Steinberg Cubase 6 Manual

							81
Working with tracks and lanes
Dividing the track list
It is possible to divide the track list into two parts. Both 
sections will have independent zoom and scroll controls (if 
needed), but resizing the window vertically will affect the 
lower section only (if possible). This is useful if you are 
working with a video track along with multi-track audio, for 
example. This way, you can place the video track in the 
upper track list, letting you scroll the audio tracks sepa
-
rately in the lower track list, referencing them against the 
video track.
•To divide the track list, click the “Divide Track List” but-
ton in the top right corner of the Project window just be-
low the ruler.
•To revert to a single track list, click the button again.
When the track list is divided into two parts, the following 
applies:
•If you add tracks from the Add Track submenu of the 
Project menu, video tracks, marker tracks, and arranger 
tracks are automatically placed in the upper part of the 
track list.
If the track list already contains tracks any video, marker, or arranger 
tracks, these are automatically moved to the upper part when you divide 
the track list. All other types of tracks are placed in the lower part.
•If you add tracks from the context menu invoked by 
right-clicking the track list, the tracks are added to the part 
of the track list in which you click.
•You can move any type of track from the lower track list 
to the upper and vice versa by right-clicking it in the track 
list and selecting “Toggle Track List” from the context 
menu.
•You can resize the upper part by clicking and dragging 
the divider between the track list sections. 
						

							7
Playback and the Transport panel 
						

							83
Playback and the Transport panel
Background
This chapter describes the various methods available for 
controlling playback and transport functions in Cubase.
The Transport panel
The Transport panel contains the main transport functions 
in Cubase, as well as many other options related to play
-
back and recording. 
The following sections can be shown on the Transport 
panel, from left to right:
• Virtual Keyboard, see “The Virtual Keyboard” on page 88.
• Performance, this is related to the VST Performance window, 
see 
“About the VST Performance window” on page 24.
• Record Mode, see “Recording audio” on page 97 and “Re-
cording MIDI” on page 102.
• Locators, see “Setting the left and right locators” on page 85 
and “About Pre-roll and Post-roll” on page 105.
•Jog/Scrub, “Playing back with the shuttle speed control” on 
page 85 and “Project scrubbing – the jog wheel” on page 86.
• Main Transport, see below.
• Arranger, see “The arranger track” on page 124.
• Master + Sync, see “Using the metronome” on page 106, 
• Marker, see “Using markers” on page 138, “Editing tempo and 
signature” on page 462, and “Synchronized operation” on 
page 500.
• MIDI Activity, see below.
• Audio Activity, see below.
• Audio Level Control, see below.
The main transport controls
In the Main Transport area you will find the basic transport 
controls as well time display options, see 
“Setting the time 
format in the Transport panel” on page 84.
ÖThe main transport functions (Cycle/Stop/Play/Re-
cord) can also be shown on the toolbar. In addition, vari-
ous play options are available on the Transport menu.
The MIDI Activity, Audio Activity and Audio Level Control 
sections
These sections are useful to monitor the MIDI and audio 
input and output signals. The Audio Level Control section 
furthermore contains clipping indicators and an output 
level control.
ÖThe audio activity and clipping indicator as well as the 
output level control refer to the Control Room channel (Cu
-
base only), if the Control Room is activated. Otherwise, 
these controls refer to the Main Mix Output bus as defined 
on the Outputs tab in the VST Connections window. For in
-
formation on the Control Room, see the chapter “Control 
Room (Cubase only)” on page 172. In Cubase Artist, the 
Main Mix bus is always used for monitoring.
Hiding and showing the Transport panel
The Transport panel is shown automatically when you 
launch a new project. To hide or show it, select “Transport 
Panel” on the Transport menu (or use the corresponding 
key command – by default [F2]).
Changing the Transport panel setup
You can customize the appearance of the Transport panel 
by right-clicking anywhere on the panel and selecting/de
-
selecting the corresponding options on the context menu.
This is described in detail in the section “The setup con-
text menus” on page 534.
The numeric keypad
In the default Key Command settings, various Transport 
panel operations are assigned to the numeric keypad on 
the computer keyboard. The keypads are slightly different 
on PC and Macintosh computers:
Numeric KeyFunction
[Enter]Play
[+]Fast Forward
[-]Rewind
[*]Record
[÷] (Win)/[/] (Mac)Cycle On/Off
[,]Return to Zero
[0]Stop
[1]Go to Left Locator 
						

							84
Playback and the Transport panel
Operations
Setting the project cursor position
There are several ways to move the project cursor position:
•By using Fast Forward and Rewind.
•By using the Jog/Shuttle/Nudge control on the Trans-
port panel (see “Playing back with the shuttle speed con-
trol” on page 85).
•By dragging the project cursor in the lower part of the 
ruler. 
•By clicking in the ruler.
Double-clicking in the ruler moves the cursor and starts/stops playback. 
•If the “Locate when Clicked in Empty Space” option is 
activated in the Preferences dialog (Transport page) you 
can click anywhere in an empty section of the Project win
-
dow to move the cursor position.
•By changing the value in any of the position displays.
•By using the position slider above the transport buttons 
in the Transport panel.
The range of the slider relates to the Length setting in the Project Setup 
dialog. Hence, moving the slider all the way to the right will take you to 
the end of the project. 
•By using markers (see the chapter “Using markers” on 
page 138).
•By using playback options (see “Playback functions” on 
page 87).
•By using the arranger function (see “The arranger track” 
on page 124).
•By using functions on the Transport menu.
On the Transport menu, the following functions are avail-
able:
ÖIf Snap is activated when dragging the project cursor, 
the Snap value is taken into account. This is helpful for 
finding exact positions quickly.
ÖThere are also numerous key commands available for 
moving the project cursor (in the Transport category in the 
Key Commands dialog). For example, you can assign key 
commands to the “Step Bar” and “Step Back Bar” func
-
tions, allowing you to move the project cursor in steps of 
one bar, backwards and forwards.
Setting the time format in the Transport panel
Primary time display (left) and secondary time display (right) 
The time unit shown in the ruler can be independent from 
the time unit shown in the main time display on the Trans
-
port panel. This means that you can display timecode in 
the transport position display and bars and beats in the 
ruler, for example. In addition, there is a secondary time 
display to the right of the primary time display which is 
also independent, giving you three different time units 
shown at the same time. In the Project window, you can 
also create additional ruler tracks – see 
“Using multiple 
rulers – ruler tracks” on page 45. 
The following rules apply:
•If you change the time format of the primary time display 
on the Transport panel, the time format of the ruler will be 
changed as well. 
This is the same as changing the display format in the Project Setup. 
Therefore, to have different display formats in the ruler and the main time 
display you should change the format in the ruler. 
[2]Go to Right Locator
[3-9]Go to marker 3 to 9
Numeric Key Function
FunctionDescription
Locate Selec-tion/Locate 
Selection EndMoves the project cursor to the beginning or end of the 
current selection. For this to be available, you must 
have selected one or more events or parts, or made a 
selection range.
Locate Next/
Previous MarkerThis moves the project cursor to the closest marker to 
the right or left (see “Marker tracks” on page 41).
Locate Next/
Previous EventThis moves the project cursor forwards or backwards 
respectively, to the closest beginning or end of any 
event on the selected track(s). 
						

							85
Playback and the Transport panel
•The primary time display format is set on the pop-up 
menu to the right in the main position display. 
•This setting also determines the time format displayed 
for the left and right locators on the Transport panel.
•The secondary time display is completely independent, 
and the display format is set on the pop-up menu to the 
right in the secondary time display.
•You can swap time formats between the primary and 
secondary time displays by clicking the double arrow sym
-
bol (Exchange Time Formats) between them.
Setting the left and right locators
The left and right locators are a pair of position markers 
used for specifying punch-in and punch-out positions dur
-
ing recording, and as boundaries for cycle playback and 
recording. 
ÖWhen cycle mode is activated on the Transport panel, 
the area between the left and right locators will be re
-
peated (cycled) on playback. However, if the right locator 
is positioned before the left, this will work as a “jump” or 
“skip mode” – when the project cursor reaches the right 
locator it will immediately jump to the left locator position 
and continue playback from there.
There are several ways to set locator positions:
•To set the left locator, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click 
at the desired position in the ruler.
Similarly, pressing [Alt]/[Option] and clicking in the ruler sets the right lo-
cator. You can also drag the locator “handles” directly in the ruler.
The locators are indicated by the “flags” in the ruler. The area between 
the locators is highlighted in the ruler and in the Project window (see 
“Appearance” on page 536). Note that if the right locator is before the 
left locator, the color of the ruler between the locators will change.
•Click and drag in the upper half of the ruler to “draw” a 
locator range.
If you click on an existing locator range, you can drag to move it.
•Pressing [Ctrl]/[Command] and pressing [1] or [2] on 
the numeric keypad sets the left or right locator to the 
project cursor position.
Similarly, you can press [1] or [2] on the numeric keypad (without [Ctrl]/
[Command]) to set the project cursor position to the left or right locator 
position. Note that these are default key commands – you can change 
these if you like.
•By creating cycle markers you can store any number of 
left and right locator positions, which can be recalled by 
simply double-clicking on the corresponding marker (see 
“Editing markers on the marker track” on page 142).
•The “Locators to Selection” item on the Transport menu 
(default key command [P]) sets the locators to encompass 
the current selection.
This is available if you have selected one or several events or made a se-
lection range.
•You can also adjust the locators numerically on the 
Transport panel.
Clicking the L/R buttons in the locator section on the Transport panel will 
move the project cursor to the respective locator. If you press [Alt]/[Op-
tion] and click the L or R button, the corresponding locator will be set to 
the current project cursor position.
Playing back with the shuttle speed control 
The shuttle speed control (the outer wheel on the Transport 
panel) allows you to play back the project at any speed 
(four times the playback speed at maximum), forwards or 
backwards. This is a quick way to locate or “cue” to any po
-
sition in the project.
•Turn the shuttle speed wheel to the right to start play-
back.
The further to the right you move the wheel, the faster the playback speed. 
•If you turn the wheel to the left instead, the project will 
play backwards.
The speed depends on how far to the left you turn the wheel. 
						

							86
Playback and the Transport panel
•The “Use Inserts While Scrubbing” option in the Prefer-
ences (Transport–Scrub page) allows you to activate in-
sert effects for scrubbing with the shuttle speed control.
By default, insert effects are bypassed.
ÖYou can also access the shuttle speed control via a 
remote control device.
Project scrubbing – the jog wheel 
The middle wheel on the Transport panel serves as a jog 
wheel. By clicking and turning it to the right or left you will 
move the playback position manually forwards or back
-
wards – much like scrubbing on a tape deck. This helps 
you pinpoint exact locations in the project.
•Note that the jog wheel is an “endless rotary encoder” – 
you can turn it as many times as needed to move to the 
desired location.
The faster you turn the wheel, the faster the playback speed. The original 
playback speed is the fastest speed possible.
•If you click the jog wheel during playback, playback au-
tomatically stops and scrubbing starts.
•The “Use Inserts While Scrubbing” option in the Prefer-
ences dialog on the Transport–Scrub page allows you to 
activate insert effects for scrubbing with the jog wheel.
By default, insert effects are bypassed.
ÖYou can also use a jog wheel on a remote controller 
for scrubbing.
Nudging the project cursor 
The “+” and “–” buttons in the middle of the Shuttle/Jog 
section allow you to nudge the project cursor position one 
frame at a time to the right or left.
Options and Settings
The “Return to Start Position on Stop” 
preference
This setting is found on the Transport page in the Prefer-
ences dialog (opened from the File menu under Windows, 
or the Cubase menu under Mac OS X).
•If “Return to Start Position on Stop” is activated when 
you stop playback, the project cursor will automatically 
return to the position where recording or playback last 
started.
•If “Return to Start Position on Stop” is deactivated, the 
project cursor will remain at the position where you stop 
playback.
Pressing Stop again will return the project cursor to the position where 
recording or playback last started.
About track disable/enable 
For audio tracks, the track context menu contains an item 
named “Disable Track”. This shuts down all disk activity 
for the track, as opposed to using Mute, which merely 
turns down the output volume for a track. For example, if 
you often record “alternative takes” you can easily build up 
a large number of takes on different tracks. Even though 
these tracks are muted, they are actually still “playing 
back” from the hard disk during playback. Because this 
puts an unnecessary load on your disk system, using “Dis
-
able Track” is recommended for such situations.
•Select “Disable Track” for tracks that you want to keep in 
the project for later use but do not want to play back now.
The track color changes to indicate that the track is disabled.
•Select “Enable Track” from the track context menu to 
re-enable disabled tracks. 
						

							87
Playback and the Transport panel
Playback functions
Apart from the standard transport controls on the Trans-
port panel, you can also find a number of functions on the 
Transport menu that can be used to control playback. The 
items have the following functionality:
ÖIn the Preferences dialog (Editing–Audio page) you 
will find the “Treat Muted Audio Events like Deleted” op
-
tion. When you activate this option, any events overlapped 
by a muted event will become audible.
About Chase
Chase is a function that makes sure your MIDI instruments 
sound as they should when you locate to a new position 
and start playback. This is accomplished by the program 
transmitting a number of MIDI messages to your instru
-
ments each time you move to a new position in the project, 
making sure all MIDI devices are set up correctly with re
-
gard to program change, controller messages (such as 
MIDI Volume), etc.
For example, let’s say you have a MIDI track with a pro-
gram change event inserted at the beginning. This event 
makes a synth switch to a piano sound.
At the beginning of the first chorus you have another pro-
gram change event which makes the same synth switch to 
a string sound.
You now play back the song. It begins with the piano 
sound and then switches to the string sound. In the middle 
of the chorus you stop and rewind to some point between 
the beginning and the second program change. The synth 
will now still play the string sound although in this section 
it really should be a piano!
The Chase function takes care of that. If program change 
events are set to be chased, Cubase will track the music 
back to the beginning, find the first program change and 
transmit it to your synth, setting it to the correct sound.
The same thing can apply to other event types as well. The 
Chase Events settings in the Preferences dialog (MIDI 
page) determine which event types will be chased when 
you locate to a new position and start playback.
ÖEvent types for which the checkbox is activated here 
will be chased.
•In this section of the Preferences dialog, you will also 
find the “Chase not limited to Part Boundaries” option.
When you activate this option, MIDI controllers are also chased outside 
the part boundaries, i.
 e. the Chase will be performed on the part touched 
by the cursor as well as on all the parts to the left of it. Please note that 
this option should be deactivated for very large projects, as it consider
-
ably slows down operations such as positioning and soloing. When you 
deactivate this option, the MIDI controllers are only chased within the 
parts under the position cursor.
OptionDescription
Post-roll from 
Selection Start/EndStarts playback from the beginning or end of the 
currently selected range and stops after the time 
set in the Post-roll field on the Transport panel.
Pre-roll to Selection 
Start/EndStarts playback from a position before the start or 
end of the currently selected range and stops at 
the selection start or end, respectively. The play
-back start position is set in the Pre-roll field on the 
Transport panel.
Play from Selection 
Start/EndActivates playback from the beginning or end of the 
current selection.
Play until Selection 
Start/EndActivates playback two seconds before the start or 
end of the current selection and stops at the selec-tion start or end, respectively.
Play until Next MarkerThis activates playback from the project cursor and 
stops at the next marker.
Play Selection RangeThis activates playback from the start of the current 
selection and stops at the selection end.
Loop SelectionThis activates playback from the start of the current 
selection and keeps starting over again when 
reaching the selection end.
!The functions listed above (except “Play until Next 
Marker”) are only available if you have selected one 
or more events or made a selection range. 
						

							88
Playback and the Transport panel
The Virtual Keyboard 
The Virtual Keyboard can be displayed in the Transport 
panel. It allows you to play and record MIDI notes by using 
your computer keyboard or mouse. This is useful if you have 
no external MIDI instrument at hand and you do not want to 
draw in notes with the Pencil tool. The Virtual Keyboard can 
perform all functions that can be controlled by external MIDI 
keyboards, e.
 g. playing and recording MIDI notes.
•You can choose between two different keyboard dis-
play modes: computer keyboard and piano keyboard. To 
switch between these two modes, click the “Change Vir
-
tual Keyboard Display Type” button in the lower right cor-
ner of the Virtual Keyboard section or use the [Tab] key.
The Virtual Keyboard in computer keyboard display mode
The Virtual Keyboard in piano keyboard display mode
To record MIDI using the Virtual Keyboard, proceed as fol-
lows: 
1.Create or choose a MIDI or an instrument track and 
activate the “Record Enable” button for it.
2.Open the Virtual Keyboard by selecting “Virtual Key-
board” on the Devices menu, by pressing [Alt]/[Option]-
[K] or by right-clicking on the Transport panel and select
-
ing “Virtual Keyboard” on the context menu.
The Virtual Keyboard is displayed in the Transport panel.
3.Activate the Record button and press a key on your 
computer keyboard to enter a note.
You can also click on the keys of the Virtual Keyboard to enter notes.
•You can also press several keys simultaneously to enter 
polyphonic parts. The maximum number of notes that can 
be played at one time varies between the different operat
-
ing systems and hardware configurations.
4.Use the fader “Note velocity level” to the right of the 
virtual keyboard to adjust the volume.
You can also use the up and down arrow keys for this.
5.Enter the desired notes this way.
6.When you are done, hit the Stop button and close the 
Virtual Keyboard.
When the Virtual Keyboard is hidden, all key commands are available 
again.
Options and settings
•In piano keyboard mode, you have a wider range of keys 
at your disposal, allowing you to enter two voices simulta
-
neously, for example bass and lead voice or bass drums 
and HiHats.
In computer keyboard mode, you can use the two rows of keys that are 
displayed on the Virtual Keyboard to enter notes. In piano keyboard 
mode, you can also use the two rows of keys below these.
•You have seven full octaves at your disposal. Use the 
“Octave Offset” buttons at the bottom of the virtual key
-
board to offset the octave range of the keyboard. 
You can also use the left and right arrow keys to switch the keyboard 
range to a lower or higher octave, respectively.
•In piano keyboard mode, you can use the two sliders to 
the left of the keyboard to introduce pitchbend (left slider) 
or modulation (right slider).
You can also click on a key, hold the mouse button pressed until the 
mouse pointer becomes a crosshair tool and drag upwards/downward to 
introduce modulation or left/right to create pitchbend.
!When the Virtual Keyboard is displayed, the usual key 
commands are blocked because they are reserved for 
the Virtual Keyboard. The only exceptions are: [Ctrl]/
[Command]-[S] (Save), Num [*] (Start/Stop Record), 
[Space] (Start/Stop Playback), Num
 [1] (Jump to left 
locator), [Delete] or [Backspace] (Delete), Num [/] 
(Cycle on/off), [F2] (Show/Hide Transport panel), and 
[Alt]/[Option]-[K] (Show/Hide Virtual Keyboard). 
						

							8
Recording 
						

							90
Recording
Background
This chapter describes the various recording methods 
that you can use in Cubase. As it is possible to record 
both audio and MIDI tracks, both recording methods are 
covered in this chapter.
Before you start
This chapter assumes that you are reasonably familiar with 
certain basic recording concepts, and that the following 
initial preparations have been made:
•You have properly set up, connected and calibrated 
your audio hardware. 
•You have opened a project and set the project setup 
parameters to your specifications.
Project setup parameters determine the record format, sample rate, proj-
ect length, etc. that affect the audio recordings you make during the 
course of the project, see “The Project Setup dialog” on page 54.
•If you plan to record MIDI, your MIDI equipment has to 
be set up and connected correctly.
Basic recording methods
This section describes the general methods used for re-
cording. However, there are additional preparations and 
procedures that are specific to audio and MIDI recording 
respectively. Make sure to read these sections before you 
start recording (see 
“Audio recording specifics” on page 
92 and “MIDI recording specifics” on page 100).
Record-enabling tracks
Cubase can record on a single track or on several tracks 
(audio and/or MIDI) simultaneously. To make a track ready 
for recording, activate the Record Enable button for the 
track in the track list, in the Inspector, or in the Mixer.
Record Enable in the Inspector, track list, and Mixer
ÖIf “Enable Record on Selected Audio Track” or “En-
able Record on Selected MIDI Track” is activated in the 
Preferences dialog (Editing–Project & Mixer page), audio 
or MIDI tracks are automatically record-enabled when you 
select them in the track list.
ÖYou can set up key commands to record-enable all 
audio tracks simultaneously and to deactivate Record En
-
able for all audio tracks (Arm/Disarm all Audio Tracks). 
You will find these commands in the Key Commands dia
-
log, in the Mixer category (see “Setting up key commands” 
on page 542).
ÖThe exact number of audio tracks you can record si-
multaneously depends on your computer CPU and hard 
disk performance. In the Preferences dialog (VST page), 
you can find the “Warn on Processing Overloads” option. 
When this is activated, a warning message will be dis
-
played as soon as the CPU clip indicator (on the Trans-
port panel) lights up during recording.