Q: I’m “seeing” audio in Cubase but, I don’t hear anything.
A: After you’ve made sure the VOLUME knob is up (we ALL make that mistake from time to time) Check your AUDIO DEVICE settings… It’s ever so SLIGHTLY different in various versions of CUBASE but, this is where you start: From the DEVICES menu choose DEVICE SETUP…
In Cubase 4 click on VST AUDIO SYSTEM (In Cubase SX3 it’s called VST Audiobay / In Cubase LE 1, it’s called VST Multitrack) and then look at the ASIO DRIVER setting…
Your device should be there… If not, click on the ASIO Driver dropdown menu and set it for YOUR device. If you STILL can’t hear anything… See if your AUDIO INTERFACE has a headphone jack, try that and If you hear something coming through the headphones, you need to check your speaker setup.
Q: How do I get REASON to work with Cubase?
A: REWIRE! Boot Cubase first. From the DEVICES menu choose: REASON REWIRE. You will now see a window where you can enable up to 64 inputs from REASON into CUBASE! Start by enabling the first two: MIX L & MIX R. Now Boot REASON. You will now hear REASON through
CUBASE!
Q: How do I record Audio in Cubase?
A: After creating a new project in CUBASE, go to PROJECT> ADD TRACK> AUDIO. For a MONO source like a vocal, set the configuration to MONO. Click OK. The new AUDIO TRACK will automatically be in “RECORD READY” mode. Click the RECORD button on the TRANSPORT and
begin recording!
Q: How do I export audio from Cubase to make a CD?
A: Select ALL the audio in your project by holding down the “Ctrl” key on your computer keyboard and pressing the letter “A” on your computer keyboard. With ALL AUDIO selected, Press the letter “P” on your computer keyboard. You should now see a light blue bar across the top (ruler) of your project. NEXT, go to FILE>EXPORT>AUDIO MIXDOWN. Name your output
file and select its’ destination. For an AUDIO CD these MUST be the settings: IN CUBASE 4… Audio Engine Output=Stereo Out, Sample Rate=44.100khz, Bit Depth 16 bit. In earlier versions of CUBASE… You need to make sure that CHANNELS= STEREO INTERLEAVED.
After Export you can use ANY CD burning application to make your CD. NOTE: CUBASE will NOT
burn the CD… It will only create the FILE that you burn TO the CD.
Q: How do I use effects in Cubase?
A: There are two ways to use effects in most audio applications… INSERTS and SENDS. Let’s look at INSERTS first… A common insert effect would be something like EQ, Compression
or perhaps a Flanger or Phaser…In Cubase, on an AUDIO track you can add an INSERT effect by locating the INTSERTS area in the mixer, clicking in any blank slot and choose your effect. You can also access the INTERTS area by clicking on the little lower case “e” from almost anywhere in Cubase. SEND'S in Cubase… You would use a SEND for something like REVERB or DELAY. In CUBASE, create either a GROUP CHANNEL or FX CHANNEL. Next, INSERT a REVERB into your newly created GROUP or FX channel. Next, go to ANY audio channel in your project and
locate the SENDS area of that channel… Click in any BLANK slot and you will now see that you have a choice of “SEND DESTINATIONS”… One (or possibly the only) destination is the FX or GROUP channel that you created previously created. Select that and that “SEND” will now populate that “slot”. Just below that send you created is a tiny BLUE (volume control) line that controls the amount of signal that is being “SENT” to the FX or GROUP channel. Bingo! You can
now add your REVERB to taste.
Q: Why am I hearing clicks and pops in Cubase?
A: Typically, this has to do with what are called “BUFFER SETTINGS”. Things may be fine at the beginning of your project when you only have a few tracks going but, as you add more and more tracks, virtual instruments , and plugins, the computer starts to get stressed.
To remedy this you need to INCREASE your buffer size. Not all audio interfaces act exactly the same way but, this is the most common method of changing your buffer settings…
From the DEVICES menu, choose DEVICE setup… From the DEVICE SETUP Window locate either
VST AUDIOBAY (cubase 3) or VST AUDIO SYSTEM (cubase 4). Just UNDER this VST entry you will
see another entry that says “ASIO your device”… Click on THAT and then click on the CONTROL PANEL button in the panel to the right… This SHOULD bring up the control panel of YOUR audio interface… In that control panel you can change your buffer settings. Sometimes these settings are represented as “SAMPLES”, sometimes they are represented as “MILLISECONDS” or “ms”…
INCREASE these numbers until you don’t hear clicks and pops. You will have to experiment.
Q: Why am I experiencing a DELAY when I try to record AUDIO?
A: In the last FAQ question we talked about BUFFER SETTINGS. The answer to this question lies
in the answer to the last question… The Delay you are experiencing is due to LARGE buffer settings. So, the larger the BUFFER SETTINGS the less likely you are to experience clicks and pops
but, you will experience a noticeable delay when trying to play a VST instrument or do a live recording. The good news is that most modern audio interfaces feature something called DIRECT MONITORING. Direct Monitoring provides what is known as ZERO LATENCY monitoring that compensates for the delay involved with larger buffer settings. If your audio interface has this feature… Turn it on!
Q: How do I create and play virtual instruments in Cubase?
A: In Cubase 3, 4… (NOT LE) From the devices menu choose VST INSTRUMENTS. A small window will appear with lots of “blank” horizontal “slots” in it. Click in the first slot and you will see a dropdown list of available virtual or “VST” instruments. Click on the one you want and that
VST Instrument will open. The next thing you want to do is PLAY (or trigger) it from your MIDI KEYBOARD. Cubase 4 will ask you if you want to create a MIDI track for this newly created instrument… Answer YES and if your MIDI KEYBOARD is connected and installed properly, you
can play this instrument immediately. If you are in earlier versions of Cubase, you will need to now create a MIDI track from the PROJECT menu… PROJECT>ADD TRACK>MIDI. The input will most likely all ready be set to ALL MIDI INPUTS… That is fine. The next thing you need to do is
set the MIDI OUTPUT of the newly created MIDI track. Click on the OUTPUT dropdown and you will see a list of possibilities… Choose the newly created VST Instrument form the list and that’s it.
Q: What version of Cubase do I need? (intel Mac & LE1 for example)
A: Any one you want! But, seriously… It’s important to know that if you have an INTEL BASED Macintosh, you can NOT run Cubase LE1. It will “seem” to work if you can even get it installed
but, trust us… It doesn’t REALLY work. You need Cubase LE 4 or better.
Q: What is “offline processing” in Cubase?
A: Offline processing is way to (semi) permanently add an EFFECT directly to your AUDIO tracks OR just parts of your tracks. If you select an AUDIO region and right click on it (On a Mac if right click is not enabled you need to go to the AUDIO menu), you will see a plug-in folder in the list.
They are the same as all the plug-in effects you would use as INSERTS or SENDS but, in this case
you apply them directly to the AUDIO clip. Handy if, for example you just wanted a couple of words in a vocal track to sound like were going thru a guitar amp! Tip: you can UNDO these effects at any time by going to OFFLINE PROCESS HISTORY. |
