Steinberg Cubase Le 4 Manual
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Revision for Cubase LE and Quality Control: Cristina Bachmann, Heiko Bischoff, Sabine Pfeifer The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. The software described by this document is subject to a License Agreement and may not be copied to other media except as specifically allowed in the License Agreement. No part of this publica- tion may be copied, reproduced or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. All product and company names are ™ or ® trademarks of their respective owners. Windows XP is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. The Mac logo is a trademark used under license. Macintosh and Power Macintosh are registered trademarks. © Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, 2007. All rights reserved.
4 Table of Contents 7About this manual 8Welcome! 9VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses 10About this chapter 10Setting up busses 12Using the busses 13About monitoring 14The Project window 15Background 16Window Overview 21Operations 37Options 39Playback and the Transport panel 40Background 41Operations 42Options and Settings 44Recording 45Background 45Basic recording methods 47Audio recording specifics 50MIDI recording specifics 55Options and Settings 57Recovery of audio recordings after system failure 58Fades and crossfades 59Creating fades 60The Fade dialogs 62Creating crossfades 63The Crossfade dialog 64Auto Fades and Crossfades 66Folder tracks 67About folder tracks 67Handling folder tracks 68Working with folder parts 70Using markers 71About markers 71The Marker window 72Using the Marker track 74Marker key commands 75The mixer 76About this chapter 76Overview 76Configuring the mixer 79The audio-related channel strips 80The MIDI channel strips 80The common panel 80The output channels 80Basic mixing procedures 83Audio specific procedures 87MIDI specific procedures 88Utilities 90Automation 91Background 91What can be automated? 92Automation track operations 94Using Write/Read automation 96Working with automation curves 98Tips and common methods 99Options and Settings 100Audio processing and functions 101Background 101Audio processing 105Freeze Edits 106The Sample Editor 107Background 107Opening the Sample Editor 107Window overview 109Operations 112Options and settings 113The Audio Part Editor 114Background 114Opening the Audio Part Editor 114Window overview 116Operations 117Common methods 117Options and Settings 118Audio warp realtime processing 119Background 119Determining the tempo of an audio loop and activating Musical mode 121Realtime pitch shifting of audio events 121Freezing the realtime processing
5 Table of Contents 122Working with hitpoints and slices 123Background 123Using hitpoints 124Editing hitpoints 127About Q-points 127Creating slices 128Other hitpoint functions 129The Pool 130Background 130Window Overview 132Operations 141VST Instruments and Instrument tracks 142Introduction 142Activating and using VST Instruments 143Editing an instrument track/channel 143Using VST presets 145Exporting Instrument tracks 145About latency 145Constrain Delay Compensation 145Automating a VST Instrument 146MIDI realtime parameters and effects 147Introduction 147The Inspector – General handling 147Basic track settings 148MIDI Modifiers 150The MIDI Device Manager 154MIDI processing and quantizing 155Introduction 155The Quantizing functions 160Permanent settings with Freeze MIDI Modifiers 160Dissolve Part 161Other MIDI functions 165The MIDI editors 166About editing MIDI 166Opening a MIDI editor 168The Key Editor – Overview 170Key Editor operations 182The Drum Editor – Overview 183Drum Editor operations 185Working with drum maps 188Using drum name lists 189The List Editor – Overview 190List Editor operations 193The Score Editor – Overview 194Score Editor operations 201Working with System Exclusive messages 202Introduction 202Bulk dumps 203Recording System Exclusive parameter changes 203Editing System Exclusive messages 205Working with the Tempo track 206Background 206The Tempo Track Editor – Overview 207Operations 210Options and settings 211Export Audio Mixdown 212Introduction 212Mixing down to an audio file 213The available file formats 216Synchronization 217Background 217Synchronization signals 218Synchronizing the transport vs. synchronizing audio 219Making basic settings and connections 220Synchronization settings 223Application options 224Working with VST System Link 224Preparations 227Activating VST System Link 230Application examples
6 Table of Contents 231Video 232Background 232Before you start 233Operations 236File handling 237Working with Projects 239Startup Options 240Revert 240Importing audio 241Exporting and importing MIDI files 243Customizing 244Background 244The Setup dialogs 245Appearance 245Applying track and event colors 248Where are the settings stored? 249Key commands 250Background 250Setting up key commands 253Setting up tool modifier keys 253The default key commands 257Index
8 About this manual Welcome! This is the Operation Manual for Steinberg’s Cubase LE 4. Here you will find detailed information about all the features and functions in the program. About the program versions The documentation covers two different operating sys- tems or “platforms”; Windows and Mac OS X. Some features and settings described in the documenta- tion are specific to one of the platforms, Windows or Mac OS X. This is clearly stated in the applicable cases. In other words: ÖIf nothing else is said, all descriptions and procedures in the documentation are valid under Windows and Mac OS X. The screenshots are taken from the Windows version. Key command conventions Many of the default key commands in Cubase LE use modifier keys, some of which are different depending on the operating system. For example, the default key com- mand for Undo is [Ctrl]+[Z] under Windows and [Com- mand]+[Z] under Mac OS X. When key commands with modifier keys are described in this manual, they are shown with the Windows modifier key first, in the following way: [Win modifier key]/[Mac modifier key]+[key] For example, [Ctrl]/[Command]+[Z] means “press [Ctrl] under Windows or [Command] under Mac OS X, then press [Z]”. Similarly, [Alt]/[Option]+[X] means “press [Alt] under Win- dows or [Option] under Mac OS X, then press [X]”. ÖPlease note that this manual often refers to right-click- ing, e.g. to open context menus, etc. If you are using a Mac with a single-button mouse, hold down [Ctrl] and click.
2 VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses
10 VST Connections: Setting up input and output busses About this chapter Cubase LE uses a system of input and output busses to transfer audio between the program and the audio hard- ware. Input busses let you route audio from the inputs on your audio hardware into the program. This means that when you record audio, you will always do this through one or several input busses. Output busses let you route audio from the program to the outputs on your audio hardware. When you play back audio, you will always do this through one or several output busses. As you can see, the input and output busses are vital when you work with Cubase LE. This is why you find this chapter at the beginning of the Operation Manual – once you understand the bus system and set up the busses properly, it will be easy to go on with recording, playing back and mixing. Setting up busses Strategies In Cubase LE, you can create up to 8 stereo busses or up to 16 mono busses, respectively. ÖThe bus configuration is saved with the projects – therefore it’s a good idea to add and set up the busses you need and save these in a template project (see “Save as Template” on page 238). When you start working on new projects, you start from this template. That way you get your standard bus configuration without having to make new bus settings for each new project. If you need to work with different bus configurations in different projects, you can either create several dif- ferent templates or store your configurations as presets (see “Other bus operations” on page 12). The templates can of course also contain other settings that you regularly use – sample rate, record format, a basic track layout, etc. Input busses Most likely you need at least one stereo input bus assigned to an analog input pair. This will let you record stereo material. If you want to be able to record in stereo from other analog input pairs as well, you could add stereo input busses for these, too. Although you can record mono tracks from one side of a ste- reo input, it may be a good idea to add a dedicated mono in- put bus. This could be assigned to an analog input to which you have connected a dedicated microphone pre-amp for ex- ample. Again, you can have several different mono busses. You probably want a dedicated stereo input bus assigned to the digital stereo input, for digital transfers. Output busses You probably want one or several stereo output busses for monitoring and listening to stereo mixes. For digital transfers, you need a stereo bus assigned to the digital stereo output as well. Preparations Before you set up busses, you should name the inputs and outputs on your audio hardware. The reason for this is compatibility – it makes it easier to transfer projects between different computers and setups. For example, if you move your project to another studio, the audio hardware may be of a different model. But if both you and the other studio owner have given your in- puts and outputs names according to the setup rather than names based on the audio hardware model, Cubase LE will automatically find the correct inputs and outputs for your busses and you will be able to play and record without having to change the settings. Use the Device Setup dialog to assign names to the in- puts and outputs of your audio hardware: 1.Open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu. 2.Make sure that the correct driver for your audio hard- ware is selected on the VST Audio System page, so that the audio card is listed in the Devices list. 3.Select your audio card in the list. The available input and output ports on your audio hardware are listed on the right. 4.To rename a port, click its name in the “Show as” col- umn and enter a new name. •If needed, you can also disable ports by deactivating them in the “Visible” column. Disabled ports won’t show up in the VST Connections window when you are making bus settings. If you attempt to disable a port that is used by a bus, you will be asked whether this is really what you want – note that this will remove the port from the bus!