Steinberg Cubase Le 8 Manual

							Recording
Monitoring
151
3. In the Device Setup dialog, select your driver in the Devices list on the left to 
display the driver settings for your audio hardware, and activate the Direct 
Monitoring checkbox.
If the checkbox is grayed out, your audio hardware (or its driver) does not support 
ASIO Direct Monitoring. Consult the audio hardware manufacturer for details.
4. Select File > Preferences > VST.
5. Open the Auto Monitoring pop-up menu and select a monitoring mode.
6. In the MixConsole, adjust the monitoring level and panning.
Depending on the audio hardware, this might not be possible.
AFTER COMPLETING THIS TASK 
You can monitor the input levels of audio tracks, that is, you can map the input bus 
metering to monitor-enabled audio tracks and watch the input levels of your audio 
tracks when working in the Project window.
•Select File > Preferences > Metering and activate Map Input Bus 
Metering to Audio Track (in Direct Monitoring).
As the tracks are mirroring the input bus signal you will see the same signal in 
both places. When using mapped metering, any functions that you apply to 
the audio track are not reflected in its meters.
NOTE
When using Steinberg hardware (MR816 series) in combination with ASIO Direct 
Monitoring, monitoring will be virtually latency-free. If you are using RME Audio 
Hammerfall DSP audio hardware, make sure that the pan law is set to -3
 dB in the 
card’s preferences.
RELATED LINKS
VST on page 671
Monitoring MIDI Tracks
You can monitor everything you play and record though the MIDI output and 
channel that are selected for the MIDI track.
PREREQUISITE 
Local Off is activated on your MIDI instrument.
PROCEDURE
1. Select File > Preferences > MIDI.
2. Make sure MIDI Thru Active is activated.
3. In the track list, activate the Monitor button. 
						

							Recording
Audio Recording Specifics
152
RESULT 
Incoming MIDI is echoed back out again.
RELATED LINKS
MIDI on page 661
Audio Recording Specifics
Preparations
Selecting a Record File Format
You can set up the record file format, that is the sample rate, bit resolution, and 
record file type for new audio files.
PROCEDURE
1. Select Project > Project Setup.
2. Set up the settings for Sample Rate, Bit Resolution, and Record File Type.
IMPORTANT
The bit resolution and file type can be changed at any time while the sample rate of a 
project cannot be changed at a later stage.
RELATED LINKS
Creating New Projects on page 44
Setting the Audio Record Folder
Each Cubase project has a project folder containing an Audio folder. By default, 
this is where recorded audio files are stored. However, you can select record 
folders independently for each audio track if needed.
PROCEDURE
1. In the track list, select all tracks that you want to assign the same record folder.
2. Right-click one of the tracks to open the context menu.
3. Select Set Record Folder.
A file dialog opens. 
						

							Recording
Audio Recording Specifics
153
4. Navigate to the folder that you want to use as record folder or create a new 
folder with the New Folder button.
If you want to have separate folders for different types of material (speech, ambient 
sounds, music, etc.), you can create subfolders within the project Audio folder and 
assign different tracks to different subfolders. This way, all audio files will still reside 
within the project folder, which will make managing the project easier.
Getting the Track Ready for Recording
Creating a Track and Setting the Channel Configuration
PROCEDURE
1. Select Project > Add Track > Audio.
2. In the Count field, enter the number of tracks that you want to add.
3. Open the Configuration pop-up menu and select a channel configuration.
4. Optional: Enter a track name.
5. Click Add Track.
RELATED LINKS
Add Track Dialog on page 91
RAM Requirements for Recording
Each track on which you record requires a certain amount of RAM, and the memory 
usage increases the longer the recording lasts. For each audio channel, 2.4
 MB of 
RAM are required for MixConsole settings, etc. The memory usage increases with 
the length of the recording, the sample rate, and the number of tracks you record. 
Consider the RAM limitation of your operating system when setting up your project 
for recording. 
						

							Recording
Audio Recording Specifics
154
Selecting an Input Bus for the Track
Before you can record on your track, you must add and set up the required input 
busses and specify from which input bus the track will record.
PROCEDURE
1. In the Inspector for the audio track, open the Input Routing pop-up menu.
2. Select an input bus.
RELATED LINKS
Setting Up the Input and Output Ports on page 13
Setting Up Busses on page 12
Audio Track Inspector on page 60
Recording Audio
You can record audio using any of the basic recording methods.
When you finish recording, an audio file is created in the Audio folder within the 
project folder. In the Pool, an audio clip is created for the audio file, and an audio 
event that plays the whole clip appears on the recording track. Finally, a waveform 
image is calculated for the audio event. If the recording was very long, this may take 
a while.
NOTE
The waveform image will be calculated and displayed during the actual recording 
process. This realtime calculation uses some processing power. If your processor 
is slow or if you are working on a CPU-intensive project, select File > Preferences 
> Record > Audio and deactivate Create Audio Images During Record.
RELATED LINKS
Activating Recording on page 146
Cycle Recording on page 147 
						

							Recording
Audio Recording Specifics
155
Audio Record Modes
By selecting an Audio Record Mode you decide what happens to your recording 
and to any existing events on the track where you are recording. This is necessary 
because you will not always record on an empty track. There may be situations 
where you record over existing events, especially in cycle mode.
• To select an Audio Record Mode, click the audio symbol in Record Mode 
section of the Transport panel and select a record mode.
• To close the Audio Record Mode panel, click anywhere outside the panel.
Keep History
Existing events or portions of events that are overlapped by a new recording 
are kept.
Cycle History + Replace
Existing events or portions of events that are overlapped by a new recording 
are replaced by the new recording. However, if you record in cycle mode, all 
takes from the current cycle recording are kept.
Replace
Existing events or portions of events that are overlapped by a new recording 
are replaced by the last recorded take.
Recording with Effects
Cubase allows you to add effects and/or EQ directly while recording. This is done 
by adding insert effects and/or making EQ settings for the input channel in the 
MixConsole.
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
If you record with effects, the effects become part of the audio file itself. You cannot 
change the effect settings after recording.
When you are recording with effects consider using 32-bit float format. This way, 
the bit resolution will not be reduced, which means there is no r i s k  o f  c l i p p i n g  a t  t h i s  
stage. Also, this preserves the signal quality perfectly. If you record in 16-bit or 
24-bit format, the available headroom is lower, which means clipping can occur if 
the signal is too loud. 
						

							Recording
Audio Recording Specifics
156
Undoing Recording
If you decide that you do not like what you just recorded, you can delete it.
•Select Edit > Undo.
This removes the events that you just recorded from the Project window and moves 
the audio clips in the Pool to the trash folder. To remove the recorded audio files from 
the hard disk, open the Pool, right-click the Trash icon and select Empty Trash.
RELATED LINKS
Pool Window on page 314
Recovering Audio Recordings
Cubase allows you to recover audio recordings in two situations: if you specified an 
audio pre-record time when you hit the record button too late and after a system 
failure during recording.
Specifying an Audio Pre-Record Time
You can capture up to 1 minute of any incoming audio that you play in Stop mode 
or during playback. This is possible because Cubase can capture audio input in 
buffer memory, even when not recording.
PROCEDURE
1. Select File > Preferences > Record > Audio.
2. Specify a time (up to 60 seconds) in the Audio Pre-Record Seconds field.
This activates the buffering of audio input, making pre-record possible.
3. Make sure that an audio track is record-enabled and receives audio from the 
signal source.
4. When you have played some audio material that you want to capture (either 
in Stop mode or during playback), click the Record button.
5. Stop the recording after a few seconds.
This creates an audio event that starts where the cursor position was when you 
activated recording. If you were in stop mode, and the cursor was at the beginning of 
the project, you may have to move the event to the right in the next step. If you were 
playing along to a project, you leave the event where it is.
6. Select the Object Selection tool and place the cursor on the bottom left edge 
of the event so that a double arrow appears. Then click and drag to the left.
RESULT 
The event is now extended, and the audio that you played before activating the 
recording is inserted. This means that if you played along during playback, the 
captured notes end up exactly where you played them in relation to the project.
RELATED LINKS
Record - Audio on page 667 
						

							Recording
MIDI Recording Specifics
157
Recovering Audio Recordings after System Failure
Cubase allows you to recover audio recordings after a system failure, because of a 
power cut or other mishap, for example.
When you experience a computer crash during a recording, relaunch the system 
and check the project record folder. By default, this is the Audio subfolder inside 
the project folder. It should contain the audio file that you recorded, from the 
moment when you started recording to the time when your computer crashed.
NOTE
• This feature does not constitute an overall guarantee by Steinberg. While the 
program itself was improved in such a way that audio recordings can be 
recovered after a system failure, it is always possible that a computer crash, 
power cut, etc. might have damaged another component of the computer, 
making it impossible to save or recover any of the data.
• Do not try to actively bring about this kind of situation to test this feature. 
Although the internal program processes have been improved to cope with 
such situations, Steinberg cannot guarantee that other parts of the computer 
are not damaged as a consequence.
MIDI Recording Specifics
Preparations
The preparations described in the following sections mainly focus on external MIDI 
devices.
MIDI Instruments and Channels
Most MIDI synthesizers can play several sounds at the same time, each on a 
different MIDI channel. This allows you to play back several sounds (bass, piano, 
etc.) from the same instrument.
Some devices, such as General MIDI compatible sound modules, always receive on 
all 16 MIDI channels. If you have such an instrument, there is no specific setting to 
make in the instrument.
On other instruments, you must use the front panel controls to set up a number of 
parts, timbres, or similar so that they all receive on one MIDI channel.
For more information, see the manual that came with your instrument. 
						

							Recording
MIDI Recording Specifics
158
Naming MIDI Ports
MIDI inputs and outputs are often displayed with long and complicated names. In 
Cubase, you can rename your MIDI ports to more descriptive names.
PROCEDURE
1. Select Devices > Device Setup.
2. In the Devices list, select MIDI Port Setup.
The available MIDI inputs and outputs are listed. On Windows systems, the device to 
choose depends on your system.
3. Click in the Show As column and type in a new name.
4. Click OK.
RESULT 
The new port names appear on the MIDI Input and Output Routing pop-up menus.
Setting the MIDI Input
In the Inspector, you set the MIDI input for the track.
PROCEDURE
1. In the track list, select the track to which you want to assign a MIDI input.
2. In the topmost Inspector section, open the Input Routing pop-up menu and 
select an input.
The available inputs on the menu depend on the type of MIDI interface that you are 
using. If you hold down [Shift]-[Alt]/[Option], the selected MIDI input is used for all 
selected MIDI tracks.
NOTE
If you select All MIDI Inputs, the track will receive MIDI data from all available MIDI 
inputs. 
						

							Recording
MIDI Recording Specifics
159
Setting the MIDI Channel and Output
The MIDI channel and output settings determine where the recorded MIDI is routed 
during playback. They are also relevant for monitoring MIDI in Cubase. You can 
select the channel and output in the track list or in the Inspector.
PROCEDURE
1. In the track list, select the track to which you want to assign a MIDI channel 
and output.
2. In the topmost Inspector section, open the Output Routing pop-up menu 
and select an output.
The available outputs on the menu depend on the type of MIDI interface that you are 
using. If you hold down [Shift]-[Alt]/[Option], the selected MIDI output is used for all 
selected MIDI tracks.
3. Open the Channel pop-up menu and select a MIDI channel.
NOTE
If you select the Any MIDI channel, the MIDI material is routed to the channels that are 
used by your MIDI instrument.
Selecting a Sound
You can select sounds from within Cubase by instructing the program to send 
Program Change and Bank Select messages to your MIDI device.
PROCEDURE
1. In the track list, select the track to which you want to assign a sound.
2. In the track list or the Inspector, open the Program Selector pop-up menu 
and select a program.
Program Change messages give access to 128 different program locations.
3. If your MIDI instruments have more than 128 programs, you can open the 
Bank Selector pop-up menu and select different banks, each containing 128 
programs.
NOTE
Bank Select messages are recognized differently by different MIDI instruments. The 
structure and numbering of banks and programs may also vary. Refer to the 
documentation of your MIDI instruments for details.
RELATED LINKS
MIDI Track Inspector on page 68 
						

							Recording
MIDI Recording Specifics
160
Recording MIDI
You can record MIDI using any of the basic recording methods.
When you finish recording, a part that contains MIDI events is created in the Project 
window.
NOTE
If you perform a live recording on a VST instrument, you usually compensate the 
latency of the audio card by playing earlier. In consequence, the timestamps are 
recorded too early. If you activate the ASIO Latency Compensation button on the 
track list, all recorded events are moved by the current latency setting.
The following preferences affect MIDI recording:
• Length Adjustment
• Snap MIDI Parts to Bars
• Solo Record in MIDI Editors
• MIDI Record Catch Range in ms
• ASIO Latency Compensation Active by Default
You can find them on the MIDI and Record–MIDI page of the Preferences dialog.
RELATED LINKS
MIDI on page 661
Record - MIDI on page 668
Recording Different Types of MIDI Messages
You can record different types of MIDI messages.
• To specify which event types are recorded, select File > Preferences > MIDI 
> MIDI Filter and deactivate the options for the type of MIDI message that 
you want to record.
RELATED LINKS
MIDI - MIDI Filter on page 665
Recording MIDI Notes
If you press and release a key on your synthesizer or on another MIDI keyboard, the 
following messages are recorded:
• Note On (key down)
• Note Off (key up)
•MIDI channel