Steinberg Cubase Essential 5.1.1 New Features Manual

							New Features in Cubase Essential 5.1.1 
						

							Cristina Bachmann, Heiko Bischoff, Marion Bröer, Sabine Pfeifer, Heike Schilling
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Release Date: November 18, 2009
© Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, 2009.
All rights reserved. 
						

							Table of Contents 
						

							4
5Introduction
6Welcome!
7Working with the new features
8The Project Assistant dialog
9Saving Templates
9The Jog/Scrub wheel
10AmpSimulator 
						

							Introduction 
						

							6
Introduction
Welcome!
Welcome to Cubase Essential 5.1.1! This version is com-
patible with Apple Mac OS X Snow Leopard (10.6) and 
Microsoft Windows 7 and adds new features for every Cu-
base Essential user.
This document lists and describes the features that have 
been added to or modified in the program since version 
5.1.0.
About the program versions
The documentation covers two different operating systems 
or “platforms”; Windows and Mac OS X. 
Some features and settings are specific to one of the plat-
forms. This is clearly stated in the applicable cases. In 
other words:
If nothing else is said, all descriptions and procedures 
in the documentation are valid for both Windows and Mac 
OS X.
Key command conventions
Many of the default key commands in Cubase Essential 
use modifier keys, some of which are different depending 
on the operating system. For example, the default key 
command for Undo is [Ctrl]-[Z] under Windows and 
[Command]-[Z] under Mac OS X.
When key commands with modifier keys are described in 
this manual, they are shown with the Windows modifier 
key first, in the following way:
[Win modifier key]/[Mac modifier key]-[key]
For example, [Ctrl]/[Command]-[Z] means “press [Ctrl] 
under Windows or [Command] under Mac OS X, then 
press [Z]”. 
Similarly, [Alt]/[Option]-[X] means “press [Alt] under Win-
dows or [Option] under Mac OS X, then press [X]”.
Please note that this manual might refer to right-click-
ing, e.g. to open context menus, etc. If you are using a Mac 
with a single-button mouse, hold down [Ctrl] and click. 
						

							Working with the new features 
						

							8
Working with the new features
The Project Assistant dialog
The Project Assistant dialog is opened by selecting the 
“New Project…” command on the File menu. In this dialog 
you can access recently opened projects and create new 
projects, which can either be empty or based on a template.
The Project Assistant dialog will also open in the following 
cases:
•If you launch Cubase Essential with the option “Show 
Project Assistant” selected on the “On Startup” pop-up 
menu in the Preferences (General page).
If you hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] while launching Cu-
base Essential.
Opening recent projects
The Recent category in the category bar of the Project As-
sistant dialog contains a list of recently opened projects. 
When you select an item in this category, the Create but-
ton changes to “Open”, allowing you to open the corre-
sponding project. This list is similar to the list in the Recent 
Projects submenu on the File menu.
Choosing a template
In the category bar of the Project Assistant dialog, the avail-
able factory templates are sorted into the predefined cate-
gories Recording, Production, Scoring, and Mastering. 
Furthermore, there is a More category which contains the 
default project template and all templates that are not as-
signed to any of the other categories.
When you click on one of the category items, the list below 
the category bar shows the available factory templates for 
this category that were installed with Cubase Essential. Any 
new templates that you create are added at the top of the 
corresponding list for convenient access.
To create an empty project that is not based on a tem-
plate, select the “Emtpy” entry in the More category and 
click the Create button.
An empty project is also created if no template is selected in the cur-
rently shown category.
You can rename or delete a template by right-clicking it 
in the list and selecting the corresponding option on the 
context menu.
Choosing a project location
The options in the lower part of the dialog allow you to 
specify where the project is stored. 
Select “Use default location” to create the project in the 
default project location (as shown in the path field), and 
click Create. 
In the “Project folder” field you can specify a name for the project folder. If 
you do not specify a project folder here, the project will reside in a folder 
named “Untitled”.
To change the default project location, simply click in 
the path field. A file dialog opens, allowing you to specify a 
new default location.
Select “Prompt for project location” and click Continue 
to create the project in a different location.
In the dialog that appears, specify a location and a project folder.
Open Other
The “Open Other” button allows you to open any project 
file on your system. This is identical to using the Open 
command from the File menu.
Category 
bar
Template 
list
Location 
options
Open Other button 
						

							9
Working with the new features
Saving Templates
The “Save as Template” dialog now has a Tag Editor sec-
tion, where you can assign the template to one of the four 
template categories shown in the Project Assistant dialog 
and/or enter a description for the template. This descrip-
tion will also be visible in the Project Assistant dialog.
Simply select a category value from the Template Cate-
gory pop-up menu and/or enter a description in the Con-
tent Summary field.
If you do not choose a Template Category attribute, 
the new template will be shown in the More category in 
the Project Assistant dialog.
The Jog/Scrub wheel
The Jog/Scrub wheel is now available in Cubase Essential.
The Shuttle Speed control
The shuttle speed control (the outer wheel on the Trans-
port panel) allows you to play the project at any playback 
speed, forwards or backwards. This provides a quick way 
to locate or “cue” to any position in the project.
Turn the shuttle speed wheel to the right to start play-
back.
The further to the right you move the wheel, the faster the playback speed. 
If you turn the wheel to the left instead, the project will 
play backwards.
Similarly, the playback speed depends on how far to the left you turn the 
wheel.
Project scrubbing – the Jog Wheel
The middle wheel on the Transport panel serves as a jog 
wheel. By clicking and dragging it to the right or left you 
will move the playback position manually forwards or back-
wards – much like scrubbing on a tape deck. This helps 
you pinpoint exact locations in the project. In the Transport 
category of the Key Commands dialog you can also set up 
key commands for the commands Jog Left/Right. For more 
information about the Key Commands dialog, please refer 
to the Key Commands chapter of the Operation Manual.
Note that the jog wheel is an “endless rotary encoder” – 
you can turn it as many times as needed to move to the 
desired location.
The faster you turn the wheel, the faster the playback speed.
If you click the jog wheel during playback, playback will 
automatically stop.
The nudge position buttons
The + and – buttons in the middle of the Shuttle/Jog sec-
tion allow you to nudge the project cursor position one 
frame at a time to the right or left. 
						

							10
Working with the new features
AmpSimulator
The AmpSimulator effect now has an updated plug-in 
panel. However, the parameters are the same as in the 
previous version.
AmpSimulator is a distortion effect, emulating the sound 
of various types of guitar amp and speaker cabinet combi-
nations. A wide selection of amp and cabinet models is 
available.
The following parameters are available:
Parameter Description
Drive Controls the amount of amp overdrive. 
Bass Tone control for the low frequencies.
Middle Tone control for the mid frequencies.
Treble Tone control for the high frequencies.
Presence Boosts or dampens the higher frequencies.
Volume Controls the overall output level.
Amplifier 
pop-up menuThis pop-up menu is opened by clicking on the amplifier 
name shown at the top of the amp section. It allows you 
to select an amplifier model. The amp section can be by-
passed by selecting “No Amp”.
Cabinet 
pop-up menuThis pop-up menu is opened by clicking on the cabinet 
name shown at the top of the cabinet section. It allows 
you to select a speaker cabinet model. This section can 
be bypassed by selecting “No Speaker”.
Damping  Lo/Hi Further tone controls for shaping the sound of the selected 
speaker cabinet. Click on the values, enter a new value 
and press the [Enter] key.