Steinberg Studio Case VST Instruments Operation Manual

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VST Instruments
Virtual Bassist SE 3 – 51
Remote Keys
Remote Keys are special functions assigned in the Remote Range that 
influence the performance of Virtual Bassist SE. These keys include: 
Single Note Mode (C1), Stop (C#1), End (D#1), 4/5 String Mode 
(C#2) and Chord/Note Mode (D#2).
Single Note Mode
Single Note Mode is activated by pressing C1 on your MIDI keyboard. 
Once Single Note Mode is activated all MIDI keys played in the Pitch 
Range will trigger single bass notes allowing you to play your own 
bass lines with Virtual Bassist SE.
Accents
Playing a MIDI note in the Pitch Range with a high velocity (125 and 
above) will start the Part with (depending on the Style) either an 
eighth or a quarter bass note called Accent. This Accent is handy for 
varying your bass lines in real time.
Aftertouch Vibrato
Applying aftertouch will automatically produce vibrato in Virtual Bassist 
SE.  
						

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3 – 52 Virtual Bassist SE
Loading and saving Styles
On the right side of the Virtual Bassist SE panel is a Browser listing 
the available Styles.
Load
To load a Style you can either: 
•Double-click its name in the list or …
•Click the Load button on the bottom right of the Browser and use the 
standard load dialog to locate and open the Style. 
Save
To save a Style click Save (the left button at the bottom of the 
Browser section) and use the standard Save dialog to enter a name 
and location for the saved Style.
If the Styles listing is not displayed, click the Styles button at the top of 
the Browser.
Depending on the speed of your computer a Style may take a few se-
conds to Load. The chord display will show a message saying “Loading”.  
						

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VST Instruments
Virtual Bassist SE 3 – 53
Auditioning styles
Each Factory Style comes with an audio preview. The previews were 
made using Virtual Bassist SE with Steinberg’s Virtual Guitarist and 
Groove Agent to give you an example of how the Style might sound 
with guitar and drums.
There are two ways of previewing:
Listen
In the Style Browser, click on a style (it becomes highlighted). Click 
Listen and Virtual Bassist SE will play a preview for as long as you 
hold the mouse button.
Auto
Clicking Auto activates the automatic preview mode. With Auto active 
a Style preview will play any time you click a Style in the Browser. The 
preview will play for as long as you hold the mouse button.
The Parts Browser
Clicking on a Part in the Browser displays the key assignments of all 
of the Parts, Fills and Remote Keys used in the selected Style. All fea-
tures in the Remote Range can be renamed and their key assignments 
changed. When a Part, Fill or Remote Key is played it will become 
highlighted in the Parts Browser.  
						

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3 – 54 Virtual Bassist SE
Virtual Bassist SE controls
Four or five string
Use this switch to choose between a standard four string or five string 
bass (which has an additional low B string). In 5 string mode Virtual 
Bassist SE will play licks including notes on the low B string, whenever 
possible.
•You can switch between 4-string or 5-string mode using the MIDI 
remote key C#2.
MIDI In
The MIDI In LED lights up red to indicate that Virtual Bassist SE re-
ceives MIDI data from your host application or MIDI keyboard. When 
you play notes on your keyboard but the LED does not light up, this 
means Virtual Bassist SE is not receiving any MIDI data.
Chords/Note
You can switch between Chords or Note mode during a performance 
by playing MIDI note D#2 on your MIDI keyboard or in your host appli-
cation. The Chords/Note mode selector determines whether a Part will 
play melodic bass lines or the rhythmic pattern of the Part using only the 
root keys and octaves of the note or chord chosen in the Pitch Range. 
Changing this setting will not affect every Part of a Style.    
						

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VST Instruments
Virtual Bassist SE 3 – 55
Latch mode
With latch mode On, Virtual Bassist SE will play Parts continuously 
from the moment you play the first key until you press the stop button 
of your sequencer or play the C#1 Stop or D#1 End remote keys.
If you only want to play a lick here and there, set latch mode to Off and 
Virtual Bassist SE will only play while the keys on your MIDI keyboard 
are held.
Using the sustain pedal in Latch mode
Latch mode is turned On or Off for the duration that your sustain pedal 
is pressed.
Using a combination of Latch settings and sustain pedal with Virtual 
Bassist SE will give you a lot of flexibility when arranging and 
performing. 
Try experimenting with the possibilities described below to get an 
understanding of how useful the sustain pedal can be.
Latch Mode OnSustain pedal 
pressedLatch mode is disabled for as long as you press 
the sustain pedal. While the sustain pedal is 
held any notes played in the Pitch Range will 
produce single notes. Virtual Bassist SE will re-
turn to playing normal Parts when the sustain 
pedal is released.
Latch Mode OffSustain pedal 
pressedLatch mode is enabled for as long as you press 
the sustain pedal. Any Parts played while the 
pedal is held will play until you release the sus-
tain pedal.  
						

							VST Instruments
3 – 56 Virtual Bassist SE
If you don’t have a sustain pedal you can assign Latch to a different MIDI 
controller. To do this right-click (Win) or [Ctrl]-click (Mac) on the Latch 
parameter and assign a MIDI controller from the drop-down list or right-
click (Win) or [Ctrl]-click (Mac) and choose MIDI Learn, move the MIDI 
controller of your choice and this controller will be detected and used by 
Virtual Bassist SE.
Retrigger mode
With Retrigger mode activated, every time a Part key is played the Part 
will begin to play again from the beginning, regardless of the current 
bar position.
When Retrigger Mode is Off, Part changes will be performed playing 
the appropriate melodic and rhythmic phrasing of the Part for the cur-
rent position in the bar.
Activating Retrigger mode does only make sense for showcases or a 
quick overview of the Parts of a Style. When performing or arranging with 
Virtual Bassist SE, it is strongly recommended to turn Retrigger mode off.  
						

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VST Instruments
Virtual Bassist SE 3 – 57
Speed
Virtual Bassist SE automatically follows the tempo of your project, in-
cluding all tempo changes. The Speed parameter in Virtual Bassist 
SE allows you to change the playback speed to half, normal or double 
the speed of your project tempo. This can be useful for example if you 
happen to be working on a track that is 80 BPM but are running your 
host application at 160 BPM. It might also be quite interesting cre-
atively to have your bass playing at double or half speed.
The red LEDs under the Speed control indicate the current position in 
the bar.
Swing
Swing allows you to adjust the feel of Virtual Bassist SE’s performance. 
Technically speaking, Swing allows you to move the offbeats of a bar to 
an earlier or later position. Turning Swing to the left moves the offbeats 
back, turning it to the right moves them forward. Virtual Bassist SE will 
play exact triplets when setting Swing to -100 % or +100 %.
Half = 1/2Virtual Bassist SE plays at half the tempo of your project.
Normal = 1Virtual Bassist SE plays at the same tempo as your project.
Double = 2Virtual Bassist SE plays at double the tempo of your project.   
						

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3 – 58 Virtual Bassist SE
Variance
The timing and feel of Virtual Bassist SE are always perfect and reliable. 
However, given that these two words are rarely used to describe the 
timing of a musician, Virtual Bassist SE also allows you to adjust how 
accurately the player will play. Variance adds timing and sound varia-
tions so every note sounds slightly different.
A setting of 0 % produces a very accurate performance, while at a value 
of 100 % the performance is loose and uneven.
Early/Late
This control is used to adjust the overall timing of Virtual Bassist SE in 
relation to the rest of the instruments in your project. Turning to the left 
(Early) will give you an aggressive groove, playing slightly ahead of the 
beat, turning to the right (Late) produces a more laid back groove. 
The maximum timing deviation is very modest and will hardly be audible 
if only Virtual Bassist SE is playing. However, in conjunction with other 
tracks, especially those that have been quantized it will become clearly 
noticeable.    
						

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VST Instruments
Virtual Bassist SE 3 – 59
Bass Selector
This seamless selector allows you to change the basic sound of the 
bass guitar being played. You can choose between the sound of a 
modern bass guitar with active pickups, a classic model as used in 
70’s rock and pop or a vintage bass with flatwound strings for that 
legendary Motown sound. Just move the silver sphere on the circle to 
the sound of your choice, or experiment with in-between positions.
Fret Buzz
Depending on the setup of the bass and the playing style, the strings 
might touch the frets causing a buzzing or rattling sound. In Virtual 
Bassist SE you can adjust the amount of buzz in your bass. The right 
dose of Buzz will enhance the natural feel of your bass tracks.
Fret Noise
When a bassist moves from one hand position to another the hand 
slides over the strings and frets creating a squeaking sound. This fret 
noise is an important part of a natural bass sound – a fact often ignored 
in bass emulations. Virtual Bassist SE gives you control over the amount 
of fret noise in your bass track. Select Mid for a little, Full for a lot or Off 
to completely remove fret noises from the track.    
						

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3 – 60 Virtual Bassist SE
Compression, Drive, Master
The Compression control varies the Amount of Virtual Bassist SE’s 
compressor. Drive raises the gain of the preamp and Master the mas-
ter volume of the amplifier’s output.
The bass sound lock
Activating the bass sound lock (by clicking on the lock symbol at the 
bottom right of the bass) will lock all settings that influence your bass 
sound, e. g. the knobs on the bass guitar and the bass selector. It will 
keep these settings even when you change the Style.
Guitar controls
You will notice that the bass guitar graphic on the left of the instrument 
panel has four knobs and a slider for varying your bass sound.
Volume
The Volume knob controls the output level of the Bass to the amp, just 
like the volume knob on a real bass guitar. Turning this up will help to 
overdrive your sound.