Steinberg Cubase Essential 4 Operation Manual

							311
File handling
The dialog contains the following options:
ÖThe MIDI file will include the Tempo track.
ÖInspector settings other than those specified in the Ex-
port options are not included in the MIDI file!Importing MIDI files
To import a MIDI file from disk, proceed as follows:
1.Select “MIDI File…” from the Import submenu on the 
File menu.
2.If there is already an open project, a dialog opens in 
which you can select whether a new project should be 
created for the file or not.
If you select “No”, the MIDI file will be imported into the current project.
3.Locate and select the MIDI file in the file dialog that 
opens and click Open.
If you choose to create a new project, select the project 
folder.
Select an existing project folder or create a new by clicking on Create 
and entering a name in the dialog.
The MIDI file is imported. The result depends on the con-
tents of the MIDI file and the Import Options settings in the 
Preferences (MIDI–MIDI File page). The Import Options 
are as follows:
Option Description
Export Inspector 
PatchIf this is activated, the MIDI patch settings in the Inspec-
tor – Bank Select and Program Select (used for selecting 
sounds in the connected MIDI instrument) are included 
as MIDI Bank Select and Program Change events in the 
MIDI file.
Export Inspector 
Volume/PanIf this is activated, Volume and Pan settings made in the 
Inspector are included as MIDI Volume and Pan events in 
the MIDI file.
Export 
AutomationIf this is activated, recorded automation (see the chapter 
“Automation” on page 131) is converted to MIDI control-
ler events and included in the MIDI file. This also includes 
automation recorded with the MIDIControl plug-in. This is 
described in the chapter “MIDI Effects” of the separate 
manual “Plug-in Reference”.
Export Inserts If this is activated and you are using any MIDI plug-ins as 
insert effects, the modifications to the original MIDI notes 
that occur as a result of the effect(s) will be included in 
the MIDI file. A MIDI delay, for example, will produce a 
number of repeats to a MIDI note 
by actually adding addi-
tional, “echoing” notes at rhythmic intervals – these notes 
will be included in the MIDI file if the option is activated.
Export Sends If this is activated and you are using any MIDI plug-ins as 
send effects, the modifications to the original MIDI notes 
that occur as a result of the effect(s) will be included in 
the MIDI file.
Export as 
Type 0If this is activated, the MIDI file will be of Type 0 (all data 
on a single track, but on different MIDI channels). If you 
don’t activate this option, the MIDI file will be of Type 1 
(data on separate tracks). Which type to choose de-
pends on what you want to do with the 
MIDI file (in which 
application or sequencer it should be used, etc.).
Export 
ResolutionYou can specify a MIDI resolution between 24 – 960 for 
the MIDI file. The resolution is the number of pulses, or 
ticks, per quarter note (PPQ) and determines the preci-
sion with which you will be able to view and edit the MIDI 
data. The higher the resolution, the higher the precision. 
The resolution should be chosen depending on the appli-
cation or sequencer with which the MIDI file should be 
used though, since certain applications and sequencers 
may not be able to handle certain resolutions.
Export Locator 
RangeIf this is activated, only the range between the locators 
will be exported. 
Export 
includes DelayIf this is activated, the delay of the MIDI track will be in-
cluded in the MIDI file. For more information about the 
Delay option, see “Basic track settings” on page 206.
Option Description
Extract First 
PatchIf this is activated, the first Program Change and Bank 
Select events for each track are converted to Inspector 
settings for the track.
Extract First
Volume/PanIf this is activated, the first MIDI Volume and Pan events 
for each track are converted to Inspector settings for the 
track.
Import Controller 
as Automation 
TracksIf this is activated, MIDI controller events in the MIDI file 
will be converted to automation data for the MIDI tracks.
Import to Left 
LocatorIf this is activated, the imported MIDI file will be placed so 
that it starts at the position of the left locator – otherwise 
it will start at the beginning of the project. Note that if you 
choose to have a new project created automatically, the 
MIDI file will always start at the beginning of the project.
Import dropped 
File as single 
PartIf this is activated and you drag and drop a MIDI file into 
the project, the whole file will be placed on a single track.
Ignore Master-
track Events on 
MergeIf this is activated and you import a MIDI file into the cur-
rent project, tempo track data in the MIDI file is ignored. 
The imported MIDI file will play according to the current 
Tempo track in the project. 
						

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File handling
When you import a MIDI file into the project, the Tempo 
track will be adjusted according to the Tempo track in the 
MIDI file.
Cleanup
The Cleanup function on the File menu helps you to save 
hard disk space by locating and – if you like – deleting un-
used audio files in the project folders on your disk.
1.Select “Cleanup…” from the File menu.
If there are any open projects, an alert shows. Clicking “Close” closes all 
open projects and brings up the Cleanup dialog.
2.To restrict the Cleanup function to a certain folder only, 
click the “Search Folder” button and select the folder.
The default setting is that the Cleanup function is applied to all folders on 
all hard disks. You should only select a specific folder if you are certain it 
doesn’t contain audio files used in other projects (outside the folder), see 
below. You can reset the function to search all folders by opening the 
“Search Folder” dialog again and clicking “Cancel”.
3.Click the Start button.
Cubase Essential will now scan the selected folder (or all hard disks) for 
Cubase Essential project folders and check for audio and image files (in 
the Audio, Edits and Images subfolders) that are not used by any project. 
The found files are listed in the dialog.
4.When the scan is complete, you can select files by 
clicking in the list.
Use [Ctrl]/[Command]-click to select several files, and [Shift]-click to se-
lect a range of files. You can also click the Select All button to select all 
files in the list.
In the following situations, the Cleanup function will list 
files that are not unused:
 If you have moved or renamed files or folders (without updat-
ing the project files to use the new paths), there is no way for 
Cubase Essential to know that these files are used in a 
project. 
 If you perform the Cleanup function on a folder in which there 
are audio files belonging to other projects (outside the folder), 
these files will be considered “unused”.
Also, make sure you don’t delete any files used in other 
applications, or files that you generally want to keep!
However, you can always safely delete image files since 
these can be reconstructed by the program, if necessary.
5.Delete any files you don’t want to keep by selecting 
them and clicking Delete.
6.Close the dialog by clicking the Close button.
Auto Dissolve 
Format 0If this is activated and you import a MIDI file of type 0 into 
the project, the file will automatically be “dissolved”: For 
each embedded MIDI channel in the file, a separate track 
will be inserted in the Project window.
If this is deactivated, only one MIDI track will be created. 
This track will be set to MIDI Channel “Any”, allowing all 
MIDI events to play back on their original channels. You 
can also use the “Dissolve Part” function on the MIDI 
menu to distribute the events onto different tracks with 
different MIDI Channels at a later stage.
Import to Instru-
ment tracksIf this is activated and you drag a MIDI file into the 
project, an Instrument track will be created instead of a 
MIDI track. Furthermore, the program will load the corre-
sponding track preset for the instrument track (based on 
the program change events included in the MIDI file). Option Description 
						

							31
Customizing 
						

							314
Customizing
Background
The user can customize the appearance and functionality 
of Cubase Essential in various ways.
User configurable items described in this chapter are:
Setup dialogs
Several parts of the user interface (toolbars, Transport panel, Inspector, 
info lines and channel settings windows) provide a Setup dialog, where 
you can configure which items of the respective window area or panel 
are to be shown or hidden and where they should be located – see “The 
Setup dialogs” on page 314.
Track list
The controls shown in the Track list can be set for each track type – see 
“Customizing track controls” on page 315.
Appearance
The general look of the program can be adjusted – see “Appearance” on 
page 317.
Track and event colors
You can adjust which colors should be used – see “Applying track and 
event colors” on page 317.
This chapter also contains a section describing where 
your preferences and settings are stored (see “Where are 
the settings stored?” on page 319), to help you transfer 
your customized settings to another computer.
The Setup dialogs
You can customize the appearance of the following ele-
ments:
 Transport panel
 Info line
 Channel Settings window
 Toolbars 
 Inspector
Customizing via the setup context menus
If you right-click the Transport panel, the toolbars, the info 
lines, or the Inspector, the respective setup context menu 
opens. For channel settings windows, these options are 
found in the dialog context menu, on the Customize View 
submenu. Here, you can activate/deactivate elements as 
desired.The following general options are available on the setup 
context menus:
“Show All” makes all items visible.
“Default” resets the interface to the default setting.
“Setup…” opens the Setup dialog (see below).
If presets are available, they can be selected on the lower 
half of the menu.
The info line and Inspector setup context menus. In the Inspector setup 
context menu, the available options depend on the track type.
Customizing via the Setup dialog
If you select “Setup…” from the setup context menus, the 
Setup dialog opens. This allows you to specify which ele-
ments should be visible/hidden and to set the order of the 
elements. You can also save and recall setup presets in 
this dialog.
The Setup dialog, e. g. for the Transport panel
The dialog is divided into two columns. The left column 
displays the currently visible items and the right column 
displays the currently hidden items. 
						

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Customizing
You can change the current show/hide status by select-
ing items in one column and then using the arrow buttons in 
the middle of the dialog to move them to the other column.
Changes are applied directly.
By selecting items in the “Visible Items” column and us-
ing the Move Up and Move Down buttons, you can reorder 
the selected item(s).
Changes are applied directly. To undo all changes and revert back to the 
standard layout, select “Default” on the setup context menu.
A customized Transport panel
If you click the Save button (disk icon) in the Presets 
section, a dialog opens, allowing you to name the current 
configuration and to save it as a preset.
To remove a preset, select it on the presets pop-up 
menu and click the trash icon.
Saved configurations are available for selection from the 
Presets pop-up in the Setup dialog or directly from the 
setup context menu.
Customizing track controls
You can configure (separately for each track type) which 
track controls should be shown in the Track list. You can 
also specify the order of controls and group controls so 
that they are always shown adjacent to each other. This is 
done using the Track Controls Settings dialog.
Opening the Track Controls Settings dialog
There are two ways to open the dialog:
Right-click a track in the Track list and select “Track 
Controls Settings” from the context menu.Click the arrow in the top left corner of the Track list and 
select “Track Controls Settings”.
Setting the track type
The settings made in the Track Controls Settings dialog 
apply to the selected track type (Marker, MIDI, Group/FX 
Channel, Folder, Video, Instrument, Audio). The selected 
track type is shown in the menu display in the top left cor-
ner of the dialog.
To change the track type, click the arrow to the right in 
the menu display and select a track type from the pop-up 
menu that opens.
All settings made in the dialog will apply to all tracks (current and subse-
quent) of the selected type.
The track type pop-up in the Track Controls Settings dialog. 
						

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Customizing
ÖAlways make sure that you have selected the desired 
track type when editing the track controls!
Removing, adding and moving track controls
The dialog is divided into two columns. The left column 
displays controls currently visible on the Track list, and the 
right column displays the controls currently hidden.
You can hide controls from the Track list by selecting 
them in the list to the left and clicking the Remove button. 
To show hidden elements, select them in the list to the 
right and click the Add button.
Click OK to apply the changes.
ÖAll controls can be removed except the Mute and Solo 
buttons.
By selecting controls in the “Visible” column and using 
the Move Up and Move Down buttons, you can change 
the order of the selected control(s) on the Track list.
Click OK to apply the changes.
Grouping track controls
If you resize the Track list, the position of the controls will 
change dynamically to accommodate as many controls as 
possible in the available space (given that Wrap Controls is 
activated – see below). By grouping several track controls 
you ensure that they will always be positioned side by side 
in the Track list. To group controls, proceed as follows:
1.Make sure you have selected the desired track type.
2.Select at least two controls you wish to group in the 
Visible list.
You can only group controls that are adjacent to each other in the Visible 
list. To group controls that are currently not adjacent in the list, use the 
Move Up/Down buttons first.
3.Click Group.
A number is displayed in the Group column for the grouped controls. The 
first group created will have the number 1, the second 2 and so on.
4.Click OK.
The controls are now grouped.
You can ungroup commands by using the Ungroup but-
ton. Please note that this will remove the selected element 
and the elements below it in the list from this group. To re-
move an entire group, select the first (topmost) element 
belonging to this group and click the Ungroup button.
About Wrap Controls
This is activated by default. Wrap Controls is allows the 
controls to be dynamically repositioned when resizing the 
Track list. That is, as many controls as can fit in any given 
space will be displayed depending on how you resize the 
Track list.
If you deactivate Wrap Controls, the positions of the con-
trols will be fixed, regardless of the size of the Track list. In 
this mode, you may have to resize the tracks vertically (by 
dragging the dividers between them) to display all the 
controls.
About the Length column
The Length column in the Visible list allows you to set the 
maximum length for certain text fields, e. g. Name. To 
change the setting, click on the number in the Length col-
umn and type in a new value.
Resetting Track list settings
You have two possibilities to reset settings:
Click Reset to restore all default track controls settings 
for the selected track type.
Click Reset All to restore all default track controls set-
tings for all track types.
Saving presets
You can save track controls settings as presets for later 
recall:
1.Click on the Save icon beside the Presets name field.
A dialog opens, allowing you to type in a name for the preset.
2.Click OK to save the settings as a preset.
Saved presets are available for selection from the Presets pop-up and 
from the pop-up at the top left corner of the Track list.
To remove a preset, select it in the Track Controls Set-
tings dialog and click the Delete icon beside the Presets 
name field.
ÖCubase Essential comes with a number of track con-
trol settings presets available. 
						

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Customizing
Appearance
In the Preferences dialog, you will find a page called Ap-
pearance. The following settings are available:
Basic Appearance Scheme.
By selecting an option from this pop-up menu you can adjust the general 
look of the program. After selecting an Appearance Scheme and clicking 
Apply or OK, you need to restart the program for the changes to take ef-
fect.
Brightness/Intensity sliders.
These sliders allow you to fine-tune the brightness and contrast in vari-
ous areas in the program. Changes take effect when you click Apply or 
OK.
Applying track and event colors
You can use color scheming for easier overview of tracks 
and events in the Project window. Applying colors is di-
vided into two areas; track and event colors.
A track color is shown and can be edited in the Inspec-
tor, the Track list, and the corresponding channel in the 
Mixer. It is furthermore displayed in all parts and events for 
the track in the event display.
Track colors can be switched on and off globally.
Event colors are shown for parts and events in the event 
display and are independent from the track colors.
ÖAn applied event color “overrides” the track color, if 
both are used.
The color palette can be customized, see “The Event Co-
lors dialog” on page 318.
Track colors
Applying track colors manually
To activate track colors, proceed as follows:
1.Click the Show/Hide Track Colors button at the top of 
the Track list.
This brings up the track color selector in the Inspector, the 
Track list and in the Mixer.2.To bring up the color palette, click the track color se-
lector.
Click the arrow in the track name title bar or…
…click the color strip in the Track list.
In the Mixer, click the track color selector below the channel name.
3.Select a color from the color bar.
The track color is now reflected in the Inspector title palette and the Track 
list as well as in the Mixer and any parts and events on the selected track.
Applying track colors automatically
In the Preferences (Editing–Project & Mixer page), you 
can find the option “Auto Track Color Mode”.
This offers you several options for automatically assigning 
colors to tracks that are added to the project.
Option Effect
Use Default 
Event ColorThe default color (gray) is assigned. 
Use Previous 
Track ColorUses the color of the track above the new one (i. e. the 
track that is selected when you add a new track).
Use Previous 
Track Color +1Uses the color next to the color of the track above the 
new one (+1 refers to the color number in the palette).
Use Last 
Applied ColorThe last manually assigned color is used. 
Use Random 
Track ColorTrack colors are assigned randomly. 
						

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Customizing
Coloring parts and events
There are two ways to color parts and events in the 
Project window:
Using the color selector
1.Select the desired parts or events.
2.Choose a color from the color selector in the toolbar.
Using the color tool
1.On the toolbar, select the color tool.
2.Click the small strip below it to bring up the color pal-
ette.
3.Select the desired color. 
4.Click on a part/event to assign the color. 
The color is applied to all selected parts/events and over-
rides the track color (if used).
If you press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on a part/event 
with the color tool, the color palette is displayed and you 
can choose the desired color for an event.
If you press [Alt]/[Option], the color tool cursor becomes 
a pipette, which can be used to select a color by clicking on 
a part/event.
Customizing the event background
On the Event Display page in the Preferences, you can 
find the option “Colorize Event Background”.
This option affects the display of events in the project win-
dow.
When this is activated, the background of the events 
and parts in the event display will be shown in the se-
lected color.
When this is deactivated, the event “content”, i.e. MIDI 
events, audio waveforms, etc. will be displayed in the se-
lected color and the event background will be displayed in 
gray. 
The Event Colors dialog
You can open the Event Colors dialog in two ways: 
Double-click the small strip below the color tool.  
						

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Customizing
Open the Color pop-up menu on the toolbar and select 
“Select Colors…”.
In the Event Colors dialog, you can fully customize the 
color palette, apart from the default color (gray).
To add new colors to the color palette, proceed as follows:
1.Click the Insert New Color button in the Event Colors 
section to add a new color.
A new color icon and color name are added to the Event Colors section.
2.Click the color field next to the name field to activate 
the new color for editing.
3.In the Standard Colors section, select the standard 
color. You can modify the selected color in the following 
way:
 Drag the cursor to another point in the color circle.
 Move the handle in the color meter.
 Enter the values for red, green and blue and hue, saturation 
and luminosity manually.
4.Click the Apply button in the Standard Colors section. 
The color setting is applied to the selected color item. 
You can edit every existing event color in the same way.
To delete an event color item, select it and click the 
“Remove Selected Color” button in the Event Colors sec-
tion.
To increase or decrease the intensity and the brightness 
of all colors, use the corresponding buttons in the Event 
Colors section.
To save the current set as default, click the button “This 
set as default set” in the Event Colors section. You can 
then click the button “Use default set” to the right to apply 
the saved default set.
To return to the standard setting of the palette in Cu-
base Essential, click Reset.
Where are the settings stored?
As you have seen, there are a large number of ways in 
which you can customize Cubase Essential. While some 
of the settings you make are stored in each project, others 
are stored in separate preference files.
If you need to transfer your projects to another computer 
(e. g. in another studio), you can bring all your settings 
along by copying the desired preference files and install-
ing them on the other computer.
ÖIt’s a good idea to make a backup copy of your prefer-
ence files once you have set things up the way you want!
This way, if another Cubase Essential user wants to use his or her per-
sonal settings when working on your computer, you can restore your own 
preferences afterwards.
Under Windows, preference files are stored in the 
folder “\Documents and Settings\\Applica-
tion Data\Steinberg\Cubase Essential 4\”.
On the Start menu, you will find a shortcut to this folder for easy access.
Under Mac OS X, preference files are stored in the 
folder “Library/Preferences/Cubase Essential 4/” under 
your home directory.
The full path would be: “/Users//Library/Preferences/
Cubase Essential 4/”.
ÖThe RAMpresets.xml file, which contains various pre-
sets settings (see below), is saved when exiting the pro-
gram. 
ÖProgram functions (e. g. crossfade) or configurations 
(e. g. panels) not used in the project will not be stored.
Below, the available preferences files are listed. When 
files are not saved in the default preferences folder (see 
above), the complete path will be shown. When files are 
saved in a further subfolder of the default folder, the path 
will begin with the name of this folder:
Remove 
new colorIncrease/decrease in-
tensity for all colors This Set as 
Default Set Increase/decrease 
brightness for all colorsInsert
new color
Use Default 
Set
Setting Stored in
Edit modifier keys Edit Modifiers.xml
Key commands Key Commands.xml
Preferences 
dialog settingsDefaults.xml
Color setup saved in the project
Default Color 
setupDefaults.xml 
						

							320
Customizing Crossfade 
presetsApplication folder\Presets\RAMPresets.xml
Device setup 
filesApplication folder\Device Maps
as *.xml file
Drum maps Application folder\DrumMaps 
as *.drm file
EQ presets Application folder\Presets\VstEqPresets.pxml
Port Input/
Output settingsPort Setup.xml
Audio Inserts
presets\Presets\InsertsFolderPresets.pxml
MIDI Inserts 
presets\Presets\MidiInsertsPresets
as *.xml file
Installed MIDI 
devicesMidi Devices.bin
Key commands 
presets\Presets\KeyCommands\.xml
Logical presets \Presets\Logical Edit\.xml
MediaBay
settingsMediaDefaults.xml
MediaBay default 
settingsMediaFactoryDefaults.xml (these are applied on reset)
MediaBay – 
Scanned foldersscannedfolders.bin
MediaBay – 
Scanned disksFileSysObserver.xml (When changing the file system 
these disks are automatically scanned by the MediaBay 
– Windows only.)
MediaBay 
databasemediabay.db
MediaBay Content ContentManager.xml
MIDI FX presets \Presets\\.xml
Mixer (or channel) 
settingssaved in the last active folder as *.vmx file (VST Mixer 
settings)
Patch name 
scripts\Scripts\Patchnames as *.txt file
Quantize 
presets\Presets\RAMPresets.xml
Toolbar presets \Presets\RAMPresets.xml
Track controls 
presets\Presets\RAMPresets.xml
Track presets 
(user-defined, 
for all programs)Win: \Documents and Settings\\Applica-
tion Data\Steinberg\Track Presets
Mac: Users//Library/Application Sup-
port/Steinberg/Track Presets
(with the subfolders \Audio, \Instrument, \Midi, \Multi) 
as *.trackpreset file
Transport panel 
presets\Presets\RAMPresets.xml Setting Stored in
Usage profile
logUsage Profile.xml (only saved if the corresponding op-
tion in the Preferences is activated)
User templates templates\.cpr
VST connections 
presets\Presets\RAMPresets.xml
VST 3 plug-ins 
and instrumentsVstPlugInfo.xml
VST 2 plug-ins 
and instrumentsVst2xPlugins.xml
VST3 presets 
(user-defined, 
for all programs)Win: \Common files\VST3 Presets\\

Mac: Users//Library/Audio/Presets/
/
as *.vstpreset file
VST3 presets 
(public, for all 
programs)Win: \Documents and Settings\VST3 Presets\\
Mac: /Library/Audio/Presets//
as *.vstpreset file Setting Stored in