Steinberg Cubase 4 Operation Manual

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The mixer
You can also save channel configurations as View sets 
(see “Channel view sets” on page 125), which are then 
accessible from all mixer windows.
These features are very convenient when working with 
large projects. Considering the number of different chan-
nel types that can be shown in the mixer, they could even 
be described as necessary!
The use of multiple mixer windows combined with the abil-
ity to recall different mixer configurations enables you to 
focus on the task at hand and keep window scrolling 
down to a minimum.
ÖAll options for configuring the mixer described in this 
chapter are identical for all mixer windows. 
What channel types can be shown in the mixer?
The following track-based channel types are shown in the 
mixer:


 Effect return channels (referred to as FX channels in the 
Project window)
 Instrument channels (VSTi Return)
 Group channels
 Instrument tracks
 ReWire channels
The order of audio, MIDI, instrument, group and effect re-
turn channel strips (from left to right) in the mixer corre-
sponds to the Project window Track list (from the top 
down). If you reorder tracks of these types in the Track list, 
this will be mirrored in the mixer.
In addition to the above, the following channel types are 
also shown in the mixer:
 Activated ReWire channels (see the chapter “ReWire” on 
page 445).
 VST Instrument channels (see the chapter “VST Instruments 
and Instrument tracks” on page 182).
ReWire channels cannot be reordered and always appear 
to the right of other channels in the main mixer pane (see 
below). VST instrument (VSTi) channels can be reordered 
in the Track list which will in turn be mirrored in the mixer.
Folder, Marker, Video and Automation tracks are not 
shown in the mixer.
Input and output busses in the mixer
Input and output busses are represented by input and out-
put channels in the mixer. They appear in separate “panes” 
separated by movable dividers and with their own horizon-
tal scrollbars, see “The input and output channels” on 
page 128.
ÖIn Cubase Studio, only output channels are shown in 
the mixer (not input channels).
About multichannel audio (Cubase only)
Cubase has full support for surround sound. Each audio 
channel and bus in the mixer can carry up to 6 speaker 
channels. This means that if you have an audio track con-
figured for 5.1 surround sound, for example, it will have a 
single channel strip in the mixer, just like mono or stereo 
tracks, but its level meter will have six meter bars, one for 
each speaker channel.
Another thing to note is that the look of a channel strip dif-
fers slightly depending on how it is routed – mono or stereo 
tracks routed to a surround output bus will have a surround 
panner control instead of a regular pan control, for example. 
For further information on multichannel audio, see the chap-
ter “Surround sound  (Cubase only)” on page 195. 
						

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The mixer
Configuring the mixer
As mentioned earlier, the mixer windows can be config-
ured in various ways to suit your needs and to save screen 
space. Here follows a run through of the various view op-
tions (the following descriptions assume that you have an 
active project containing some tracks):
Normal vs. Extended channel strips
You have the option of selecting normal or extended chan-
nel strips and whether to show the input and output set-
tings at the top of the channel strips. Proceed as follows:
1.Open any of the mixer windows.
The leftmost strip is called the common panel and is always shown in the 
mixer. It contains various global settings and options relating to the mixer. 
For further information, see “The common panel” on page 127.
2.Click on the arrow button on the common panel 
(“Show Extended Mixer”) or right-click in the Mixer to 
open the Mixer context menu and select “Show Extended 
View” from the Window submenu.
You can also use a key command for this. See the chapter “Key com-
mands” on page 475.
3.You can show or hide the Routing panel of the chan-
nel strips by clicking on the respective arrow button 
(“Show Routing”) or by selecting “Show Routing View” 
from the Window submenu on the Mixer context menu.
The fader panel is always shown.
The fader panel shows the basic controls – faders, pan 
controls and an associated vertical row of buttons. The ex-
tended panel can be set to show EQ, effect sends, insert 
effects, etc. The input/output settings panel contains input 
and output routing pop-up menus (where applicable), 
along with input phase switches and input gain controls.
Selecting what to display in the extended 
channel strips
You can select what to display in the extended channel 
strip either globally from the common panel or individually 
from each channel strip. 
The available options vary depending on the type of chan-
nel.
 For a description of the options for audio channels, see “Op-
tions for the extended audio channel strip” on page 132. 
 For a description of the options for MIDI channel, see “Selecting 
what to show in the extended MIDI channel strip” on page 139 .
…and via the Mixer context menu. Opening the Extended Mixer via the Mixer Common panel…
A basic channel strip with no 
extended options. A fully extended channel strip 
with the input/output routing 
section at the top. 
						

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The mixer
Selecting globally from the common panel
1.Open any of the mixer windows.
The leftmost strip is called the common panel and is always shown in the 
mixer. It contains various global settings and options relating to the mixer. 
For more information, see “The common panel” on page 127.
2.Make sure that the extended panel of the mixer is visible.
In the extended area of the common panel, you can see a 
vertical row of icons. These act as buttons and determine 
globally what is displayed in the extended panel for all 
channel strips in the mixer.
If you place the pointer on an icon, a tooltip appears.
3.Click on the “Show all Inserts” button (second icon 
from the top).
Now all channel strips in the mixer will show Insert effect slots in the ex-
tended panel.
As mentioned above, what can be set globally depends 
on the type of channel. 
Channel types that do not support a selected global option will be unaf-
fected.
If you press [Alt]/[Option] and click one of the global 
view buttons, input and output channels will be affected 
as well.
Selecting for individual channels
Each channel strip in the mixer features a View options 
pop-up menu, which is used for two things:
To determine what is shown in the extended panel for 
individual channels in the mixer.
To set the “Can Hide” status for individual channels in 
the mixer.
This is described in the section “Showing/hiding individual channels (the 
“Can Hide” setting)” on page 124.
The View options pop-up is opened by clicking the down 
arrow located just above the fader panel of the channel 
strip.
To select what to display in the extended panel from the 
View options pop-up menu, you must first open the ex-
tended mixer.
You can then use the pop-up to select which parameters to show in the 
extended panel for each individual channel in the mixer.
Clear all views (blank panels)
Show all Inserts
Show all Equalizers
Show all Equalizers with curve
Show all Sends
Show Sends 1-4
Show Sends 5-8
Show Surround Panners (where applicable)
Show all Meters
Show Channel Overview
Show Studio Sends 
						

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The mixer
Setting the width of channel strips
The Channel Narrow/Wide button
Narrow channel strips contain a narrow fader, miniature 
buttons, and the View options pop-up.
If you have selected to show parameters in the extended section, only the 
channel overview or the Meter can be shown in narrow mode. (The pa-
rameters will be shown again when you return to wide mode.)
Wide and narrow channel strips
When selecting “All targets narrow” or “All targets 
wide” on the common panel, all channel strips selected as 
command targets (see “About the Command Target” on 
page 125) are affected.
Selecting what channel types to show/hide
You can specify what channel types to show or hide in the 
mixer. In the lower part of the common panel you find a 
vertical strip with different indicator buttons. Each indica-
tor represents a channel type to show or hide in the mixer:
To hide or show a channel type, click the corresponding 
indicator.
If an indicator is dark, the corresponding channel type will be shown in 
the mixer. If it is orange, the corresponding channel type will be hidden.
Showing/hiding individual channels (the “Can 
Hide” setting)
You can also show/hide individual channels of any type in 
the mixer. For this, you can assign channels a “Can Hide” 
status, which allows you to hide these channels collec-
tively. Proceed as follows:
1.Pull down the View options pop-up menu for the chan-
nel you want to hide and activate the “Can Hide” option.
If “Can Hide” is activated for a channel strip, the corresponding icon (/) 
will be visible in the top middle section of the channel strip.
2.Repeat this for all channels you want to hide.
!Each channel strip can be set to either “Wide” or 
“Narrow” mode by using the Channel Narrow/Wide 
button on the left above the fader strip.
Input Channels (Cubase only)
Audio Channels
Group Channels
ReWire Channels
MIDI Channels
VST Instrument Channels
Effect Return Channels
Output Channels “Can Hide” options – see below.
Reveals all channel strips “Command Target” options – see “About 
the Command Target” on page 125. 
						

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The mixer
3.Click the top “hide button” (Hide Channels set to 
“Can Hide”) on the common panel.
This hides all channels set to “Can Hide”. To show them again, click the 
Hide button again or click the button at the bottom on the common panel 
(“Reveal All Channels”).
Below the top hide button, there are three additional “Can 
Hide” buttons.
Channel view sets
Channel view sets are saved configurations of the mixer 
windows, allowing you to quickly switch between different 
layouts for the mixer. Proceed as follows:
1.Set up the mixer the way you wish to store it as a view 
set.
The following settings will be stored:
 Settings for individual channel strips (e. g. narrow or wide mode 
and whether the channel strip is (or can be) hidden or not).
 The hide/show status for channel types.
 The mixer’s display status (fader panel, extended panel, input/
output panel).
 Settings for what is shown in the extended view of the mixer.
2.Click the “Store View Set” button (the plus sign) at the 
bottom of the (non-extended) common panel.
3.A dialog appears, allowing you to enter a name for the 
view set.4.Click OK to store the current mixer view set.
You can now return to this stored configuration at any 
time, by clicking the “Select Channel View Set” button 
(the down arrow to the left of the “Store View Set” button) 
and selecting it from the pop-up menu.
To remove a stored channel view set, select it and click 
the “Remove View Set” button (the minus sign).
About the Command Target
Command targets let you specify which channels should 
be affected by the “commands” (basically all the functions 
that can be assigned key commands) when working with 
the Mixer, e.g. what to display in the extended mixer, the 
width setting of the channel strips, etc. You can set com-
mand targets using the Mixer common panel or the con-
text menu.
The following options are available:
All Channels
Select this if you want your commands to affect all channels.
Selected Only
Select this if you want your commands to affect the selected channels 
only.
Exclude Inputs
Select this if you don’t want your commands to affect the input channels.
Exclude Outputs
Select this if you don’t want your commands to affect the output channels.
Option Description
Set Target Channels 
to ’Can Hide’This activates “Can Hide” for all Channels you spec-
ified as “Command Targets”. For more information, 
see below.
Remove ’Can Hide’ 
from Target 
ChannelsThis deactivates “Can Hide” for all Channels you 
specified as “Command Targets”. For more informa-
tion, see below.
Remove ’Can Hide’ 
from All ChannelsThis deactivates “Can Hide” for all Channels in the 
Mixer.
!Some remote control devices (such as Steinberg’s 
Houston) feature this function, which means that you 
can use the remote device to switch between the 
channel view sets.
The Command Target Controls 
on the common panel
The Command Target submenu on the Mixer context menu 
						

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The mixer
The audio-related channel strips
The mixer in normal mode (faders and Routing View visible), showing 
(from left to right): the common panel, a stereo audio channel, a group 
channel, an instrument channel, an effect return channel and a VST In-
strument channel strip.
All audio-related channel types (audio, instrument track, 
input/output channels, group, effect return, VST Instru-
ment and ReWire) basically have the same channel strip 
layout, with the following differences:
 Only audio track channels have an Input Routing pop-up menu.
 Only audio and instrument track channels have a Monitor and 
Record Enable button.
 Input/output channels do not have sends.
 Instrument track and VST Instrument channels have an addi-
tional button for opening the instrument’s control panel.
 Input channels (Cubase only) and output channels have clip 
indicators.
About the Insert/EQ/Send indicators and bypass buttons
The three indicator buttons in each audio channel strip 
have the following functionality:
If an Insert or Send effect or an EQ module is activated 
for a channel, the corresponding button is lit. 
The effect indicators will be blue, the EQ indicator will be green.
If you click these buttons when lit, the corresponding 
EQ or effects section will be bypassed.
Bypass is indicated by yellow buttons. Clicking the button again deacti-
vates bypass.
The common panel 
(see “The common 
panel” on page 127)Channel auto-
mation controls Record Enable and 
Monitor buttons Channel input/
output routingOpens the control panel for the VST Instrument Channel View 
options pop-up
Level meter Level fader
Edit button (opens the 
Channel Settings window)
Insert/EQ/Send indicators and 
bypass buttons (see below)
Channel name
Input Gain control 
(Cubase only)
The speaker configuration for 
the channel
Input Phase switch 
(Cubase only)
Listen button (see the chapter 
“Control Room (Cubase only)” 
on page 146) The Can Hide State 
for the channel
Narrow/Wide button
Pan control 
						

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The mixer
The MIDI channel strips
The MIDI channel strips allow you to control volume and 
pan in your MIDI instrument (provided that they are set up to 
receive the corresponding MIDI messages). The settings 
here are also available in the Inspector for MIDI tracks.
The common panel
The common panel appears to the left in the mixer windows 
and contains settings for changing the look and behavior of 
the mixer, as well as global settings for all channels.
Level fader 
(MIDI volume)Level (velocity) meter
Channel automation 
controlsPan controlMonitor and Record 
Enable buttons
MIDI output pop-up
MIDI input pop-up
Edit button
Mute and Solo
Insert/Send indicators 
and Bypass buttons
Input Transformer 
buttonMIDI channel pop-up
This opens the 
control panel for 
a connected VST 
Instrument
Channel Narrow/
Wide buttonCan Hide State 
Global automation 
Read/Write buttons
Store/Remove View set but-
tons (+/-) and Select View 
set pop-up, see “Channel 
view sets” on page 125. These indicator but-
tons select what chan-
nel types are shown/
hidden in the mixer.
The View options buttons 
determine what to display 
in the extended panels of 
channel strips. Only visible 
in extended mixer mode.
Command Target settings, 
see “About the Command 
Target” on page 125. Toggles “All Wide” 
(left arrows) or “All 
Narrow” channel 
strips in the mixer.
Opens the VST Con-
nections window, see 
“The VST Connections 
window” on page 15.Shows/hides the 
Routing panel
Buttons for showing/
hiding the extended 
panel
Resets the settings 
to default (for all or 
selected channels).
Channel settings copy/
paste, see “Copying 
settings between audio 
channels” on page 137.
“Can Hide” settings, see 
“Showing/hiding individual 
channels (the “Can Hide” 
setting)” on page 124.
Global Mute, Solo 
and Listen buttons 
						

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The mixer
The input and output channels
The busses you have set up in the VST Connections win-
dow are represented by input and output channels in the 
mixer. These are shown in separate “panes” (to the left 
and right of the regular channel strips, respectively), with 
their own dividers and horizontal scrollbars. The i/o chan-
nel strips are very similar to other audio channels and are 
identical for input and output channels (except that input 
channels don’t have Solo buttons or Sends).
ÖIf you are using Cubase Studio, only output channels 
are shown in the mixer.
The input channels (busses) you have set up in the VST Connections 
window are available for selection on the input routing pop-up menus but 
you cannot view them or make settings for them in the mixer.
For information on how to set up input and output bus-
ses, see “VST Connections: Setting up input and output 
busses” on page 13.
How to route audio channels to busses is described on 
“Routing audio channels to busses” on page 139.
If the Control Room is disabled (see the chapter “Con-
trol Room (Cubase only)” on page 146), the Main Mix (the 
default output) bus is used for monitoring. For information 
about Monitoring, see “About monitoring” on page 20.
In Cubase Studio, the Main Mix bus is always used for monitoring.
Basic mixing procedures
Setting volume in the mixer
In the mixer, each channel strip has a fader for volume 
control. 
For audio channels, the faders control the volume of the 
channels before they are routed directly or via a group 
channel to an output bus.
Each channel can in turn handle up to 6 speaker channels – see “Sur-
round sound in Cubase” on page 196.
An output channel fader determines the master output 
level of all audio channels routed to that output bus.
MIDI channels handle fader volume changes in the mixer 
by sending out MIDI volume messages to the connected in-
strument(s).
Connected instruments must be set to respond to MIDI messages (such 
as MIDI volume in this case) for this to function properly.
The fader settings are displayed numerically below the 
faders, in dB for audio channels and in the MIDI volume 0 
to 127 value range for MIDI channels.
You can click in the fader value fields and enter a volume setting by typing.
To make fine volume adjustments, hold down [Shift] 
when you move the faders.
If you hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on a fader, 
it will be reset to its default value, i.e. 0.0 dB for audio 
channels, or MIDI volume 100 for MIDI channels.
This reset to default values works for most mixer parameters.
You can use the faders to set up a volume balance be-
tween the audio and MIDI channels and perform a manual 
mix by moving the faders and other controls while playing 
back. By using the Write function (see “Using Write/Read 
automation” on page 209), you can automate the levels 
and most mixer actions.
Input gain
(Cubase only)
Bus level meter
Read/Write 
Automation
Clip indicator, see 
“Setting input le-
vels” on page 70.
The Speaker configuration 
for the bus.
Edit button
Inserts and EQ 
indicators and 
Bypass buttonsPan control (no 
Panner used for 
surround busses)
Input Phase switch 
(Cubase only)
Mute and Listen 
buttons
(the Output bus 
also features a 
Solo button)Bus volume fader
!It is also possible to create volume envelopes for 
separate events in the Project window or Audio Part 
Editor (see “Event Envelopes” on page 94) or to 
make static volume settings for an event on the info 
line or with the volume handle (see “About the vo-
lume handle” on page 89). 
						

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The mixer
About the level meters for audio channels
When playing back audio in Cubase, the level meters in 
the mixer show the level of each audio channel.
Directly below the level meter is a small level readout – 
this shows the highest registered peak level in the signal.
Click this to reset the peak levels.
Peak levels can also be shown as static horizontal lines 
in the meter, see “Changing the meter characteristics” on 
page 137.
If the peak level of the audio goes above 0 dB, the numer-
ical level indicator will show a positive value (i.e. a value 
above 0 dB).
Cubase uses 32 bit floating point processing internally, so 
there is virtually limitless headroom – signals can go way 
beyond 0dB without clipping. Therefore:
ÖHaving higher levels than 0 dB for individual audio 
channels is not a problem in itself. The audio quality will 
not be degraded by this. 
However, when many high level signals are mixed in an output bus, this 
may require that you lower the output channel level a lot (see below). 
Therefore it’s good practice to keep the max levels for individual audio 
channels roughly around 0 dB.
About the level meters for input and output channels
For the input and output channels, things are different. I/O 
channels have clip indicators (input channels are only 
shown in Cubase).
When you are recording, clipping can occur when the 
analog signal is converted to digital in the audio hardware. 
With Cubase, it’s also possible to get clipping in the signal being re-
corded to disk (when 16 or 24 bit record format is used and you have 
adjusted the mixer settings for the input channel). For more about check-
ing and setting input levels, see “Setting input levels” on page 70.
In the output busses, the floating point audio is con-
verted to the resolution of the audio hardware. In the inte-
ger audio domain, the maximum level is 0 dB – higher 
levels will cause the clip indicator for each bus to light up.
If the clip indicators light up for a bus, this indicates actual clipping – dig-
ital distortion which should always be avoided.
Adjusting Input Gain (Cubase only)
Each audio channel and input/output channel features an 
Input Gain control. This controls the gain for the incoming 
signal, before EQ and effects.
The Input Gain is not meant to be used as a volume con-
trol in the mixer, as it is not suited for continuous level ad-
justments during playback. It can, however, be used to cut 
or boost the gain in various circumstances:
To change the level of a signal before the effects section.
The level going into certain effects can change the way the signal is af-
fected. A compressor, for example, can be “driven” harder by raising the 
Input Gain.
To boost the level of poorly recorded signals.
To change the Input Gain, you need to press [Shift] and 
adjust the control (to avoid accidental gain changes). If 
you press [Alt]/[Option], you can adjust the Input Gain 
with a fader. Alternatively, you can also enter the desired 
number in the value field.
Input Phase switch (Cubase only)
Each audio channel and input/output channel has an Input 
Phase switch, to the left of the Input Gain control dial. 
When activated, the phase polarity is inverted for the sig-
!When Direct Monitoring is used and the option “Map 
input bus metering to Audio track (in Direct Monitor-
ing)” is activated in the Preferences (VST–Metering 
page), the level meters in the mixer will show the level 
of the input bus instead. 
!If the clip indicator lights up for an output channel, 
reset the clip indicator by clicking on it, and lower the 
level until the indicator doesn’t light up. 
						

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The mixer
nal. Use this to correct for balanced lines and mics that 
are wired backwards, or mics that are “out of phase” due 
to their positioning.
Phase polarity is important when mixing together two 
similar signals. 
If the signals are “out of phase” with respect to one another, there will be 
some cancellation in the resulting audio, producing a hollow sound with 
less low frequency content.
About level meters for MIDI channels
The level meters for MIDI channels do not show actual vol-
ume levels. Instead, they indicate the velocity values of the 
notes played back on MIDI tracks.
About MIDI tracks set to the same MIDI channel and 
output
If you have several MIDI tracks set to the same MIDI chan-
nel (and routed to the same MIDI output), making volume 
and pan settings for one of these MIDI tracks/mixer chan-
nels will also affect all other mixer channels set to the 
same MIDI channel/output combination.
Using Solo and Mute
The Mute (top) and Solo buttons.
You can use the Mute and Solo buttons to silence one or 
several channels. The following applies:
The Mute button silences the selected channel.
Clicking the Mute button again un-mutes the channel. Several channels 
can be muted simultaneously. A muted channel is indicated by a lit Mute 
button and also by the lit Global Mute indicator on the common panel. 
Clicking the Solo button for a channel mutes all other 
channels.
A soloed channel is indicated by a lit Solo button, and also by the lit Glo-
bal Solo indicator on the common panel. Click the Solo button again to 
turn off Solo.
Several channels can be soloed at the same time.
However, if you press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click the Solo button for a 
channel, any other soloed channels will automatically be un-soloed (i.e. 
this Solo mode is exclusive).
[Alt]/[Option]-clicking a Solo button activates “Solo De-
feat” for that channel.
In this mode the channel will not be muted if you solo another channel. To 
turn off Solo Defeat, [Alt]/[Option]-click the Solo button again. 
You can un-mute or un-solo all channels by clicking the 
Mute or Solo indicator on the common panel.
Listen Mode (Cubase only)
The Listen button for a channel strip and the global Listen button on the 
Common panel
Clicking the Listen button for a channel routes that chan-
nel to the Control Room without interrupting the normal 
signal flow. The following applies:
When the channel is set to after-fader (also referred to 
as post-fader), the signal being routed to the Control 
Room channel will come after the fader and pan controls 
of the Listen-enabled channel.
When the Control Room channel is set to pre-fader, the 
signal will be routed from just before the fader.
A muted chan-
nel in the mixer.A lit Global Mute indicator on the 
common panel shows that one or 
more channels are muted.
[Alt]/[Option]-click a Solo button…
…to activate Solo Defeat for that channel.
…and to pre-
fader (PFL). Control Room 
channel set to 
after-fader (AFL)…