Steinberg Cubase LE Operation Manual

							CUBASE LEThe Tempo Track Editor 21 – 431
The tempo curve display
The main display shows the tempo curve (or, if Rehearsal mode is se-
lected, the Rehearsal tempo – see page 436). To the left of the dis-
play is a tempo scale to help you quickly locate the desired tempo.
•Note that the vertical “grid lines” correspond to the display format se-
lected for the ruler. 
						

							CUBASE LE21 – 432 The Tempo Track Editor
Operations
Zooming
Changing the magnification is done using any of the following methods:
•By using the zoom sliders in the lower right corner of the window.
•By using the Magnifying Glass tool.
This works according to the standard procedures.
•By using the Zoom submenu on the Edit menu.
The options on the menu work as in other windows.
Editing the tempo curve
❐This section assumes that you are working in Tempo track mode, i.e. the 
Master button is activated.
Adding tempo curve points
1.Use the “Insert Curve” pop-up menu in the toolbar to select whether 
you want the tempo to change gradually from the previous curve point 
to the new one (“Ramp”) or change instantly to the new value (“Jump”).
2.Select the Pencil tool.
3.Click at the desired time position in the tempo curve display, and keep 
the mouse button pressed.
If Snap is activated on the toolbar, this determines at which time positions you can in-
sert tempo curve points, see page 437.
When you click, the Tempo Display in the toolbar shows the tempo value. 
						

							CUBASE LEThe Tempo Track Editor 21 – 433
4.Drag the curve point to the desired tempo value (indicated in the 
Tempo Display), and release the mouse button.
The tempo curve point is inserted. The result depends on whether you selected “Ramp” 
or “Jump” in step 1 above:
•You can also just click and draw a tempo curve with the Pencil tool, 
having curve points automatically inserted as you draw.
You would probably want to select the “Ramp” Insert Curve mode when doing this.
•Instead of using the Pencil tool, you can press [Alt]/[Option] and use 
the Arrow tool. 
This will only insert a single point (i.e. you cannot draw a curve with the Arrow tool).
❐You can also have tempo values automatically inserted by the Beat Cal-
culator, see page 438.
Selecting tempo curve points
Selecting curve points is done using any of the following methods:
•Use the Arrow tool.
The standard selection techniques apply.
•Use the Select submenu on the Edit menu.
The options are:
Option Description
All Selects all curve points on the Tempo track.
None Deselects all curve points.
In Loop Selects all curve points between the left and right locator.
From Start to Cursor Selects all points to the left of the project cursor.
From Cursor to End Selects all points to the right of the project cursor.
Insert Curve set to “Ramp”. Insert Curve set to “Jump”. 
						

							CUBASE LE21 – 434 The Tempo Track Editor
•You can also use the left and right arrow keys on the computer key-
board, to go from one curve point to the next.
If you press [Shift] and use the arrow keys, the current selection will be kept, allowing 
you to select several points.
Editing tempo curve points
Curve points can be edited in the following ways:
•By clicking and dragging horizontally and/or vertically.
If several points are selected, all of them are moved. If Snap is activated on the toolbar, 
this determines to which time positions you can move curve points, see page 437.
•By adjusting the tempo value in the Tempo Display on the toolbar.
For this to work, a single tempo curve point must be selected.
❐Dragging tempo curve points with a time based display format (any other 
format than “Bars+Beats”) may give confusing results. This is because 
moving a point will change the relationship between tempo and time. 
Specifically, let’s say you move a tempo point to the right and drop it on 
a certain time position. When you release the mouse button, the map-
ping between tempo and time will be adjusted (since you have changed 
the tempo curve). As a result, the moved point will appear at another po-
sition. For this reason, we recommend that you use the Bars+Beats dis-
play format when editing tempo curves. 
						

							CUBASE LEThe Tempo Track Editor 21 – 435
Adjusting the curve type
You can change the curve type of a tempo curve segment at any time, 
using the following method:
1.Select all curve points within the segment you want to edit.
2.Pull down the Curve pop-up menu on the toolbar and select “Jump” or 
“Ramp”.
The curve sections between the selected points are adjusted.
Removing tempo curve points
To remove a curve point, either click on it with the Eraser tool or select 
it and press [Backspace]. The first tempo curve point cannot be re-
moved. 
						

							CUBASE LE21 – 436 The Tempo Track Editor
Setting the Rehearsal tempo
When the Master button is deactivated, the Tempo track curve is 
greyed out (but still visible). Since the Rehearsal tempo is constant 
throughout the whole project, there are no tempo curve points. In-
stead, the Rehearsal tempo is displayed as a horizontal black line in 
the tempo curve display.
There are two ways to set the tempo in Rehearsal mode:
•Drag the tempo line up or down with the Arrow tool.
•Adjust the value numerically in the Tempo Display on the toolbar. 
						

							CUBASE LEThe Tempo Track Editor 21 – 437
Adding and editing time signature events
•To add a time signature event, click in the time signature area with the 
Pencil tool. 
This adds a default 4/4 time signature event at the closest bar position. You can also 
do this by pressing [Alt]/[Option] and clicking with the Arrow tool.
•To edit the value of a time signature event, select it and adjust the 
value in the Signature display on the toolbar.
Note that there are two thumbwheel controls for the Signature display; the left adjusts 
the numerator and the right adjusts the denominator.
•You can move a time signature event by clicking and dragging it with 
the Arrow tool.
Again, note that time signature events can only be positioned at the start of bars.
•To remove a time signature, either click on it with the Eraser tool or se-
lect it and press [Backspace].
The first time signature event cannot be removed.
Options and settings
Snap
You activate or deactivate Snap by clicking the Snap icon on the tool-
bar. The behavior of the function depends on the display format se-
lected for the ruler:
•If “Bars+Beats” is selected, tempo curve points will snap to the start 
of bars.
•If any other display format is selected, tempo curve points will snap to 
the vertical grid lines in the tempo curve display.
The spacing of the grid lines depends on the horizontal magnification.
•Time signature events can only be positioned at the start of bars, re-
gardless of whether Snap is activated or not.
Auto Scroll
When this option is activated, the tempo curve display will scroll dur-
ing playback, keeping the project cursor visible. 
						

							CUBASE LE21 – 438 The Tempo Track Editor
The Beat Calculator
The Beat Calculator is a tool for calculating the tempo of freely re-
corded audio or MIDI material. It also allows you to set the tempo by 
tapping.
Calculating the tempo of a recording
1.In the Project window, make a selection that covers an exact number 
of beats of the recording.
2.Select “Beat Calculator…” from the Project menu.
The Beat Calculator window appears.
3.Enter the number of beats that the selection encompasses in the 
Beats field.
The corresponding tempo is calculated and displayed in the BPM field.
•If you need to adjust the selection, you can just go back to the Project 
window, leaving the Beat Calculator open.
To re-calculate the tempo after adjusting the selection, click Refresh.
4.If you like, you can insert the calculated tempo into the Tempo track, 
by clicking one of the buttons in the lower left corner of the Beat Cal-
culator window.
Clicking “At Tempo Track Start” will adjust the first tempo curve point, while “At Selec-
tion Start” will add a new tempo curve point at the selection’s start position, using the 
“Jump” curve type (see page 432).
❐If Rehearsal mode is selected when you insert the calculated tempo, the 
Rehearsal tempo will be adjusted, regardless of which button you click. 
						

							CUBASE LEThe Tempo Track Editor 21 – 439
Using Tap Tempo
The Tap Tempo function allows you to specify a tempo by tapping:
1.Open the Beat Calculator.
2.If you want to tap the tempo to some recorded material, activate play-
back.
3.Click the Tap Tempo button.
The Tap Tempo window appears.
4.Tap the tempo on the computer keyboard’s space bar or with the 
mouse button.
The tempo display will update the calculated tempo between each tap.
5.When you stop tapping, the program calculates the average timing of 
the taps and displays it.
6.Press [Esc] to close the Tap Tempo window.
The tapped tempo is now shown in the Beat Calculator’s BPM display. If you like, you 
can insert it into the Tempo track as described on the previous page. 
						

							CUBASE LE21 – 440 The Tempo Track Editor