Steinberg Cubase SX/SL 3 Operation Manual

							CUBASE SX/SLThe Project window 5 – 131
Splitting events
You can split events in the Project window in the following ways:
•Click with the Scissors tool on the event you want to split.
If Snap is activated, this determines the exact split position (see page 147). You can 
also split events by pressing [Alt]/[Option] and clicking with the Arrow tool.
•Select “Split at Cursor” from the Edit menu.
This splits the selected events at the position of the project cursor. If no events are se-
lected, all events (on all tracks) that are intersected by the project cursor will be split.
•Select “Split Loop” from the Edit menu.
This splits events on all tracks at the left and right locator positions.
• If you split a MIDI part so that the split position intersects one or several 
MIDI notes, the result depends on the option “Split MIDI Events” in the 
Preferences dialog (Editing page). 
If the option is activated, the intersected notes will be split (creating new notes at the 
beginning of the second part). If it is deactivated, the notes will remain in the first part, 
but “stick out” after the end of the part.
Gluing events together
Clicking on an event with the Glue Tube tool glues it together with the 
next event on the track. The result is a part containing the two events, 
with one exception:
•If you first split an event and then glue the two sections together again 
(without moving or editing them first), they become a single event again.
In other words, gluing can create a single event if the two events are lined up end to 
start and play a continuous section of the same clip. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SL5 – 132 The Project window
Resizing events
Resizing events means to move their start or end positions individu-
ally. In Cubase SX/SL, there are three types of resizing:
To select one of the resizing modes, select the Arrow tool and then 
click again on the Arrow tool icon on the toolbar. This opens a pop-up 
menu from which you can select one of the resizing mode options.
The icon on the toolbar will change, indicating the selected resizing mode.
The actual resizing is done by clicking and dragging the lower left or 
right corner of the event. If Snap is activated, the Snap value deter-
mines the resulting length (see page 147).
Normal sizing. Resizing type Description
Normal SizingThe contents of the event stay fixed, and the start or 
end point of the event is moved to “reveal” more or 
less of the contents.
Sizing Moves Contents The contents follow the moved start or end of the 
event (see the figure below).
Sizing Applies Time Stretch The contents will be time stretched to fit the new event 
length (see separate description on page 134). 
						

							CUBASE SX/SLThe Project window 5 – 133
Sizing moves contents.
•If several events are selected, all will be resized in the same way.
•You can also resize events with the Scrub tool.
This works just the same as when resizing with the Arrow tool, but the audio under the 
pointer is played back (scrubbed) while you drag.
•It is also possible to resize events by using the Trim buttons (located 
in the Nudge palette) on the toolbar.
This will move the start or end position of the selected Event(s) by the amount set on 
the Grid pop-up menu. The sizing type currently selected applies to this method too, 
with the exception of “Sizing Applies Time Stretch” which is not possible with this 
method. You can also use key commands for this (by default, press [Ctrl] (Windows) 
or [Command] (Mac) and use the left and right arrow key).
• Note that the Nudge palette is not visible in the toolbar by default. See 
page 767 for instructions on how to show and hide items in the toolbar. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SL5 – 134 The Project window
Resizing events using time stretch
If you want to resize a part and make its contents “fit” the new size, 
you should use this option. Proceed as follows:
1.Click the Arrow icon on the toolbar and select the “Sizing Applies 
Time Stretch” option from the pop-up menu.
2.Point close to the end point of the part you want to stretch.
3.Click and drag left or right.
When you move the mouse, a tooltip information shows the current mouse position 
and length of the part. Note that the snap value applies, as with any part operation.
4.Release the mouse button.
The part is “stretched” or “compressed” to fit the new length.
•For MIDI parts, this means that the note events are stretched (moved 
and resized).
Controller data will be moved.
•For audio parts, this means that the events are moved, and that the 
referenced audio files are time stretched to fit the new length.
A dialog box shows the progress of the time stretch operation.
• You can adjust which algorithm should be used for the time stretch algo-
rithm on the Preferences page (Editing–Audio page).
For more information about time stretch, see page 371. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SLThe Project window 5 – 135
Sliding the contents of an event or part
You can move the contents of an event or part without changing its po-
sition in the Project window. By default, this is done by pressing [Ctrl]/
[Command]+[Alt]/[Option], clicking in the event or part and dragging 
to the left or right.
When sliding the contents of an audio event, you cannot slide past the 
start or end of the actual audio clip. If the event plays the whole clip, you 
cannot slide the audio at all.
Grouping Events
Sometimes it is useful to treat several events as one unit. This can be 
done by grouping them: Select the events (on the same or different 
Tracks) and select “Group” from the Edit menu.
Grouped events are indicated by a “g” in the upper right corner.
If you edit one of the grouped events in the Project window, all other 
events in the same group are affected too (if applicable). Group edit-
ing operations include:
• Selecting events.
• Moving and duplicating events.
• Resizing events.
• Adjusting fade-in and fade-out (audio events only, see page 180).
• Splitting events (splitting one event will automatically split any other grouped 
events that are intersected by the split position).
• Locking events.
• Muting events (see below).
• Deleting events. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SL5 – 136 The Project window
Locking events
If you want to make sure you don’t edit or move an event by accident, 
you can lock it. Locking can affect one (or any combination) of the fol-
lowing properties:
•To specify which of these properties should be affected by the Lock 
function, use the “Lock Event Attributes” pop-up menu in the Prefer-
ences dialog (Editing page).
•To lock events, select them and select “Lock...” from the Edit menu.
The events will be locked according to the options specified in the Preferences dialog.
•You can adjust the lock options for a locked event by selecting it and 
selecting “Lock...” from the Edit menu again.
This opens a dialog in which you can activate or deactivate the desired lock options.
•To unlock an event (turn off all lock options), select it and select “Un-
lock” from the Edit menu.
•It is also possible to lock a whole track, by clicking the padlock symbol 
in the Track list or in the Inspector.
This disables all editing of all events on the track.
Lock Options Description
Position If this is locked, the event cannot be moved.
Size If this is locked, the event cannot be resized.
Other If this is locked, all other editing of the event is disabled. This in-
cludes adjusting the fades and event volume, processing, etc.
The padlock symbol indicates that 
one or more of the lock options are 
activated for the event. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SLThe Project window 5 – 137
Muting events
You can Mute individual events in the Project window in the following 
ways:
•To mute or unmute a single event, click on it with the Mute tool.
•To mute or unmute several events, select them – either by using the 
standard selection techniques, or by using one of the options on the 
Edit–Select submenu – and click on one of the selected events with 
the Mute tool.
All selected events will be muted.
•You can also click in an empty area with the Mute tool and drag a se-
lection rectangle around several events you want to mute or unmute, 
and then click on one of them with the Mute tool.
•You can mute events by selecting them and selecting “Mute” from the 
Edit menu.
Similarly, you can unmute the selected events by selecting “Unmute” from the Edit 
menu.
•You can also change the mute status of selected events on the info line.
Muted events can be edited as usual (with the exception of adjusting 
fades), but are not played back.
Muted events are “greyed out”.
•You can also mute whole tracks by clicking the Mute (“M”) button in 
the Track list, the Inspector or the mixer.
Clicking the Solo (“S”) button for a track mutes all other tracks. Note that there are two 
modes for the track solo function: 
If the option “Enable Solo on Selected Track” is activated in the Preferences (Editing 
page) and you have soloed a track, selecting another track in the track list will automat-
ically solo that track instead – the solo state “moves” with the track selection.
If the option isn’t activated, the track you solo stays soloed, regardless of the selection. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SL5 – 138 The Project window
Removing events
To remove an event from the Project window, use any of the following 
methods:
•Click on the event with the Eraser tool.
Note that if you press [Alt]/[Option] while you click, all following events on the same 
track will be deleted, but not the event you clicked and all events before it.
•Select the event(s) and press [Backspace], or select “Delete” from 
the Edit menu.
Creating new files from events
As described in the Getting Started book, an audio event plays a sec-
tion of an audio clip, which in turn refers to one or more audio files on 
the hard disk. However, in some situations you may want to create a 
new file that consists only of the section played by the event. This is 
done with the function “Bounce Selection” on the Audio menu:
1.Select one or several audio events.
2.Set up fade in, fade out and event volume (on the info line or using the 
volume handle) as desired.
These settings will be applied to the new file. For details on fades and event volume, see 
page 180.
3.Select “Bounce Selection” from the Audio menu.
You are asked whether you want to replace the selected event or not.
•If you click “Replace”, a new file is created, containing only the audio 
in the original event. A clip for the new file is added to the Pool, and 
the original event is replaced by a new event playing the new clip.
•If you click “No” a new file is created and a clip for the new file is 
added to the Pool.
The original event is not replaced.
You can also apply the Bounce Selection function to an audio part. In 
that case, the audio from all events in the part will be combined into a 
single audio file. If you choose “Replace” when asked, the part will be 
replaced with a single audio event playing a clip of the new file. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SLThe Project window 5 – 139
Editing in Lane Display mode
When you are recording in Stacked cycle recording mode, each take 
ends up on a separate lane on the track as described on page 64 and 
page 76. However, you can also select this lane mode manually for in-
dividual tracks, and use it when editing in the Project window. This 
makes it easier to view and handle overlapping events and parts.
Audio tracks
1.Make sure the Lane Display Type button is visible in the track list.
If it is hidden, you need to select Track Controls Settings from the context menu for the 
track and add the Lane Display Type item in the dialog that appears.
2.Click the Lane Display Type button and select “Lanes Fixed” from the 
pop-up menu that appears.
The audio track is divided vertically into two lanes. By default, all audio events end up 
in the first (top) lane.
3.Now you can move events or parts between lanes, either by dragging 
or by using the “Move to Next Lane/Previous Lane” commands on the 
Edit menu or Quick menu.
Note that if there are overlapping audio events, the audio on the lowest lane has play-
back priority – moving events between lanes affects what will be heard!
If the vertical zoom factor is sufficiently high, the sections that will be heard on 
playback are indicated in green. 
						

							CUBASE SX/SL5 – 140 The Project window
•Note that there will always be an extra, empty lane at the bottom of the 
track – if you move an event there, another lane will be added and so 
on.
Depending on the number of lanes used, you may want to adjust the vertical zoom for 
the track – simply drag the track edges in the track list.
4.After rearranging the overlapping events so that you hear what you 
want, you can select all events and select “Delete Overlaps” from the 
Advanced submenu on the Audio menu.
This puts all events in the top lane and resizes events so that overlapping sections are 
removed.
5.To turn off Lanes mode, select “Lanes Off” from the Lane Display 
Type pop-up menu.
If you do this without using the “Delete Overlaps” function, all overlapping sections will 
be kept. However, the sections that were green will now be the sections visible (“on 
top”) and thus the sections that will be heard.