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Steinberg Nuendo 4 Operation Manual

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    							81
    Recording
    Recording different types of MIDI messages
    Notes
    When you press and release a key on your synth or other 
    MIDI keyboard, a Note On (key down) and a Note Off (key 
    up) message are sent out. The MIDI note message also 
    contains the information which MIDI channel was used. 
    Normally, this information is overridden by the MIDI chan-
    nel setting for the track, but if you set the track to MIDI 
    channel “Any”, the notes will be played back on their orig-
    inal channels.
    Continuous messages
    Pitch bend, aftertouch and controllers (like modulation 
    wheel, sustain pedal, volume etc.) are considered as MIDI 
    continuous events (as opposed to the momentary key down 
    and key up messages). If you move the Pitch bend wheel on 
    your synthesizer while recording, this movement is re-
    corded together with the key (Note On and Note Off mes-
    sages), just as you’d expect. But the continuous messages 
    can also be recorded after the notes have been recorded 
    (or even before). They can also be recorded on their own 
    tracks, separately from the notes to which they belong. 
    Say, for instance, that you record one or several bass 
    parts on track 2. If you now set another track, like track 55, 
    to the same output and MIDI channel as track 2, you can 
    make a separate recording of just pitch bends for the bass 
    parts on track 55. This means that you activate recording 
    as usual and only move the pitch bend wheel during the 
    take. As long as the two tracks are set to the same output 
    and MIDI channel, it will appear to the MIDI instrument as 
    if the two recordings were made at the same time.
    Program Change messages
    Normally, when you switch from one program to another 
    on your keyboard (or whatever you use to record), a num-
    ber corresponding to that program is sent out via MIDI as 
    a Program Change message. These can be recorded on 
    the fly with the music, recorded afterwards on a separate 
    track, or manually entered in the Key or List Editors. 
    System Exclusive messages
    System Exclusive (SysEx) is a special type of MIDI mes-
    sage used to send data that only makes sense to a unit of 
    a certain make and type. SysEx can be used to transmit a 
    list of the numbers that make up the settings of one or 
    more sounds in a synth. For more about viewing and edit-
    ing SysEx messages, see the chapter “Working with Sys-
    tem Exclusive messages” on page 410.
    The Reset function
    The Reset function on the MIDI menu sends out note-off 
    messages and resets controllers on all MIDI channels. 
    This is sometimes necessary if you experience hanging 
    notes, constant vibrato, etc.
    Nuendo can also automatically perform a MIDI reset on 
    stop.
    You can turn this function on or off in the Preferences (MIDI page).
    Also in the Preferences (MIDI page), you can find the 
    option “Insert Reset Events after Record”.
    This is a very handy function for MIDI recording. At the end of each re-
    corded part, a Reset event will be inserted, resetting controller data such 
    as Sustain, Aftertouch, Pitchbend, Modulation, Breath Control, etc. This 
    is useful if a MIDI part is recorded and e.g. the Sustain pedal is still held 
    after stopping recording. Usually, this would cause all following parts to 
    be played with Sustain, as the Pedal Off command was not recorded. 
    This can be prevented by activating “Insert Reset Events after Record”.
    Retrospective Record
    This feature allows you to capture any MIDI notes you play 
    in Stop mode or during playback and turn them into a MIDI 
    part “after the fact”. This is possible due to the fact that 
    Nuendo can capture MIDI input in buffer memory, even 
    when not recording.
    Proceed as follows:
    1.Enable the Retrospective Record option in the Prefer-
    ences (Record-MIDI page).
    This activates the buffering of MIDI input, making Retrospective Record 
    possible.
    2.Make sure a MIDI track is record-enabled.
    3.When you have played some MIDI material you want 
    to capture (either in Stop mode or during playback), select 
    Retrospective Record from the Transport menu (or use 
    the key command, by default [Shift]-[Pad*]).
    !You can decide exactly which event types should be 
    recorded by using the MIDI filters – see “Filtering 
    MIDI” on page 82. 
    						
    							82
    Recording
    The content of the MIDI buffer (i.e. what you just played) is 
    turned into a MIDI part on the record enabled track. The 
    part will appear where the project cursor was when you 
    started playing – this means that if you played along dur-
    ing playback, the captured notes will end up exactly where 
    you played them in relation to the project.
    The Retrospective Record Buffer Size setting in the 
    Preferences (Record-MIDI page) determines how much 
    data can be captured.
    MIDI Preferences
    There are several other options and settings in the Prefer-
    ences that affect MIDI recording and playback:
    MIDI page
    Length Adjustment
    Adjusts the length of notes so that there is always a short time between 
    the end of one note and the start of another (of the same pitch and on the 
    same MIDI channel). The time is set in ticks. By default there are 120 
    ticks per 1/16 note, but you can adjust this with the MIDI Display Reso-
    lution setting on the same page.
    Record-MIDI page
    Snap MIDI Parts to Bars
    When this is activated, recorded MIDI parts will automatically be length-
    ened to start and end at whole bar positions. If you are working in a 
    Bars+Beats-based context, this can make editing (moving, duplicating, 
    repeating, etc.) easier.
    Solo Record in MIDI Editors
    If this is activated and you open a part for editing in a MIDI editor, its track 
    is automatically record-enabled. Furthermore, Record Enable is deacti-
    vated for all other MIDI tracks until you close the editor again.
    This makes it easier to record MIDI data when you’re editing a part – you 
    will always be sure the recorded data ends up in the edited part and not 
    on any other track.
    MIDI Record Catch Range in ms
    When you record starting at the left locator, this setting helps you make 
    sure the very start of the recording is included. A very annoying scenario is 
    when you have recorded a perfect MIDI take, only to find out that the very 
    first note wasn’t included – because you started playing a little bit too early! 
    If you raise the Record Catch Range, Nuendo will catch the events played 
    just before the recording start point, eliminating this problem. 
    For a description of the other options, click the Help but-
    ton in the Preferences.
    Filtering MIDI
    The MIDI–MIDI Filter page in the Preferences allows you 
    to prevent certain MIDI messages from being recorded 
    and/or “thruput” (echoed by the MIDI Thru function).
    The dialog is divided into four sections:
    Section Description
    Record Activating any of these options prevents that type of MIDI 
    message from being recorded. It will, however, be thru-
    put, and if already recorded, it will play back normally.
    Thru Activating any of these options prevents that type of MIDI 
    message from being thruput. It will, however, be re-
    corded and played back normally.
    Channels If you activate a channel button, no MIDI messages on 
    that MIDI channel will be recorded or thruput. Already re-
    corded messages will, however, be played back normally.
    Controller  Allows you to prevent certain MIDI controller types from 
    being recorded or thruput.
    To filter out a controller type, select it from the list at the 
    top of the Controller section and click “Add”. It will ap-
    pear on the list below.
    To remove a controller type from the list (allow it to be re-
    corded and thruput), select it in the lower list and click 
    “Remove”. 
    						
    							83
    Recording
    Options and Settings
    Recording-related Transport Preferences
    A couple of settings in the Preferences (Transport page) 
    are relevant for recording. Set these according to your 
    preferred method of work:
    Deactivate Punch In on Stop
    If this is activated, punch in on the Transport panel is auto-
    matically deactivated whenever you enter Stop mode.
    Stop after Automatic Punch Out
    If this is activated, playback will automatically stop after 
    automatic punch out (when the project cursor reaches the 
    right locator and punch out is activated on the Transport 
    panel). If the postroll value on the Transport panel is set to 
    a value other than zero, playback will continue for the set 
    time before stopping (see below).
    About Preroll and Postroll
    The preroll and postroll value fields (below the left/right 
    locator fields) on the Transport panel have the following 
    functionality:
    By setting a preroll value, you instruct Nuendo to “roll 
    back” a short section whenever playback is activated.
    This applies whenever you start playback, but is perhaps most relevant 
    when recording from the left locator (punch in activated on the Transport 
    panel) as described below.
    By setting a postroll value, you instruct Nuendo to play 
    back a short section after automatic punch out before 
    stopping.
    This is only relevant when punch out is activated on the Transport panel 
    and “Stop after Automatic Punch Out” is activated in the Preferences 
    (Transport page).
    To turn preroll or postroll on or off, click the correspond-
    ing button on the Transport panel (next to the pre/postroll 
    value) or use the “Use Preroll” and “Use Postroll” options 
    on the Transport menu.An example:
    1.Set the locators to where you want to start and end re-
    cording.
    2.Activate Punch in and Punch out on the Transport 
    panel.
    3.Activate the option “Stop after Automatic Punch Out” 
    in the Preferences (Transport page).
    4.Set suitable preroll and postroll times by clicking in the 
    corresponding fields on the Transport panel and typing in 
    time values.
    5.Activate preroll and postroll by clicking the buttons 
    next to the preroll and postroll times so that they light up.
    6.Activate recording.
    The project cursor “rolls back” by the time specified in the preroll field 
    and playback starts. When the cursor reaches the left locator, recording 
    is automatically activated. When the cursor reaches the right locator, re-
    cording is deactivated, but playback continues for the time set in the 
    postroll field before stopping.
    Using the metronome
    The metronome can output a click that can be used as a 
    timing reference. The two parameters that govern the tim-
    ing of the metronome are tempo and time signature, and 
    these are edited in the Tempo Track window (see “Editing 
    the tempo curve” on page 417).
    You can use the metronome for a click during recording 
    and/or playback or for a precount (count-in) that will be 
    heard when you start recording from Stop mode. Click 
    and precount are activated separately:
    To activate the metronome, click the Click button on the 
    Transport panel.
    You can also activate the “Metronome On” option on the Transport menu 
    or use the corresponding key command (by default [C]).
    To activate the precount, click the Precount button on 
    the Transport panel.
    You can also activate the “Precount On” option on the Transport menu 
    or set up a key command for this.
    Preroll value field and on/
    off switch.
    Postroll value field and 
    on/off switch.
    Click on/off Precount on/off 
    						
    							84
    Recording
    Metronome settings
    You make settings for the metronome in the Metronome 
    Setup dialog, opened from the Transport menu.
    The metronome can use either an audio click played back 
    via the audio hardware, send MIDI data to a connected 
    device which will play back the click or do both. 
    The following metronome settings can be made in the dia-
    log:
    Metronome 
    OptionsDescription
    Metronome in 
    Record / PlayAllows you to specify whether the metronome should be 
    heard during playback, recording or both (when Click is 
    activated on the Transport panel).
    Use 
    Count BaseIf this option is activated, a field appears to the right 
    where you specify the “rhythm” of the metronome. Nor-
    mally, the metronome plays one click per beat, but setting 
    this to e.g. “1/8” gives you eighth notes – two clicks per 
    beat. It’s also possible to create unusual metronome 
    rhythms such as triplets etc.
    Precount 
    OptionsDescription
    Precount Bars Sets the number of bars the metronome will count in be-
    fore it starts recording if precount is activated on the 
    Transport panel.
    Use Time Signa-
    ture at Record 
    Start TimeWhen this is activated, the precount will automatically 
    use the time signature and tempo set at the position 
    where you start recording.
    Use Time 
    Signature at 
    Project TimeWhen this is activated, the precount will be in the time 
    signature set in the Tempo track. Furthermore, any tempo 
    changes in the Tempo track during the precount will be 
    applied.
    Use Signature… This lets you set a time signature for the precount. In this 
    mode, tempo changes in the Tempo track won’t affect 
    the precount.
    MIDI Click Description
    Activate MIDI 
    ClickSelects whether or not the metronome will sound via 
    MIDI.
    MIDI Port/
    ChannelThis is where you select a MIDI output and channel for 
    the metronome click.
    Hi Note/
    VelocitySets the MIDI note number and velocity value for the 
    “high note” (the first beat in a bar). 
    Lo Note/
    VelocitySets the MIDI note number and velocity for the “low 
    notes” (the other beats). 
    Audio Click Description
    Activate Audio 
    ClickSelects whether or not the metronome will sound via the 
    audio hardware.
    Beeps When this is selected, the audio clicks will be beeps gen-
    erated by the program. Adjust the pitch and level of the 
    beeps for the “Hi” (first) beat and “Lo” (other) beats using 
    the sliders below.
    Sounds When this is selected, you can click in the “Sound” fields 
    below to load any audio files for use as the “Hi” and “Lo” 
    metronome sounds. The sliders set the level of the click. Precount 
    OptionsDescription 
    						
    							85
    Recording
    Recovery of audio recordings after 
    system failure
    Normally, when a computer crashes, all changes made to 
    your current project since you last saved it will be lost. Usu-
    ally, there is no quick and easy way to recover your work.
    With Nuendo, when your system crashes while you are re-
    cording (because of a power cut or other mishap), you will 
    find that your recording is still available, from the moment 
    when you started recording to the time when your com-
    puter crashed.
    When you experience a computer crash during a record-
    ing, simply relaunch the system and check the project 
    record folder (by default this is the Audio subfolder inside 
    the project folder). It should contain the audio file you 
    were recording at the time of the crash.
    !Please note: This feature does not constitute an 
    “overall” guarantee by Steinberg. While the program 
    itself was improved in such a way that audio record-
    ings can be recovered after a system failure, it is al-
    ways possible that a computer crash, power cut, etc. 
    might have damaged another component of the 
    computer, making it impossible to save or recover 
    any of the data.
    !Warning: Please do not try to actively bring about 
    this kind of situation to test this feature. Although the 
    internal program processes have been improved to 
    cope with such situations, Steinberg cannot guaran-
    tee that other parts of the computer are not damaged 
    as a consequence. 
    						
    							6
    Fades, crossfades and envelopes 
    						
    							87
    Fades, crossfades and envelopes
    Creating fades
    There are two main types of fade-ins and fade-outs in au-
    dio events in Nuendo: fades created by using the fade 
    handles (see below) and fades created by processing 
    (see “Fades created by processing” on page 89).
    Fades created by using the fade handles
    Selected audio events have blue handles in the upper left 
    and right corners. These can be dragged to create a fade-
    in or fade-out respectively.
    Creating a fade-in. The fade is automatically reflected in the shape of 
    the event’s waveform, giving you a visual feedback of the result when 
    you drag the fade handle. 
    Fades created with the handles are not applied to the au-
    dio clip as such but calculated in real time during play-
    back. This means that several events referring to the same 
    audio clip can have different fade curves. It also means 
    that having a huge number of fades may demand a lot of 
    processor power.
    If you select multiple events and drag the fade handles 
    on one of them, the same fade will be applied to all se-
    lected events.
    A fade can be edited in the Fade dialog, as described 
    on the following pages. 
    You open the dialog by double-clicking in the area above the fade curve, 
    or by selecting the event and selecting “Open Fade Editor(s)” from the 
    Audio menu (note that this will open two dialogs if the event has both 
    fade-in and fade-out curves).
    If you adjust the shape of the fade curve in the Fade dialog, this shape 
    will be maintained when you later adjust the length of a fade.
    You can make the fade longer or shorter at any time, by 
    dragging the handle.
    You can actually do this even without selecting the event first, i.e. without 
    visible handles. Just move the mouse pointer along the fade curve until 
    the cursor turns into a bidirectional arrow, then click and drag.
    If the option “Show Event Volume Curves Always” is ac-
    tivated in the Preferences dialog (Event Display–Audio 
    page), the fade curves will be shown in all events, regard-
    less of whether they are selected or not.
    If the option is deactivated, the fade curves are shown in selected events 
    only.
    If the option “Fade Handles always on Top” is activated 
    in the Preferences dialog (Event Display-Audio page), the 
    fade handles stay at the top of the event, and vertical help 
    lines indicate the exact end or start points of fades.
    This is useful in situations where you want the event volume to be very 
    low, as this option allows you to still see the fade handles.
    If the option “Thick Fade Lines” is activated in the Pref-
    erences dialog (Event Display-Audio page), the fade lines 
    and volume curve are thicker, increasing their visibility.
    Fade handles on top of the event and thicker fade and volume lines al-
    low you to edit and view fades even in situations where event volume is 
    very low.
    When the option “Use Mouse Wheel for Event volume 
    and Fades” is activated in the Preferences dialog (Edit-
    ing–Audio page), you can use the mouse wheel to move 
    the volume curve up or down. When you hold down [Shift] 
    while moving the mouse wheel, this will change the fade 
    curves. This is useful in situations where the fade handles 
    are not visible (e. g. because of a very high zoom factor).
    When you position the mouse pointer somewhere in the left half of the 
    event, the fade in end point is moved. When the mouse pointer is in the 
    right half of the event, the fade out start point will move.
    ÖYou can set up key commands for changing the event 
    volume curve and any fade curves, if you don’t want to use 
    the mouse for this.
    You will find these commands in the Key Commands dialog, in the Audio 
    category. See “Key commands” on page 517.
    ÖAs an alternative to dragging the fade handles, you 
    can use the items “Fade In to Cursor” and “Fade Out to 
    Cursor” on the Audio menu to create fades.
    Position the project cursor on an audio event where you want a fade in to 
    end or a fade out to begin, and select the appropriate option from the 
    Audio menu. A fade will then be created, ranging from the event’s start or 
    end to the position of the cursor. 
    						
    							88
    Fades, crossfades and envelopes
    Creating and adjusting fades with the Range Selection 
    tool
    “Handle-type” fades can also be created and adjusted 
    with the Range Selection tool, in the following way:
    1.Select a section of the audio event with the Range Se-
    lection tool.
    The result depends on your selection, in the following way:
     If you select a range from the beginning of the event, a fade-in 
    will be created within the range. 
     If you select a range that reaches the end of an event, a fade-
    out will be created in the range. 
     If you select a range encompassing a middle section of the 
    event, but not reaching neither the start nor the end, both a 
    fade-in and a fade-out will be created outside of the selected 
    range. In other words, the fade-in will cover the area from the 
    beginning of the event to the beginning of the selected range, 
    and the fade-out will cover the area from the end of the se-
    lected range to the end of the event.
    2.Pull down the Audio menu and select “Adjust Fades to 
    Range”.
    The fade areas are adjusted according to the selection range.
    Applying Default Fades
    You can also create fades by using the commands “Apply 
    Standard Fade In” and “Apply Standard Fade Out” from 
    the Audio menu.
    1.Select one or more audio events in the project window.
    2.From the Audio menu, choose either “Apply Standard 
    Fade In” or “Apply Standard Fade Out”.
    A fade will be created that is the same length and shape as the Default 
    fade (see “As Default button” on page 90 for more information on how to 
    define Default fades).
    About the volume handle
    A selected audio event also has a blue handle in the top 
    middle. This is the volume handle, and it provides a quick 
    way of changing the volume of an event, directly in the 
    Project window. It is linked directly with the volume setting 
    on the info line, that is, dragging the volume handle also 
    changes the value on the info line.
    Removing fades
    To remove the fades for an event, select the event and se-
    lect “Remove Fades” from the Audio menu.
    You can also use the Range Selection tool to remove 
    fades and crossfades within the selected range:
    1.Drag the Range Selection tool in the Project window, 
    so that the selection encloses all of the fades and cross-
    fades you wish to remove.
    2.Select “Remove Fades” from the Audio menu.
    !You can select multiple audio events on separate 
    tracks with the Range Selection tool, and apply the 
    fade to all of them simultaneously.
    Drag the Volume handle 
    up or down to change 
    the volume of the event. The volume change is displayed 
    numerically in the info line.
    The event waveform reflects the volume change. 
    						
    							89
    Fades, crossfades and envelopes
    Fades created by processing
    If you have selected an audio event or a section of an au-
    dio event (using the Range Selection tool), you can apply 
    a fade-in or fade-out to the selection by using the “Fade 
    In” or “Fade Out” functions on the Process submenu on 
    the Audio menu. These functions open the corresponding 
    Fade dialog, allowing you to specify a fade curve.
    Fades created this way are applied to the audio clip rather 
    than to the event. Please note the following:
     If you later create new events that refer to the same clip, these 
    will have the same fades.
     You can remove or modify the fades at any time using the Of-
    fline Process History (see “The Offline Process History dialog” 
    on page 251).
    If other events refer to the same audio clip, you will be 
    asked whether you want the processing to be applied to 
    these events or not.
     Continue will apply the processing to all events that refer to 
    the audio clip.
     New Version will create a separate, new version of the audio 
    clip for the selected event.
     You can also activate “Do not show this message again”. Re-
    gardless of whether you then choose “Continue” or “New Ver-
    sion”, any further processing will conform to the option you 
    select.
    The Fade dialogs
    The Fade dialogs appear when you edit an existing fade or 
    use the “Fade In”/”Fade Out” functions on the Process 
    submenu on the Audio menu. The picture below shows 
    the Fade In dialog; the Fade Out dialog has identical set-
    tings and features.
    If you open the Fade dialog(s) with several events se-
    lected, you can adjust the fade curves for all these events 
    at the same time.
    This is useful if you want to apply the same type of fade-in to more than 
    one event, etc.
    Curve Kind
    These determine whether the fade curve should consist of 
    spline curve segments (left button), damped spline seg-
    ments (middle button) or linear segments (right button).
    Fade display
    Shows the shape of the fade curve. The resulting wave-
    form shape is shown in dark gray, with the current wave-
    form shape in light gray.
    You can click on the curve to add points, and click and 
    drag existing points to change the shape. To remove a 
    point from the curve, drag it outside the display.
    Curve shape buttons
    These buttons give you quick access to some common 
    curve shapes.
    !Note that the length of the fade area is determined 
    by your selection. In other words, you specify the 
    length of the fade before you enter the Fade dialog. 
    !Also note that you can select multiple events and ap-
    ply the same processing to all of them simultaneously.
    !You can change this setting at any time in the Prefer-
    ences dialog (Editing–Audio page), under “On Pro-
    cessing Shared Clips”. 
    						
    							90
    Fades, crossfades and envelopes
    Restore button
    The Restore button (to the right above the fade display) is 
    only available when editing fades made by dragging the 
    fade handles. Click this to cancel any changes you have 
    made since opening the dialog.
    Fade Length Value
    The Fade Length Value can be used to enter fade lengths 
    numerically. The format of values displayed here are deter-
    mined by the Primary Time Display in the Transport Panel.
    When you activate the “Apply Length” option, the value 
    entered in the Fade Length value field will be used when 
    clicking “Apply” or “OK”. This setting is deactivated by de-
    fault.
    Presets
    If you have set up a fade-in or fade-out curve that you may 
    want to apply to other events or clips, you can store it as a 
    preset by clicking the Store button.
    To apply a stored preset, select it from the pop-up menu. 
    To rename the selected preset, double-click on the name 
    and type a new one. 
    To remove a stored preset, select it from the pop-up 
    menu and click Remove.
    As Default button
    The “As Default…” button is only available when editing 
    fades made by dragging the fade handles. Click this to 
    store the current settings as default fade. This shape will 
    be used whenever you create new fades by dragging 
    event handles. Both the shape and length will be used 
    when you create fades using the “Apply Standard Fade…” 
    commands from the Audio menu.
    Preview, Apply and Process
    The buttons in the bottom row are different depending on 
    whether you are editing a fade made with the fade handles 
    or applying a fade using processing:
    The Edit Fade dialogs have the following buttons:
    The Process Fade dialogs have the following buttons:
    !When you set the current Fade as the Default fade, 
    the length value is included as part of the default set-
    tings.
    !Stored fade-in presets will only appear in the Fade In 
    dialog, and fade-out presets will only appear in the 
    Fade Out dialog.
    Button Function
    OK Applies the set fade curve to the event, and closes the 
    dialog.
    Cancel Closes the dialog.
    Apply Applies the set fade curve to the event, without closing 
    the dialog.
    Button Function
    Preview Plays back the fade area. Playback will repeat until you 
    click the button again (the button is labeled “Stop” during 
    playback).
    Process Applies the set fade curve to the clip, and closes the 
    dialog.
    Cancel Closes the dialog without applying any fade.
    The Edit Fade dialog.
    The Process Fade dialog. 
    						
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