Steinberg Cubase LE Operation Manual

CUBASE LEAutomation 9 – 191
What can be automated?
Mixing in Cubase LE can be completely automated. The following pa-
rameter settings can be recorded automatically – or manually drawn in 
– on automation subtracks:
For each audio and group track:
• Volume
• Pan Left - Right
• Pan Front - Rear
• Mute
• EQ Master Bypass
• FX Send Bypass
• Settings for 4 EQ modules (Enable/Freq/Quality/Gain)
• 4 x effect Send on/off switches
• 4 x effect Send levels
• 4 x effect Send pre/post switches
• 2 x Insert effect...

CUBASE LE9 – 192 Automation
• Track Parameters on/off switch
• Transpose
• Vel. shift
• Random 1-2 Min/Max/Target
• Range 1-2 Min/Max/Target
About automation tracks
There are three types of automation tracks available:
•Channel automation tracks
There is one automation track for every audio, group, and MIDI track, and also for each 
activated ReWire and VST Instrument channel. Each channel’s insert effect program 
selection and effect parameter settings are handled by the Channel automation track. 
For...

CUBASE LEAutomation 9 – 193
Automation subtrack operations
Opening an automation subtrack 
Opening a Channel automation subtrack
Every track/channel has its own automation track, and each automa-
tion subtrack shows one automation parameter. There are two ways 
you can open a Channel automation subtrack:
•By right-clicking (Win) or [Ctrl]-clicking (Mac) the track in the Track 
list and selecting “Show Automation” from the pop-up that appears.
•By clicking on the “Show/Hide Automation” button (the plus...

CUBASE LE9 – 194 Automation
Assigning a parameter to an automation subtrack
All parameters are actually already “assigned” to the automation track. 
To select what parameter an open subtrack should display, proceed 
as follows:
1.If none exists, open a Channel automation subtrack using one of the 
methods described previously.
2.Click in the parameter display for the automation subtrack.
A pop-up list is shown containing some of the automation parameters plus the item 
“More...” at the bottom of the...

CUBASE LEAutomation 9 – 195
3.Select “More...”.
The Add Parameter dialog appears. This list contains all parameters that can be auto-
mated for the selected channel, including the parameters for any assigned insert ef-
fects. The available parameters are identical for all audio related channel types. MIDI 
tracks have different parameters.
The Add Parameter dialog for an audio track.
4.Select a parameter from the list, and click OK.
The parameter will then replace the current parameter in the automation...

CUBASE LE9 – 196 Automation
•You can select several parameters at the same time from the Add Pa-
rameter dialog using standard selection methods. 
The parameters selected in the dialog will then appear on the parameter display pop-
up menu.
Before selecting parameters in the dialog, the pop-up shows the first number of pa-
rameters, in the order they appear in the Add Parameter list. By selecting parameters 
you can temporarily “reorder” the list so that they become available on the pop-up. 
•Automation...

CUBASE LEAutomation 9 – 197
Showing only used automation subtracks
If a lot of automation subtracks are used, it may be impractical to have 
them all open in the Track list. If you want to bring back all hidden auto-
mation tracks that are currently used (e.g. there are automation events 
on the subtrack), this can be done using the following methods:
•Right-clicking (Win) or [Ctrl]-clicking (Mac) any audio or MIDI track in 
the Track list allows you to select the option “Show Used Automation 
for All...

CUBASE LE9 – 198 Automation
Using Write/Read automation
Write (W) and Read (R) buttons can be found for each channel in the 
Mixer, for each MIDI, audio and group track (including subtracks) in 
the Track list, on the control panels for all plug-in effects and VST In-
struments and for the Master fader.
The Write and Read buttons for a channel in the Mixer, and for an automation 
subtrack in the Track list.
• If you activate Write for a channel, all mixer parameters you adjust during play-
back for that...

CUBASE LEAutomation 9 – 199
Recording your actions – an example
If the settings in your current project are crucial, you may not want to 
“experiment” with automation until you know more about how it all fits 
together. If so, you can open up a new project for the following example. 
It doesn’t even have to contain any audio events, just a few audio tracks. 
Proceed as follows:
1.Open the Mixer.
2.Click the “Write All” button in the Mixer Common Panel.
Cubase LE is now in Global Write mode. 
3.Start...

CUBASE LE9 – 200 Automation
Working with automation curves
About automation curves 
There are two kinds of automation curves, “Ramp” and “Jump”:
•Jump curves are created for any parameter that only has on/off values, 
like a Mute button, for example.
•Ramp curves are created for any parameter that generates continuous 
multiple values, such as fader or dial movements etc. 
Examples of Jump (top subtrack) and Ramp automation curves shown in the event 
display.
About the static value line
When you first...