Steinberg Cubase SE 3 Operation Manual
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CUBASE SE Export Audio Mixdown 23 – 491 Sound Designer II files (Mac OS X only) The SD II format was developed by Digidesign. It is one of the most popular audio file formats on the Macintosh, especially for professional audio work. The following export settings are available: Channels Allows you to select mono or stereo files, with the same options as for AIFF files (see page 489). Resolution The bit resolution of the file, with the same options as for AIFF files (see page 490). Sample Rate The options are the same as for AIFF files (see page 490). Wave files Wave files have the extension “.wav” and are the most common file format on the PC platform. Wave files can be uncompressed or com- pressed, as described below. For uncompressed Wave files (the most common choice), the following settings are available: Channels Allows you to select mono, stereo or multi-channel files with the same options as for AIFF files (see page 489). Resolution The bit resolution of the file, with the same options as for AIFF files (see page 490). Sample Rate The options are the same as for AIFF files (see page 490).
CUBASE SE 23 – 492 Export Audio Mixdown Coding (Windows only) The Coding pop-up menu allows you to select a compression scheme for the Wave file, creating smaller files (with a loss of audio quality). • Which options are available depends on the installed and activated codecs in the ACM (Audio Compression Manager) under Windows. See the operating system documentation for details. • When a compression option is selected, not all Channels, Resolution and Sample Rate options may be available (depending on the selected compres- sion scheme). The Attributes pop-up menu displays the currently selected properties for the file. • For regular, uncompressed Wave files, select “PCM / uncompressed Waves”. Wave files exported by Cubase SE for Mac OS X are always uncom- pressed. MPEG Layer 3 file • You can export to MP3 20 times as a “trial” feature (fully functional), af- ter which the function is disabled. When the MP3 format is selected, a text at the bottom of the Export Audio Mixdown di- alog shows you how many remaining encodings you have left. You can upgrade your Cubase SE copy to include unlimited MP3 encoding by clicking the “Order now” link in the lower right corner of the dialog (this takes you to Steinberg’s online store on the web – a working internet connection is required). MPEG Layer 3 files have the extension “.mp3”. By use of advanced audio compression algorithms, mp3 files can be made very small, maintaining good audio quality. The following options are available for MPEG Layer 3 files: Channels Use the radio buttons to select mono or stereo files. This setting affects which options are available on the Attributes pop-up menu (see below).
CUBASE SE Export Audio Mixdown 23 – 493 Sample Rate Determines the frequency range of the audio – the lower the sample rate, the lower the highest audible frequency in the audio. This setting will also affect which options are available on the Attributes pop-up menu, as described below. Attributes This pop-up menu allows you to select a bit rate for the mp3 file. As a rule, the higher the bit rate, the better the audio quality and the larger the file. For stereo audio, 128 kBit/s is often considered to result in “good” audio quality. • Note that the available options on this pop-up menu depend on the Channels and Sample Rate settings. This is because for mono audio and/or low sample rates, there is no point in using the highest bit rates – they would simply create larger files without adding to audio quality. Quality These options determine the “depth” of the encoding algorithm and thus the quality of the resulting file. In the “Highest” mode, the encod- ing will take the longest time, while in the “Fast” mode, the audio qual- ity may be lower. The file size is not affected by these options. Options When you click the Save button, an Options dialog opens in which you can enter information about the file. This additional information (called the ID3 tag) will be embedded as text strings in the file, and can be displayed by some mp3 playback applications. • For the information to be included in the file, you need to activate the “Insert Options” checkbox in the dialog.
CUBASE SE 23 – 494 Export Audio Mixdown Ogg Vorbis files Ogg Vorbis is an open, patent-free audio encoding and streaming technology, offering compressed audio files (extension “.ogg”) of small size but with comparatively high audio quality. The following options are available for Ogg Vorbis files: Channels Use the radio buttons to select mono or stereo files. Sample Rate Determines the frequency range of the audio – the lower the sample rate, the lower the highest audible frequency in the audio. Quality The Ogg Vorbis encoder uses variable bit rate encoding, and the Quality setting determines between which limits the bit rate will vary. Generally speaking the higher the Quality setting, the higher the sound quality but also the larger the files. Options When you click the Save button, an Options dialog opens in which you can enter information about the file, as when creating mp3 files. • For the information to be included in the file, you need to activate the “Insert Options” checkbox in the dialog.
CUBASE SE Export Audio Mixdown 23 – 495 Real Audio G2 files Real Audio files (extension “.rm”) allow very high compression rates and can therefore be made very small. This makes the format especially use- ful for downloading and streaming multimedia from the internet. The following options are available for Real Audio files: Coding and Content This is where you specify the desired audio quality for the file. In the Real Audio G2 format, this information is divided in two pop-up menus: Coding (determining the bit rate) and Content (specifying the typical audio content – voice, music, etc.). When you select a Coding/Content, a descriptive text appears in the field below the pop-up menu, describing the suitable use of the se- lected format. • Note that the choice of mono or stereo is included in the Coding/Content options. Options When you click the Save button, an Options dialog opens in which you can select one or more modes (each explained in the dialog) for the file. You can also enter information about the file. These text strings will be embedded in the file and can be displayed by some Real Audio playback applications.
CUBASE SE 23 – 496 Export Audio Mixdown Windows Media Audio files (Windows only) Windows Media Audio is an audio format developed by Microsoft Inc. Due to advanced audio compression algorithms, Windows Media Au- dio files can be made very small, maintaining good audio quality. The files have the extension “.wma”. The following options are available for Windows Media Audio files: Attributes This pop-up menu allows you to select a bit rate for the WMA file. As a rule, the higher the bit rate, the better the audio quality and the larger the file. For stereo audio, 96 kBit/s is often considered to give “good” audio quality. Options When you click the Save button, an Options dialog opens in which you can enter information about the title and author of the file, as well as copyright information and a description. These text strings will be embedded in the file and can be displayed by some Windows Media Audio playback applications.
CUBASE SE 24 – 498 Synchronization Background What is synchronization? Synchronization is said to exist when you make two pieces of equipment agree on time or tempo. You can establish synchronization between Cubase SE and a number of other types of devices, including tape re- corders and video decks, but also MIDI devices that “play back”, such as other sequencers, drum machines, “workstation sequencers” etc. When you set up a synchronization system, Cubase SE is always the master. All other devices are then slaved to this unit, which means they will adjust their playback speed to Cubase SE. The VST System Link feature (with which you can synchronize separate computers running Cubase SE or Nuendo for example) is described in a separate chapter. See page 504. MIDI Clock MIDI Clock is a tempo based type of synchronization signal, that is it is related to the number of “beats per minute”. MIDI Clock signals are suitable for synchronizing two devices that agree on tempo, such as for example Cubase SE and a drum machine. MIDI Clock is not suitable as a master sync source for an application like Cubase SE. Therefore Cubase SE will transmit MIDI Clock signals to other devices, but it will not receive MIDI Clock. Any digital playback system has an internal clock that ultimately affects the playback speed and stability, and PC audio hardware is no excep- tion. This clock is extremely stable. Since Cubase SE is playing back with no external synchronization, all playback is internally synchronized to the internal digital audio clock, to ensure synchronization between digital audio and MIDI.
CUBASE SE Synchronization 24 – 499 About the ASIO Positioning Protocol (APP) ASIO Positioning Protocol requires audio hardware with specific ASIO drivers. As of this writing, APP is not available for audio hardware with non-ASIO drivers under Mac OS X. The ASIO Positioning Protocol is a technology that expands on the type of sync described above and makes sample accurate positioning possible. When transferring audio digitally between devices, it is important that synchronization using word clock and timecode is completely corre- lated. If not, the audio will not be recorded at the exact intended (sam- ple accurate) position, which can cause various types of problems, such as inaccurately positioned audio material, clicks and pops etc. A typical situation is when transferring material from a digital multi- track tape recorder to Cubase SE (for editing) and then back again. If you do not have sample accurate synchronization set up, you cannot be sure that the material will appear in its exact original position, when transferred back to the tape recorder. In order to take advantage of the ASIO Positioning Protocol, your au- dio hardware must be suitably equipped and the functionality must be included in the ASIO driver for the hardware. Hardware and software requirements for APP • Your computer audio hardware must support all the functionality required for the ASIO Positioning Protocol. That is, it must be able to read the digital audio and the corresponding positional information from the external device. • There must be an ASIO 2.0 driver for the audio hardware. • For resolving to external timecode, the audio hardware must have a timecode reader/writer on-board. • For information about which audio hardware models currently support APP, see the Steinberg web site (www.steinberg.net). The ASIO Positioning Protocol exploits the specific advantage of having an audio card that has a built-in timecode reader. With such a card and the ASIO Positioning Protocol, you can achieve constant sample accu- rate synchronization between the audio source and Cubase SE.
CUBASE SE 24 – 500 Synchronization Window Overview The Synchronization Setup dialog This dialog is used for setting up everything that has to do with the synchronization of Cubase SE to other units. You reach it from the Transport menu. Synchronizing other Equipment to Cubase SE You may have other MIDI devices that you want to synchronize to Cubase SE. This can be done by transmitting MIDI Clock. Transmitting MIDI Clock If you transmit MIDI Clock to a device supporting this type of synchro- nization signal, the other device will follow Cubase SE’s tempo. The tempo setting in the other device is of no relevance. Instead it plays at the same tempo as Cubase SE. If the device also reacts to Song Po- sition Pointers (which Cubase SE transmits) it will follow when you wind, rewind and locate using the Cubase SE Transport panel. • MIDI Clock transport commands include “Start”, “Stop” and “Continue”. However, some MIDI equipment (e.g. some drum machines) do not recognize the “Continue” command. If this is the case with your equip- ment, activate the option “Always Send Start Message” in the Synchroni- zation Setup dialog (MIDI Clock Destinations section). When this is activated, only the Start command is used. Timecode Source settings. The default setting is “Internal Timecode”. Outputs for MIDI Clock.