize it. You can also change the width of the Track list area, by dragging the border between the Track list and the event display. By default, the controls shown for tracks in the Track list will adapt to the track size. This means that when resizing a track’s height or width the controls will be placed where they best “fit in”. If you prefer to have the controls in fixed positions, you can deactivate the option “Wrap Controls” in the Track Controls settings dialog (see “Cus- tomizing track controls” on page 472). You can decide for each track type which controls should be shown in the Track list – see “Customizing track controls” on page 472. Option Description Zoom In Zooms in one step, centering on the project cursor. Zoom Out Zooms out one step, centering on the project cursor. Zoom Full Zooms out so that the whole project is visible. “The whole project” means the timeline from the project start to the length set in the Project Setup dialog (see above). Zoom to SelectionZooms in horizontally and vertically so that the current selection fills the screen. Zoom to Selec- tion (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 224). Zoom In Vertically Zooms in one step vertically. Zoom Out VerticallyZooms out one step vertically. Zoom In Tracks Zooms in on the selected track(s) one step vertically. Zoom Out Tracks Zooms out the selected track(s) one step vertically. Zoom Selected Tracks This zooms in vertically on the selected track(s) and minimizes the height of all other tracks. Undo/Redo ZoomThese options allow you to undo/redo the last zoom operation. !To get an approximate reading on the level of the au- dio events by viewing the waveforms, make sure this slider is all the way down. Otherwise, zoomed wave- forms may be mistaken for clipped audio. !This behavior is different when “Enlarge Selected Track” is activated on the Edit menu (see below).
36 The Project window You can use the Track scale pop-up (opened by clicking the arrow button above the vertical zoom control) to set the number of tracks to view in the current Project window. The track height will be adjusted to show only the number of tracks spec- ified on the pop-up menu. By selecting “Zoom N Tracks” from the pop- up you can manually set the number of tracks to fit in the current Project window. Tracks can also be divided vertically in lanes – see “Ed- iting in Lane Display mode” on page 50. 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. While this is the program behavior you will want in most cases, it may be a disadvantage when changing the track height you started out with for one or more tracks (i.e. their “original” height, before “Enlarge Selected Track” was ac- tivated). As soon as you try to resize a track, it is selected and automatically enlarged. Instead of turning off “Enlarge Selected Track”, resizing the desired track(s) and the acti- vating “Enlarge Selected Track” again, you can resize a track in the Track list without selecting it. Proceed as follows: 1.Move the mouse pointer over the lower border of the (unselected) track you want to resize. The mouse pointer turns into a divider symbol. 2.Hold down [Alt]/[Option] and drag the lower border of the track until it reaches the desired height. Now, when you select this track, (and “Enlarge Selected Track” is acti- vated), it will be enlarged. It will revert to the changed size, when you se- lect a different track. Zoom presets and Cycle markers The pop-up menu to the left of the horizontal zoom control allows you to select, create and organize zoom presets. These are useful if you want to toggle between different zoom settings (e.g. one where the whole project is dis- played in the project window and another with a high zoom factor for detailed editing). With this pop-up menu, you can also zoom in on the area between cycle markers in the project. The upper part of the menu lists the zoom presets: To store the current zoom setting as a preset, select Add from the pop-up menu. A dialog appears, allowing you to type in a name for the preset. To select and apply a preset, select it from the pop-up menu. The “Zoom Full” preset is always available. Selecting this option zooms out so that the whole project is visible. “The whole project” means the timeline from the project start to the length set in the Project Setup dialog (see “The Project Setup dialog” on page 34). If you want to delete a preset, select “Organize…” from the pop-up menu. In the dialog that appears, select the preset in the list and click the De- lete button. The preset is removed from the list. Click here… …to open the context menu.
37 The Project window If you want to rename a preset, select “Organize…” from the pop-up menu. In the dialog that appears, select the desired preset in the list and click the Rename button. A second dialog opens, allowing you to type in a new name for the preset. Click OK to close the dialogs. The middle part of the pop-up lists any cycle markers you have added in the project: If you select a cycle marker from this menu, the event display is zoomed in to encompass the marker area (see “Markers” on page 54). 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 54. The Zoom history Cubase maintains a history of recent zoom stages, allow- ing you to undo and redo zoom operations. This way you can zoom in several steps and then easily go back to the zoom stage at which you started. There are two ways to invoke Undo Zoom and Redo Zoom: Use the items on the Zoom submenu on the Edit menu. You can also assign key commands for these. Double-click with the Zoom tool (magnifying glass) to Undo Zoom. Press [Alt]/[Option] and double-click to Redo Zoom. Adjusting how parts and events are shown The Preferences on the File menu (the Cubase menu, un- der Mac OS X) contains several settings for customizing the display in the Project window. The Event Display page contains common settings for all track types:The Event Display–Audio page contains settings for audio events: The Event Display–MIDI page contains settings for MIDI parts: !Zoom presets are global for all projects, i.e. they are available in all projects you open or create. !Only the cycle markers you create in the current project are available on the menu. Option Description Colorize Event Back- groundDetermines whether the backgrounds or “contents” (waveforms, etc.) of parts and events will be colorized. See “Handling tracks” on page 38. Show Event NamesDetermines whether the names of parts and events should be shown in the Project window. Transparent EventsWhen this is activated, events and parts will be transpar- ent, showing the waveforms and MIDI events only. Show Data on Small Track HeightsIf this is activated, the contents of events and parts will be shown, even if the height of a track is very small. Option Description Interpolate Audio ImagesIf the option is deactivated, single sample values are drawn as “steps”. If the option is activated they are inter- polated to form “curves”. Wave Image StyleDetermines whether audio waveforms should be dis- played as solid images, frames or “inverted” images (solid+frame). This selection affects all waveform images in the Project window, Sample Editor and Audio Part Ed- itor. Note that the “Framed” and “Solid and Framed” styles are more demanding for the computer. If the system feels slower in these modes, please switch back to “Solid” wave image style. Show Event Volume Curves AlwaysIf this is activated the “volume curves” created with the volume and fade handles are always shown – if not, the curves are only shown for selected events. Fade Handles always on topWhen this option is activated, the fade handles stay at the top of the event, and vertical help lines indicate the exact end or start points of fades. Thick Fade LinesIf this option is activated, the fade lines and volume curves are thicker, increasing their visibility. Show WaveformsDetermines whether audio waveforms should be shown at all. Background Color ModulationWhen this is activated, the backgrounds of audio wave- forms are displayed in a different way, reflecting the wave- form dynamics. This is especially useful to get an overview when working with small track heights. Option Description Default Edit ActionDetermines which editor should be opened when you double-click a MIDI part or select it and press [Ctrl]/ [Command]-[E]: the Key, List, In-Place, Drum or Score Editor. Note that this setting is overridden for tracks with drum maps if the option “Edit as Drums when Drum Map is assigned” (see below) is activated. Part Data Mode Determines if and how events in MIDI parts should be shown in the Project window: as score notes, as drum notes or as lines. If “No Data” is selected, events will not be shown at all. Note that this setting is overridden for tracks with drum maps if the option “Edit as Drums when Drum Map is assigned” (see below) is activated. Option Description
38 The Project window The Event Display–Video page contains settings for video events: Zooming and navigating in the overview line By clicking the Show Overview button on the toolbar, an extra pane appears under the toolbar; the project overview line. Show Overview button In the overview line, events and parts on all tracks are dis- played as boxes. You can use the overview line to zoom in or out, and for navigating to other sections of the project. This is done by moving and resizing the track view rectan- gle in the overview line: The track view rectangle The track view rectangle indicates the section of the project currently displayed in the event display. You zoom in or out horizontally by resizing the rectangle. Resize it by dragging the edges of the rectangle. You can drag the track view rectangle to view other sections of the project. This can also be done by clicking anywhere in the upper part of the over- view – the track view rectangle will be moved to where you clicked. The number of tracks shown will not change. Handling tracks To add a track to the project, select “Add Track” from the Project menu and select a track type from the submenu that appears. The new track is added below the currently selected track in the Track list. The items on the “Add Track” submenu are also avail- able on the context menu. This is accessed by right-clicking in the Track list. If you select Audio, MIDI, Group Channel or Instrument from the Add Track submenu, a dialog opens, allowing you to insert several tracks in one go. Just enter the desired number of tracks in the value field. For audio and group channel tracks, the channel config- uration – mono, stereo or a surround configuration (Cu- base only) – can be set in the Configuration pop-up. The Browse Sounds option in the Add Track dialog is described in the chapter “Working with Track Presets” on page 288. In the Preferences (Editing–Project & Mixer page), you can find the option “Auto Track Color Mode”. This offers you several options for automatically assigning colors to tracks that are added to the project. Show ControllersGoverns whether non-note events (controllers, etc.) should be shown in MIDI parts in the Project window. Edit as Drums when Drum Map is assignedIf this is activated, parts on MIDI tracks with drum maps assigned will be shown with drum note symbols in the Project window. Also, the parts will automatically open in the Drum Editor when double-clicked (overriding the De- fault Edit Action setting above). Note Name StyleDetermines how MIDI note names (pitches) should be displayed in editors, etc. Option Description Show Video ThumbnailsWhen this is activated, thumbnail frames of the video contents are shown on the Video track. Video Cache SizeThis 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. Option Description
39 The Project window Once you have created tracks, you can manipulate and re- arrange them in various ways: To rename a track, double-click in the name field and type in a new name. If you hold down any modifier key when pressing [Return] to close the name field, all events on the track will get the name you entered. To select a track, click on it in the Track list. A selected track is indicated by a light gray color in the Track list. It is possible to select several tracks by pressing [Ctrl]/[Command] and clicking on them. [Shift]-click to select a continuous range of tracks. To move a track, click and drag it up or down in the list. To duplicate a track, complete with all contents and channel settings, right-click in the Track list and select “Duplicate tracks” from the context menu, or select “Dupli- cate tracks” from the Project menu. The duplicated track will appear below the original track. You can select a default color for a track by activating “Show Track Colors” above the Track list and selecting a color from the Color pop-up menu on the toolbar. This color will be used for all events on the track and will also be shown in the Mixer. You can override the default track color for individual events and parts by using the Color tool or the Color Selector pop-up menu. For more information, see “Applying track and event colors” on page 475. The option “Colorize Event Background” in the Preferences dialog (Event Display page) determines whether the backgrounds or waveforms of events will be colorized. To remove a track, right-click on it in the Track list and select “Remove Selected Tracks” from the context menu. You can also remove multiple selected tracks, by selecting “Remove Se- lected Tracks” either from the context menu or from the Project menu. Furthermore, you can remove all tracks not containing any events by se- lecting “Remove Empty Tracks” from the Project menu. To change the track height of an individual track, click on its lower border in the Track list and drag up or down, see “Resizing tracks in the Track list” on page 35.ÖNote that you can also automatically enlarge the se- lected track, see “The Enlarge Selected Track option” on page 36. Disabling audio tracks Audio tracks can be disabled by selecting “Disable Track” from the Track list context menu. Disabling a track is simi- lar to muting it (see “Muting events” on page 49), 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 63 for more information. Track folding On the Project menu you will find the Track Folding sub- menu, allowing you to quickly show, hide or invert what is displayed in the Project window event display. This en- ables you for example to divide the project into several parts (by creating several folder tracks for the different project elements) and showing/hiding their contents by selecting a menu function (or using a key command). You can also fold in automation tracks this way. The following options are available: Toggle Selected Track When you select this menu option, the fold state of the selected track is reversed, i.e. if the track was folded in (its elements (subtracks) were hid- den), it is now unfolded (all subtracks displayed) and vice versa. Fold Tracks Select this menu option to fold in all open folder tracks in the Project win- dow. Please note that the exact behavior of this function depends on the “Deep Track Folding” setting in the Preferences, see below. Unfold Tracks Select this menu option to unfold all folder tracks in the Project window. Please note that the exact behavior of this function depends on the “Deep Track Folding” setting in the Preferences, see below. Flip Fold States Select this menu option to flip the fold states of the tracks in the Project window. This means that all tracks that were folded in will be unfolded and all unfolded tracks will be folded in, respectively. ÖYou can assign key commands for these menu options in the Key Commands dialog (Project category). This track is selected.
40 The Project window In the Preferences (Editing–Project & Mixer page), you can find the following option affecting the track folding behavior: Deep Track Folding When this is activated, any folding settings you make in the Track Fold- ing submenu of the Project menu also affect the sub-elements of the tracks, i.e. if you fold in a folder track which contains 10 audio tracks 5 of which have several automation tracks open, all these audio tracks within the folder track will be folded in as well. Dividing the Track list (Cubase only) It is possible to divide the Track list into two parts. Both sections will have independent zoom and scroll controls (if needed), but resizing the window vertically will affect the lower section only (if possible). This is useful if you’re working with a video track along with multi-track audio for example. This way, you can place the video track in the upper Track list, letting you scroll the audio tracks sepa- rately in the lower Track list, referencing them against the video track. To divide the Track list, click the “Divide Track List” but- ton in the top right corner of the Track list. To revert to a single Track list, click the button again. When the Track list is divided into two parts, the following applies: If you add tracks from the Add Track submenu of the Project menu, Video tracks, Marker tracks and Arranger tracks will automatically be placed in the upper part of the Track list. If the Track list already contains tracks of the type Video, Marker or Arran- ger, these will automatically be moved to the upper part when you divide the Track list. All other types of tracks will be placed in the lower part. If you add tracks from the context menu invoked by right-clicking in the Track list, tracks will be added to the part of the Track list in which you click. You can move any type of track from the lower Track list to the upper and vice versa by right-clicking it in the Track list and selecting “Toggle Track List” from the context menu.You can resize the upper part by clicking and dragging the divider between the Track list sections. Switching between musical and linear time base Tracks can be either musical (tempo) or linear (time) based. On a track using linear time base, the events will be po- sitioned on specific time positions – changing the play- back tempo will not affect the time position of events. On a track using musical time base, the positions of events are represented as meter values (bars, beats, 1/16th notes and ticks, with 120 ticks per 1/16th note). If you change the playback tempo, the events will play back at an earlier or later time. In the Preferences (Editing page), you can find the op- tion “Default Track Time Type” (Cubase only). This allows you to specify the default track time type for new tracks (Audio, Group/FX, MIDI and Marker tracks). When you change this setting, all new tracks will use the selected time type. You can choose between “Mu- sical”, “Time Linear” and “Follow Transport Main Display”. Selecting “Mu- sical” will cause all added tracks to be set to musical time type. When you select “Time Linear”, all new tracks will use linear time base. The third op- tion uses the primary time format setting on the Transport panel. When this is set to “Bars+Beats”, tracks with musical time base will be added. When this is set to any of the other options (Seconds, Timecode, Sam- ples, etc.), all new tracks will use linear time base. Whether to use musical or linear time base depends on the type of project and recording situation. You can always change this setting individually for each track, by clicking the musical/linear time base button in the Inspector or Track list. Musical time base is indicated by a note symbol, while linear time base is indicated by a clock symbol.