Steinberg Cubase 7 User Manual

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Track Quick ControlsAssigning parameters to quick controls
Assignment via the Learn function
Using the “QC Learn Mode” button on the Quick Controls tab in the Inspector, you 
can assign a parameter by moving the corresponding control: 
•Activate the “QC Learn Mode” button, select the slot to which you want to assign 
a parameter and use the desired control.
All automatable controls can be learned this way.
Assignment via a plug-in panel
You can assign effect parameters to quick control slots directly from within the plug-
in panel:
•To assign an effect parameter to the topmost quick control slot, right-click the 
parameter and select the “Add x to Quick Controls” option (where “x” is the name 
of the parameter).
•To assign an effect parameter to a specific quick control slot, right-click the 
parameter, select the “Add x to Quick Controls Slot” option (where “x” is the name 
of the parameter), and select the desired slot from the submenu.
ÖThese options are only available for VST 3 plug-ins that support this function.
Manual assignment via the Inspector tab
Proceed as follows to manually assign track parameters:
1.On the Quick Controls tab, click on the first quick control slot.
A pop-up menu opens. It lists all parameters currently accessible for this particular 
track. 
2.Double-click the parameter that you want to assign to the first quick control slot.
The parameter name and its value are displayed in the slot. You can change the 
value by dragging the slider.
The track’s main volume parameter is assigned to quick control 1.
3.Repeat these steps for each quick control slot until all eight slots are associated 
with track parameters.
You can now control the 8 functions most important to you via one single Inspector 
section.
•To rename a quick control, double-click on the name in the slot to select it, enter a 
new name and press [Enter].
•To replace a parameter assignment with a different parameter, click on the 
corresponding quick control slot and double-click a different parameter. 
						

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Track Quick ControlsConnecting quick controls with remote controllers
Automatic assignment of VST instrument parameters
When you create an instrument track or load a VST instrument via the VST 
Instruments window (including creating an associated MIDI track), the main 
parameters of the instrument are automatically assigned to the slots on the Quick 
Controls tab in the Inspector (if the VST instrument supports this feature).
•To retrieve the default assignments for the main parameters of the VST instrument, 
click the “Get Default QCs from Plug-in” button on the Inspector tab.
This is useful if you have changed the parameter assignment or if you manually 
route a MIDI track to a VST instrument.
Removing parameter assignments
•To remove a parameter from a slot, double-click the parameter name to select it 
and press the [Delete] or [Backspace] key. Confirm by pressing [Return].
•Alternatively, you can click in the corresponding slot and select “No parameter” 
from the pop-up menu.
•To remove the quick control assignments for all slots, click the “Remove All QC 
Assignments” button.
Connecting quick controls with remote controllers
Quick controls become really powerful when used in combination with a remote 
controller. Setting up the connection between the slots on the Quick Controls 
Inspector tab and a remote control device is easy. 
Proceed as follows:
1.In Cubase, open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu.
2.In the Devices list on the left, select the Quick Controls option.
This will open the Quick Controls section on the right of the dialog: 
						

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Track Quick ControlsQuick controls and automatable parameters
3.With your remote control device connected to Cubase via MIDI, select the 
corresponding MIDI port on your computer in the MIDI Input pop-up menu (or 
select “All MIDI Inputs”).
If your remote controller has its own MIDI input and supports MIDI feedback, you 
can connect your computer to the device input. Then, select the corresponding 
MIDI port in the MIDI Output pop-up menu.
4.Click “Apply” to use the new MIDI port assignment.
5.Activate the Learn option.
6.In the “Control Name” column, select “QuickControl1”.
7.Move the control (knob, fader or other) on your remote control device that you 
want to use for the first quick control.
8.To assign further controls, select different slots in the “Control Name” column and 
repeat the last steps.
9.When you are done, click “OK”.
ÖIn addition to using the Learn function to set up the table in the Quick Controls 
section, you can modify the values manually. The available options are identical to the 
ones available for the Generic Control device, see 
“The Generic Remote device” on 
page 438.
You have now associated the slots on the Quick Control tab with control elements on 
your external remote controller. Moving a control element will automatically change the 
value of the parameter assigned to the corresponding quick control.
The remote controller setup for quick controls is saved globally, i. e. independent of 
any projects. If you have various remote controllers, you can save and load several 
quick control setups using the Export and Import buttons.
Quick controls and automatable parameters
The quick controls feature has one special extension: you can use quick controls not 
only to access certain parameters of the current track, but also to control all 
automatable parameters. This makes it possible to use the Quick Controls tab of a 
dedicated track as a kind of “mini mixer”, controlling parameters on other tracks. Use 
this function with caution, however, as you might accidentally modify parameters on 
other tracks.
Proceed as follows:
1.Create a new, empty audio track and open its Quick Controls tab.
This track has no events or parts.
2.Hold down the [Ctrl]/[Command] key and click on the slot for quick control 1.
The parameter selection context menu opens, but it lists not the parameters of the 
current track, but all automatable parameters. 
						

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Track Quick ControlsQuick controls and automatable parameters
3.Open the VST Mixer folder.
The pop-up menu lists all channels available in the MixConsole of your current project. 
4.Now assign a parameter of one particular channel to quick control 1, and another 
parameter of another channel to quick control 2.
The Quick Controls tab has become a “secondary” mixer, dedicated to quick-
controlling parameters on other tracks.
!Quick controls that are assigned that way cannot work when saved as track presets. 
						

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Remote controlling Cubase
Introduction
It is possible to control Cubase via MIDI. A large number of MIDI control devices is 
supported. This chapter describes how to set up Cubase for remote control. The 
supported devices are described in the separate PDF document “Remote Control 
Devices”.
•There is also a Generic Remote Device option, allowing you to use any MIDI 
controller to remote control Cubase.
How to set this up is described in the section “The Generic Remote device” on 
page 438.
Setting Up
Connecting the remote device
Connect the MIDI output on the remote unit to a MIDI input on your MIDI interface. 
Depending on the remote unit model, you may also need to connect a MIDI Out on the 
interface to a MIDI In on the remote unit (this is necessary if the remote unit features 
“feedback devices” such as indicators, motorized faders, etc.).
If you are recording MIDI tracks, you do not want any MIDI data from the remote unit to 
be accidentally recorded as well. To avoid this, you should make the following setting:
1.Open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu.
2.Select “MIDI Port Setup” in the list on the left.
3.Check the table on the right and locate the MIDI input to which you have 
connected the MIDI remote unit.
4.Deactivate the checkbox in the “In ‘All MIDI Inputs’” column for that input, so that 
the State column reads “Inactive”.
5.Click OK to close the Device Setup dialog.
Now you have removed the remote unit input from the “All MIDI Inputs” group. This 
means that you can record MIDI tracks with the “All MIDI Inputs” port selected without 
risking to record the data from the remote unit at the same time.
Selecting a remote device
1.Open the Device Setup dialog from the Devices menu.
2.If you cannot find the remote device you are looking for, click on the plus sign in the 
top left corner and select the device from the pop-up menu.
The selected device is added to the Devices list.
•Note that it is possible to select more than one remote device of the same type.
If you have more than one remote device of the same type, these will be numbered 
in the Devices list. For example, to be able to use a Mackie Control Extender, you 
must install a second Mackie control device. 
						

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Remote controlling CubaseSetting Up
3.Select your MIDI control device model from the Devices list.
Depending on the selected device, either a list of programmable function 
commands or a blank panel is shown in the right half of the dialog window.
4.Select the correct MIDI input from the pop-up menu.
If necessary, select the correct MIDI output from the pop-up menu.
5.Click OK to close the dialog.
You can now use the MIDI control device to move faders and knobs, activate Mute 
and Solo, etc. The exact parameter configuration depends on which external MIDI 
control device you are using.
•A white stripe in the Project window and in the MixConsole indicate which 
channels are currently linked to the remote control device.
!Sometimes communication between Cubase and a remote device is interrupted or 
the handshaking protocol fails to create a connection. To re-establish communication 
with any device in the Devices list, select it and click the Reset button in the lower part 
of the Device Setup dialog. The “Send Reset Message to all Devices” button at the 
top left of the dialog next to the “+” and “-” buttons will reset every device in the 
Devices list. 
						

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Remote controlling CubaseOperations
Operations
Global options for remote controllers
In the Device Setup dialog, on the page for your remote device, some (or all) of the 
following global functions may be available (depending on your remote device):
Writing automation using remote controls
Automating the MixConsole in Touch mode using a remote control device is done in 
the same way as when you operate on-screen controls in Write mode. In order to 
replace existing automation data for a control in Touch mode, the computer needs to 
know how long the user actually “grabbed” or used the control. When doing this “on 
screen”, the program simply detects when the mouse button is pressed and released. 
When you are using an external remote control device without touch-sensitive 
controls, Cubase cannot tell whether you “grab and hold” a fader or simply move it 
and release it.
Therefore, when you are using a device without touch-sensitive controls and want to 
replace existing automation data, pay attention to the following:
•If you activate Write mode and move a control on the remote control device, all 
data for the corresponding parameter is replaced from the position where you 
moved the control, up to the position where playback is stopped.
In other words, as soon as you move a control in Write mode, it remains “active” 
until you stop playback.
•Make sure that you move only the controller you want to replace.
Assigning remote key commands
For some remote devices, you can assign any Cubase function (to which a key 
command can be assigned) to generic buttons, wheels, or other controls. 
Proceed as follows:
1.Open the Device Setup dialog and select your remote device.
On the right side of the window you will find a three column table. This is where 
you assign commands.
2.Use the Button column to locate a remote device control or button to which you 
wish to assign a Cubase function.
OptionDescription
Bank pop-up menuIf your remote device contains several banks, you can select the bank 
you want to use. 
The bank you select here is used by default when Cubase is 
launched.
Smart Switch 
DelaySome of the Cubase functions (e. g. Solo and Mute) support the so 
called smart switch behavior: In addition to regular 
activation/deactivation of a function by clicking a button, you can also 
activate the function for as long as the button is pressed. Upon 
releasing the mouse button, the function is deactivated. 
This pop-up menu allows you to specify how long a button must be 
pressed before it goes into smart switch mode. When “Off” is 
selected, the smart switch function is deactivated in Cubase.
Enable Auto SelectIf this option is activated, touching a fader on a touch-sensitive 
remote control device automatically selects the corresponding 
channel. On devices without touch-sensitive faders, the channel gets 
selected as soon as you move the fader. 
						

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Remote controlling CubaseThe Generic Remote device
3.Click in the Category column for the control and select one of the Cubase function 
categories from the pop-up menu.
4.Click in the Command column and select the desired Cubase function from the 
pop-up menu.
The available items on the pop-up menu depend on the selected category.
5.Click “Apply” when you are done.
•Click “Reset” to revert to the default settings.
The selected function is now assigned to the button or control on the remote device.
A note about remote controlling MIDI tracks
While most remote control devices will be able to control both MIDI and audio 
channels in Cubase, the parameter setup may be different. For example, audio-
specific controls (such as EQ) will be disregarded when controlling MIDI channels.
Accessing device panel parameters via remote control devices (Cubase only)
Cubase allows you to control external MIDI devices through user device panels. 
When you have assigned project parameters to a device panel to be displayed in the 
MixConsole (i.e. when creating the panel, you must select the Channel Strip Size 
option in the Add Panel dialog), you can access these parameters through some of 
the remote control devices supported by Cubase.
This feature is supported for the following devices:
-Steinberg Houston
- Mackie Control
- Mackie HUI
- Yamaha DM 2000
-CM Motormix
-SAC2K
These remote control devices provide an extra display page in the Inserts section for 
the selected channel.
This page is called User and is displayed as the 9th insert page for audio channels 
and as the 5th insert page for MIDI channels. It allows you to control the parameters 
assigned to your user device panel from your remote control device.
The Generic Remote device
If you have a generic MIDI controller, you can use this for remote control of Cubase by 
setting up the Generic Remote device:
1.Open the Device Setup dialog on the Devices menu.
If the Generic Remote device is not on the Devices list, you need to add it.
2.Click the “+” sign in the top left corner and select the “Generic Remote” device 
from the pop-up menu.
•When the Generic Remote device is added in the Device Setup dialog, you can 
open the corresponding window by selecting “Generic Remote” from the Devices 
menu. 
						

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Remote controlling CubaseThe Generic Remote device
3.Select the Generic Remote device in the Devices list to the left.
The settings for the Generic Remote device are displayed, allowing you to specify 
which control on your device should control which parameter in Cubase.
4.Use the MIDI Input and Output pop-up menus to select the MIDI port(s) to which 
your remote device is connected.
5.Use the pop-up menu to the right to select a bank.
Banks are combinations of a certain number of channels, and are used because 
most MIDI devices can control only a limited number of channels at a time (often 8 
or 16). For example, if your MIDI control device has 16 volume faders, and you are 
using 32 MixConsole channels in Cubase, you would need two banks of 16 
channels each. When the first bank is selected you can control channel 1 to 16; 
when the second Bank is selected you can control channel 17 to 32.
6.Set up the table at the top according to the controls on your MIDI control device.
The columns have the following functionality:
ColumnDescription
Control NameDouble-clicking this field allows you to enter a descriptive name for 
the control (typically a name written on the console). This name is 
automatically reflected in the Control Name column in the lower table.
MIDI StatusClicking in this column opens a pop-up menu, allowing you to specify 
the type of MIDI message sent by the control (e.
 g. Controller, Prog. 
Change Trigger). 
The NRPN and RPN controllers are part of the MIDI specification and 
present a way to extend the available control messages. The “Ctrl 
JLCooper” option is a special version of a Continuous Controller 
where the 3rd byte of a MIDI message is used as address instead of 
the 2nd byte (a method supported by various JL-Cooper remote 
devices). For a description of the Ctrl-Houston status value, see the 
Steinberg Houston hardware manual. 
						

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Remote controlling CubaseThe Generic Remote device
•If you find that the table at the top holds too many or too few controls, you can add 
or remove controls with the Add and Delete buttons to the right of the table.
•If you are uncertain of which MIDI message a certain controller sends, you can use 
the Learn function.
Select the control in the upper table (by clicking in the Control Name column), 
move the corresponding control on your MIDI device and click the Learn button to 
the right of the table. The MIDI Status, MIDI Channel, and Address values are 
automatically set to those of the moved control.
•If you use the Learn function for a control that sends a Program Change value, the 
“Prog. Change Trigger” option is automatically selected on the “MIDI Status” pop-
up menu. This allows you to use the different values of a Program Change 
parameter to control different parameters in Cubase.
If this does not give you the result you want, try using the “Prog. Change” value 
instead.
7.Use the table at the bottom to specify which Cubase parameters you want to 
control.
Each row in the table is associated to the controller in the corresponding row in 
the first table (as indicated by the Control Name column). The other columns have 
the following functionality:
MIDI ChannelClicking in this column opens a pop-up menu, allowing you to select 
the MIDI channel on which the controller is transmitted.
AddressThe Continuous Controller number, the pitch of a note, or the 
address of a NRPN/RPN Continuous Controller.
Max. ValueThe maximum value the control will transmit. This value is used by the 
program to “scale” the value range of the MIDI controller to the value 
range of the program parameter.
FlagsClicking in this column opens a pop-up menu, allowing you to 
activate or deactivate three flags:
Receive – activate this if the MIDI message should be processed on 
reception.
Transmit – activate this if a MIDI message should be transmitted 
when the corresponding value in the program changes.
Relative – activate this if the control is an “endless” rotary encoder, 
which reports the number of turns instead of an absolute value.
ColumnDescription
DeviceClicking in this column opens a pop-up menu, used for determining 
which device in Cubase is controlled. The special “Command” option 
allows you to perform certain command actions by remote control. 
One example of this is the selection of remote banks.
Channel/CategoryThis is where you select the channel to be controlled or, if the 
“Command” Device option is selected, the Command category.
Column Description