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Operation Manual
Cristina Bachmann, Heiko Bischoff, Christina Kaboth, Insa Mingers, Matthias Obrecht,
Sabine Pfeifer, Kevin
Quarshie, Benjamin Schütte
This PDF provides improved access for vision-impaired users. Please note that due to the
complexity and number of images in this document, it is not possible to include text
descriptions of images.
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 publication may be
copied, reproduced, or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior
written permission by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. Registered licensees of the
product described herein may print one copy of this document for their personal use.
All product and company names are ™ or ® trademarks of their respective holders. For more
information, please visit www.steinberg.net/trademarks.
© Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, 2015.
All rights reserved.
3
Table of Contents
11 Introduction
11 About the Program Versions
11 About the Help and the Documentation
12 Conventions
13 Key Commands
15 Part I - Getting into the Details
16 Setting Up Your System
16 Setting Up Audio
22 Setting Up MIDI
23 Connecting a Synchronizer
24 Setting Up Video
25 VST Connections
25 VST Connections Window
32 Renaming the Hardware Inputs and
Outputs
33 Adding Input and Output Busses
34 Adding Child Busses (Cubase Pro only)
34 Presets for Input and Output Busses
36 Adding Group and FX Channels
36 About Monitoring
36 External Instruments and Effects (Cubase
Pro only)
43 Editing the Bus Configurations
46 Project Window
48 Toolbar
50 Status Line
51 Info Line
51 Overview Line
52 Ruler
53 Inspector
56 Global Track Controls
58 Visibility
59 Track List
60 Event Display
61 Racks
61 Zooming in the Project Window
66 Snap Function
68 Cross-Hair Cursor
69 Edit History Dialog
71 Project Handling
71 Creating New Projects
71 Hub
73 Project Assistant
74 About Project Files
74 About Template Files
76 Project Setup Dialog
79 Opening Project Files
81 Saving Project Files
82 Reverting to the Last Saved Version
82 Choosing a Project Location
83 Removing Unused Audio Files
83 Creating Self-Contained Projects
86 Tracks
86 Audio Tracks
93 Instrument Tracks
100 MIDI Tracks
107 Arranger Track
109 Chord Track
111 FX Channel Tracks
116 Folder Tracks
118 Group Channel Tracks
124 Marker Track
125 Ruler Track
126 Signature Track
127 Tempo Track
129 Transpose Track
130 VCA Fader Track (Cubase Pro only)
132 Video Track
134 Customizing Track Controls
4
136 Track Handling
136 Adding Tracks
139 Removing Tracks
139 Moving Tracks in the Track List
140 Renaming Tracks
140 Coloring Tracks
141 Showing Track Pictures
143 Setting the Track Height
144 Selecting Tracks
145 Duplicating Tracks
145 Disabling Audio Tracks
146 Organizing Tracks in Folder Tracks
147 Handling Overlapping Audio
147 Track Folding
148 How Events are Displayed on Folder Tracks
149 Modifying Event Display on Folder Tracks
149 Working with Lanes
153 Defining the Track Time Base
154 TrackVersions
163 Track Presets
169 Parts and Events
169 Audio Handling
171 Parts
172 Auditioning Audio Parts and Events
172 Adding Events to a Track
173 Scrubbing
174 Folder Parts
175 Render in Place
181 Editing Parts and Events
196 Range Editing
196 Creating a Selection Range
198 Editing Selection Ranges
202 Playback and Transport
202 Transport Panel
205 Transport Menu
212 Setting the Project Cursor Position
212 Left and Right Locators
214 Punch In and Punch Out
215 Auto-Scroll
215 Time Formats
216 Locating to Specific Time Positions
217 Metronome
220 Chase
221 Virtual Keyboard
221 Recording MIDI With the Virtual Keyboard
222 Virtual Keyboard Options
223 Recording
223 Basic Recording Methods
228 Monitoring
231 Audio Recording Specifics
236 MIDI Recording Specifics
243 Remaining Record Time
244 Lock Record
245 Quantizing MIDI and Audio
245 Quantize Functions
247 Quantizing MIDI Event Starts
247 Quantizing MIDI Event Lengths
248 Quantizing MIDI Event Ends
248 Quantizing Audio Event Starts
249 Quantizing Audio Event Lengths
(AudioWarp Quantizing) (Cubase Pro only)
250 Quantizing Multiple Audio Tracks (Cubase
Pro only)
251 Quantize Panel
261 Fades, Crossfades, and Envelopes
262 Event-Based Fades
266 Creating Clip-Based Fades
268 Crossfades
272 Auto Fades and Crossfades
275 Event Envelopes
277 Arranger Track
278 Adding Arranger Events on the Arranger
Track
279 Arranger Editor
282 Setting up an Arranger Chain and Adding
Events
285 Jump Mode
287 Arranging Music to Video
288 Transpose Functions
288 Project Root Key
292 Transpose Track
294 Keep Transpose in Octave Range
296 Transpose on the Info Line
297 Excluding Individual Parts or Events from
Global Transpose
298 Markers
298 Position Markers
298 Cycle Markers
300 Markers Window
304 Marker Track
306 Importing and Exporting Markers
5
308 MixConsole
311 Setting Up the MixConsole
311 MixConsole Toolbar
313 Functions Menu
315 Configuring the MixConsole
322 Synchronizing Channel and Track Visibility
323 Finding Channels
323 Linking Channels
326 VCA Faders (Cubase Pro only)
334 Metering (Cubase Pro only)
337 Input Levels
338 Copying and Moving Rack and Channel
Settings
339 Fader Section
344 Working with Channel Racks
368 Using Channel Settings
370 Adding Notes to a MixConsole Channel
370 Keyboard Navigation
372 Control Room (Cubase Pro only)
372 Adding Channels to the Control Room
373 Output Routing
373 Exclusive Assignment of Monitor Channels
374 Control Room Channels
376 Control Room Mixer
383 Control Room Setup
386 Setting Up a Cue Mix
387 Adjusting the Overall Cue Send Level
388 Metering
388 Loudness
393 Audio Effects
393 Insert Effects and Send Effects
396 Insert Effects
405 Send Effects
411 Side-Chain Input
413 Dither Effects
414 External Effects (Cubase Pro only)
414 Effect Control Panel
416 Effect Presets
423 Plug-In Information Window
425 Audio Processing and Functions
425 Common settings and features
426 Envelope
427 Fade In and Fade Out
429 Gain
429 Merge Clipboard
430 Noise Gate
431 Normalize
431 Phase Reverse
432 Pitch Shift
435 Remove DC Offset
436 Resample
436 Reverse
436 Silence
436 Stereo Flip
437 Time Stretch
439 Applying Plug-Ins (Cubase Pro only)
440 Offline Process History
442 Freeze Edits
443 Detect Silence
446 Spectrum Analyzer
448 Statistics
450 Time Stretch and Pitch Shift Algorithms
454 Sample Editor
455 Toolbar
458 Info Line
459 Overview Line
459 Inspector
462 Ruler
463 Waveform Display
465 Range Editing
469 Regions List
472 Snap Point
475 Hitpoints
476 Calculating Hitpoints
478 Locating to Hitpoints in the Project Window
479 Slices
481 Creating a Groove Quantize Map
482 Creating Markers
482 Creating Regions
483 Creating Events
483 Creating Warp Markers
484 Creating MIDI Notes
6
486 Tempo Matching Audio
486 Algorithm Presets
487 Stretching Audio Events to the Project
Tempo
487 Musical Mode
489 Auto Adjust
490 Manual Adjust
492 Free Warp
495 Flattening Realtime Processing
495 Unstretching Audio Files
496 VariAudio (Cubase Pro only)
496 VariAudio and Offline Processes
497 Segmenting Monophonic Audio
498 Segments and Gaps
499 Manual Editing of Segments
505 Pitch Changes
509 Micro-Pitch Changes
513 Timing Modifications
515 Reset Functions
516 Extracting MIDI from Audio
519 Flattening Realtime Processing
519 Generating Harmony Voices for
Monophonic Audio
521 Audio Part Editor
521 Opening the Audio Part Editor
522 Window Overview
523 Operations
527 Options and Settings
528 Pool
528 Pool Window
533 Working with the Pool
551 MediaBay
552 Working With the MediaBay
552 Setting Up the MediaBay
553 Define Locations Section
554 Scanning Your Content
554 Updating the MediaBay
555 Locations Section
557 Results Section
562 Previewer Section
568 Filters Section
573 Attribute Inspector
578 Loop Browser, Sound Browser, and Mini
Browser
579 MediaBay Settings
580 MediaBay Key Commands
581 Working with MediaBay-Related Windows
583 Working With Volume Databases
586 Surround Sound (Cubase Pro only)
587 Deliverables
587 Available surround configurations
588 Preparations
590 Using the SurroundPanner V5
602 Using the MixConvert V6 plug-in
602 Exporting a surround mix
603 Automation
603 Automation Curves
603 Static Value Line
604 Write/Read Automation
604 Writing Automation Data
607 Editing Automation Events
611 Automation Tracks
612 Virgin Territory vs. Initial Value (Cubase Pro
only)
613 Automation Panel (Cubase Pro only)
625 MIDI Controller Automation
629 VST Instruments
629 VST Instruments Window
632 Adding VST Instruments
633 Presets for Instruments
635 VST Quick Controls
637 Playing Back VST Instruments
639 About Latency
640 Import and Export Options
642 External Instruments (Cubase Pro only)
643 Installing and Managing Plug-ins
643 Installing VST plug-ins
644 Plug-in Manager
647 Compiling a New Effects Collection
648 Track Quick Controls
648 Assigning Parameters to Quick Controls
653 Connecting Quick Controls with Remote
Controllers
654 Activating Pick-up Mode for Hardware
Controls
654 Quick Controls and Automatable
Parameters
656 Remote controlling Cubase
656 Setting Up
658 Operations
660 The Generic Remote device
664 Track Quick Controls
664 The Remote Control Editor
671 Apple Remote (Macintosh only)
672 MIDI Realtime
672 MIDI Track Parameters
675 MIDI Modifiers
680 MIDI Effects
684 Transpose and Velocity in the Info Line
7
685 Using MIDI devices
685 MIDI devices – general settings and patch
handling
694 About Device panels (Cubase Pro only)
698 MIDI Processing
698 MIDI functions vs. MIDI modifiers
699 What is affected by the MIDI functions?
699 Transpose
700 Making your settings permanent
703 Dissolve Part
705 Bounce MIDI
705 Repeat Loop
706 Other MIDI functions
712 MIDI Editors
713 Opening MIDI Data in a MIDI Editor
713 Changing the Default MIDI Editor
714 Common MIDI Editor Functions
722 Key Editor
731 Key Editor Operations
753 Basic Score Editor (Cubase Artist only)
759 Score Editor Operations (Cubase Artist
only)
768 Drum Editor
779 Drum Editor Operations
784 Drum Maps
789 Drum Name Lists
789 List Editor
797 List Editor Operations
800 In-Place Editor
802 SysEx Messages
807 Expression maps (Cubase Pro only)
807 Introduction
809 Using expression maps
814 Creating and editing expression maps
821 Note Expression
821 Introduction
823 Setting up the Note Expression Inspector
tab
826 Mapping controllers
828 Recording
831 Editing Note Expression data
837 Note Expression and MIDI
842 HALion Sonic SE
843 Chord Functions
843 Chord Track
844 Chord Events
852 Scale Events
853 Voicings
856 Converting Chord Events to MIDI
857 Controlling MIDI or Audio Playback using
the Chord Track
861 Assigning Voices to Notes
862 Extracting Chord Events from MIDI
863 Recording Chord Events with a MIDI
Keyboard
865 Chord Pads
865 Chord Pads Zone
868 Functions Menu
869 Preparations
870 Chord Assistant
872 Assigning Chords to Chord Pads
876 Moving and Copying Chord Pads
876 Playing Back and Recording Chords
878 Chord Pad Settings – Remote Control
883 Chord Pad Settings – Players
890 Chord Pad Settings – Pad Layout
891 Chord Pads Presets
892 Creating Events from Chord Pads
893 The Logical Editor
893 Introduction
894 Opening the Logical Editor
894 Window overview
895 Setting up filter conditions
905 Selecting a function
906 Specifying actions
910 Applying the defined actions
910 Working with presets
912 Project Logical Editor (Cubase Pro only)
913 Opening the Project Logical Editor
913 Window overview
914 Setting up filter conditions
924 Specifying actions
927 Selecting a function
928 Applying Macros
928 Applying the defined actions
929 Working with presets
8
931 Editing Tempo and Time Signature
931 Project Tempo Modes
931 Track Time Base
932 Tempo Track Editor
934 Tempo Track
935 Setting up Tempo Changes for Projects
942 Setting up a Fixed Project Tempo
944 Beat Calculator
945 Tempo Detection (Cubase Pro only)
947 Exporting a Tempo Track (Cubase Pro only)
947 Importing a Tempo Track (Cubase Pro only)
947 Process Tempo (Cubase Pro only)
949 Process Bars (Cubase Pro only)
950 Time Warp (Cubase Pro only)
951 Set Definition From Tempo
953 Project Browser (Cubase Pro only)
953 Window Overview
955 Editing tracks
965 Export Audio Mixdown
965 Introduction
966 Mixing down to audio files
967 The Export Audio Mixdown dialog
973 The available file formats
980 Synchronization
980 Background
981 Timecode (positional references)
984 Clock sources (speed references)
985 The Project Synchronization Setup dialog
990 Synchronized operation
991 Example Scenarios (Cubase Pro only)
992 Working with VST System Link
997 Activating VST System Link
1005 Video
1005 Before You Start
1008 Preparing a Video Project
1011 Playing Back Video
1015 Editing Video
1015 Extracting Audio From a Video File
1016 Replacing the Audio in a Video File
1017 ReWire
1017 Introduction
1018 Launching and quitting
1019 Activating ReWire channels
1019 Using the transport and tempo controls
1020 How the ReWire channels are handled
1021 Routing MIDI via ReWire
1021 Considerations and limitations
1022 Key Commands
1022 Introduction
1023 Setting up key commands
1028 Setting up tool modifier keys
1028 The default key commands
1037 File handling
1037 Importing audio
1043 Exporting and importing OMF files (Cubase
Pro only)
1046 Exporting and importing standard MIDI files
1050 Exporting and importing MIDI loops
1051 Exporting and importing track
archives (Cubase Pro only)
1054 Track Import from Projects
1058 Customizing
1058 Workspaces
1062 Using the Setup options
1064 Appearance
1068 Applying colors in the Project window
1072 Where are the settings stored?
1074 Profiles (Cubase Pro only)
1080 Optimizing
1080 Optimizing Audio Performance
1086 Preferences
1086 Preferences Dialog
1088 Appearance
1089 Editing
1098 Event Display
1103 General
1104 MIDI
1110 MediaBay
1110 Metering
1111 Record
1114 Scores (Cubase Pro only)
1116 Transport
1118 VST
1123 VariAudio (Cubase Pro only)
1123 Video
1124 Part II - Score Layout and
Printing (Cubase Pro only)
1125 How the Score Editor works
1125 About this chapter
1125 Welcome!
1125 How the Score Editor operates
1126 MIDI notes vs. score notes
1126 Display Quantize
1130 Entering notes by hand vs. recording notes
9
1131 The basics
1131 About this chapter
1131 Preparations
1132 Opening the Score Editor
1133 The project cursor
1133 Playing back and recording
1133 Page Mode
1135 Changing the zoom factor
1136 The active staff
1136 Making page setup settings
1137 Designing your work space
1141 About the Score Editor context menus
1141 About dialogs in the Score Editor
1142 Setting clef, key, and time signature
1150 Transposing instruments
1151 Printing from the Score Editor
1151 Exporting pages as image files
1152 Working order
1153 Force update
1154 Transcribing MIDI recordings
1154 About this chapter
1154 About transcription
1154 Getting the parts ready
1155 Preparing parts for score printout
1156 Staff settings
1156 Situations which require additional
techniques
1157 Inserting Display Quantize changes
1159 The Explode function
1160 Using "Scores Notes To MIDI"
1162 Entering and editing notes
1162 About this chapter
1162 Score settings
1164 Note values and positions
1167 Adding and editing notes
1170 Selecting notes
1172 Moving notes
1175 Duplicating notes
1175 Cut, copy, and paste
1176 Editing pitches of individual notes
1178 Changing the length of notes
1180 Splitting a note in two
1180 Working with the Display Quantize tool
1181 Split (piano) staves
1182 Strategies: Multiple staves
1183 Inserting and editing clefs, keys, or time
signatures
1185 Deleting notes
1186 Staff settings
1186 About this chapter
1186 Staff settings
1187 Making settings
1187 Working with staff presets
1188 Staff names
1189 Key and clef
1189 Display Quantize and Interpretation
Options
1193 Display Transpose
1194 The Options tab
1196 The Polyphonic tab
1196 The Tablature tab
1197 Polyphonic voicing
1197 About this chapter
1197 Background: Polyphonic voicing
1199 Setting up the voices
1202 Strategies: How many voices do I need?
1202 Entering notes into voices
1203 Checking which voice a note belongs to
1203 Moving notes between voices
1205 Handling rests
1206 Voices and Display Quantize
1207 Creating crossed voicings
1209 Automatic polyphonic voicing – Merge All
Staves
1210 Converting voices to tracks – Extract
Voices
1211 Additional note and rest formatting
1211 About this chapter
1211 Background: Note stems
1212 Setting stem direction
1214 Stem length
1215 Accidentals and enharmonic shift
1217 Changing the note head shape
1217 Other note details
1220 Coloring notes
1222 Copying settings between notes
1222 Handling beaming
1230 About tied notes
1232 Graphic moving of notes
1233 Cue notes
1234 Grace notes
1236 Tuplets
10
1240 Working with symbols
1240 About this chapter
1240 Background: The different layers
1242 The Symbols Inspector
1246 Important! – Symbols, staves, and voices
1246 Adding symbols to the score
1258 Selecting symbols
1260 Moving and duplicating symbols
1265 Changing length, size, and shape
1267 Deleting symbols
1267 Copy and paste
1267 Alignment
1268 Symbol details
1280 Working with chords
1280 About this chapter
1280 Inserting chord symbols
1283 Global chord settings
1285 Working with text
1285 About this chapter
1285 Adding and editing text symbols
1290 Different types of text
1298 Text functions
1303 Working with layouts
1303 About this chapter
1303 Background: Layouts
1304 Creating a layout
1304 Opening a layout
1305 Layout operations
1306 Using layouts – an example
1307 Marker Track to Form
1308 Working with MusicXML
1308 Introduction
1310 Importing and exporting MusicXML files
1313 Designing your score: additional
techniques
1313 About this chapter
1313 Layout settings
1316 Staff size
1317 Hiding/showing objects
1319 Coloring notes
1319 Multiple rests
1321 Editing existing bar lines
1321 Creating upbeats
1323 Setting the number of bars across the page
1325 Moving bar lines
1326 Dragging staves
1329 Adding brackets and braces
1330 Displaying the Chord Symbols from the
Chord Track
1330 Auto Layout
1333 Reset Layout
1334 Breaking bar lines
1337 Scoring for drums
1337 About this chapter
1337 Background: Drum maps in the Score
Editor
1338 Setting up the drum map
1341 Setting up a staff for drum scoring
1341 Entering and editing notes
1341 Using “Single Line Drum Staff”
1343 Creating tablature
1343 About this chapter
1343 Creating tablature automatically
1345 Creating tablature manually
1346 Tablature number appearance
1346 Editing
1347 Note head shape
1348 The score and MIDI playback
1348 About this chapter
1348 Scores and the Arranger mode
1349 Working with mapped dynamics
1353 Tips and Tricks
1353 Overview
1353 Useful editing techniques
1356 Frequently asked questions
1361 If you wish you had a faster computer
1362 Index
11
Introduction
The documentation covers the following Steinberg products: Cubase Pro and
Cubase Artist.
Functions that are only available in Cubase Pro and not in Cubase Artist, are clearly
indicated. The screenshots are taken from Cubase Pro.
About the Program Versions
The documentation covers the operating systems Windows and Mac OS X.
Features and settings that are specific to one of these platforms are clearly
indicated. In all other cases, the descriptions and procedures in the documentation
are valid for Windows and Mac OS X.
Some points to consider:
• The screenshots are taken from a Windows operating system.
• Some functions that are available on the File menu on Windows operating
systems can be found in the program name menu on Mac OS X operating
systems.
About the Help and the Documentation
The documentation consists of an online help and documents in PDF format.
• To open the online help for a dialog, open the dialog and click Help.
• To open a PDF in the program, select Help > Documentation, and select a
PDF document from the menu.
NOTE
To read the PDF documents, a PDF reader application must be installed on your
computer.
Quick Start Guide
Covers the following areas without going into details:
Introduction
Conventions
12
• System requirements, installation procedure, and license activation.
• Setting up your system for audio and MIDI work.
Operation Manual
The main reference documentation, with detailed descriptions of operations,
par
ameters, functions, and techniques.
Remote Control Devices
Lists the supported MIDI remote control devices.
Plug-in Reference
Describes the features and parameters of the included VST plug-ins, VST
in
struments, and MIDI effects.
HALion Sonic SE
Describes the features and para
meters of the included VST
instrument HALion Sonic SE.
Groove Agent SE
Describes the features and parameters of the included VST instrument
Groove Agent SE.
MIDI Devices
Describes how to mana
ge MIDI Devices and device panels.
VST Connect SE (Cubase Pro only)
Describes how to work with the VST Connect SE features.
Conventions
In our documentation, we use typographical elements and mark-ups to structure
information.
Typographical Elements
The following typographical elements mark the following purposes.
PREREQUISITE
Requires you to complete an action or to
fulfill a condition before starting a
procedure.
PROCEDURE
Lists the steps that you must take to achieve a specific result.
Introduction
Key Commands
13
IMPORTANT
Informs you about issues that might affect the system, the connected
hardware, or that might bring a risk of data loss.
NOTE
Informs you about issues that you should consider.
EXAMPLE
Provides you with an example.
RESULT
Shows the result of the procedure.
AFTER COMPLETING THIS TASK
Informs you about actions or tasks that you can undertake after completing
the procedure.
RELATED LINKS
Lists related topics that you can find in this documentation.
Mark-Ups
Bold text indicates the name of a menu, option, function, dialog, window, etc.
EXAMPLE
To open the Functions menu, click Functions Menu in the top right corner of the
MixConsole.
If bold text is separated by a greater-than symbol, this indicates a sequence of
different menus to open.
EXAMPLE
Select Project > Add Track.
Key Commands
Many of the default key commands use modifier keys, some of which are different
depending on the operating system.
For example, the default key command for Undo is [Ctrl]-[Z] on Windows and
[Command]-[Z] on 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:
Introduction
Key Commands
14
• [Win modifier key]/[Mac modifier key]-[key]
EXAMPLE
[Ctrl]/[Command]-[Z] signifies: press [Ctrl] on Windows or [Command] on Mac OS
X, then press [Z].
Similarly, [Alt]/[Option]-[X] signifies: press [Alt] on Windows or [Option] on Mac OS
X, then press [X].
15
Part I - Getting into the Details
16
Setting Up Your System
Setting Up Audio
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
Make sure that all equipment is turned off before making any connections.
Simple Stereo Input and Output Setup
If you only use a stereo input and output from Cubase, you can connect your audio
hardware, for example, the inputs of your audio card or your audio interface, directly
to the input source and the outputs to a power amplifier and speaker.
Once you have set up the internal input and output busses, you can connect your
audio source, for example a microphone, to your audio interface and start recording.
Connecting Audio
Your system setup depends on many different factors, for example, on the kind of
project that you want to create, on the external equipment that you want to use, or
on the computer hardware that is available to you. Therefore, the following sections
can only serve as examples.
How to connect your equipment, that is, whether to use digital or analog
connections also depends on your setup.
Setting Up Your System
Setting Up Audio
17
About Recording Levels and Inputs
When you connect your equipment, make sure that the impedance and levels of the
audio sources and inputs are matched. Using the correct type of input is important
to avoid distortion or noisy recordings. For microphones, for example, different
inputs can be used, such as consumer line level (-10
dBV) or professional line level
(+4
dBV).
Sometimes, you can adjust input characteristics on the audio interface or on its
control panel. For details, refer to the documentation that came with the audio
hardware.
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
IMPORTANT
Cubase does not provide any input level adjustments for the signals that are coming
into your audio hardware, since these are handled differently for each card.
Adjusting input levels is either done in a special application that is included with the
hardware or its control panel.
Word Clock Connections
If you are using a digital audio connection, you may also need a word clock
connection between the audio hardware and external devices. For details, refer to
the documentation that came with the audio hardware.
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
Set up word clock synchronization correctly, or you may experience clicks and
crackles in your recordings.
Selecting a Driver
You must select the correct driver in Cubase to make sure that the program can
communicate with the audio hardware.
NOTE
On Windows operating systems, we recommend that you access your hardware via
an ASIO driver developed specifically for the hardware. If no ASIO driver is installed,
contact the manufacturer of your audio hardware for information on available ASIO
drivers. If no specific ASIO driver is available, you can use the Generic Low Latency
ASIO driver.
When you start Cubase, a dialog opens that prompts you to select a driver. You can
also select your audio hardware driver in the following way.
PROCEDURE
1. Launch Cubase and select Devices > Devices Setup.
2. In the devices list, select VST Audio System.
Setting Up Your System
Setting Up Audio
18
3. On the ASIO Driver menu, select your audio hardware driver.
The selected driver is added to the devices list.
4. In the devices list, select the driver to open the driver settings for your audio
hardware.
5. Open the control panel for the audio hardware in the following way:
• On Windows operating systems, click the Control Panel button.
• On Mac OS X operating systems, click the Open Config App button.
This button is available only for some hardware products. If it is not available in
your setup, refer to the documentation of your audio hardware for information
on where to make hardware settings.
NOTE
The control panel is provided by the manufacturer of your audio hardware and is
different for each audio interface brand and model. However, control panels for the
ASIO DirectX driver and the Generic Low Latency ASIO Driver (Windows only) are
provided by Steinberg.
6. Make the settings as recommended by the manufacturer of your audio
hardware.
7. Click Apply.
8. Click OK.
RELATED LINKS
Using Audio Hardware with a DirectX Driver (Windows only) on page 18
Using Audio Hardware with a DirectX Driver (Windows only)
A DirectX driver is an alternative to a specific ASIO driver and the Generic Low
Latency ASIO driver.
Cubase comes with the ASIO DirectX Full Duplex driver.
• To select the driver, select Devices > Device Setup > VST Audio System
and open the ASIO Driver menu.
When the ASIO DirectX Full Duplex driver is selected, you can open ASIO DirectX
Full Duplex Driver from the Devices List, and click the Control Panel button. On
the Control Panel for the driver, the following settings are available:
Direct Sound Output and Input Ports
Lists all available Direct Sound output and input ports. To activate/deactivate
a port in the list, click the checkbox in the left column.
Buffer Size
Allows you to edit the buffer size. Audio buffers are used when audio data is
transferred between Cubase and the audio card. Larger buffers ensure that
playback occurs without glitches, but larger buffers also increase the latency.
Setting Up Your System
Setting Up Audio
19
Offset
Allows you to adjust the output or input latency time if a constant offset is
audible during playback of audio and MIDI recordings.
Audio Channels
Lists the available audio channels.
Bits Per Sample
Shows the number of bits per sample.
Sync Reference
Shows if the driver is used as sync reference.
NOTE
To take advantage of DirectX Full Duplex driver, the audio hardware must support
Windows Driver Model (WDM).
Using Hardware that is Based on an External Clock Source
For proper audio playback and recording, you must set the sample rate of the
project to the sample rate of the incoming clock signals. If you are using an external
clock source, Cubase must be notified that it receives external clock signals and
derives its speed from that source.
PROCEDURE
1. Select Devices > Devices Setup.
2. In the devices list, select the page of your audio hardware driver.
3. Activate Externally clocked.
RESULT
Cubase accepts the sample rate mismatch, and playback is therefore faster or
slower.
When a sample rate mismatch occurs, the Record Format field on the status line
is highlighted in a different color.
Setting Up Your System
Setting Up Audio
20
Using Several Audio Applications Simultaneously
If you want to use several audio applications simultaneously, you must allow other
applications to play back via your audio hardware even though Cubase is running.
PROCEDURE
1. Select Devices > Devices Setup.
2. In the devices list, select the VST Audio System page.
3. Activate Release Driver when Application is in Background.
RESULT
The application that is active gets access to the audio hardware.
NOTE
Make sure that any other audio application accessing the audio hardware is also set
to release the ASIO or Mac OS X driver.
Setting Up Busses
Cubase uses a system of input and output busses to transfer audio between the
program and the audio hardware.
• Input busses let you route audio from the inputs of your audio hardware into
Cubase. This means that audio is always recorded through one or several
input busses.
• Output busses let you route audio from Cubase to the outputs of your audio
hardware. This means that audio is always played back through one or several
output busses.
Once you understand the bus system and know how to set up the busses properly,
you can continue with recording, playing back, mixing, and doing surround
work
(Cubase Pro only).
RELATED LINKS
VST Connections on page 25
Configuring the Audio Hardware
Most audio cards provide one or more small applications that allow you to
customize your hardware.
This includes:
• Selecting which inputs/outputs are active.
• Setting up word clock synchronization (if available).
• Turning on/off monitoring via the hardware.
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