Steinberg Cubase 4 Operation Manual

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
If you select one of the Bar Range options in the Condi-
tion column, the Bar Range column will show a graphic 
bar display. You specify the range within the bar by click-
ing and dragging in the bar display (the specified Bar 
Range is indicated in blue).
The Logical Editor will then find all events starting inside or outside this 
Bar Range, in all bars (within the current selection).
Here, the Logical Editor will find events starting around the second beat 
in each bar.
Searching for notes of certain lengths
Only note events have lengths (actually, a note is made up 
of separate note-on and note-off events but in Cubase it’s 
considered as a single event with a length). Therefore, the 
“Length” Filter Target is only valid if you’re specifically 
searching for notes – there has to be another condition 
line with the Filter Target “Type”, Condition “Equal” and 
Parameter 1 set to “Note”. See “Combining multiple con-
dition lines” on page 373 for more about using multiple fil-
ter conditions.
Searching for Value 1 or Value 2
A MIDI event is composed of several values. The mean-
ings of value 1 and 2 depend on the type of event:
ÖSystem Exclusive events are not included in the table 
above, since they don’t use value 1 and 2.Since value 1 and 2 have different meanings for different 
events, searching for e.g. value 2 = 64 would both find 
notes with the velocity 64 and controllers with the amount 
64, etc. If this is not what you want, you can add an addi-
tional filter condition line with the Filter Target “Type”, 
specifying which type of events to find (see below).
The general procedures when searching for value 1 or 2 
are:
If you select any Condition other than the Range options, 
you set up a specific value in the Parameter 1 column.
Here, the Logical Editor will find all events with a value 2 less than 80.
If you select Inside Range or Outside Range in the Con-
dition column, the range consists of the values between 
Parameter 1 and Parameter 2.
Note that Parameter 1 should have the lower value.
Searching for note pitch or velocity
If you add another condition line with the Filter Target 
“Type”, Condition “Equal” and Parameter 1 set to “Note”, 
the Logical Editor will “know” you are searching for pitch 
or velocity. This has the following benefits:
 The Filter Targets Value 1 and Value 2 will be displayed as 
“Pitch” and “Velocity” respectively, making it easier to grasp 
the function of the filter condition.
 Pitch values in the Parameter columns will be displayed as 
note names (C3, D#4, etc.). When entering pitch values you 
can either type a note name or a MIDI note number (0–127).
 When Value 1 (pitch) is selected as Filter Target, an additional 
option appears in the Condition column: “Note is equal to”. 
When this is selected, you specify a note name in the Para-
meter 1 column but without any octave number (C, C#, D, D#, 
etc.). The Logical Editor can then find all notes of a certain key, 
in all octaves.
See “Combining multiple condition lines” on page 373 for 
more info on working with multiple filter condition lines.
Event type Value 1 Value 2
Notes The Note Number/Pitch. The velocity of the note.
PolyPressure The key that was 
pressed.The amount of pressure for 
the key.
Controller The type of Controller, 
displayed as a number.The amount of Control 
Change.
Program Change The Program Change 
number.Not used.
Aftertouch The amount of pressure. Not used.
Pitchbend The “fine tune” of the 
bend. Not always used.The coarse amount of bend.
!This is particularly useful when searching for note 
pitch or velocity values, as described below. 
						

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
Searching for controllers
There is similar extended functionality when searching for 
controllers: If you’ve added an additional “Type = Control-
ler” condition line, the Logical Editor will “know” you are 
searching for controllers. The Parameter 1 column will 
then show the names of the MIDI controllers (Modulation, 
Volume, etc.) when Value 1 is selected as Filter Target.
Searching for MIDI channels
Each MIDI event contains a MIDI channel setting (1–16). 
Normally, these settings are not used, since the MIDI event 
plays back on the MIDI channel set for its track. However, 
you can come across MIDI parts with events set to different 
channels, for example in the following scenarios:
 If you have recorded MIDI from an instrument sending on sev-
eral different channels (e.g. a master keyboard with different 
key zones).
 If you have imported a MIDI file of type 0 (with a single track, 
containing MIDI events with different channel settings).
Searching for MIDI channel values is straightforward; you 
select a Condition and enter a MIDI channel (1–16) in the 
Parameter 1 column (and, if you’ve selected one of the 
Range Conditions, a higher channel in the Parameter 2 
column, creating a value range).
Searching for event types
Selecting Type as the Filter Target allows you to find 
events of a certain type only.
 The Condition column contains only three options: Equal, Un-
equal and All Types.
 Clicking the Parameter 1 column displays a pop-up menu, list-
ing the available event types (Note, PolyPressure, Controller, 
etc.).
The Logical Editor will find all events matching or not 
matching the selected type (depending on the Condition).
Searching for properties
On the Filter Target pop-up menu you will find an option 
called Property. This allows you to search for properties 
that are not part of the MIDI standard but rather event-
specific Cubase settings.
When the Property option is selected, the Condition col-
umn has two options: “Property is set” and “Property is not 
set”. Which property to look for is selected in the Parameter 
1 column. The options are “muted” and “selected”. Two ex-
amples:
Here, the Logical Editor will find all muted events.
Here, the Logical Editor will find all events that are selected but not 
muted.
Searching for event contexts
On the Filter Target pop-up menu you will find an option 
called “Last Event”. This can be used to perform context 
dependent searches (especially useful in the Input Trans-
former).
“Last Event” indicates the state of an event which has al-
ready passed the Input Transformer/Logical Editor. The 
condition has to be combined with Parameter 1 and Pa-
rameter 2. 
A few examples on how the Last Event filter target can be 
used:
Here, the action will only be performed when the sustain 
pedal is down:
!As mentioned above, selecting Type = Note or 
Type = Controller adds some additional functionality 
to the Logical Editor. You should make it a habit to 
add a Type condition when applicable.
Filter Target Condition Parameter 1 Parameter 2
Last Event Equal MIDI Status 176/Controller
Last Event Equal Value 1 64
Last Event Bigger Value 2 64 
						

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
In this example, the action will be performed when the 
note C1 is pressed (the “Note is playing” condition is only 
available in the Input Transformer and in the Transformer 
effect):
In this example, the action will be performed after playing 
the C1 note:
Combining multiple condition lines
As described above, you can add condition lines by click-
ing the Add Line button to the right of the list. The result of 
combining condition lines depends on the boolean And/
Or operators and the brackets.
The bool column
By clicking in the “bool” column to the right in the list, you 
can select a boolean operator: “And” or “Or”. A boolean 
operator combines two condition lines and determines the 
result in the following way:
ÖIf two condition lines are combined with a boolean 
And, both conditions must be fulfilled for an event to be 
found.
The Logical Editor will only find events that are notes and start at the 
beginning of the third bar.
ÖIf two condition lines are combined with a boolean Or, 
one of the conditions (or both) must be fulfilled for an 
event to be found.
The Logical Editor will find all events that are notes (regardless of their 
position) and all events starting at the beginning of the third bar (re-
gardless of their type).
Using brackets
The bracket (parenthesis) columns let you enclose two or 
more condition lines, dividing the conditional expression 
into smaller units. This is only relevant when you have 
three or more condition lines and want to use the boolean 
Or operator. This is how it works:
ÖWithout brackets, the conditional expressions are 
evaluated according to their order in the list.
In this case we have the expression Type = Note AND Pitch = C3 
(Win)/60 (Mac) OR Channel = 1, without brackets. This means that the 
Logical Editor will find all MIDI notes with the pitch C3, as well as all 
events (regardless of their type) set to MIDI channel 1.
Maybe you wanted to find all notes that either had the 
pitch C3 or the MIDI channel 1 (but no non-note events)? 
Then you need to add some brackets:
Here the expression is Type = Note AND (pitch = C3 (Win)/60 (Mac) 
OR Channel = 1), which will find what you want. The rule behind this is: Filter Target Condition Parameter 1 Parameter 2
Type is Equal Note 
Last Event Equal Note is playing 36/C1
Filter Target Condition Parameter 1 Parameter 2
Last Event Equal Value 1 36/C1
!When you add a new condition line, the boolean set-
ting defaults to And. Therefore, if all you want to do is 
set up two or more conditions that all must be met 
for an event to be found, you don’t have to think 
about the boolean column – just add the required 
lines and make the usual filter settings. 
						

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
ÖExpressions within brackets are evaluated first.
If there are several layers of brackets, these are evaluated “from the in-
side out”, starting with the innermost brackets.
You add brackets by clicking in the bracket columns and 
selecting an option. Up to triple brackets can be selected.
Editing filter conditions as text
The area directly below the filter condition list shows you 
the current filter conditions as text. It also allows you to 
enter and edit the filter conditions in textual form. For tips 
on the syntax, please study the included presets.
ÖThere is no additional functionality involved when edit-
ing filter conditions as text; it is simply another way to 
make settings. 
When you enter something in the text field you will see the correspond-
ing settings appear in the filter condition list (provided that you have used 
the correct syntax).
Selecting a function
The pop-up menu in the top left corner of the Logical Edi-
tor is where you select the function – the basic type of ed-
iting to be performed. When you select an option from the 
pop-up menu, the field to the right displays a comment, 
making it easier to see what the function does.Below, the available options are listed. Note that some op-
tions are available in the Logical Editor only – not in the 
Transformer effect.
Delete
Deletes all events found by the Logical Editor. In the case 
of the Transformer, this function will remove (or “mute”) all 
found events from the “output stream” – the actual events 
on the track are not affected.
Transform
Changes one or several aspects of the found events. You 
set up exactly what should be changed in the action list, 
see “Specifying actions” on page 375.
Insert
This will create new events and insert these into the 
part(s) (Logical Editor) or the output stream (Transformer). 
The new events will be based on the events found by the 
Logical Editor’s filter conditions, but with any changes you 
have set up in the action list applied. 
Another way of expressing this is that the Insert function 
copies the found events, transforms them according to the 
action list and inserts the transformed copies among the 
existing events.
Insert Exclusive
This will transform the found events according to the ac-
tion list. Then, all events that were not found (that didn’t 
meet the filter conditions) are deleted (Logical Editor) or 
removed from the output stream (Transformer).
Copy (not available in the Transformer)
This will copy all found events, transform them according 
to the action list and paste them into a new part on a new 
MIDI track. The original events are not affected.
Extract (not available in the Transformer)
This works like Copy, but will cut the found events instead. 
Or in other words, Extract will transform all found events 
and move them to a new part on a new MIDI track.
Select (not available in the Transformer)
This will simply select all found events, highlighting them 
for further work in the regular MIDI editors.
!In the Logical Editor, processing isn’t performed until 
you click the Do It button. When using the Trans-
former MIDI effect, there is no Do It button – the cur-
rent settings are automatically applied in real time 
during playback or live playing. 
						

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
Specifying actions
The lower list in the Logical Editor window is the action 
list. This is where you specify any changes that should be 
made to the found events (relevant for all function types 
except Delete and Select).
The handling of the action list is similar to the filter condi-
tion list, but without the brackets and booleans. You sim-
ply add lines by clicking the Add Line button to the right, 
and fill out the columns as required. To remove a superflu-
ous action line, select it and click the Delete Line button.
Action Target
This is where you select the property that should be 
changed in the events:
Operation
This setting determines what to do with the Action Target. 
The options on this pop-up menu are different depending 
on the selected Action Target. Below, all available opera-
tions are listed:
Add
Adds the value specified in the Parameter 1 column to the 
Action Target.
Subtract
Subtracts the value specified in the Parameter 1 column 
from the Action Target.
Multiply by
Multiplies the Action Target value with the value specified 
in the Parameter 1 column.
Divide by
Divides the Action Target value by the value specified in 
the Parameter 1 column.
Round by
This “rounds” the Action Target value using the value 
specified in the Parameter 1 column. In other words, the 
Action Target value is changed to the closest value that 
can be divided by the Parameter 1 value.
For example, if the Action Target value is 17 and Parame-
ter 1 is 5, the result of rounding will be 15 (the closest 
value that can be divided by 5). Another word for this type 
of operation would be “quantizing”, and it’s actually possi-
ble to use it for this, by setting the Action Target to “Posi-
tion” and specifying a quantize value with Parameter 1 (in 
ticks, with 480 ticks per quarter note).
Set Random Values between
This will set the Action Target value to a random value 
within the range specified with Parameter 1 and 2.
Option Description
Position Adjusting this value will move the events.
Length Lets you resize the events (notes only).
Value 1 This adjusts value 1 in the events. As described in the 
section “Searching for Value 1 or Value 2” on page 371, 
the meaning of value 1 depends on the event type. For 
notes, value 1 is the pitch.
Value 2 This adjusts value 2 in the events. As described in the 
section “Searching for Value 1 or Value 2” on page 371, 
the meaning of value 2 depends on the event type. For 
notes, value 2 is the velocity value.
Channel Allows you to change the MIDI channel setting. See 
“Searching for MIDI channels” on page 372.
Type Allows you to change an event from one type to another, 
e.g. transform aftertouch events to modulation events.
Value 3 This adjusts value 3 in the events, which is used for han-
dling of Noteoff-velocity when searching for properties. 
See “Searching for properties” on page 372. 
						

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
Set Relative Random Values between
This will add a random value to the current Action Target 
value. The added random value will be within the range 
specified with Parameter 1 and 2. Note that these can be 
set to negative values.
For example, if you set Parameter 1 to -20 and Parameter 
2 to +20, the original Action Target value will get a ran-
dom variation, never exceeding ±20.
Set to fixed value
This sets the Action Target to the value specified in the 
Parameter 1 column.
Add Length
This is only available when Action Target is set to Position. 
Furthermore, it is only valid if the found events are notes 
(and thus have a length). When Add Length is selected, 
the length of each note event will be added to the Position 
value. This can be used for creating new events (using the 
Insert function) positioned relative to the end positions of 
the original notes.
Transpose to Scale
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 1, 
and when the filter conditions are specifically set up to 
find notes (a “Type = Note” filter condition line has been 
added). When “Transpose to Scale” is selected, you can 
specify a musical scale using the Parameter 1 and 2 col-
umns. Parameter 1 is the key (C, C#, D, etc.) while Pa-
rameter 2 is the type of scale (major, melodic or harmonic 
minor, etc.).
Each note will be transposed to the closest note in the se-
lected scale.
Use Value 2
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 1. 
If this option is selected, the Value 2 setting in each event 
will be copied to the Value 1 setting.
For example, this would be useful if you are transforming 
all Modulation controllers to Aftertouch events (since con-
trollers use Value 2 for their amount, while Aftertouch uses 
Value 1 – see “Searching for Value 1 or Value 2” on page 
371).
Use Value 1
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 2. 
If this option is selected, the Value 1 setting in each event 
will be copied to the Value 2 setting.
Mirror
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 1 
or Value 2. When this option is selected, the values will be 
“mirrored” or “flipped” around the value set in the Parame-
ter 1 column.
In the case of notes, this will invert the scale, with the key 
set in the Parameter 1 column as “center point”.
Linear Change in Loop Range
This will affect events within the loop range (between the 
left and right locators) only. It will create a linear “ramp” of 
values (replacing the original values) starting at the value 
in the Parameter 1 column and ending at the Parameter 2 
value.
This can be used for creating linear controller sweeps, ve-
locity ramps, etc.
Relative Change in Loop Range
As with the previous option, this will create a ramp of val-
ues, affecting events in the cycle loop range only. How-
ever, here the changes are “relative”, meaning that values 
will be added to the existing values.
In other words, you set up a value ramp starting at Para-
meter 1 and ending at Parameter 2 (note that the Parame-
ter values can be negative). The resulting value ramp is 
then added to the existing values for the events within the 
cycle loop range.
For example, if you apply this to note velocities with Param-
eter 1 set to 0 and Parameter 2 set to -100, you create a 
velocity fade-out, keeping the original velocity relations: 
						

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The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
Applying the defined actions
Once you have set up filter conditions, selected a function 
and set the required actions (or loaded a preset), you ap-
ply the actions defined with the Logical Editor by clicking 
the Do It button.
Logical Editor operations can be undone just like any 
other editing.
ÖAgain, when using the Transformer MIDI effect there is 
no Do It button. The processing is applied to the events 
played back from the track (or played live “thru” the track) 
as soon as you set it up.
Since no existing events on the track are affected by the Transformer 
setting, there is no need for undo.
Working with presets
The Presets section in the bottom right section of the win-
dow allows you to load, store and manage Logical Editor 
presets. A preset contains all settings in the window, 
which means you can simply load a preset and click Do It.
ÖTo load a preset, select it from the Presets menu.
Storing your own settings as a preset
If you have made Logical Editor settings that you want to 
use again, you can store them as a preset:
1.You can enter some explanatory text in the Comment 
field.
An extra description of the preset can be useful, especially if the settings 
are complex.
2.Click the Store button in the Presets section.
A dialog for specifying a name for the new preset is displayed.
3.Enter a name for the preset and click OK.
The preset is stored.
ÖTo remove a preset, load it and click the Remove but-
ton.
Organizing and sharing presets
The Logical Editor presets are stored within the applica-
tion folder in the Presets\Logical Edit subfolder (see also 
“Where are the settings stored?” on page 473). While 
these files cannot be edited “manually”, you can reorga-
nize them (e.g. putting them in subfolders) like any files.This also makes it easy to share presets with other Cu-
base users, by transferring the individual preset files.
ÖThe list of presets is read each time the Logical Editor 
is opened.
The Input Transformer
This function allows you to selectively filter out and change 
MIDI data coming to a MIDI track before it is recorded. The 
Input Transformer is very similar to the Transformer MIDI ef-
fect, but contains four independent “modules”, for which 
you can set up different filtering and actions if you like. You 
can activate any or all of these four modules.
Here are some of the things the Input Transformer allows 
you to do the following:
 Set up split keyboard combinations for recording left and right 
hands separately.
 Turn a controller like a foot pedal into MIDI notes (for playing 
bass drum the right way).
 Filter out one specific type of MIDI data on one MIDI channel 
only.
 Turn aftertouch into any controller (and vice versa).
 Invert velocity or pitch.
Again: four of these things can be done at the same time.
Opening the Input Transformer
To open the Input Transformer for a MIDI track, select the 
track and click the Input Transformer button in the Inspec-
tor to open the pop-up menu:
Select Global to make Input Transformer settings that 
affect all MIDI inputs (and thereby all MIDI tracks).
Select Local to make Input Transformer settings for this 
track only. 
						

							378
The Logical Editor, Transformer and Input Transformer
In both cases, the button lights up and the Input Trans-
former opens.
Handling the four modules
The Input Transformer is really four separate transformers, 
or modules.
You select which module to view and make settings for 
by clicking its button in the Selected Module section.
Module 2 selected for viewing and editing.
The checkboxes in the Active Module section determine 
which module(s) are active.
Here, modules 1, 2 and 4 are active.
The two modes
The Mode pop-up menu contains two options: Filter and 
Transform.
In Filter mode, only the filter conditions (the upper list) 
are taken into account. All events matching the conditions 
set up will be filtered out (excluded from the recording).
In Transform mode, events matching the filter conditions 
will be transformed according to the settings in the action 
list (the lower list).
Setting up filtering and actions
This is done just like in the Logical Editor. Here is a brief 
rundown:
Click the Add Line buttons to add lines to the filter con-
dition list or action list.
To remove a line, click it to select it and click the Delete Line button to 
the right.
Clicking the columns in the filter condition list opens 
pop-up menus allowing you to specify the conditions to 
match.
Clicking the columns in the action list opens pop-up 
menus allowing you to specify what should be done to the 
found events (when Transform mode is selected).
For detailed descriptions of the filter conditions and action 
columns, see “General procedure” on page 369.
Selecting the Init option from the Presets pop-up menu 
will reset the selected module, removing all filter condition 
and target list lines.
The Input Transformer has no “Do It” button – the set-
tings are active as soon as you activate an Active Module 
checkbox.
The settings made in the activated modules will affect all MIDI data you 
record on the track.
ÖClosing the Input Transformer window does not turn it 
off – you need to deactivate all Active Module checkboxes 
for this!
A lit Input Transformer button in the Inspector indicates that one or more 
modules are active. 
						

							29
The Project Logical Editor 
						

							380
The Project Logical Editor
Introduction
On the Edit menu you will find the function “Project Logi-
cal Editor…” that opens a Project Logical Editor for the 
entire project. It works similar to the Logical Editor on the 
MIDI menu, see “The Logical Editor, Transformer and In-
put Transformer” on page 367. The most important differ-
ence is that the Logical Editor for MIDI works at the event 
level, whereas the Project Logical Editor works at the 
project level and is therefore a very powerful tool for 
“search and replace” functions in your project.
ÖThe MIDI events in the MIDI parts will not be affected 
by the Project Logical Editor operations. If you want to 
change MIDI notes or controller data, you have to use the 
Logical Editor, see “The Logical Editor, Transformer and 
Input Transformer” on page 367.
The Project Logical Editor allows you to create “macros”, 
e.g. for special track type operations on tracks that are 
named identically. You can use its functions to delete all 
muted MIDI parts or to toggle the open state of all folder 
tracks in your project, etc. 
Included with the Project Logical Editor are a number of 
presets that give you an impression of the great possibili-
ties that this feature offers, see “Selecting a preset” on 
page 381. Many of them can also be used as starting 
points when you set up your own editing operations. 
The principle for the Project Logical Editor is this:
You set up filter conditions to find certain elements.
This could be elements of a certain type, with certain attributes or values or 
on certain positions, in any combination. You can combine any number of 
filter conditions and make composite conditions using AND/OR operators.
You select the basic function to be performed.
The options are Transform (changing properties of the found elements), 
Delete (removing the elements) and Select (selecting the found elements).
You set up a list of actions, which specify exactly what 
should be done.
This is not necessary for all functions. For example, the Delete function 
does not require any additional action specifications – it simply removes 
all found elements. 
By combining filter conditions, functions and the specific 
actions, you can perform very powerful processing.
Opening the Project Logical Editor
1.Open the desired project.
All elements in the project will be affected, you do not have to make any 
selection.
2.Select “Project Logical Editor…” from the Edit menu.
Window overview
!The Project Logical Editor allows all kinds of settings 
that may not always make sense. Experiment a bit be-
fore applying your edits to important projects. You can 
undo the operations by using the Undo command on 
the Edit menu.
This is where you select a function 
(Transform, Delete, etc.). The field to the 
right shows an additional explanation of 
the selected function. This is the filter condition 
list, specifying which el-
ements to look for.
This is the action 
list, specifying e.g. 
how to change the 
found elements.
This is where you load, 
store and handle pre-
sets. See “Working with 
presets” on page 389.The “Do It” button 
performs the task 
you have set up.