Steinberg Cubase 7 User Manual

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VST ConnectionsSetting up group and FX channels
Presets
On the Inputs and Outputs tabs you will find a Presets menu. Here you can find three 
different types of presets:
•A number of standard bus configurations.
•Automatically created presets tailored to your specific hardware configuration.
On startup, Cubase analyzes the physical inputs and outputs provided by your 
audio hardware and creates a number of hardware-dependent presets with the 
following possible configurations:
- One stereo bus.
- Various combinations of stereo and mono busses.
- A number of mono busses.
- Cubase only: One 5.1 bus (if you have 6 or more inputs).
- Cubase only: Various combinations of 5.1 and stereo busses (if you have 6 or 
more inputs).
- Cubase only: Various combinations of 5.1 and mono busses (if you have 6 or 
more inputs).
•Your own user presets that you can save by clicking the Store button (“+” symbol). 
You can then select the stored configuration directly from the Presets pop-up 
menu at any time. To remove a stored preset, select it and click the Delete button 
(“-” symbol).
Setting up group and FX channels
The Group/FX tab in the VST Connections window shows all group channels and FX 
channels in your project. You can create new group or FX channels by clicking the 
corresponding Add button. This is the same as creating group channel tracks or FX 
channel tracks in the Project window, see 
“About Group Channels” on page 192 and 
the chapter “Audio effects” on page 227.
However, the VST Connections window also allows you to create child busses for 
group and FX channels (Cubase only). This is useful if you have group or FX channels 
in surround format and want to route stereo channels to specific channel pairs in these.
Creating a child bus for a group or FX channel in surround format is similar to creating 
a child bus for input and output busses, see 
“Adding child busses (Cubase only)” on 
page 30.
About monitoring
The VST Connections window allows you to set up the busses used for monitoring, 
activate/deactivate the Control Room and open the Control Room Mixer. For details 
about using the Control Room and setting up the Studio tab in the VST Connections 
window, see the chapter 
“The Control Room (Cubase only)” on page 211.
When the Control Room is disabled on the Studio tab of the VST Connections 
window, the Main Mix bus is used for monitoring. In this case you can adjust the 
monitoring level in the MixConsole, see the chapter 
“The MixConsole” on page 177.
ÖIn Cubase Artist, the Main Mix bus is always used for monitoring. 
						

							32
VST ConnectionsExternal instruments/effects (Cubase only)
External instruments/effects (Cubase only)
Cubase supports the integration of external effect devices and external instruments, 
e.
 g. hardware synthesizers, into the sequencer signal flow.
You can use the External Instruments tab and the External FX tab in the VST 
Connections window to define the necessary send and return ports and access the 
instruments/effects through the VST Instruments window.
Requirements
•To use external effects, you need audio hardware with multiple inputs and outputs. 
To use external instruments, a MIDI interface must be connected to your computer.
An external effect will require at least one input and one output (or input/output 
pairs for stereo effects) in addition to the input/output ports you use for recording 
and monitoring.
•As always, audio hardware with low-latency drivers is a good thing to have.
Cubase will compensate for the input/output latency and ensure that the audio 
processed through external effects is not shifted in time.
Connecting the external effect/instrument
To set up an external effect or instrument, proceed as follows:
1.Connect an unused output pair on your audio hardware to the input pair on your 
external hardware device.
In this example, we assume that the hardware device has stereo inputs and 
outputs.
2.Connect an unused input pair on your audio hardware to the output pair on your 
hardware device.
Once the external device is connected to the audio hardware of your computer, you 
have to set up the input/output busses in Cubase.
!External instruments and effects are indicated by an “x” icon in the list next to their 
names in the respective pop-up menus.
!Please note that it is possible to select input/output ports for external 
effects/instruments that are already used (i.
 e. that have been selected as 
inputs/outputs in the VST Connections window). If you select a used port for an 
external effect/instrument, the existing port assignment will be broken. Note that you 
will not get a warning message! 
						

							33
VST ConnectionsExternal instruments/effects (Cubase only)
Setting up external effects
To set up an external effect in the VST Connections window, proceed as follows:
1.Open the External FX tab and click the “Add External FX” button.
A dialog opens.
2.Enter a name for the external effect and specify the send and return configurations.
Depending on the type of effect, you can specify mono, stereo or surround 
configurations. 
•You also need a MIDI device that corresponds with the external effect. You can 
then click the “Associate MIDI Device” button to connect the two.
You can use the MIDI Device Manager to create a new MIDI device for the effect. 
Note that delay compensation will only be applied for the effect when you use MIDI 
devices. For information about the MIDI Device Manager and user device panels 
see the chapter 
“Using MIDI devices” on page 460.
3.Click OK.
This adds a new external FX bus.
4.Click in the Device Port column for the “left” and “right” ports of the Send Bus and 
select the outputs on your audio hardware that you want to use.
5.Click in the Device Port column for the “left” and “right” ports of the Return Bus 
and select the inputs on your audio hardware that you want to use.
6.If you like, make additional settings for the bus.
These are found in the columns to the right. Note that you can adjust these while 
actually using the external effect – which may be easier as you can hear the result. 
The following options are available:
SettingDescription
DelayIf your hardware effect device has an inherent delay (latency), enter 
this value here, as it allows Cubase to compensate for that delay 
during playback. You can also let the delay value be determined by 
the program: Right-click the Delay column for the effect and select 
“Check User Delay”. Note that you do not have to take the latency of 
the audio hardware into account – this is handled automatically by 
the program.
Send GainAllows you to adjust the level of the signal being sent to the external 
effect.
Return GainAllows you to adjust the level of the signal coming in from the external 
effect. 
Note however that excessive output levels from an external effect 
device may cause clipping in the audio hardware. The Return Gain 
setting cannot be used to compensate for this – you have to lower 
the output level on the effect device instead. 
						

							34
VST ConnectionsExternal instruments/effects (Cubase only)
ÖNote that external device ports are exclusive, see “Connecting the external 
effect/instrument” on page 32.
How to use the external effect
If you now click an insert effect slot for any channel, you will find the new external FX 
bus listed on the “External Plug-ins” submenu.
When you select it, the following happens:
- The external FX bus is loaded into the effect slot just like a regular effect plug-in.
- The audio signal from the channel is sent to the outputs on the audio hardware, 
through your external effect device and back to the program via the inputs on the 
audio hardware.
- A parameter window opens, showing the Delay, Send Gain and Return Gain 
settings for the external FX bus. You can adjust these as necessary while playing 
back. The parameter window also provides the “Measure Effect’s Loop Delay for 
Delay Compensation” button. This is the same function as the “Check User Delay” 
option in the VST Connections window. It provides Cubase with a Delay value to 
be used for delay compensation. When you have defined a MIDI device for the 
effect, the corresponding Device window will be opened.
The default parameter window for an external effect
Like any effect, you can use the external FX bus as an insert effect or as a send effect 
(an insert effect on an FX channel track). You can deactivate or bypass the external 
effect with the usual controls.
Setting up external instruments
To set up an external instrument in the VST Connections window, proceed as follows:
1.Open the External Instrument tab and click the “Add External Instrument” button.
A dialog opens.
MIDI DeviceWhen you click in this column, a pop-up menu opens where you can 
disconnect the effect from the associated MIDI device, select a MIDI 
device, create a new device or open the MIDI Device Manager to edit 
the MIDI device.
UsedWhenever you insert an external effect into an audio track, this 
column shows a checkmark (“x”) to indicate that the effect is being 
used.
Setting Description
Measure Effect’s Loop Delay button 
						

							35
VST ConnectionsExternal instruments/effects (Cubase only)
2.Enter a name for the external instrument and specify the number of required mono 
and/or stereo returns.
Depending on the type of instrument, a specific number of mono and/or stereo 
return channels is required.
•You also need a MIDI device that corresponds with the external instrument. You 
can then click the “Associate MIDI Device” button to connect the two.
You can use the MIDI Device Manager to create a new MIDI device. For 
information about the MIDI Device Manager and user device panels, see the 
chapter 
“Using MIDI devices” on page 460.
3.Click OK.
This adds a new external instrument bus.
4.Click in the Device Port column for the “left” and “right” ports of the Return Bus 
and select the inputs on your audio hardware to which you connected the external 
instrument.
5.If you like, make additional settings for the bus.
These are found in the columns to the right. Note that you can adjust these while 
actually using the external instrument – which may be easier as you can hear the 
result. The following options are available:
ÖNote that external device ports are exclusive, see “Connecting the external 
effect/instrument” on page 32.
How to use the external instrument
Once you have set up the external instrument in the VST Connections window, you 
can use it as a VST instrument. Open the VST Instruments window and click on an 
empty instrument slot. On the Instrument pop-up menu, your external instrument is 
listed on the External Plug-ins submenu.
SettingDescription
DelayIf your hardware device has an inherent delay (latency), enter this value 
here. This allows Cubase to compensate for that delay during 
playback. Note that you do not have to take the latency of the audio 
hardware into account – this is handled automatically by the program.
Return GainAllows you to adjust the level of the signal coming in from the external 
instrument. 
Note however that excessive output levels from an external device may 
cause clipping in the audio hardware. The Return Gain setting cannot 
be used to compensate for this – you have to lower the output level on 
the device instead.
MIDI DeviceWhen you click in this column, a pop-up menu opens where you can 
disconnect the instrument from the associated MIDI device, select a 
MIDI device, create a new device or open the MIDI Device Manager to 
edit the MIDI device.
UsedWhenever you insert the external instrument into a VST instrument 
slot, this column shows a checkmark (“x”) to indicate that the 
instrument is being used. 
						

							36
VST ConnectionsExternal instruments/effects (Cubase only)
When you select the external instrument in the VST Instruments window, the following 
happens:
- A parameter window for the external device opens automatically. This may either 
be the Device window, allowing you to create a generic device panel, an OPT 
editor window or a default editor. For information about the Device window, the 
MIDI Device Manager and User device panels, see the chapter 
“Using MIDI 
devices” on page 460.
The external instrument will behave like any other VST instrument in Cubase.
About the Favorites buttons
In the VST Connections window, both the External FX tab and the External 
Instruments tab feature a Favorites button.
Favorites are device configurations that you can recall at any time, like a library of 
external devices that are not constantly connected to your computer. They also allow 
you to save different configurations for the same device, e.
 g. a multi-effect board or an 
effect that provides both a mono and a stereo mode.
To save a device configuration as a favorite, proceed as follows:
•When you have added a new device in the VST Connections window, select it in 
the Bus Name column and click the Favorites button.
A context menu is displayed showing an option to add the selected effect or 
instrument to the Favorites.
•You can recall the stored configuration at any time by clicking the Favorites button 
and selecting the device name from the context menu.
About the “plug-in could not be found” message
When you open a project that uses an external effect/instrument, you may get a “plug-
in could not be found” message. This will happen when you remove an external device 
from the VST Connections window although it is used in a saved project, or when 
transferring a project to another computer on which the external device is not defined. 
You may also see this message when opening a project created with an earlier version 
of Cubase.
In the VST Connections window, the broken connection to the external device is 
indicated by an icon in the Bus Name column.
To reestablish the broken connection to the external device, simply right-click the entry 
for the device in the Bus Name column and select “Connect External Effect”. The icon 
is removed, and you can use the external device within your project as before.
!To send MIDI notes to the external instrument, open the Output Routing pop-up menu 
in the Inspector for the corresponding MIDI track and select the MIDI device to which 
the external instrument is connected. This ensures use of delay compensation. The 
instrument will now play any MIDI notes it receives from this track and return them to 
Cubase through the return channel(s) you have set up. 
!Note that busses set up for external effects or external instruments are saved 
“globally”, i.
 e. for your particular computer setup. 
						

							37
VST ConnectionsEditing operations
Freezing external effects/instruments
Just as when working with regular VST instruments and effects, you can also choose 
to freeze external effects and instruments. The general procedure is described in 
detail in the chapters 
“Audio effects” on page 227 and “VST instruments and 
instrument tracks” on page 252.
When freezing external instruments or effects, you can adjust the corresponding tail 
value in the Freeze Channel Options dialog:
•Use the arrow buttons next to the Tail Size value field to set the desired Tail length, 
i.
 e. the range after the part boundary is also to be included in the freeze. You can 
also click directly in the value field and enter the desired value manually (the 
maximum value being 60
 s).
•When the Tail Size is set to 0 s (default), the freezing will only take into account the 
data within the Part boundaries.
Editing operations
On the different tabs of the VST Connections window the corresponding busses or 
channels are shown in a table containing a tree view with expandable entries. After 
you have set up all the required busses for a project it might be necessary to edit the 
names and/or change port assignments. Cubase provides a number of features to 
make such tasks easier.
Expanding and collapsing entries
•Bus entries can be expanded or collapsed to show or hide the corresponding 
speaker channels or sub-busses by clicking the “+” or “-” sign in front of the 
corresponding list entry.
•To expand or collapse all entries on a tab at the same time, use the “+ All” button 
or the “-
 All” button (respectively) above the tree view.
Determining how many busses a device port is connected to
To give you an idea how many busses a given port is already connected to, the busses 
are shown in square brackets on the Device Port pop-up menu, to the right of the port 
name.
Up to three bus assignments can be displayed in this way. If more connections have 
been made, this is indicated by a number at the far right.
Therefore, if you see the following:
Adat 1   [Stereo1] [Stereo2] [Stereo3] (+2)…
this means that the Adat 1 port is already assigned to three stereo busses plus two 
additional busses.
!Note that you have to perform Freeze in realtime. Otherwise external effects will not be 
taken into account. 
						

							38
VST ConnectionsEditing operations
Identifying exclusive port assignments
In some cases (i. e. for certain channel types such as cue channels), the port 
assignment is exclusive. Once a port has been assigned to such a bus or channel, it 
must not be assigned to another bus, otherwise the connection to the first bus will be 
broken.
To help you identify such exclusive port assignments and avoid accidental 
reassignment, the corresponding ports are marked in red on the Device Port pop-up 
menu.
Selecting/Deselecting multiple entries
•Using the key commands [Ctrl]/[Command]-[A] (Select All) and [Shift]-
[Ctrl]/[Command]-[A] (Select None), you can select and deselect all entries in the 
Bus Name column.
Note that for this to work, the table on the current tab needs to have the focus. This 
can be achieved by clicking anywhere on the background of the table.
•By holding [Shift] when selecting entries in the Bus Name column, you can select 
multiple entries at the same time.
This is useful for automatic renaming or changing the port assignments globally, 
see below.
ÖIf you select a subentry (e. g. a speaker channel in a bus) the parent entry is 
automatically selected as well.
Selecting entries by typing the name
In the Bus Name list you can jump to an entry by typing the first letter of the bus name 
on the keyboard.
Navigating the Bus Name list using the [Tab] key
By pressing the [Tab] key you can jump to the next entry in the Bus Name list, allowing 
you to rename your busses quickly. Similarly, by pressing [Shift]-[Tab] you can return 
to the previous list entry.
Automatically renaming selected busses
You can rename all the selected busses at once using incrementing numbers or letters.
•To use incrementing numbers, select the busses that you want to rename and 
enter a new name for one of the busses, followed by a number.
For example, if you have eight inputs that you want to be named “In 1, In 2, …, 
In
 8”, you select all the busses and enter the name “In 1” for the first bus. All other 
busses are then renamed automatically.
•To use letters from the alphabet, proceed as with numbers, but enter a capital 
letter instead of a number.
For example, if you have three FX channels that you want to be named “FX A, FX B, 
and FX C”, you select all the channels and enter the name “FX
 A” for the first. All 
other channels are then renamed automatically. The last letter that can be used is 
Z. If you have more selected entries than there are letters available, the remaining 
entries will be skipped.
!This will only work if the table has the focus. To do this, simply select any list entry.
!When using letters instead of numbers, it is important to note that these must be 
preceded by a space. If you leave out the space before the letter or if you do enter 
neither a letter nor a number, only the first selected entry is renamed. 
						

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VST ConnectionsEditing operations
ÖYou do not have to begin renaming with the topmost selected entry. The renaming will 
start from the bus where you edit the name, will go down the list to the bottom and 
then continue from the top until all selected busses have been renamed.
Changing the port assignment for a single bus
To change the port assignment for a single bus, you proceed as when you added it: 
Make sure that the channels are visible and click in the Device Port column to select 
ports.
Changing the port assignment for multiple busses
To change the port assignment (or the output routing in case of groups/FX channels) 
for multiple entries in the Bus Name column at the same time, you need to select the 
corresponding busses first.
•To assign different ports to the selected busses, press [Shift], open the Device 
Port pop-up menu for the first selected entry (i.
 e. the topmost bus) and select a 
device port.
All subsequent busses are automatically connected to the next available port.
•To assign the same port to all selected busses, press [Shift]-[Alt]/[Option], open 
the Device Port pop-up menu for the first selected entry (i.
 e. the topmost bus) and 
select a device port.
ÖYou can also set all selected busses or channels to Not Connected.
Removing busses
To remove a bus you do not need, select it in the list, right-click and select Remove 
Bus from the pop-up menu, or press [Backspace].
!Cubase only: Exclusive ports (e. g. ports already assigned to Control Room channels) 
will be skipped! 
						

							40
The Project window
Window Overview
The Project window is the main window in Cubase. This provides you with an 
overview of the project, allowing you to navigate and perform large scale editing. Each 
project has one Project window. 
About tracks
The Project window is divided vertically into tracks, with a timeline running horizontally 
from left to right. The following track types are available:
Project 
overview
Event display InspectorRuler Status lineToolbar
Track list 
Info line
Track typeDescription
AudioFor recording and playing back audio events and audio parts. Each 
audio track has a corresponding audio channel in the MixConsole.
An audio track can have any number of automation tracks for 
automating channel parameters, effect settings, etc. 
FolderFolder tracks function as containers for other tracks, making it easier to 
organize and manage the track structure. They also allow you to edit 
several tracks at the same time, see 
“Organizing tracks in folder tracks” 
on page 97.
FX ChannelFX channel tracks are used for adding send effects. Each FX channel 
can contain up to eight effect processors – by routing sends from an 
audio channel to an FX channel, you send audio from the audio channel 
to the effect(s) on the FX channel. Each FX channel has a 
corresponding channel in the MixConsole – in essence an effect return 
channel, see the chapter 
“Audio effects” on page 227. 
All FX channel tracks are automatically placed in a special FX channel 
folder in the track list, for easy management.
An FX channel can also have any number of automation tracks for 
automating channel parameters, effect settings, etc.