Steinberg Cubase 7 User Manual

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Audio effectsInsert effects
Using effects in multi-channel configurations (Cubase only)
Whether an effect plug-in supports mono, stereo, or multi-channel processing 
depends on the capabilities of the corresponding plug-in. Regardless of this, all VST2 
and VST3 plug-ins can be inserted on tracks with a multi-channel configuration. 
Surround-capable plug-ins are applied to all speaker channels (or a subset of these), 
while mono or stereo effects can only process one or two channels.
For example, if you insert a plug-in on a 5.1 track, Cubase tries to apply a 5.1 
configuration to this plug-in. If the plug-in is surround capable, this is accepted. 
However, if you insert a stereo insert effect, the first speaker channels of the track (L and 
R) are routed through the effect’s available channels, and the other channels of the track 
are left unprocessed. To apply the effect to other speaker channels, you can use the 
Routing Editor, which can be opened via the Channel Settings window.
Using the Routing Editor
To open the Routing Editor, proceed as follows:
1.Open the Channel Settings window for the track on which the effect is inserted.
2.In the Inserts section, open the Routing tab.
A signal diagram is shown for each loaded insert.
3.Double-click on the diagram.
The Routing Editor opens.
The columns in the diagram represent the channels in the current configuration, with 
signals passing from top to bottom. The gray field in the middle represents the actual 
effect plug-in.
- The squares above the effect represent inputs to the effect plug-in.
- The squares below the effect represent outputs from the effect plug-in.
- A line that passes through the effect (with no square input/output indicators) 
represents a bypass connection – the audio on that speaker channel passes the 
effect without being processed.
- A “broken” line indicates a broken connection – the audio on that speaker channel 
will not be sent to the output at all.
Here, the effect will process the L and R channels. The Ls, Rs, and C channels are not pro-
cessed, while the LFE connection is broken. 
						

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Audio effectsInsert effects
Operations
You can change the input/output assignment of the channels by moving connections 
to the left or right. To do this, use the arrow buttons to the right.
•The upper arrow buttons move the input connections, and the lower arrow buttons 
move the output connections.
If the Link checkbox is activated, the input and output connections are always 
moved together. This is the mode to use when you simply want to process other 
channels than the default.
•If you move inputs or outputs independently, you create a “cross-connection”.
The audio on the Ls-Rs channels is processed in the plug-in and output on the L-R channels. 
Since the L-R channels are bypassed, this means the final L-R output will contain both the 
original L-R signals and the processed Ls-Rs signals.
•If a channel is bypassed (a straight line is shown through the plug-in), you can click 
on the line to break the connection.
Click again to replace the broken connection with a bypass.
•Clicking Reset takes you back to the original setup.
ÖChanges you make in this editor are audible immediately.
Adding insert effects to busses
All input and output busses have eight insert slots, just like regular audio channels. 
The procedures for adding insert effects are the same.
•Adding insert effects to an input bus allows you to record with effects.
The effects will become a permanent part of the recorded audio file (see the 
chapter 
“Recording” on page 110).
•Insert effects added to an output bus will affect all audio routed to that bus, like a 
“master insert effect”.
Typically you would add compressors, limiters, EQ or other plug-ins to tailor the 
dynamics and sound of the final mix. Dithering is a special case, as described 
below.
Input and output busses only appear as tracks in the track list after their automation 
Write buttons have been activated at least once. Only then will you be able to make 
Inserts settings for the corresponding busses in the Inspector section. However, you 
can always make Inserts settings in the Channel Settings window and the MixConsole.  
						

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Audio effectsInsert effects
Dithering
Dithering is a method for controlling the noise produced by quantization errors in 
digital recordings. The theory behind this is that during low level passages, only a few 
bits are used to represent the signal, which leads to quantization errors and hence 
distortion. 
For example, when “truncating bits”, as a result of moving from 24 to 16 bit resolution, 
quantization errors are added to an otherwise immaculate recording. By adding a 
special kind of noise at an extremely low level, the effect of these errors is minimized. 
The added noise could be perceived as a very low-level hiss under exacting listening 
conditions. However, this is hardly noticeable and much preferred to the distortion 
that otherwise occurs.
When should I use dithering?
•Consider dithering when you mix down to a lower resolution, either in realtime 
(during playback) or with the Export Audio Mixdown function. 
A typical example is when you mix down a project to a 16-bit stereo audio file for 
audio CD burning.
What is a “lower resolution” then? Well, Cubase uses 32-bit float resolution internally, 
which means that all integer resolutions (16
 bit, 24 bit, etc.) are lower. The negative 
effects of truncation (no dithering) are most noticeable when mixing down to 8
 bit, 
16
 bit and 20 bit format; whether to dither when mixing down to 24 bits is a matter of 
taste.
Applying dithering
1.Open the Channel Settings window for the output channel by clicking its Edit 
button in the MixConsole.
2.Open the effect selector for slot 7 or 8.
The two last Insert effect slots (for all channels) are post-fader, which is crucial for 
a dithering plug-in. The reason is that any master gain change applied after 
dithering would bring the signal back to the internal 32
 bit float domain, rendering 
the dithering settings useless.
3.Select the included UV22HR plug-in from the selector.
4.Make sure that the plug-in is set to dither to the correct resolution.
This would be the resolution of your audio hardware (on playback) or the desired 
resolution for the mixdown file you want to create (as set in the Export Audio 
Mixdown dialog, see the chapter 
“Export Audio Mixdown” on page 638).
5.Use the other parameters in the control panel to set up the dithering to your liking.
Using group channels for insert effects
Like all other channels, group channels can have up to eight insert effects. This is useful 
if you have several audio tracks that you want to process through the same effect (e.
 g. 
different vocal tracks that you want to be processed by the same compressor). 
Another special use for group channels and effects is the following:
If you have a mono audio track and want to process this through a stereo insert effect 
(e.
 g. a stereo chorus or an auto panner device), you cannot just insert the effect as 
usual. This is because the audio track is in mono – the output of the insert effect will 
be in mono as well, and the stereo information from the effect will be lost.
One solution is to route a send from the mono track to a stereo FX channel track, set 
the send to pre-fader mode and lower the fader completely for the mono audio track. 
However, this makes mixing the track cumbersome, since you cannot use the fader. 
						

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Audio effectsInsert effects
Here is another solution:
1.Create a group channel track in stereo and route it to the desired output bus.
2.Add the desired effect to the group channel as an insert effect.
3.Route the mono audio track to the group channel.
Now the signal from the mono audio track is sent directly to the group, where it 
passes through the insert effect, in stereo.
Freezing (rendering) insert effects for a track
Effect plug-ins can sometimes require a lot of processor power. If you are using a 
large number of insert effects for a track, you may reach a point where the computer 
cannot play back the track properly (you get crackling sounds, etc.).
To remedy this, you can freeze the track, by clicking the Freeze button in the 
Inspector.
•The Freeze Channel Options dialog opens, allowing you to set a “Tail Size” time in 
seconds.
This adds time at the end of the rendered file to allow reverb and delay tails to fully 
fade out.
•The program now renders the output of the track, including all pre-fader insert 
effects, to an audio file.
This file is placed in the “Freeze” folder within the Project folder (Windows). On 
the Mac, the Freeze folder is stored under “User/Documents”.
•The frozen audio track is locked for editing in the Project window.
The frozen insert effects cannot be edited or removed and you cannot add new 
insert effects for the track (except post-fader effects).
•On playback, the rendered audio file is played back. You can still adjust the level 
and panning in the MixConsole, make EQ settings and adjust the effect sends.
In the MixConsole, the channel for a frozen track is indicated by a “snow flake” 
symbol above the channel name.
After freezing the Inserts for a track, you hear the track play back as before but the 
insert effects do not have to be calculated in real time, easing the load on the 
computer processor. Typically, you would freeze a track when it is finished and you do 
not need to edit it anymore.
•You can only freeze audio tracks this way, not group channel tracks or FX channel 
tracks.
•Any insert effects in insert slots 7 or 8 cannot be frozen because these slots are 
post-fader. 
						

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Audio effectsSend effects
Unfreezing
If you need to edit the events on a frozen track or make settings for the insert effects, 
you can unfreeze the track:
1.Click the Freeze button in the Inspector for the track.
You will be asked whether you really want to unfreeze the channel and if you wish 
to keep or delete the freeze files.
2.Click “Unfreeze” or “Keep Freeze files”.
This reactivates the frozen insert effects. Clicking “Keep Freeze Files” will unfreeze 
the channel but not delete the freeze files. After editing, you can freeze the track 
again.
Send effects
As their name implies, send effects are outside of an audio channel’s signal path, i. e. 
the audio data to be processed must be sent to the effect (as opposed to insert 
effects, which are inserted into the channel’s signal path).
To this end, Cubase provides FX channel tracks. When you have created such a 
track, it is added to the track list and can be selected as a routing target in the Send 
slots of audio channels.
•When selecting an FX channel track in one of the send slots of an audio channel, 
the audio is sent to the FX channel and through any insert effects set up for it.
The sends can be routed to different FX channels, and thus different FX channel 
insert effect configurations. You control the amount of signal sent to the FX 
channel by adjusting the effect send level.
•If you have added several effects to the FX channel, the signal passes through the 
effects in series, from the top (the first slot) downward.
This allows for “custom” send effect configurations – e. g. a chorus followed by a 
reverb followed by an EQ and so on.
•The FX channel track has its own channel in the MixConsole.
Here you can adjust the effect return level and balance, add EQ and route the 
effect return to any output bus.
•Each FX channel track can have any number of automation tracks, for automating 
various effect parameters. 
See the chapter “Automation” on page 279 for more information.
Adding an FX channel track
1.Open the Project menu, open the “Add Track” submenu and select “FX Channel”.
A dialog opens.
2.Select a channel configuration for the FX channel track.
Normally, stereo is a good choice since most effect plug-ins have stereo outputs.
3.Select an effect for the FX channel track. 
						

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Audio effectsSend effects
4.Click the Add Track button.
An FX channel track is added to the track list, and the selected effect, if any, is 
loaded into the first insert effect slot for the FX channel (in that case, the lit Inserts 
tab for the FX channel track in the Inspector indicates that an effect has been 
assigned and automatically activated).
•All FX channel tracks you create will appear in a dedicated “folder” track in the 
track list.
This makes it easy to manage and keep track of all your FX channel tracks, and 
also allows you to save screen space by folding in the FX Channel folder.
FX channel tracks are automatically named “FX 1”, “FX 2” etc., but you can rename them if 
you wish. Just double-click the name of an FX channel track in either the track list or the Ins-
pector and type in a new name.
Adding and setting up effects
As mentioned above, you can add a single insert effect when you create the FX 
channel track. To add and set up effects after the FX channel track is created, you can 
either use the Inspector for the track (click the Inserts tab) or the Channel Settings 
window:
1.Click the Edit button for the FX channel track (in the track list, MixConsole, or 
Inspector).
The Channel Settings window opens.
On the left in the window you can find the Inserts section.
2.Make sure that the FX channel is routed to the correct output bus.
This is done with the Output pop-up menu on the toolbar of the Channel Settings 
window (also available in the MixConsole and Inspector).
3.To add an insert effect in an empty slot (or to replace the current effect in a slot), 
click the slot and select an effect from the selector.
4.When you add an effect, its control panel opens. When you set up send effects, 
you normally set the wet/dry Mix control to all “wet”.
This is because you control the balance between the wet and the dry signal with 
the effect sends. For more information, see 
“Editing effects” on page 242. 
						

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Audio effectsSend effects
•The handling and operation of insert plug-ins for FX channels is the same as for 
audio channels.
See “Routing an audio channel or bus through insert effects” on page 229.
•You can adjust level, pan and EQ for the send in the Channel Settings window.
This can also be done in the MixConsole or in the Inspector.
Making settings for the sends
The next step is to set up a send for an audio channel and route it to the FX channel. 
This can be done in the MixConsole, in the Channel Settings window, or in the 
Inspector for the audio track. The example below shows the Channel Settings 
window, but the procedure is similar for all the sections:
1.Click the “e” button for an audio channel to bring up its Channel Settings window.
Each of the sends has the following controls:
- An On/Off button for activating/deactivating the effect
- A send level slider
2.Open the selector for a send by clicking the arrow icon in an empty slot, and select 
the desired routing destination.
- If the first item on this menu (“No Bus”) is selected, the send is not routed 
anywhere.
- Items called “FX 1”, “FX 2” etc. correspond to existing FX tracks. If you renamed 
an FX track (see 
“Adding an FX channel track” on page 235), that name will 
appear on this menu instead of the default.
- The menu also allows for routing a send directly to output busses, separate output 
bus channels or Group channels.
•Cubase only: You can apply or remove a send to or from all the selected channels 
at once by holding down [Shift]-[Alt]/[Option] and selecting the desired effect from 
any of the effect slots.
3.Select an FX channel track.
Now the send is routed to the FX channel.
4.Activate the On/Off button for the send.
5.Click and drag the send level slider to a moderate value.
The send level determines how much of the signal from the audio channel is routed 
to the FX channel via the send.
Setting the 
Send level 
						

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Audio effectsSend effects
•On the toolbar of the Channel Settings window, select the FX channel from the 
Channel Name selector and adjust its effect return level.
By adjusting the return level, you control the amount of the signal sent from the FX 
channel to the output bus.
6.If you want the signal to be sent to the FX channel before the audio channel’s volume 
fader in the MixConsole, right-click on a send and select “Move to Pre-Fader”.
A triangle in the lower left corner of a send indicates that “Move to Pre-Fader” is 
activated.
Setting a send 
to pre-fader 
mode
Normally you want the effect send to be proportional to the channel volume (post-
fader send). The picture below shows where the sends are “tapped” from the signal in 
pre and post-fader mode:
ÖUse the channel’s Mute button to determine whether a send in pre-fader mode is 
affected. This is done with the “Mute Pre-Send when Mute” option in the Preferences 
dialog (VST page).
ÖCubase only: The FX channels themselves have sends, too.
Bypassing the sends
•In the MixConsole, you can click on the lit Sends button for a channel in the 
Channel Racks section to bypass all its sends.
When the sends are bypassed, the button is yellow. Click the button again to 
enable the sends.
•To bypass all sends for a track, click the “Bypass Sends” button. 
This button can be found on the right of the header of the Sends section in the 
Inspector. It lights up in yellow to indicate that the inserts of this track are 
bypassed. In the track list and in the Channel Racks section in the MixConsole, the 
Sends button will also light up in yellow.
Insert effects 1 to 6
EQ
Volume (fader)
Pre-fader sends
Post-fader sends
Insert effects 7 to 8Input gain 
						

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Audio effectsSend effects
•You can also bypass the send effects by clicking the “Bypass Inserts” button for 
the FX channel.
This bypasses the actual effects which may be used by several different channels. 
Bypassing a send affects that send and that channel only. If you bypass the insert 
effects, the original sound will be passed through. This may lead to unwanted side 
effects (higher volume). To deactivate all effects, use the mute button in the FX 
channel.
Setting pan for the sends (Cubase only)
There are several possibilities to set up pan for the sends:
•To position the send signal at center pan in the stereo FX channel (or anywhere 
you like), route a send from a mono channel to a stereo FX channel track.
•To use the pan control as a crossfader, determining the balance between the 
stereo sides when the stereo send signal is mixed to mono, route a send from a 
stereo channel to a mono FX channel track.
•To use the surround panner to position the send signal in the surround image, 
route a send from a mono or stereo channel to an FX channel track in surround 
format.
You set up send panning in the following way:
1.Open the Channel Settings window for the audio channel.
In the Sends section of the Channel Settings window, on the Panning tab, each 
send is shown with a pan fader. On the Functions menu, you can activate the “Link 
Panners” option. The send panners will then follow the pan for the channel, making 
the stereo imaging as clear and true as possible. This behavior can also be set as 
default for all channels. The corresponding setting is available in the Preferences 
dialog (VST page).
2.Click and drag the pan control for the desired send(s) in the display.
You can reset the pan control to the center position by [Ctrl]/[Command]-clicking 
on the pan control. 
						

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Audio effectsUsing the side-chain input
•If the FX channel is configured in a surround format, the pan control will be a 
miniature surround panner.
You can click and drag the “ball” in the miniature panner display to position the 
send in the surround field, or double-click in the display to bring up the surround 
panner. See the chapter 
“Surround sound (Cubase only)” on page 266 for details.
ÖIf both the send (the audio channel) and the FX channel are in mono, the pan control 
is not available.
Using the side-chain input
Many VST 3.0 effects feature a side-chain input. Side-chaining allows you, for 
example, to lower the music volume when someone is speaking (“ducking”) or to use 
compression (e.
 g. on a bass sound) when the drums are hit, thereby “harmonizing” 
the intensity of the two instruments. Another possibility is to use the side-chain signal 
as a source for modulation.
Effects from the following categories feature side-chain: Delay, Dynamics, 
Modulation, and Filter.
ÖCertain combinations of tracks and side-chain inputs may lead to feedback loops and 
added latency. If this is the case, the side-chain options will not be available.
Creating a Ducking delay
The delay repeats can be silenced by side-chain signals exceeding a certain 
threshold.
You can use this feature to create a so-called “ducking delay” for your vocals. Let’s 
say you want to add a delay effect that is audible only when no signal is present on the 
vocal track. For this, you need to set up a delay effect which is deactivated every time 
the vocals start again.
Proceed as follows:
1.Select the vocal track.
2.On the Project menu, select “Duplicate Tracks”.
Now you can use the vocal events on the second track to silence the delay effect.
3.Open the Inserts tab for the first vocal track in the Inspector and select 
“PingPongDelay” from the effects selector.
The control panel for the effect opens.
4.On the control panel for the effect, make the desired effect settings and activate 
the Side-Chain button.
Try out the effect settings to find out which settings will work best with your 
project. For detailed descriptions of the parameters, see the separate PDF 
document “Plug-in Reference”.
5.In the track list, select the second vocal track.
!For detailed descriptions of the plug-ins that feature side-chaining, see the separate 
PDF document “Plug-in Reference”.