Plug-in Reference

Cristina Bachmann, Heiko Bischoff, Marion Bröer, Sabine Pfeifer, Heike Schilling
The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part
of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. The software described by this document is subject to a License Agreement
and may not be copied to other media except as specifically allowed in the License Agreement. No part of this publica-
tion may be copied, reproduced or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission
by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH.
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Release Date: June 30, 2009
© Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, 2009.
All rights reserved.
Table of Contents
5 The included effect plug-ins
6 Introduction
6 Delay plug-ins
7 Distortion plug-ins
9 Dynamics plug-ins
12 Filter plug-ins
14 Mastering – UV22HR
15 Modulation plug-ins
20 Other plug-ins
22 Pitch Shift – Pitch Correct
23 Restoration – Grungelizer
23 Reverb – RoomWorks SE
24 Spatial plug-ins

25 The included VST Instruments

26 Introduction
26 Prologue
35 HALionOne

37 MIDI effects
38 Introduction
38 Arpache 5
39 Arpache SX
40 Auto LFO
41 Beat Designer
46 Chorder
48 Compressor
49 Context Gate
50 Density
50 Micro Tuner
51 MIDI Control
51 MIDI Echo
52 MIDI Modifiers
53 MIDI Monitor
53 Note to CC
54 Quantizer
54 Step Designer
56 Track Control
58 Transformer

64 Index

4
Table of Contents
 1
The included effect plug-ins
Introduction Delay plug-ins
This chapter contains descriptions of the included plug-in This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the
effects and their parameters. “Delay” category.
In Cubase AI, the plug-in effects are arranged in a number
of different categories. This chapter is arranged in the MonoDelay
same fashion, with the plug-ins listed in separate sections
for each effect category.
Ö Most of the included effects are compatible with
VST3, this is indicated by an icon in front of the name of
the plug-in as displayed in plug-in selection menus (for
further information, see the chapter “Audio Effects” in the
Operation Manual).
This is a mono delay effect that can either be tempo-based
or use freely specified delay time settings.
The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
Delay This is where you specify the base note value for the delay
if tempo sync is on (1/1–1/32, straight, triplet or dotted). If
tempo sync is off, it sets the delay time in milliseconds.
Tempo sync The button below the Delay Time knob is used to turn
on/off tempo sync on or off. If set to off, the delay time can be set
freely with the Delay Time knob, without sync to tempo.
Feedback This sets the number of repeats for the delay.
Filter Lo This filter affects the feedback loop of the effect signal
and allows you to roll off low frequencies from 10Hz up
to 800Hz. The button below the knob activates/deacti-
vates the filter.
Filter Hi This filter affects the feedback loop of the effect signal
and allows you to roll off high frequencies from 20kHz
down to 1.2kHz. The button below the knob activates/
deactivates the filter.
Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the ef-
fect. If MonoDelay is used as a send effect, this should be
set to maximum as you can control the dry/effect balance
with the send.

6
The included effect plug-ins
PingPongDelay Distortion plug-ins
This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the
“Distortion” category.

AmpSimulator

This is a stereo delay effect that alternates each delay re-

peat between the left and right channels. The effect can
either be tempo-based or use freely specified delay time
settings.
The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
Delay This is where you specify the base note value for the delay
if tempo sync is on (1/1–1/32, straight, triplet or dotted). If
tempo sync is off, it sets the delay time in milliseconds.
Tempo sync The button below the Delay Time knob is used to turn
on/off tempo sync on or off. If set to off, the delay time can be set
freely with the Delay Time knob, without sync to tempo.
Feedback This sets the number of repeats for the delay.
Filter Lo This filter affects the feedback loop and allows you to roll
off low frequencies up to 800Hz. The button below the
knob activates/deactivates the filter.
Filter Hi This filter affects the feedback loop and allows you to roll
off high frequencies from 20kHz down to 1.2kHz. The
button below the knob activates/deactivates the filter.
Spatial This parameter sets the stereo width for the left/right re-
peats. Turn clockwise for a more pronounced stereo
“ping-pong” effect.
Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the
effect. If PingPongDelay is used as a send effect, this
should be set to maximum as you can control the dry/
effect balance with the send.

AmpSimulator is a distortion effect, emulating the sound

of various types of guitar amp and speaker cabinet combi-
nations. A wide selection of amp and cabinet models is
available.
The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
Drive Governs the amount of amp overdrive.
Bass Tone control for the low frequencies.
Middle Tone control for the mid frequencies.
Treble Tone control for the high frequencies.
Presence Use this to boost or damp the higher frequencies.

7
The included effect plug-ins
Parameter Description Distortion
Volume This controls the overall output level.
Amplifier This allows you to select between various amplifier mod-
pop-up menu els. Click on the currently selected amplifier name to
open a pop-up with all the available amplifier models.
This section can be bypassed by selecting “No Amp”.
Cabinet Various speaker cabinet models. Click on the currently se-
pop-up menu lected cabinet name to open a pop-up with all the available
amplifier models. This section can be bypassed by select-
ing “No Speaker”.
Damping Lo/Hi Further tone controls for shaping the sound of the selected Distortion will add crunch to your tracks.
speaker cabinet. Click on the values, enter a new value
and press the [Enter] key. The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
DaTube Boost Increases the distortion amount.
Feedback This parameter feeds part of the output signal back to the
effect input, increasing the distortion effect.
Tone Lets you select a frequency range to which to apply the
distortion effect.
Spatial Changes the distortion characteristics of the left and
right channel, thus creating a stereo effect.
Output Raises or lowers the signal going out of the effect.

This effect emulates the characteristic warm, lush sound

of a tube amplifier.
The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
Drive Regulates the pre-gain of the “amplifier”. Use high values
if you want an overdriven sound just on the verge of
distortion.
Balance This controls the balance between the signal processed
by the Drive parameter and the dry input signal. For max-
imum drive effect, set this to its highest value.
Output Adjusts the post-gain, or output level, of the “amplifier”.

8
The included effect plug-ins
Dynamics plug-ins Parameter Description
Attack This parameter sets the time it takes for the gate to open
This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the (0.1–1000ms) after being triggered. If the Live button (see below) is de-
“Dynamics” category. activated, it will ensure that the gate will already be open
when a signal above the threshold level is played back.
Gate manages this by “looking ahead” in the audio mate-
rial, checking for signals loud enough to pass the gate.
Gate Hold This determines how long the gate stays open after the
(0–2000ms) signal drops below the threshold level.
Release This parameter sets the amount of time it takes for the
(10–1000ms gate to close (after the set hold time). If the Auto button is
or Auto mode) activated, Gate will find an optimal release setting, de-
pending on the audio material.
Analysis This parameter determines whether the input signal is an-
(0–100) (Pure alyzed according to Peak or RMS values (or a mixture of
Peak to Pure both). A value of 0 is pure Peak and 100 pure RMS. RMS
RMS) mode operates using the average power of the audio sig-
nal as a basis, whereas Peak mode operates more on
peak levels. As a general guideline, RMS mode works
better on material with few transients such as vocals, and
Peak mode better for percussive material, with a lot of
transient peaks.
Live mode When activated, Live mode disengages the “look ahead”
Gating, or noise gating, silences audio signals below a (On/Off) feature of the Gate. Look ahead does produce more ac-
certain set threshold level. As soon as the signal level ex- curate processing but will add a certain amount of la-
tency as a trade-off. When Live mode is activated, there
ceeds the set threshold, the gate opens to let the signal is no latency, which might be better for “live” processing.
through.
The available parameters are as follows: Limiter
Parameter Description
Threshold This setting determines the level where Gate is activated.
(-60–0dB) Signal levels above the set threshold trigger the gate to
open, and signal levels below the set threshold will close
the gate.
State LED This indicates whether the gate is open (LED lights up in
green), closed (LED lights up in red) or something in be-
tween (LED lights up in yellow).
Filter buttons When the Side-Chain button (see below) is activated,
you can use these buttons to set the filter type to either
Low Pass, Band Pass or High Pass.
Side-Chain This button (below the Center knob) activates the filter.
on/off The input signal can then be shaped according to set
Center and Q-Factor parameters which may be useful in
tailoring how the Gate operates.
Center Sets the center frequency of the filter. Limiter is designed to ensure that the output level never
(50Hz–
20000Hz)
exceeds a certain set output level, to avoid clipping in fol-
lowing devices. Limiter can adjust and optimize the Re-
Q-Factor Sets the Resonance of the filter.
(0.01–10000) lease parameter automatically according to the audio
material, or it can be set manually. Limiter also features
Monitor Allows you to monitor the filtered signal.
(On/Off) separate meters for the input, output and the amount of
limiting (middle meters).

9
The included effect plug-ins
The available parameters are the following: 3. Select a MIDI track to control the MIDI Gate.
This can be an empty MIDI track, or a MIDI track containing data, it
Parameter Description
doesn’t matter. However, if you wish to play the MIDI Gate in real-time –
Input Allows you to adjust the input gain. as opposed to having a recorded part playing it – the track has to be
(-24–+24dB)
selected for the effect to receive the MIDI output.
Output This setting determines the maximum output level.
(-24–+6dB) 4. Open the Output Routing pop-up menu for the MIDI
Release This parameter sets the amount of time it takes for the gain track and select the MIDI Gate option.
(0.1–1000ms to return to its original level. If the Auto button is activated, The MIDI Output from the track is now routed to the MIDI Gate.
or Auto mode) Limiter will automatically find an optimal release setting that
varies depending on the audio material. What to do next depends on whether you are using live or
recorded audio and whether you are using real-time or re-
corded MIDI. We will assume for the purposes of this
MIDI Gate manual that you are using recorded audio, and play the
MIDI in real-time.
Make sure the MIDI track is selected and start playback.
5. Now play a few notes on your MIDI keyboard.
As you can hear, the audio track material is affected by what you play on
your MIDI keyboard.
The following MIDI Gate parameters are available:
Parameter Description
Attack This is used for determining how long it should take for
the Gate to open after receiving a signal that triggers it.
Hold Regulates how long the Gate remains open after a Note
On or Note Off message (see Hold Mode below).
Gating, in its fundamental form, silences audio signals be-
Release This determines how long it takes for the Gate to close
low a certain set threshold level. That means, when a signal (in addition to the value set with the Hold parameter).
rises above the set level, the Gate opens to let the signal Note To Attack The value you specify here determines to which extent
through while signals below the set level are cut off. MIDI the velocity values of the MIDI notes should affect the At-
Gate, however, is a Gate effect that is not triggered by tack. The higher the value, the more the Attack time will
increase with high note velocities. Negative values will
threshold levels, but instead by MIDI notes. Hence it needs give shorter Attack times with high velocities. If you do
both audio and MIDI data to function. not wish to use this parameter, set it to the 0 position.
Note To The value you specify here determines to which extent the
Setting up Release velocity values of the MIDI notes should affect the Release.
The higher the value, the more the Release time will in-
MIDI Gate requires both an audio signal and a MIDI input crease. If you do not wish to use this parameter, set it to
to function. the 0 position.
Velocity To This controls to which extent the velocity values of the
To set it up, proceed as follows: VCA MIDI notes determine the output volume. A value of 127
means that the volume is controlled entirely by the veloc-
1. Select the audio to be affected by the MIDI Gate. ity values, while a value of 0 means that velocities will
This can be audio material from any audio track, or even a live audio input have no effect on the volume.
(provided you have a low latency audio card).
Hold Mode Use this switch to set the Hold Mode. In Note-On mode,
2. Select the MIDI Gate as an insert effect for the audio the Gate will only remain open for the time set with the
Hold and Release parameters, regardless of the length of
track. the MIDI note that triggered the Gate. In Note-Off mode
The MIDI Gate control panel opens. on the other hand, the Gate will remain open for as long
as the MIDI note plays, and then apply the Hold and Re-
lease parameters.

10
The included effect plug-ins
VSTDynamics Parameter Description
Q-Factor This sets the resonance or width of the filter.
(0.001–
10000)
Monitor Allows you to monitor the filtered signal.
(On/Off)
Attack This parameter sets the time it takes for the gate to open
(0.1–100ms) after being triggered.
Hold This determines how long the gate stays open after the
Gate Compressor Limiter (0–2000ms) signal drops below the threshold level.
Routing selector Release This parameter sets the amount of time it takes for the
(10–1000ms gate to close (after the set hold time). If the Auto button
VSTDynamics is an advanced dynamics processor. It com- or Auto mode) is activated, Gate will find an optimal release setting, de-
pending on the audio material.
bines three separate processors: Gate, Compressor and
Limiter, covering a variety of dynamic processing functions.
The window is divided into three sections, containing con- The Compressor section
trols and meters for each processor. Compressor reduces the dynamic range of the audio,
making softer sounds louder or louder sounds softer, or
Activating the individual processors both. Compressor functions like a standard compressor
You activate the individual processors using the buttons with separate controls for threshold, ratio, attack, release
at the bottom of the plug-in panel. and make-up gain parameters. Compressor features a
separate display that graphically illustrates the compres-
The Gate section sor curve shaped according to the Threshold, Ratio and
MakeUp Gain parameter settings. Compressor also fea-
Gating, or noise gating, is a method of dynamic processing tures a Gain Reduction meter that shows the amount of
that silences audio signals below a certain set threshold gain reduction in dB, and a program dependent Auto fea-
level. As soon as the signal level exceeds the set threshold, ture for the Release parameter.
the gate opens to let the signal through. The Gate trigger
input can also be filtered using an internal side-chain. The available parameters work as follows:
The available parameters are as follows: Parameter Description
Threshold This setting determines the level where Compressor “kicks
Parameter Description (-60–0dB) in”. Signal levels above the set threshold are affected, but
Threshold This setting determines the level where Gate is activated. signal levels below are not processed.
(-60–0dB) Signal levels above the set threshold trigger the gate to Ratio Ratio determines the amount of gain reduction applied to
open, and signal levels below the set threshold will close (1:1–8:1) signals over the set threshold. A ratio of 3:1 means that for
the gate. every 3dB the input level increases, the output level will in-
state This indicates whether the gate is open (LED lights up in crease by only 1dB.
green), closed (LED lights up in red) or something in be- Make-Up This parameter is used to compensate for output gain loss,
tween (LED lights up in yellow). (0–24dB) caused by compression. When Auto is on, gain loss will be
Side-Chain This button activates the internal side-chain filter. This compensated automatically.
on/off lets you filter out parts of the signal that might otherwise Attack This determines how fast Compressor will respond to sig-
trigger the gate in places you don’t want it to, or to boost (0.1–100ms) nals above the set threshold. If the attack time is long,
frequencies you wish to accentuate, allowing for more more of the early part of the signal (attack) will pass
control over the gate function. through unprocessed.
LP (Low pass), These buttons set the basic filter mode. Release Sets the amount of time it takes for the gain to return to its
BP (Band (10–1000ms original level when the signal drops below the Threshold
pass), HP or Auto level. If the Auto button is activated, Compressor will auto-
(High pass) mode) matically find an optimal release setting that varies de-
Center This sets the center frequency of the filter. pending on the audio material.
(50–22000Hz) Graphic Use the graphic display to graphically set the Threshold or
display the Ratio value.

11
The included effect plug-ins
The Limiter section Filter plug-ins
Limiter is designed to ensure that the output level never
This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the
exceeds a certain set output level, to avoid clipping in fol-
“Filter” category.
lowing devices. Conventional limiters usually require very
accurate setting up of the attack and release parameters,
to prevent the output level from going beyond the set DualFilter
threshold level. Limiter adjusts and optimizes these pa-
rameters automatically, according to the audio material.
You can also adjust the Release parameter manually.
The available parameters are the following:
Parameter Description
Output This setting determines the maximum output level. Signal
(-24–+6dB) levels above the set threshold are affected, but signal lev-
els below are left unaffected.ì
Soft Clip Soft Clipper acts differently compared to the limiter. When
(On/Off) the signal level exceeds -6dB, SoftClip starts limiting (or
clipping) the signal “softly”, at the same time generating
harmonics which add a warm, tubelike characteristic to the
audio material.
Release This parameter sets the amount of time it takes for the gain
(10–1000ms to return to its original level when the signal drops below This effect filters out certain frequencies while allowing
or Auto the threshold level. If the Auto button is activated, Limiter
mode) will automatically find an optimal release setting that varies others to pass through.
depending on the audio material.
The following parameters are available:
Parameter Description
The Module Configuration button
Position This parameter sets the filter cutoff frequency. If you set
this to a negative value, DualFilter will act as a low-pass
filter. Positive values cause DualFilter to act as a high-
pass filter.
Resonance Sets the sound characteristic of the filter. With higher
values, a ringing sound is heard.

In the bottom right corner of the plug-in panel you will find
a button with which you can set the signal flow order for
the three processors. Changing the order of the proces-
sors can produce different results, and the available op-
tions allow you to quickly compare what works best for a
given situation. Simply click the Module Configuration but-
ton to change to a different configuration. There are three
routing options:
• C-G-L (Compressor-Gate-Limit)
• G-C-L (Gate-Compressor-Limit)
• C-L-G (Compressor-Limit-Gate)

12
The included effect plug-ins
StepFilter • By starting playback and editing the patterns for the cut-
off and resonance parameters, you can hear how your filter
patterns affect the sound source connected to StepFilter
directly.

Selecting new patterns

• Created patterns are saved with the project, and up to 8
different cutoff and resonance patterns can be saved in-
ternally.
Both the cutoff and resonance patterns are saved together in the 8 Pattern
memories.
• To select new patterns you use the pattern selector.
New patterns are all set to the same step value by default.

StepFilter is a pattern-controlled multimode filter that can

create rhythmic, pulsating filter effects.

General operation
Pattern Selector
StepFilter can produce two simultaneous 16-step patterns
for the filter cutoff and resonance parameters, synchronized Using pattern copy and paste to create variations
to the sequencer tempo. You can use the Copy and Paste buttons below the pattern
selector to copy a pattern to another pattern memory loca-
Setting step values
tion, which is useful for creating variations on a pattern.
• Setting step values is done by clicking in the pattern
• Select the pattern you wish to copy, click the Copy but-
grid windows.
ton, select another pattern memory location and click Paste.
• Individual step entries can be freely dragged up or down The pattern is copied to the new location, and can now be edited to cre-
the vertical axis, or directly set by clicking in an empty grid ate variations using the original pattern as a starting point.
box. By click-dragging left or right, consecutive step entries
StepFilter parameters
will be set to the pointer position.
Parameter/ Description
Value
Base Cutoff This sets the base filter cutoff frequency. Cutoff values
set in the Cutoff grid window are values relative to the
Base Cutoff value.
Base Resonance This sets the base filter resonance. Resonance values
set in the Resonance grid window are values relative to
the Base Resonance value. Note that very high Base
Resonance settings can produce loud ringing effects at
Setting filter cutoff values in the grid window.
certain frequencies.
• The horizontal axis shows the pattern steps 1–16 from Glide This will apply glide between the pattern step values,
left to right, and the vertical axis determines the (relative) causing values to change more smoothly.
filter cutoff frequency and resonance setting. Filter Mode This slider selects between low pass (LP), band pass
The higher up on the vertical axis a step value is entered, the higher the (BP) or high pass (HP) filter modes (from left to right
relative filter cutoff frequency or filter resonance setting. respectively).
Sync 1/1 to 1/32 This sets the pattern beat resolution, i.e. what note val-
(Straight, Triplet ues the pattern will play in relation to the tempo.
or Dotted)

13
The included effect plug-ins
Parameter/ Description The parameters are as follows:
Value
Parameter Description
Output Sets the overall volume.
Pedal This controls the filter frequency sweep.
Mix Adjusts the mix between dry and processed signal.
Freq Lo/Hi Sets the frequency of the filter for the Lo and Hi Pedal
positions.

ToneBooster Width Lo/Hi Sets the width (resonance) of the filter for the Lo and Hi
Pedal positions.
Gain Lo/Hi Sets the gain of the filter for the Lo and Hi Pedal positions.
Filter Slope Specifies the slope of the filter; 6dB or 12dB.

MIDI control
For real-time MIDI control of the Pedal parameter, MIDI
must be directed to the WahWah plug-in.
• Whenever the WahWah has been added as an insert
ToneBooster is a filter that allows you to raise the gain in a effect (for an audio track or an FX channel), it will be avail-
selected frequency range. It is particularly useful when in- able on the Output Routing pop-up menu for MIDI tracks.
serted before AmpSimulator in the plug-in chain (see If WahWah is selected on the Output Routing menu, MIDI will be directed
“AmpSimulator” on page 7), greatly enhancing the tonal to the plug-in from the selected track.
varieties available.
The following parameters are available: Mastering – UV22HR
Parameter Description
Tone This sets the center filter frequency.
Gain Allows you to adjust the gain of the selected frequency
range by up to 24dB.
Width This sets the resonance of the filter.
Mode This sets the basic operational mode of the filter; Peak or
Band pass.
The UV22HR is a dithering plug-in, based on an advanced
algorithm developed by Apogee. For an introduction to the
WahWah concept of dithering, see the chapter “Audio Effects” in the
Operation Manual.
The following options can be set in the UV 22 HR control
panel:
Option Description
Hi Try this first, it is the most “all-round” setting.
Low This applies a lower level of dither noise.
WahWah is a variable slope band pass filter that can be
Auto black When this is activated, the dither noise is gated (muted)
auto-controlled via MIDI modeling the well-known analog during silent passages in the material.
pedal effect (see below). You can independently specify
Bit Resolution The UV22HR supports dithering to multiple resolutions:
the frequency, width and the gain for the Lo and Hi Pedal 8, 16, 20 or 24 bits. You select the desired resolution by
positions. The crossover point between the Lo and Hi clicking the corresponding button.
Pedal positions is at 50.
! Dither should always be applied post output bus
fader.

14
The included effect plug-ins
Modulation plug-ins Chorus
This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the
“Modulation” category.

AutoPan

This is a single stage chorus effect. It works by doubling

This is a simple autopan effect. It can use different wave- whatever is sent into it with a slightly detuned version.
forms to modulate the left-right stereo position (pan), either
using tempo sync or manual modulation speed settings. The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
The parameters are as follows:
Tempo sync The button below the Rate knob is used to switch tempo
Parameter Description on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on.
Rate If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base Rate If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base
note value for tempo-syncing the effect (1/1 to 1/32, note value for tempo syncing the chorus sweep (1/1 to
straight, triplet or dotted). 1/32, straight, triplet or dotted).
If tempo sync is off, the auto-pan speed can be set freely If tempo sync is off, the sweep rate can be set freely with
with the Rate knob, without sync to tempo. the Rate knob, without sync to tempo.
Tempo sync The button below the Rate knob is used to switch tempo Width This determines the depth of the chorus effect. Higher
on/off sync on (the button lights up) or off. settings produce a more pronounced effect.
Width Sets the depth of the AutoPan effect. Spatial This sets the stereo width of the effect. Turn clockwise
for a wider stereo effect.
Shape Sets the modulation waveform. Sine and Triangle wave-
forms are available. Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the ef-
fect. If Chorus is used as a send effect, this should be set
Side-Chain A signal routed to the Side-Chain input of the effect can
to maximum as you can control the dry/effect balance
on/off control the Width parameter when this is activated. For a
with the send.
description of how to set up Side-Chain routing, see the
chapter “Audio effects” in the Operation Manual. Delay This parameter affects the frequency range of the modu-
lation sweep, by adjusting the initial delay time.
Shape This changes the shape of the modulating waveform, al-
tering the character of the chorus sweep. Sine and trian-
gle waveforms are available.
Filter Lo/Hi These parameters allow you to roll off low and high fre-
quencies of the effect signal, respectively.

15
The included effect plug-ins
Flanger Metalizer

Flanger is a classic flanger effect with added stereo

enhancement. The Metalizer feeds the audio signal through a variable
frequency filter, with tempo sync or time modulation and
The parameters are as follows: feedback control.
Parameter Description Parameter Description
Tempo sync The button below the Rate knob is used to switch tempo Feedback The higher the value, the more “metallic” the sound.
on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on.
Sharpness Governs the character of the filter effect. The higher the
Rate If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base value, the narrower the affected frequency area, produc-
note value for tempo syncing the flanger sweep (1/1 to ing sharper sound and a more pronounced effect.
1/32, straight, triplet or dotted).
If tempo sync is off, the sweep rate can be set freely with Tone Governs the feedback frequency. The effect of this will
the Rate knob, without sync to tempo. be more noticeable with high Feedback settings.
Range Lo/Hi This sets the frequency boundaries for the flanger sweep. On button Turns filter modulation on and off. When turned off, the
Metalizer will work as a static filter.
Feedback This determines the character of the flanger effect. Higher
settings produce a more “metallic” sounding sweep. Mono button When this is on, the output of the Metalizer will be in mono.
Spatial This sets the stereo width of the effect. Turn clockwise Speed If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base
for a wider stereo effect. note value for tempo-syncing the effect (1/1 to 1/32,
straight, triplet or dotted). Note that there is no note value
Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the ef- modifier for this effect.
fect. If the Flanger is used as a send effect, this should be If tempo sync is off, the modulation speed can be set
set to maximum as you can control the dry/effect balance freely with the Speed knob, without sync to tempo.
with the send.
Tempo sync The button above the Speed knob is used to switch tempo
Shape This changes the shape of the modulating waveform, al- on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on.
tering the character of the flanger sweep.
Output Sets the overall volume.
Delay This parameter affects the frequency range of the modu-
lation sweep, by adjusting the initial delay time. Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the ef-
fect. If Metalizer is used as a send effect, this should be
Manual If this is activated, the flanger sweep will be static, i.e. no set to maximum as you can control the dry/effect balance
modulation. You can instead change the sweep position with the send.
manually by turning this knob.
Filter Lo/Hi These parameters allow you to roll off low and high fre-
quencies of the effect signal, respectively.

16
The included effect plug-ins
Phaser Ringmodulator

Phaser produces the well-known “swooshing” phasing

effect with additional stereo enhancement.
The parameters are as follows: The Ringmodulator can produce complex, bell-like enhar-
Parameter Description monic sounds. Ring modulators work by multiplying two
Tempo sync The button below the Rate knob is used to switch tempo audio signals. The ring modulated output contains added
on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on. frequencies generated by the sum of, and the difference
Rate If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base note between, the frequencies of the two signals.
value for tempo syncing the phaser sweep (1/1 to 1/32,
straight, triplet or dotted). The Ringmodulator has a built-in oscillator that is multi-
If tempo sync is off, the sweep rate can be set freely with plied with the input signal to produce the effect.
the Rate knob, without sync to tempo.
Parameter Description
Width The width of the modulation effect between higher and
lower frequencies. Oscillator LFO Controls how much the oscillator frequency is affected
Amount by the LFO.
Feedback This determines the character of the phaser effect.
Higher settings produce a more pronounced effect. Oscillator Env. Controls how much the oscillator frequency is affected
Amount by the envelope (which is triggered by the input signal).
Spatial When using multi-channel audio, Spatial creates a 3-di-
Positive and negative values can be set, with center posi-
mensional impression by delaying modulation in each
tion representing no modulation. Left of center, a loud in-
channel.
put signal will decrease the oscillator pitch, whereas right
Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the ef- of center the oscillator pitch will increase when fed a loud
fect. If the Phaser is used as a send effect, this should be input.
set to maximum as you can control the dry/effect balance
Oscillator Selects the oscillator waveform; square, sine, saw or
with the send.
Wave triangle.
Manual If this is activated, the phaser sweep will be static, i.e. no
Oscillator Determines the frequency range of the oscillator in Hz.
modulation. You can instead change the sweep position
Range
manually by turning this knob.
Oscillator Sets the oscillator frequency +/- 2 octaves within the se-
Filter Lo/Hi These parameters allow you to roll off low and high fre-
Frequency lected range.
quencies of the effect signal, respectively.
Oscillator Cuts high frequencies in the oscillator waveform, to
Roll-Off soften the overall sound. This is best used when harmon-
ically rich waveforms are selected (e.g. square or saw).
LFO Speed Sets the LFO Speed.
LFO Env. Controls how much the input signal level – via the enve-
Amount lope generator – affects the LFO speed. Positive and neg-
ative values can be set, with center position representing
no modulation. Left of center, a loud input signal will slow
down the LFO, whereas right of center a loud input signal
will speed it up.

17
The included effect plug-ins
Parameter Description Parameter Description
LFO Wave- Selects the LFO waveform; square, sine, saw or triangle. Slow Fine adjustment of the high rotor Slow speed.
form
Fast Fine adjustment of the high rotor Fast speed.
Invert Stereo This inverts the LFO waveform for the right channel of the
oscillator, which produces a wider stereo perspective for Accel. Fine adjustment of the high rotor acceleration time.
the modulation. Amp Mod High rotor amplitude modulation.
Envelope The Envelope Generator section controls how the input Freq Mod High rotor frequency modulation.
Generator signal is converted to envelope data, which can then be
(Attack and used to control oscillator pitch and LFO speed. It has two Slow Fine adjustment of the low rotor Slow speed.
Decay dials) main controls:
Fast Fine adjustment of the low rotor Fast speed.
Attack sets how fast the envelope output level rises in re-
sponse to a rising input signal. Accel. Fine adjustment of the low rotor acceleration time.
Decay controls how fast the envelope output level falls in
response to a falling input signal. Amp Mod Adjusts amplitude modulation depth.

Lock L<R When this button is enabled, the L and R input signals Level Adjusts overall bass level.
are merged, and produce the same envelope output level Phase Adjusts the phasing amount in the sound of the high rotor.
for both oscillator channels. When disabled, each chan-
nel has its own envelope, which affects the two channels Angle Sets the simulated microphone angle. 0 = mono, 180 =
of the oscillator independently. one mic on each side.
Output Sets the overall volume. Distance Sets the simulated microphone distance from the
speaker in inches.
Mix Adjusts the mix between dry and processed signal.
Output Adjusts the overall output level.
Mix Adjusts the mix between dry and processed signals.
Rotary
Directing MIDI to the Rotary
For real-time MIDI control of the Speed parameter, MIDI
must be directed to the Rotary.
• Whenever the Rotary has been added as an insert ef-
fect (for an audio track or an FX channel), it will be avail-
able on the Output Routing pop-up menu for MIDI tracks.
If Rotary is selected on the “out:” menu, MIDI will be directed to the plug-
The Rotary plug-in simulates the classic effect of a rotary
in from the selected track.
speaker. A rotary speaker cabinet features variable speed
rotating speakers to produce a swirling chorus effect, com-
monly used with organs. Rotary features all the parameters
associated with the real thing.
The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
Speed (Stop/ This controls the speed of the Rotary in three steps.
Slow/Fast)
Mode Selects whether the Slow/Fast setting is a switch or a
variable control. When switch mode is selected and
Pitchbend is the controller, the speed will switch with an
up or down flick of the bender. Other controllers switch
at 64.
Speed Mod Selects the Rotary speed from 0 (Stop) to 100 (Fast).
Overdrive Applies a soft overdrive or distortion.
CrossOver Sets the crossover frequency (200–3000Hz) between
the low and high frequency loudspeakers.

18
The included effect plug-ins
Tranceformer Tremolo

Tremolo produces amplitude (volume) modulation.

Parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description

Tranceformer is a ring modulator effect, in which the in- Rate If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base
note value for tempo-syncing the effect (1/1 to 1/32,
coming audio is ring modulated by an internal, variable fre- straight, triplet or dotted).
quency oscillator, producing new harmonics. A second If tempo sync is off, the modulation speed can be set
oscillator can be used to modulate the frequency of the freely with the Rate knob, without sync to tempo.
first oscillator, in sync with the Song tempo if needed. Tempo sync The button below the Rate knob is used to switch tempo
on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on.
Parameter Description
Depth This governs the depth of the amplitude modulation.
Waveform Sets the pitch modulation waveform.
buttons Spatial This will add a stereo effect to the modulation.

Tone Sets the frequency (pitch) of the modulating oscillator Output Adjusts the output volume.
(1 to 5000Hz).
Depth Governs the depth of the pitch modulation.
Speed If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base note
Vibrato
value for tempo-syncing the effect (1/1 to 1/32, straight,
triplet or dotted). Note that there is no note value modifier
for this effect. If tempo sync is off, the modulation speed
can be set freely with the Speed knob, without sync to
tempo.
Tempo sync The button above the Speed knob is used to switch tempo
on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on.
On button Turns modulation of the pitch parameter on or off.
Mono button Governs whether the output will be stereo or mono.
Output Adjusts the output level of the effect. The Vibrato plug-in produces pitch modulation.
Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the
Parameter Description
effect.
Rate If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base
note value for tempo-syncing the effect (1/1 to 1/32,
Ö Note that clicking and dragging in the display allows straight, triplet or dotted).
you to adjust the Tone and Depth parameters at the same If tempo sync is off, the modulation speed can be set
freely with the Rate knob, without sync to tempo.
time!
Tempo sync The button below the Rate knob is used to switch tempo
on/off sync on or off. The button is lit when tempo sync is on.
Depth This governs the depth of the pitch modulation.
Spatial This will add a stereo effect to the modulation.

19
The included effect plug-ins
Other plug-ins Chopper
This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the
“Others” category.

Bitcrusher

Chopper is a combined tremolo and autopan effect. It can

use different waveforms to modulate the level (tremolo) or
left-right stereo position (pan), either using tempo sync or
manual modulation speed settings. The parameters are as
If you’re into lo-fi sound, Bitcrusher is the effect for you. It follows:
offers the possibility of decimating and truncating the in-
Parameter Description
put audio signal by bit reduction, to get a noisy, distorted
Waveform Sets the modulation waveform.
sound. You can for example make a 24-bit audio signal buttons
sound like an 8 or 4-bit signal, or even render it completely
Depth Sets the depth of the Chopper effect. This can also be
garbled and unrecognizable. The parameters are: set by clicking in the graphic display.
Parameter Description Speed If tempo sync is on, this is where you specify the base
note value for tempo-syncing the effect (1/1 to 1/32,
Mode Select one of four operating modes for the Bitcrusher.
straight, triplet or dotted). Note that there is no note value
Each mode will produce a result sounding a bit different.
modifier for this effect.
Modes I and III are nastier and noisier, while modes II and
If tempo sync is off, the tremolo/auto-pan speed can be
IV are more subtle.
set freely with the Speed knob, without sync to tempo.
Sample Divider This sets the amount by which the audio samples are
Tempo sync The button above the Speed knob is used to switch
decimated. At the highest setting (65), nearly all of the in-
on/off tempo sync on (the button lights up) or off.
formation describing the original audio signal will be elim-
inated, turning the signal into unrecognizable noise. Stereo/Mono Determines whether the Chopper will work as an auto-
button panner (button set to “Stereo”) or a tremolo effect (but-
Depth Use this to set the desired bit resolution. A setting of 24
ton set to “Mono”).
gives the highest audio quality, while a setting of 1 will
create mostly noise. Mix Sets the level balance between the dry signal and the ef-
fect. If Chopper is used as a send effect, this should be
Output Governs the output level from the Bitcrusher. Drag the
set to maximum.
slider upwards to increase the level.
Mix This slider regulates the balance between the output from
the Bitcrusher and the original audio signal. Drag the slider
upwards for a more dominant effect, and drag it down-
wards if you want the original signal to be more prominent.

20
The included effect plug-ins
Octaver Tuner

This plug-in can generate two additional voices that track This is a guitar tuner. Simply connect a guitar or other in-
the pitch of the input signal one octave and two octaves strument to an audio input and select the Tuner as an in-
below the original pitch, respectively. Octaver is best used sert effect (make sure you deactivate any other effect that
with monophonic signals. The parameters are as follows: alters pitch, like chorus or vibrato). When the instrument is
connected, proceed as follows:
Parameter Description
Direct This adjusts the mix of the original signal and the gener- • Play a note.
ated voice(s). A value of 0 means only the generated and The key is shown in the middle of the display. In addition, the frequency in
transposed signal is heard. By raising this value, more of Hz is shown in the bottom left corner and the octave range in the bottom
the original signal is heard. right corner. If the key is wrong (e.g. if you wish to tune the E string and the
Octave 1 This adjusts the level of the generated signal one octave key is shown as Fb), first tune the string so that the correct key is shown.
below the original pitch. Set to 0 means the voice is
muted. • The two arrows indicate any deviation in pitch by their
Octave 2 This adjusts the level of the generated signal two octaves position. If the pitch is flat, they will be positioned in the
below the original pitch. Set to 0 means the voice is left half of the display, if the pitch is sharp they will be in
muted.
the right half.
The deviation is also shown (in Cent) in the upper area of the display.
• Tune the instrument so that the two arrows are in the
middle.
Repeat this procedure for each string.

21
The included effect plug-ins
Pitch Shift – Pitch Correct Parameter Description
Scale Source If you choose the Internal option from the Scale Source
– Internal pop-up, another pop-up menu will be shown to the right,
where you can choose the key to which the source audio
will be adapted. The available options are:
Chromatic: The audio will be pitched to the closest semi-
tone.
Major/minor: The audio will be pitched to the major/minor
scale specified in the pop-up menu to the right. This will
be reflected on the keyboard display.
Custom: The audio will be pitched to the notes that you
specify by clicking the desired keys on keyboard display.
If you want to reset the keyboard, click on the orange line
below the display.
Scale Source Here you can specify how the audio should be changed by
– External MIDI your external MIDI controller, the virtual keyboard or your
Pitch Correct automatically detects, adjusts and fixes Scale MIDI track. The audio will be shifted to a scale of target
pitches.
slight pitch and intonation inconsistencies in monophonic Note that you have to assign the audio track as output for
vocal and instrumental performances in real time. The ad- your MIDI track and that the Speed parameter has to be
set to a value other than Off.
vanced algorithms of this plug-in preserve the formants of
the original sound thus allowing for natural sounding pitch Scale Source Here you can specify how the audio should be changed by
– External MIDI your external MIDI controller, the virtual keyboard or your
correction without the typical “Micky Mouse” effect. Note MIDI track. The audio will be shifted to a target note.
Note that you have to assign the audio track as output for
Furthermore, you can use Pitch Correct creatively. You your MIDI track and that the Speed parameter has to be
could e.g. create backing vocals by modifying the lead vo- set to a value other than Off.
cals or vocoder sounds by using extreme values. You can Formant – With this parameter you can change the natural timbre,
use an external MIDI controller, a MIDI track or the virtual Shift (-60 to i.e. the characteristic frequency components of the
60) source audio.
keyboard to “play” a note or a scale of target pitches that
determine the current scale notes to which the audio Formant – With this parameter, you can specify the sound character-
Optimize istics of the sound sources. While General is the default
should be shifted. This allows you to change your audio in (General, Male, setting, Male is designed for low pitches and Female for
a very quick and easy way, which is extremely useful for live Female) high pitches.
performances. In the keyboard display, the original audio Formant – If you deactivate this button, formants are raised and low-
will be displayed in blue while the changes are displayed in Preservation ered with the pitch, provoking strange vocal effects.
(On/Off) Higher pitch correction values result in “Micky Mouse” ef-
orange. fects, lower pitch correction values in “Monster” sounds. If
you activate this button, the formants will be kept, main-
The parameters are: taining the character of the audio.
Parameter Description Master Tuning Detunes the output signal. The default setting is 440 Hz.
Correction – This parameter determines the sensitivity of analysis. A
Tolerance low Tolerance value lets Pitch Correct find pitch changes
quickly. When the Tolerance value is high, pitch varia-
tions in the audio (e.g. vibrato) will not be immediately in-
terpreted as note changes.
Correction – With this parameter, you can determine the smoothness
Speed of the pitch change. Higher values cause the pitch shift to
occur immediately. 100 is a very drastic setting that is
designed mainly for special effects (e.g. the famous
“Cher” effect).
Correction – With this parameter you can adjust (or “retune”) the pitch
Transpose of the incoming audio in semitone steps. You can set
(-12 to 12) positive and negative values from -12 to 12. A value of
zero means the signal is not Transposed.

22
The included effect plug-ins
Restoration – Grungelizer Reverb – RoomWorks SE

RoomWorks SE is a high-quality reverb plug-in. This plug-

in has the following parameters:
Parameter Description
Pre-Delay The amount of time before the onset of reverb. This al-
lows you to simulate larger spaces by increasing the time
it takes for first reflections to reach the listener.
Reverb Time Reverb Time in seconds.
Diffusion This affects the character of the reverb tail. Higher diffu-
The Grungelizer adds noise and static to your recordings sion is smoother while less diffusion can be clearer. This
– kind of like listening to a radio with bad reception, or a emulates changing the types of surfaces in a room (brick
vs. carpet for instance).
worn and scratched vinyl record. The available parameters
High Level This affects the decay time of high frequencies. Normal
are as follows: Amount room reverb decays quicker in the high and low frequency
Parameter Description range than in the midrange. Lowering the level percentage
will cause high frequencies to decay quicker. Values above
Crackle This adds crackle to create that old vinyl record sound. 100% will cause high frequencies to decay longer than
The farther to the right you turn the dial, the more crackle the midrange.
is added.
Low Level This affects the decay time of low frequencies. Normal
RPM switch When emulating the sound of a vinyl record, this switch Amount room reverb decays quicker in the high and low frequency
lets you set the RPM (revolutions per minute) speed of range than in the midrange. Lowering the level percentage
the record (33/45/78 RPM). will cause low frequencies to decay quicker. Values above
100% will cause low frequencies to decay longer than the
Noise This dial regulates the amount of static noise added.
midrange.
Distort Use this dial to add distortion.
Mix Determines the blend of dry (unprocessed) signal to wet
EQ Turn this dial to the right to cut off the low frequencies, (processed) signal. When using RoomWorks SE inserted
and create a more hollow, lo-fi sound. in an FX channel, you will most likely want to set this to
100% or use the Send button.
AC This emulates a constant, low hum of AC current.
Frequency This sets the frequency of the AC current (50 or 60Hz),
switch and thus the pitch of the AC hum.
Timeline This dial regulates the amount of overall effect. The far-
ther to the right (1900) you turn this dial, the more notice-
able the effect.

23
The included effect plug-ins
Spatial plug-ins StereoEnhancer
This section contains descriptions of the plug-ins in the
“Spatial” category.

MonoToStereo

This plug-in will expand the stereo width of (stereo) audio

material. It cannot be used with mono files.
The parameters are as follows:
Parameter Description
Width This controls the width or depth of the stereo enhance-
This effect will turn a mono signal into a “pseudo-stereo” ment. Turn clockwise to increase the enhancement.
signal. The plug-in must be inserted on a stereo track
Delay This parameter increases the amount of differences be-
playing a mono file to work. tween the left and right channels to further increase the
stereo effect.
The parameters are as follows:
Color This parameter also generates differences between the
Parameter Description channels to increase the stereo enhancement.
Width This controls the width or depth of the stereo enhance- Mono This switches the output to mono, to check for possible
ment. Turn clockwise to increase the enhancement. unwanted coloring of the sound which sometimes can
occur when enhancing the stereo image.
Delay This parameter increases the amount of differences be-
tween the left and right channels to further increase the
stereo effect.
Color This parameter also generates differences between the
channels to increase the stereo effect.
Mono This switches the output to mono, to check for possible
unwanted coloring of the sound which sometimes can
occur when creating an artificial stereo image.

24
The included effect plug-ins
 2
The included VST Instruments
Introduction Sound parameters
This chapter contains descriptions of the included VST in- Oscillator section
struments and their parameters.

Prologue

This section contains parameters affecting the 3 oscillators.

These are located in upper half of the instrument panel.

Selecting Waveforms
Each oscillator has a number of waveforms which are se-
lectable by clicking on the waveform name in the box lo-
cated in each oscillator section.

Prologue is modelled on subtractive synthesis, the method

used in classic analog synthesizers. It has the following ba-
sic features:
• Multimode filter
Variable slope low pass and high pass, plus band pass and notch filter
modes – see “About the filter types” on page 30.
• Three oscillators, each with 4 standard waveforms plus
an assortment of specialized waveforms.
See “Selecting Waveforms” on page 26.
• Frequency modulation.
See “About frequency modulation” on page 28.
Selecting waveforms.
• Ring Modulation.
See “Ring modulation” on page 29. The following waveforms are available:
Waveform Description
• Built-in effects.
See “Effects (EFX) page” on page 34. Sawtooth This waveform contains all harmonics and produces a
bright and rich sound.
• Prologue receives MIDI in Omni mode (on all MIDI Parabolic This could be described as a “rounded” sawtooth wave-
channels). form, producing a softer timbre.
You don’t need to select a MIDI channel to direct MIDI to the Prologue. Square Square waveforms only contain odd number harmonics,
which produces a distinct, hollow sound.
Triangle The Triangle waveform generates only a few harmonics,
spaced at odd harmonic numbers, which produces a
slightly hollow sound.

26
The included VST Instruments
Waveform Description OSC 1 parameters
Sine The sine wave is the simplest possible waveform, with no Oscillator 1 acts as a master oscillator. It determines the
harmonics (overtones). The sine wave produces a neu-
tral, soft timbre. base pitch for all three oscillators. Oscillator 1 features the
following parameters:
Formant 1–12 Formant waveforms emphasizes certain frequency
bands. Like the human voice, musical instruments have a Parameter Value Description
fixed set of formants, which give it a unique, recognizable
tonal color or timbre, regardless of pitch. Osc 1 0–100 This controls the output level of the oscil-
lator.
Vocal 1–7 These are also formant waveforms, but specifically vocal-
oriented. Vowel sounds (A/E/I/O/U) are among the Coarse +/- 48 This determines the base pitch used by
waveforms found in this category. semitones all oscillators.

Partial 1–7 Partials, also called harmonics or overtones, are a series Fine +/- 50 cent Fine tunes the oscillator pitch in cent in-
of tones which accompany the prime tone (fundamental). crements (100th of a semitone). This also
These waveforms could be described as producing inter- affects all oscillators.
vals with two or more frequencies heard simultaneously
Wave Mod +/- 50 This parameter dial is only active if the
with equal strength.
Wave Mod button is activated beside the
Reso Pulse This waveform category begins with a complex waveform waveform selection box. Wave modula-
1–12 (Reso Pulse 1), that emphasizes the fundamental fre- tion works by adding a phase-shifted
quency (prime). For each consecutive waveform in this copy of the oscillator output to itself,
category, the next harmonic in the harmonic series is em- which produces waveform variations. For
phasized. example if a sawtooth waveform is used,
activating WM will produce a pulse
Slope 1–12 This waveform category begins with a complex waveform waveform. By modulating the WM pa-
(Slope 1), with gradually decreasing harmonic complexity rameter with for example a LFO, classic
the higher the number selected. Slope 12 produces a PWM (pulse width modulation) is pro-
sine wave (no harmonics). duced. Wave modulation can, however,
Neg Slope This category also begins with a complex waveform be applied to any waveform.
1–9 (NegSlope 1), but with gradually decreasing low fre- Phase button On/Off When Phase synchronization is activated,
quency content the higher the number selected. all oscillators will restart their waveform
cycles with every note played. With
• To hear the signal generated by the oscillator(s), the Phase deactivated, the oscillators gener-
ate a waveform cycle continuously, which
corresponding Osc dial in the oscillator sections must be produces slight variations when playing
turned clockwise to a suitable value. as each note will start from a random
phase in the cycle, adding warmth to the
sound. But when synthesizing bass
sounds or drum sounds, it is usually de-
sired that the attack of every note played
sounds the same, so for these purposes
you should activate Phase sync. Phase
sync also affects the noise generator.
Tracking On/Off When Tracking is activated, the oscillator
button pitch will track the notes played on the
keyboard. If Tracking is deactivated the
oscillator pitch remains constant, regard-
less of what note is played.
Wave Mod On/Off This switches wave modulation on or off.
button
Waveform See “Selecting Sets the basic waveform for the oscillator.
pop-up Waveforms”
on page 26.

27
The included VST Instruments
OSC 2 parameters OSC 3 parameters
Oscillator 2 has the following parameters: Oscillator 3 has the following parameters:
Parameter Value Description Parameter Value Description
Osc 2 0–100 This controls the output level of the oscil- Osc 3 0–100 This controls the output level of the oscil-
lator. lator.
Coarse +/- 48 This determines the coarse pitch for Osc Coarse +/- 48 This determines the coarse pitch for Osc
semitones 2. If FM is enabled, this determines fre- semitones 3. If FM is enabled, this determines the
quency ratio of the oscillator regarding frequency ratio of the oscillator regarding
Osc 1. Osc 1/2.
Fine +/- 50 cent Fine tunes the oscillator pitch in cent in- Fine +/- 50 cent Fine tunes the oscillator pitch in cent in-
crements (100th of a semitone). If FM is crements (100th of a semitone). If FM is
enabled, this determines the frequency enabled, this determines the frequency
ratio of the oscillator regarding Osc 1. ratio of the oscillator regarding Osc 1/2.
Wave Mod +/- 50 This parameter dial is only active if the Ratio 1–16 This parameter dial (which is only active if
Wave Mod button is activated beside the the Freq Mod button is activated) adjusts
waveform selection box. Wave modula- the amount of frequency modulation ap-
tion works by adding a phase-shifted plied to oscillator 3, see “About frequency
copy of the oscillator output to itself, modulation” on page 28. Is normally re-
which produces waveform variations. For ferred to as FM index.
example if a sawtooth waveform is used,
activating WM will produce a pulse Sync button On/Off When Sync is activated, Osc 3 is slaved
waveform. By modulating the WM pa- to Osc 1. This means that every time Osc
rameter with for example a LFO, classic 1 completes its cycle, Osc 3 is forced to
PWM (pulse width modulation) is pro- reset (start its cycle from the beginning).
duced. Wave modulation can, however, This produces a characteristic sound,
be applied to any waveform. suitable for lead playing. Osc 1 deter-
mines the pitch, and varying the pitch of
Ratio 1–16 This parameter dial (which is only active Osc 3 produces changes in timbre. For
if the Freq Mod button is activated) ad- classic sync sounds, try modulating the
justs the amount of frequency modula- pitch of Osc 3 with an envelope or a
tion applied to oscillator 2, see “About LFO. The Osc 3 pitch should also be set
frequency modulation” on page 28. Is higher than the pitch of Osc 1.
normally referred to as FM index.
Tracking On/Off When Tracking is activated, the oscillator
Sync button On/Off When Sync is activated, Osc 2 is slaved button pitch will track the notes played on the
to Osc 1. This means that every time Osc keyboard. If Tracking is deactivated the
1 completes its cycle, Osc 2 is forced to oscillator pitch remains constant, regard-
reset (start its cycle from the beginning). less of what note is played.
This produces a characteristic sound,
suitable for lead playing. Osc 1 deter- Freq Mod On/Off This switches frequency modulation on
mines the pitch, and varying the pitch of button or off.
Osc 2 produces changes in timbre. For Wave Mod On/Off This switches wave modulation on or off.
classic sync sounds, try modulating the button
pitch of Osc 2 with an envelope or a LFO.
The Osc 2 pitch should also be set Waveform See “Selecting Sets the basic waveform for the oscillator.
higher than the pitch of Osc 1. selector Waveforms” on
pop-up page 26.
Tracking On/Off When Tracking is activated, the oscillator
button pitch will track the notes played on the
keyboard. If Tracking is deactivated the About frequency modulation
oscillator pitch remains constant, regard-
less of what note is played. Frequency modulation or FM means that the frequency of
Freq Mod On/Off This switches frequency modulation on one oscillator (called the carrier) is modulated by the fre-
button or off. quency of another oscillator (called the modulator).
Wave Mod On/Off This switches wave modulation on or off.
button • In Prologue, Osc 1 is the modulator, and Osc 2 and 3
are carriers.
Waveform See “Selecting Sets the basic waveform for the oscillator.
selector Waveforms” on Osc 2 could be said to be both carrier and modulator as if Freq Mod is
pop-up page 26. applied to Osc 2 it is modulated by Osc 3. If Osc 2 also uses frequency
modulation, Osc 3 will be modulated by both Osc 1 and Osc 2.

28
The included VST Instruments
• The “pure” sound of frequency modulation is output • To hear only the sound of the noise generator, you
through the modulator oscillator(s). should turn down the output level for the oscillators, and
This means that you should turn off the Osc 1 output when using fre- turn up the Noise parameter.
quency modulation.
• The Noise generator level is routed to Envelope 1 by
• The Freq Mod button switches frequency modulation on default.
or off. See “Envelope page” on page 32 for a description of the Envelope gen-
erators.
• The Ratio parameter determines the amount of frequency
modulation.
Filter section
Portamento
This parameter makes the pitch glide between the notes
you play. The parameter setting determines the time it
takes for the pitch to glide from one note to the next. Turn
the knob clockwise for longer glide time.
The “Mode” switch allows you to apply glide only when
you play a legato note (when switch is set to Legato). Le-
gato is when you play a note without releasing the previ-
The circle in the middle contains the filter parameters. The
ously played note. Note that Legato mode only works with
central dial sets the filter cutoff parameter and the outer
monophonic Parts.
ring the filter type:
Ring modulation Parameter Description

Ring modulators multiply two audio signals. The ring-mod- Filter type Sets the filter type to either low pass, high pass, band
pass or notch. The filter types are described in the table
ulated output contains added frequencies generated by below.
the sum of, and the difference between, the frequencies of
Cutoff This dial controls the filter frequency or “cutoff”. If a low
the two signals. In Prologue, Osc 1 is multiplied with Osc pass filter is used, it could be said to control the opening
2 to produce sum and difference frequencies. Ring modu- and closing of the filter, producing the classic “sweep-
ing” synthesizer sound. How this parameter operates is
lation is often used to create bell-like sounds. governed by the filter type mode (see the table below).
• To hear the ring modulation, you should turn down the Emphasis This is the resonance control for the filter. For low pass
output level for Osc 1 and 2, and turn up the “R.Mod” level and high pass filters, raising the Emphasis value will em-
phasize the frequencies around the set cutoff frequency.
all the way. This produces a generally thinner sound, but with a
sharper, more pronounced cutoff sweep. The higher the
• If Osc 1 and 2 are tuned to the same frequency, and no filter Emphasis value, the more resonant the sound be-
modulation is applied to the Osc 2 pitch, nothing much comes until it starts to ring (self-oscillate), generating a
will happen. distinct pitch. For Band pass or Notch filters, the Empha-
sis setting adjusts the width of the band. When you raise
If you change the pitch of Osc 2, however, drastic changes in timbre can the value, the band where frequencies are let through
be heard. If the oscillators are tuned to a harmonic interval such as a fifth (Band pass), or cut (Notch) will become narrower.
or octave, the ring modulated output will sound harmonic, other intervals Drive This can be used to adjust the filter input level. Levels
will produce inharmonious, complex timbres. above 0dB will gradually introduce a soft distortion of the
input signal, and a decrease of the filter resonance.
• Oscillator Sync should be deactivated when using ring
modulation.

Noise Generator
A noise generator generates noise (all frequencies at
equal levels). Applications include simulating drum
sounds and breath sounds for wind instruments.

29
The included VST Instruments
Parameter Description Master Volume and Pan
Shift Internally, each filter consists of two or more “subfilters”
connected in series. This parameter shifts the cutoff fre-
quency of the subfilters. The result depends on the se-
lected filter type: For Low pass and High pass filter types
it changes the filter slope. For Band pass and Notch filter
types it changes the bandwidth. The Shift parameter has
no effect if either the 12dB LP or 12dB HP filter type is The master Volume controls the master volume (ampli-
selected.
tude) of the instrument. By default this parameter is con-
Tracking If this parameter is set to values over the 12 o’clock posi-
tion, the filter cutoff frequency will increase the further up
trolled by Envelope 1, to generate an amplitude envelope
on the keyboard you play. Negative values invert this rela- for the oscillators.
tionship.
If the Tracking parameter is set fully clockwise, the cutoff The Pan dial controls the position in the stereo spectrum
frequency will track the keyboard by a semitone per key. for the instrument. You can use Pan as a modulation des-
tination.
About the filter types
You select which filter type to use using the buttons Modulation and controllers
around the filter cutoff knob. The following filter types are
available (listed clockwise from 9 o’clock): The lower half of the control panel displays the various
Type Description modulation and controller assignment pages available as
well as the effect page. You switch between these pages
12db LP Low pass filters let low frequencies pass and cut out the
high frequencies. This low pass filter has a gentler slope using the buttons below the Filter section.
(12dB/Octave above the cutoff frequency), leaving more
of the harmonics in the filtered sound.
18dB LP This low pass filter also has a cascade design, attenuat-
ing frequencies above the cutoff frequency with a 18dB/
Octave slope, as used in the classic TB 303 synth.
24dB LP This filter type attenuates frequencies above the cutoff
frequency with a 24dB/Octave slope, which produces a
warm and fat sound.
The following pages are available:
24dB LP II This low pass filter has a cascade design which attenu-
ates frequencies above the cutoff frequency with a • The LFO page has two low frequency oscillators (LFOs)
24dB/Octave slope, which produces a warm and dark for modulating parameters – see below.
sound.
12dB Band This band pass filter cuts both high and low frequencies • The Envelope page contains the four Envelope genera-
above and below the cutoff frequency with a 12dB/Oc- tors which can be assigned to control parameters – see
tave slope, producing a nasal and thin sound. “Envelope page” on page 32.
12dB Notch This notch filter cuts off frequencies near the cutoff fre-
quency by 12dB/Octave, letting the frequencies below • The Event page contains the common MIDI controllers
and above through. This produces a phaser-like sound. (Mod wheel, Aftertouch, etc.) and their assignments – see
12dB HP A high pass filter is the opposite of a low pass filter, cut- “Event page” on page 33.
ting out the lower frequencies and letting the high fre-
quencies pass. This high pass filter has a 12dB/Octave • The Effect page has three separate effect types avail-
slope, giving a bright and thin sound. able; Distortion, Delay and Modulation – see “Effects
24dB HP This filter has a 24dB/Octave slope, giving a bright and (EFX) page” on page 34.
sharp sound.

30
The included VST Instruments
LFO page ple for random modulation. The Sample waveform is differ-
ent. In this mode, one LFO actually samples and holds the
This is opened by clicking the LFO button at the top of the
values of the other LFO at the chosen frequency.
lower half of the control panel. The page contains all pa-
rameters and the modulation and velocity destinations for Assigning LFO modulation destinations
two independent LFOs. Depending on the currently se-
lected Preset, there may already be modulation destina- To assign a modulation destination for a LFO, proceed as
tions assigned, in which case these are listed in the “Mod follows:
Dest” box for each LFO – see “Assigning LFO modulation 1. Click in the “Mod Dest” box for one of the LFOs.
destinations” on page 31. A low frequency oscillator A pop-up appears in which all possible modulation destinations are
(LFO) is used for modulating parameters, for example the shown. All Sound parameters as well as most LFO and Envelope param-
pitch of an oscillator (to produce vibrato), or for any pa- eters are available as destinations.
rameter where cyclic modulation is desired.
The two LFOs have identical parameters:
Parameter Description
Speed This governs the rate of the LFO. If MIDI Sync is activated
(see below), the available rate values are selectable as
note values, e.g. beat increments of the sequencer
tempo in Cubase AI.
Depth This controls the amount of modulation applied by the
LFO. If set to zero, no modulation is applied. Click here…
Waveform This sets the LFO waveform.
…to open the modulation
Sync mode This sets the sync mode for the LFO. See below for a de- destination pop-up.
(Part/MIDI/ scription.
Voice/Key)

About the sync modes 2. Select a destination, e.g. Filter Cut Off.
The selected modulation destination is now shown in the list. Beside the
The Sync modes determine how the LFO cycle affects the destination, a default value (50) has been set. The value represents the
notes you play: modulation amount.
Parameter Description
• You can set positive and negative modulation values by
Part In this mode, the LFO cycle is free running and will affect clicking on the value in the list, typing in a new value and
all the voices in sync. “Free running” means that the LFO
cycles continuously, and doesn’t reset when a note is pressing the Enter key.
played. To enter negative values type a minus sign followed by the value.
MIDI In this mode the LFO rate is synced in various beat incre- 3. Select a suitable LFO Waveform, Speed, Depth and
ments to MIDI clock.
Sync mode.
Voice In this mode each voice in the Part has its own indepen- You should now hear the filter cutoff being modulated by the LFO.
dent LFO cycle (the LFO is polyphonic). These cycles are
also free running – each key down starts anywhere in the 4. Using the same basic method, you can add any num-
LFO cycle phase.
ber of modulation destinations for the LFO.
Key Same as Voice except that it is not free running – for They will all be listed in the “Mod Dest” box.
each key down the LFO cycle starts over.
• To remove a modulation destination click on its name in
About the waveforms the list and select “Off” from the pop-up.

Most standard LFO waveforms are available for LFO modu-

lation. You use Sine and Triangle waveforms for smooth
modulation cycles, Square and Ramp up/down for different
types of stepped modulation cycles and Random or Sam-

31
The included VST Instruments
Assigning LFO velocity destinations On the Envelope page, the parameters for one of the four
envelope generators is shown at a time.
You can also assign LFO modulation that is velocity con-
trolled (i.e. governed by how hard or soft you strike a key). • You switch between the four envelopes in the section to
This is done as follows: the left.
Clicking on either of the four mini curve displays 1 to 4 will select it and
1. Click in the “Vel Dest” box for one of the LFOs. display the corresponding envelope parameters to the right. The mini
A pop-up appears with all possible velocity destinations are shown.
curve displays also reflect the envelope settings for each corresponding
2. Select a destination. envelope.
The selected velocity destination is now shown in the list. Beside the • Envelope generators have four parameters; Attack, De-
destination, a default value (50) has been set. The value represents the
cay, Sustain and Release (ADSR).
modulation amount. See below for an example of how velocity modula-
See below for a description of these.
tion works.
• You can set envelope parameters in two ways; either by
• You can set positive and negative values by clicking on
using the sliders or by click-dragging the curve in the En-
the value in the list, typing in a new value and pressing the
velope curve display.
Enter key.
You can also do this in the mini curve displays.
To enter negative values type a minus sign followed by the value.
• By default Envelope 1 is assigned to the master volume,
3. Using the same basic method, you can add any num-
and therefore acts as an amplitude envelope. The ampli-
ber of velocity destinations for the LFO.
They will all be listed in the “Vel Dest” box.
tude envelope is used to adjust how the volume of the
sound should change from the time you press a key until
• To remove a modulation destination click on its name in the key is released.
the list and select “Off” from the pop-up. If no amplitude envelope were assigned, there would be no output.
LFO modulation velocity control – an example: The Envelope parameters are as follows:
If you follow the steps above and select the filter cutoff pa- Attack
rameter as a Velocity destination, the following happens:
The attack phase is the time it takes from zero to the max-
• The harder you strike the key, the more the filter cutoff imum value. How long this should take, depends on the
parameter will be modulated by the LFO. Attack setting. If the Attack is set to “0”, the maximum
• If you enter a negative value for the velocity modulation value is reached instantly. If this value is raised, it will take
amount, the opposite happens; the harder you play the time before the maximum value is reached. Range is from
less the filter cutoff is modulated by the LFO. 0.0 milliseconds to 91.1 seconds.

Decay
Envelope page
The Envelope page is opened by clicking the ENV button at After the maximum value has been reached, the value
the top of the lower half of the control panel. The page con- starts to drop. How long this should take is governed by
tains all parameters and the modulation and velocity desti- the Decay time parameter. The Decay time has no effect if
nations for the four independent envelope generators. the Sustain parameter is set to maximum. Range is from
0.0 milliseconds to 91.1 seconds.
Envelope generators govern how a parameter value will
change when a key is pressed, when a key is held and fi- Sustain
nally when a key is released. The Sustain parameter determines the level the envelope
should rest at, after the Decay phase. Note that Sustain
represents a level, whereas the other envelope parame-
ters represent times. Range is from 0 to 100.

32
The included VST Instruments
Release Assigning Envelope velocity destinations
Release determines the time it takes for the value to fall You can also assign Envelope modulation that is velocity
back to zero after releasing the key. Range is from 0.0 mil- controlled (i.e. governed by how hard or soft you strike a
liseconds to 91.1 seconds. key). This is done as follows:

Punch 1. Click in the “Vel Dest” box for one of the envelopes.
A pop-up appears with all possible velocity destinations are shown.
When Punch is activated, the start of the decay phase is
delayed by a few milliseconds (i.e. the envelope remains at 2. Select a destination.
The selected velocity destination is now shown in the list. Beside the
the top level for a moment before moving on to the decay
destination, a default value (50) has been set. The value represents the
phase). The result is a punchier attack similar to a com- modulation amount. See below for an example of how velocity modula-
pressor effect. This effect is more pronounced with short tion works.
attack and decay times.
• You can set positive and negative values by clicking on
Retrigger the value in the list, typing in a new value and pressing the
Enter key.
When Retrigger is activated, the envelope will re-trigger
To enter negative values type a minus sign followed by the value.
each time you play a new note. However, with certain tex-
tures/pad sounds and a limited number of voices it is rec- 3. Using the same basic method, you can add any num-
ommended to leave the button deactivated, due to click ber of velocity destinations for the Envelope.
noises that might occur, when the envelope is ended up They will all be listed in the “Vel Dest” box.
abruptly. This is caused by the incoming re-trigger that • To remove a modulation destination click on its name in
forces the envelope to start over again. the list and select “Off” from the pop-up.
Assigning Envelope modulation destinations Envelope modulation velocity control – an example:
To assign a modulation destination for an Envelope, pro- If you follow the steps above and select the filter cutoff pa-
ceed as follows: rameter as a Velocity destination, the following happens:
1. Click in the “Mod Dest” box for one of the Envelopes. • The harder you strike the key, the more the filter cutoff
A pop-up appears with all possible modulation destinations are shown. parameter will be modulated by the Envelope.
All Sound parameters as well as most LFO and Envelope parameters are
available as destinations. • If you enter a negative value for the velocity modulation
amount, the opposite happens; the harder you play the
2. Select a destination, e.g. Filter Cut Off. less the filter cutoff is modulated by the Envelope.
The selected modulation destination is now shown in the list. Beside the
destination, a default value (50) has been set. The value represents the
modulation amount. Event page
The Event page is opened by clicking the EVENT button
• You can set positive and negative modulation values by
at the top of the lower half of the control panel. This page
clicking on the value in the list, typing in a new value and
contains the most common MIDI controllers and their re-
pressing the Enter key.
To enter negative values type a minus sign followed by the value.
spective assignments.

3. Select a suitable envelope curve for the modulation.

You should now hear the filter cutoff being modulated by the envelope as
you play.
4. Using the same basic method, you can add any num-
ber of modulation destinations for the envelope.
They will all be listed in the “Mod Dest” box.
• To remove a modulation destination click on its name in
the list and select “Off” from the pop-up.

33
The included VST Instruments
The following controllers are available: • Each separate effect section is laid out with a row of
Controller Description
buttons that determine the effect type or characteristic
and a row of sliders for making parameter settings.
Modulation The modulation wheel on your keyboard can be used to
Wheel modulate parameters. • To activate an effect, click the “Active” button so that a
Velocity Velocity is used to control parameters according to how dot appears.
hard or soft you play notes on your keyboard. A common Clicking again deactivates the effect.
application of velocity is to make sounds brighter and
louder if you strike the key harder.
Distortion
Aftertouch Aftertouch, or channel pressure, is MIDI data sent when
pressure is applied to a keyboard after the key has been You can select between 4 basic distortion characteristics:
struck, and while it is being held down or sustained. Af-
tertouch is often routed to control filter cutoff, volume, • Distortion provides hard clipping distortion.
and other parameters to add expression. Most (but not • Soft Distortion provides soft clipping distortion.
all) MIDI keyboards send Aftertouch.
• Tape Emulation produces distortion similar to magnetic tape
Key Pitch This can change parameter values linearly according to
Tracking where on the keyboard you play.
saturation.
• Tube Emulation produces distortion similar to valve amplifiers.
To assign any of these controllers to one or several pa- The parameters are as follows:
rameters, proceed as follows: Parameter Description
1. Click in the “Mod Dest” box for one of the controllers. Filter This parameter sets the crossover frequency of the dis-
A pop-up appears with all possible modulation destinations are shown. tortion filter. The distortion filter consists of a low pass fil-
ter and a high pass filter with a cutoff frequency equal to
All Sound parameters as well as most LFO and Envelope parameters are
the crossover frequency.
available as destinations.
Tone This parameter controls the relative amount of low pass
2. Select a destination. and high-pass filtered signal.
The selected modulation destination is now shown in the list. Beside the Drive Sets the amount of distortion by amplifying the input sig-
destination, a default value (50) has been set. The value represents the nal.
modulation amount when the controller is at its full range. Level This controls the output level of the effect.
• You can set positive and negative modulation values by
clicking on the value in the list, typing in a new value and Delay
pressing the Enter key.
You can select between 3 basic delay characteristics:
To enter negative values type a minus sign followed by the value.
• Stereo Delay has two separate delay lines panned left and
3. Using the same basic method, you can add any num-
right.
ber of modulation destinations for the controllers.
They will all be listed in the “Mod Dest” box for the respective controller.
• In Mono Delay the two delay lines are connected in series for
monophonic dual tap delay effects.
• To remove a modulation destination click on its name in • In Cross Delay the delayed sound bounces between the ste-
the list and select “Off” from the pop-up. reo channels.
The parameters are as follows:
Effects (EFX) page
Parameter Description
This page features three separate effect units: Distortion,
Delay and Modulation (Phaser/Flanger/Chorus). The Ef- Song Sync This switches tempo sync of the delay times on or off.

fect page is opened by clicking the EFX button at the top Delay 1 Sets the delay time ranging from 0ms to 728ms. If MIDI
sync is activated the range is from 1/32 to 1/1; straight,
of the lower half of the control panel. triplet or dotted.
Delay 2 Same as Delay 1.
Feedback This controls the decay of the delays. With higher set-
tings the echoes repeat longer.

34
The included VST Instruments
Parameter Description • A bonus effect of using lower sample rates is that it re-
Filter A low pass filter is built into the feedback loop of the de- duces the load on the computer CPU, allowing more si-
lay. This parameter controls the cutoff frequency of this multaneous voices to be played etc.
feedback filter. Low settings result in successive echoes
sounding darker.
Level This controls the output level of the effect. HALionOne
Modulation
You can select between 3 basic modulation characteristics:
• The Phaser uses an 8-pole allpass filter to produce the classic
phasing effect.
• The Flanger is composed of two independent delay lines with
feedback for the left and the right channel respectively. The
delay time of both delays is modulated by one LFO with ad-
justable frequency. HALionOne is a sample player that can play sound content
• Chorus produces a rich chorus effect with 4 delays modulated in the *.hsb (HALion Sound Bank) format. These samples
by four independent LFOs. have associated preset files that store the panel settings
The parameters are as follows: and reference the HSB samples. Included are several pre-
Parameter Description
sets (as *.vstpreset and *.trackpreset files).
Song Sync This switches tempo sync of the Rate parameter on or The operation of HALionOne is very simple; load a pre-
off. set (a *.vstpreset or a *.trackpreset file for an Instrument
Rate Sets the rate of the LFOs modulating the delay time. If Track) and start playing! You do, however, have the op-
Song Sync is activated the rate will be synced to various tion to tweak the basic parameters to tailor the sound to
beat increments.
your liking.
Depth This parameter controls the depth of the delay time mod-
ulation.
Delay This parameter sets the delay time of the four delay lines.
HALionOne parameters
Feedback The feedback parameter controls the amount of positive The HALionOne differs from other VST Instruments in that
or negative feedback for all four delay lines. The adjust-
able range is from -1 to 1. the panel parameters shown can vary according to which
parameters are stored in the HSB file. HSB files cannot
Level This controls the output level of the effect.
be created with HALionOne, and HALionOne reads only
the HSB files supplied with Cubase AI. In these files, cer-
SR parameters tain parameters are assigned as part of the file and the as-
With these buttons you can change the sample rate. sociated program (or preset). This means that for each
Lower sample rates basically reduces the high frequency preset, only these assigned parameters are shown on the
content and sound quality, but the pitch isn’t altered. This instrument panel. Typically, these are filter cutoff, DCA
is a great way to emulate the “lo-fi” sounds of older digital and DCF parameters and any assigned effect parameters
synths! (the effects are “built in”).
• If button “F” is active, the selected Part’s program will play
back with the sample rate set in the host application.
• If button “1/2” is active, the selected Part’s program will play
back with half the original sample rate.
• If button “1/4” is active, the selected Part’s program will play
back with a quarter of the original sample rate.

35
The included VST Instruments
If you load HALionOne for an Instrument track and select, MIDI and Disk activity LEDs
for example, the “Draw Organ” preset, the following pa-
The MIDI activity LED indicates received MIDI input. The
rameters are shown:
Disk LED will light up green when samples are streamed
Parameter Description from disk, and red when samples cannot be loaded from
Cutoff This allows you to adjust filter frequency or cutoff. The fil- disk in time. In such a case you should consider lowering
ter used is a Waldorf Low Pass filter with a 24dB slope. the Efficiency slider. When the disk LED doesn’t light up,
Resonance Raising the filter resonance value will emphasize the fre- samples are read from memory.
quencies around the set filter frequency.
DCF Amount Controls the amount of the DCF (filter) envelope. Locate Contents
DCA Attack Controls the time it takes for the DCA signal to reach its If you have moved the HALionOne content files to a differ-
highest level.
ent location (i.e. any other location than the folder in which
DCA Decay Controls the time it takes the DCA signal to decay to the it was stored at installation time), you need to use the Lo-
sustain level.
cate Contents function to inform HALion One about
DCA Sustain Controls the DCA signal level after the Decay phase, as where to find its files. This is done as follows:
long as you press the key on your MIDI keyboard.
DCA Release Controls the DCA signal after a key is released. • Right-click anywhere on the control panel and select
DCA Amount Controls the amount of the DCA (amplifier) envelope.
“Locate contents”.
A file dialog opens where you can navigate to the folder location.

These parameter assignments are used for many of the HALionOne and MIDI files
HALionOne presets, but not for all. As stated above, other
parameters may be shown; these will be clearly labelled When the Preferences option “Import to Instrument Tracks”
on the panel. For most of the presets there are also asso- is activated (on the MIDI–MIDI File page), importing a MIDI
ciated effects – the effect parameters are usually as- file into Cubase AI will automatically set up instrument
signed to the quick controls on the right and typically tracks, with HALionOne as the associated instrument. This
control the dry/wet mix of the effect. allows you to quickly audition any imported MIDI files, to
change parameter settings or to add effects, etc.
Effects Usage
• This button, located at the bottom right in the box dis-
playing the preset name, allows you to bypass any effects.
The blue LED beside the button is lit if any effects are used in the preset.

Efficiency slider
The Efficiency slider provides a way of balancing audio
quality vs. conservation of computer power. The lower the
setting, the more voices are available. As a trade-off,
sound quality is reduced.

Voices allocated
• The Voices field dynamically displays the number of
voices currently used.

36
The included VST Instruments
 3
MIDI effects
Introduction 4. Use the Length setting to set the length of the arpeggio
notes.
This chapter describes the included MIDI realtime effects This allows you to create staccato arpeggios (Length value smaller than
and their parameters. the Step Size setting) or arpeggio notes that overlap each other (Length
value greater than Step Size).
How to apply and handle MIDI effects is described in the
chapter “MIDI realtime parameters and effects” in the Op- 5. Set the Key Range parameter to 12.
eration Manual. This will make the notes arpeggiate within an octave.
6. Play a chord on your MIDI instrument.
Now, instead of hearing the chord, you will hear the notes of the chord
Arpache 5 played one by one, in an arpeggio.
7. Try the different arpeggio modes by clicking the Play
Order buttons.
The symbols on the buttons indicate the playback order for the notes (In-
vert, Up Only, etc.). The settings are described below.

Parameters
The Arpache 5 has the following settings:
Setting Description
Play Order Allows you to select the playback order for the arpeggi-
buttons ated notes. The options are Normal, Invert, Up only,
Down only, Random, User. If you select User, you can set
the playback order manually using the 12 Play Order
slots that are now shown at the bottom of the dialog.
Step Size Determines the speed of the arpeggio, as a note value re-
lated to the project tempo. The range is 32T (1/32 note
triplets) to “1.” (dotted note values).
A typical arpeggiator accepts a chord (a group of MIDI Length Sets the length of the arpeggio notes, as a note value re-
notes) as input, and plays back each note in the chord sep- lated to the project tempo. The range is the same as for
the Step Size setting.
arately, with the playback order and speed set by the user.
The Arpache 5 arpeggiator does just that, and more. Before Key Range Determines the arpeggiated note range, in semitones
counted from the lowest key you play. This works as
describing the parameters, let’s look at how to create a sim- follows:
ple, typical arpeggio: – Any notes you play that are outside this range will be
transposed in octave steps to fit within the range.
1. Select a MIDI track and activate monitoring (or record – If the range is more than one octave, octave-transposed
copies of the notes you play will be added to the arpeggio
enable it) so that you can play “thru” the track. (as many octaves as fit within the range).
Make sure that the track is properly set up for playback to a suitable MIDI
instrument.
2. Select and activate the arpeggiator.
For now, use it as an insert effect for the selected track.
3. In the arpeggiator panel, use the Step Size setting to
set the arpeggio speed.
The speed is set as a note value, relative to the project tempo. For exam-
ple, setting Step Size to “16” means the arpeggio will be a pattern of six-
teenth notes.

38
MIDI effects
Setting Description Classic vs. Sequence mode
Play Order If the User play order is selected, you can use these “slots” The Classic mode determines the basic behavior of the Ar-
slots to specify a custom playback order for the arpeggio notes:
Each of the 12 slots corresponds to a position in the ar- pache SX. When Sequence mode is selected, the Arpache
peggio pattern. For each slot, you specify which note SX uses the events of an additional MIDI part as a pattern.
should be played on that position by selecting a number. This pattern then forms the basis for the arpeggio, in con-
The numbers correspond to the keys you play, counted
from the lowest pressed key. junction with the MIDI input.
So, if you play the notes C3-E3-G3 (a C major chord),
“1” would mean C3, “2” would mean E3, and “3” would Classic mode
mean G3. Note that you can use the same number in sev-
eral slots, creating arpeggio patterns that are not possi- The following parameters are available:
ble using the standard play modes.
Please note that you need to begin with the left-most slot Parameter Description
and then fill the slots to the right.
Direction This allows you to choose how the notes in the chord you
play should be arpeggiated. In Classic mode you can
choose a value from a pop-up menu, in Sequence mode
you will find additional options, see below.
One Shot Activate this option if you want the phrase to be played
Mode only once. When this option is deactivated, the phrase
MIDI Thru If this is activated, the notes sent to the arpeggiator (i.e. will be looped.
the chord you play) will pass through the plug-in (sent out Transpose When a setting other than “Off” is selected, the arpeggio
together with the arpeggiated notes). will be expanded upwards, downwards or both (depend-
ing on the mode). This is done by adding transposed re-
peats of the basic arpeggio pattern.
Arpache SX Repeats The “Repeats” setting sets the number of transposed re-
peats.
Pitch Shift The “Pitch Shift” setting determines the transposition of
each repeat.
MIDI Thru If this is activated, the notes sent to the arpeggiator (i.e.
the chord you play) will pass through the plug-in (sent out
together with the arpeggiated notes).
Step Size Determines the resolution of the arpeggio, i.e. its “speed”
(in fixed note values or PPQ, if the PPQ button is acti-
vated). In Sequence mode you can also activate the “from
sequence” option, see below.
Length Determines the length of the arpeggio notes (in fixed note
values or PPQ, if the PPQ button is activated). In Se-
quence mode you can also activate the “from sequence”
option, see below.
Max. Determines how many notes should be accepted in the
Polyphony input chord. The “All” setting means there are no limita-
tions.
Sort by When you play a chord into the Arpache SX, the arpeg-
This is an even more versatile and advanced arpeggiator, giator will sort the notes in the chord in the order speci-
capable of creating anything from traditional arpeggios to fied here. For example, if you play a C-E-G chord, with
complex, sequencer-like patterns. The Arpache SX has “Note Lowest” selected, C will be the first note, E will be
the second and G the third. This affects the result of the
two different modes: Classic and Sequence. Arp Style setting.
Velocity Determines the velocity of the notes in the arpeggio. Us-
ing the slider you can set a fixed velocity, or you can acti-
vate the “via Input” button to use the velocity values of the
corresponding notes in the chord you play. In Sequence
mode you can also activate the “from sequence” option,
see below.

39
MIDI effects
Sequence mode Note also that you can choose to keep the original note tim-
ing, note length and note velocities from the dropped MIDI
In Sequence mode you can import a MIDI part into the Ar-
part, by selecting “from sequence” for the Step Size,
pache SX by dragging it from the Project window and drop-
Length and Velocity options.
ping it in the “Drop MIDI Sequence” field on the right of the
Arpache SX panel.
Now, the notes in the dropped MIDI part will be sorted in- Auto LFO
ternally, either according to their pitch (“MIDI Seq. sort by
pitch” checkbox activated) or according to their play order
in the part. This results in a list of numbers. For example, if
the notes in the MIDI part are C E G A E C and they are
sorted according to pitch, the list of numbers will read 1 2
3 4 2 1. Here, there are 4 different notes/numbers and 6
trigger positions.
The MIDI input (the chord you send into the Arpache SX)
will generate a list of numbers, with each note in the chord
corresponding to a number depending on the “Sort by”
setting.
Furthermore, the two lists of numbers will be matched –
the Arpache SX tries to play back the pattern from the
dropped MIDI part but using the notes from the MIDI input
(chord). The result depends on the Play Mode setting:
This plug-in works like an LFO in a synthesizer, allowing you
Option Description to send out continuously changing MIDI controller mes-
Trigger The whole pattern from the dropped MIDI file will be sages. One typical use for this is automatic MIDI panning,
played back, but transposed according to one of the but you can select any MIDI continuous controller event
notes in the MIDI input. Which note is used for transpos-
ing depends on the Sort by setting. type. The Auto LFO effect has the following parameters:
Trigger Cnt. As above, but even when all keys are released, the Waveform
phrase continues playing from the last position (where it
stopped), when a new key is pressed on the keyboard. These settings determine the shape of the controller
This is typically used when playing “live” through the Ar-
pache SX. curves sent out. You can click on a waveform symbol, or
Sort Normal Matches the notes in the MIDI input with the notes in the
choose a value from the pop-up menu.
dropped MIDI part. If there are fewer notes (numbers) in
the MIDI input, some steps in the resulting arpeggio will Wavelength
be empty.
This is where you set the speed of the Auto LFO, or rather
Sort First As above, but if there are fewer notes in the MIDI input,
the missing notes will be replaced by the first note. the length of a single controller curve cycle. Using the slider
or by choosing an entry from the pop-up menu, you can set
Sort Any As above, but if there are fewer notes in the MIDI input,
the missing notes will be replaced by any (random) note. this to rhythmically exact note values (or PPQ values if the
Arp. Style As above, but if there are fewer notes in the MIDI input,
PPQ button is activated). The lower the note value, the
the missing notes will be replaced by the last valid note in slower the speed. For example, if you set this to “1/8”, the
the arpeggio. waveform will be repeated every eighth note.
Repeat In this mode, the chords played will not be separated into
notes. Instead they will be used as is, and only the rhythm
of the dropped MIDI part is used for playback.

40
MIDI effects
Controller Type Overview
Determines which continuous controller type is sent out. When you open the control panel for the Beat Designer
Typical choices would include pan, volume and brightness, for the first time, it shows a display with 8 empty lanes,
but your MIDI instrument may have controllers mapped to each containing 16 steps.
various settings, allowing you to modulate the synth para-
Lane Name Step Jump mode Swing and
meter of your choice – check the MIDI implementation chart fields display Offset controls
for your instrument for details!

Density
This determines the density of the controller curves sent
out. The value can be set to “small”, “medium”, or “large”,
or to rhythmically exact note values (by choosing from the
pop-up menu). The higher the note value, the smoother
the controller curve. For example, if you set this to “1/16”,
a new controller event will be sent out at every 1/16 note
position.

Value Range
These two sliders are used to determine the range of con- Flam position Pattern display. Here the Swing settings, see
troller values sent out, i.e. the “bottom” and “top” of the settings, see 12 patterns are displayed “The Swing setting”
controller curves. “Adding flams” for the 4 subbanks. Click on page 43.
on page 44. on a “key” to select a pat-
tern and on a number to
select a subbank.
Beat Designer
The Beat Designer is a MIDI pattern sequencer that allows Patterns and subbanks
you to create your own drum parts or “patterns” for a
The Beat Designer patterns are saved as pattern banks.
project. With the Beat Designer, you can quickly and eas-
One pattern bank contains 4 subbanks which in turn con-
ily set up the drums for a project, by experimenting and
tain 12 patterns each.
creating new drum sequences from scratch.
In the pattern display in the lower part of the Beat Designer,
Normally, you will work on a short sequence, adjusting and
subbanks and patterns are displayed graphically. To select
modifying it while playing it back in a loop until you get the
a subbank, click on a number (1 to 4) at the top of the dis-
desired result. The drum patterns can then either be con-
play. To select a pattern within this subbank, click on a “key”
verted to MIDI parts on a track or triggered using MIDI
in the keyboard display below.
notes during playback, see “Converting patterns into MIDI
parts” on page 45 and “Triggering patterns” on page 45.
Initial settings
To use the Beat Designer, select it as MIDI insert effect for
The steps represent the beat positions in the pattern. You
a MIDI track (routed to a VSTi or an external device) or an
can specify the number of steps and the step resolution
instrument track.
globally for a pattern:
• Click in the “Number of steps for this pattern” value field
and enter the desired value.
The maximum number of steps is 64. By default, 16 steps are shown.

41
MIDI effects
• The playback length, i.e. the note value for the steps, Setting the velocity
can be specified in the Step resolution pop-up menu next
When entering a drum step, the velocity setting of this step
to the Number of Steps setting.
is determined by where you click: Click in the upper part of
On this menu, you can also set triplet values. These also affect the Swing
setting, see “The Swing setting” on page 43. The default setting is 1/16.
a step for the highest velocity setting, in the middle section
for a medium velocity and in the lower part for the lowest
velocity setting. This is a quick way of roughly setting the
velocity on the fly while entering drum sounds. In the dis-
Number of steps for this pattern Step resolution play, the different velocity settings are indicated by differ-
ent colors.

Selecting drum sounds • You can fine-tune the velocity setting for an existing
drum step by clicking on it and dragging up or down.
To specify a drum sound, click in the drum name field for a The current velocity is indicated numerically while you drag, allowing you
lane and select the desired drum sound from the pop-up to find the desired setting easily. The available range is from 1 to 127.
menu. The available drum sounds depend on the selected
drum map. If no drum map is selected for the track, the • You can also fine-tune the velocity for a range of drum
GM (General MIDI) drum names are used. steps. Click on the first step, drag up or down to enter into
velocity edit mode, and then drag sideways and up or
• To find the right sound, you can audition the selected down to modify the velocity for all the steps.
drum sound by clicking the Preview Instrument button (the
speaker icon). • If you hold down [Shift] while dragging up or down, you
can change the velocity for all steps on a lane.
Entering drum steps Ö If you change the velocity for several steps at the same
To enter a drum step, click on the step field where you time, the relative velocity differences will be kept for as long
want to add a beat. You could e.g. add a snare drum on as possible (until the minimum or maximum setting is
each downbeat for a lane and a bass drum on a second reached).
lane. When you click in an empty field, it becomes “filled”, The velocity for the steps will be increased or decreased by the same
indicating that you will hear a drum beat on this step. amount.

You can also click and drag to enter a continuous range of • You can also create a crescendo (or decrescendo) for
drum steps. an existing range of drum steps by holding down [Alt]/
[Option], clicking on the first step, dragging up or down
Ö When working on drum patterns, it is a good idea to and then dragging to the left or right.
play back a section of the project in a loop while inserting
the drum sounds, as this allows you to hear the result im- Editing operations
mediately.
• You can move all drum steps on a lane by holding down
[Shift], clicking on the lane and dragging to the left or right.
Removing steps
• You can also “invert” a lane, i.e. add drum sounds for all
• To remove a drum step, simply click on the correspond-
steps that were empty while removing all existing drum
ing field again.
steps. This lets you create unusual rhythmic patterns. To
• To remove a range of drum steps, click and drag over do so, hold down [Alt]/[Option] and drag the mouse over
them. the lane.
• You can copy the content of a lane onto another lane by
holding down [Alt]/[Option], clicking in the section to the
left of the lane you want to copy and dragging to the de-
sired position.
When you drag, a vertical line and a plus symbol will be displayed.

42
MIDI effects
Lane handling Option Description

If you find that you have too many or too few lanes in the Insert This creates a number of MIDI parts (one for each used pat-
Subbank at tern in the subbank) and inserts them one after the other,
Beat Designer, you can add or remove them. Cursor starting at the project cursor (see also “Converting patterns
into MIDI parts” on page 45).
• To add a lane, click on the “Add Instrument Lane” button
at the bottom right of the last lane shown. Insert Pat- This creates a MIDI part for the current pattern and inserts it
tern at Left in the Project window, at the left locator (see also “Convert-
• To remove a lane, click on the “Remove Instrument Lane” Locator ing patterns into MIDI parts” on page 45).

button in the controls section at the far right of the lane. Insert This creates a number of MIDI parts (one for each used pat-
Subbank at tern in the subbank) and inserts them one after the other,
• You can change the order of the drum lanes by clicking Left Locator starting at the left locator (see also “Converting patterns
into MIDI parts” on page 45).
in an empty area in the section to the left of a lane (i.e. not
on a button) and dragging it to another position. Fill Loop with This creates a MIDI part for the current pattern and inserts it
Pattern in the Project window as often as needed to fill the current
• You can mute or solo a lane by clicking the respective loop area (the space between the left and right locators),
see also “Converting patterns into MIDI parts” on page 45.
buttons to the left of the step display.

! The lane operations always affect all patterns in the • You can set up key commands for the Insert options
Beat Designer instance, not only the one you edit. and the Fill Loop command in the Key Commands dialog.
How to set up and use key commands is described in the chapter “Key
Commands” in the Operation Manual.
The Edit menu
The Swing setting
This parameter can be used to create a swing or shuffle
rhythm, which allows you to add a more human feel to
drum patterns that might otherwise be too static. This is
done by offsetting every second drum step for a lane. If a
triplet step resolution is used, every third drum step will be
offset instead.
This menu contains the following editing functions: In the lower right section of the Beat Designer panel, you
Option Description
can find two Swing sliders. Dragging a slider to the right
will delay every second (or third, see above) drum step in
Shift Left This moves all steps of the current pattern (all steps on all
lanes) to the left. the pattern. Dragging to the left will make them play a little
earlier.
Shift Right This moves all steps of the current pattern (all steps on all
lanes) to the right. You can set up two swing settings with these sliders and
Reverse Reverses the pattern, so that it plays backwards. then quickly switch between these during playback. By de-
Copy This copies the pattern to the clipboard. fault, the first swing setting is used (activated) in all lanes,
Pattern Copied patterns can be pasted into another pattern sub- but the slider is set to zero (middle position). Change the
bank (see below), and even directly into the project.
The default key command for this is [Ctrl]/[Command]-[C]. setting for this slider to hear how the pattern’s feel
changes.
Paste Allows you to paste a complete pattern, e.g. into another
Pattern pattern subbank, even into another instance of the Beat De-
signer. This is handy when you want to create variations
based on existing patterns.
The default key command for this is [Ctrl]/[Command]-[V].
Clear This resets the current pattern.
Pattern Drag the upper fader to set swing setting I and the lower fader to set
swing setting II.
Insert This creates a MIDI part for the current pattern and inserts it
Pattern at in the Project window, at the position of the project cursor
Cursor (see also “Converting patterns into MIDI parts” on page 45).

43
MIDI effects
You can switch between the two swing settings using the • When you add flams before the very first drum step in a
Swing buttons to the right of the step display. pattern, this is indicated in the display by a small arrow in
the top left corner of this step. This indicates that you have
to treat this pattern with special care in playback and ar-
ranging. Starting playback at the normal pattern start
would result in these flams not being played.
Click on the buttons to select the respective swing setting • Use the vertical sliders to the right of the flam sliders to
or click on a selected button to deactivate swing for this set the velocity for the flams.
lane.
4. Start playback to hear the flams you created.
Adding flams
Offsetting lanes
The Flam parameter lets you add flams (short secondary
To the right of the step display, you can find the Offset
drum hits just before or after the actual main drum beat).
sliders for the lanes. These allow you to offset all drum
You can add up to three flams for each pattern step: steps on this lane. Drag a slider to the left to make the
1. Click in the lower left corner of the step you want to drum steps start a little earlier and to the right to let them
add a flam to. start later.
Little squares appear in the step when you point with the mouse at the Playing e.g. the bass drum or snare a little earlier allows
step. After you clicked, the first square becomes filled to indicate that you to add more “urgency” to the drums, delaying these
you added a flam. drum sounds will result in a more relaxed drum pattern.
Click here to add up to three flams to the step.
Experiment with the settings to find out which fit best in
your project.
Note that this function can also be used to correct faulty
drum samples: If a drum sound has an attack that is slightly
2. Click again to add the second and third flam, if needed.
late, simply adjust the Offset slider for the lane.
3. In the lower left section of the Beat Designer panel
you can make settings for the flams you created. Saving and loading presets
Here, you can specify the flam positions for all steps containing one, You can save all 48 Beat Designer patterns as a pattern
two and three flams, respectively. bank. This can then be loaded in other projects. Pattern
banks contain all the step and lane settings for a pattern
(Mute and Solo, number and order of the lanes, pitch, etc.).
To save a pattern bank, proceed as follows:
1. In the Beat Designer, click on the Preset Management
With these sliders, you can specify the velocity for the separate flams.
button to the right of the preset name field.
• The first (topmost) Position slider specifies the flam po-
sition for all steps containing one single flam, the second
slider the flam positions for all steps containing two flams,
and the third slider the flam position for all steps contain-
2. On the pop-up menu select “Save Preset”.
ing three flams.
A dialog appears.
• Drag a Position slider to the left to add the flams before 3. Enter a name for the preset and click OK.
the drum step and to the right to add them after the step.
The preset will now be available on the Preset browser, in
the MediaBay and on the Apply Track preset pop-up
menu in the Track list.

44
MIDI effects
Pattern banks are handled much like Track presets in the You can also use the Edit menu to insert patterns or sub-
MediaBay. For further information, refer to the chapters banks into the project, see “The Edit menu” on page 43.
“The MediaBay” and “Track Presets” in the Operation
Manual. ! When you have created MIDI parts for your drum pat-
terns this way, make sure to deactivate the Beat
Using the drum patterns in your project Designer, to avoid doubling of the drums. The Beat
Designer will continue to play as long as it is activated.
You can use the drum patterns created with the Beat
Designer in two ways: either by converting them to MIDI • If you import patterns that sound before the first step
parts on a MIDI or Instrument track or by triggering the dif- (due to flams or lane offsets), the MIDI part will be length-
ferent patterns using MIDI notes. ened accordingly.
The inserted MIDI parts can now be edited as usual in the
Converting patterns into MIDI parts
project. You can e.g. fine-tune your settings in the Drum
You can convert the drum patterns created in the Beat Editor.
Designer into a MIDI part by dragging them into the
Project window. Ö Once a pattern is converted into a MIDI part, it cannot
be opened in the Beat Designer again.
Proceed as follows:
Triggering patterns
1. Set up one or more patterns of the same subbank.
When you want to be able to modify your drum patterns in
2. In the lower part of the window, click on a pattern or
the Beat Designer while working on the project, you can-
subbank and drag it at the desired position onto a MIDI or
not convert them into parts, as these cannot be opened
instrument track in the Project window.
again in the Beat Designer. Instead, you can trigger the
If you drag the pattern or subbank to an empty area in the Project win-
dow, a new MIDI track is created. This will be an exact copy of the origi-
patterns from within the project.
nal track for which you opened the Beat Designer. You can trigger the patterns in the Beat Designer using
Note On events. These can either be events on a MIDI track
Click here and drag to convert this subbank into separate MIDI parts.
or be played live via a MIDI keyboard. Which pattern will be
triggered depends on the pitch of the MIDI notes. The trig-
ger range is four octaves starting with C1 (i.e. C1 to B4).
Proceed as follows:

Click here and drag to convert this pattern into a MIDI part. 1. Open the Beat Designer for a track.
Again, this can be a MIDI or an instrument track.
• If you drag a single pattern into the Project window, one 2. Click to the left of the Jump field to activate Jump
MIDI part is created containing the drum sounds of the pat- mode.
tern. In this mode, a MIDI note-on event will trigger a new pattern.
• If you drag a subbank into the Project window, several
Click here to activate Jump mode.
MIDI parts (one for each used pattern in the subbank) are
created and inserted one after the other in the project.
! Only the used patterns in a subbank are inserted, i.e. • When you want to trigger the patterns using a MIDI part
if you did not enter drum steps in a pattern, this will containing trigger events, you can specify whether the
not be converted into a MIDI part. pattern will be switched directly (at the moment the event
is received) or at the next bar: Click in the field to the right
(where it says “Now”) to activate the immediate switching
of patterns. When this is activated, the word Now is dis-
played in white. When the word Now is black, patterns will
switch at the beginning of the next bar in the project.

45
MIDI effects
• When you want to trigger the patterns “live” via a MIDI Operating modes
keyboard, the new patterns are always played when the
In the lower left section of the Chorder window, you can
next bar in the project is reached.
choose an option from the Chords pop-up menu to de-
Switching immediately would always produce an undesirable interruption
in playback.
cide which keys in the keyboard display will be used to
record your chords.
Now, you can trigger the patterns in the following way:
Global Key
1. Play back the project and press a key on your MIDI key-
board to trigger the next pattern. In this mode, you can assign chords to each key on the
The pattern will start at the next bar line. keyboard display. When you play any of these keys, you
will hear the assigned chords instead.
2. Create a MIDI part and enter notes at the positions in
the project where you want to switch patterns. One Octave
Depending on the Jump mode setting, the new pattern will be played di-
rectly or start at the following bar. The One Octave mode is similar to the All Keys mode, but
you can only set up chords for each key of a single octave
• You can also drag a pattern or subbank into the Project
(that is, up to eight different chords on twelve keys). When
when Jump mode is active to automatically create MIDI
you play a note (e.g. C) on a different octave, you will hear
parts containing the trigger events.
a transposed version of the chords set up for this key.
Ö When triggering a pattern that contains sound before
Global Key
the first step (due to flams or lane offsets), these are taken
into account as well. In Global Key mode, you can set up chords for a single key
only. These chords (that you recorded on C3) are then
played by all keys on the keyboard, but transposed accord-
Chorder ing to the note you play.
The Chorder is a MIDI chord processor, allowing you to as-
sign complete chords to single keys in a multitude of varia- The chord indicator lane
tions. These can then be played back live or using recorded At the top of the keyboard display you will find a thin lane
notes on a MIDI track. with a small rectangle for each key that you can use to
There are three main operating modes: “All Keys”, “One record a chord. These rectangles are shown in blue for all
Octave”, and “Global Key”. You can switch between keys that already have chords assigned to them.
these modes using the Chords pop-up, see below. The chord indicator lane in One Octave mode with
chords set up for 5 of the 12 available trigger keys.
For every key you can record up to eight different chords
or variations on so-called “layers”. This is described in de-
tail in the section “Using Layers” on page 47.
Ö In Global Key mode the C3 key has a special marking
instead since this is the only key used in this mode.

46
MIDI effects
Entering chords • If more than one layer is shown, the Chorder will jump
automatically to the next layer where you can record an-
To enter chords you need to switch to Learn mode. In this
other chord.
mode a transparent red bar indicates which element is
When all the layers for a key are filled, the red bar will jump back to the
ready for “learning” a note or chord. When you choose the keyboard display so that you can choose a different trigger key (in Global
trigger note for a chord, for example, the keyboard display Key mode the Learn mode is deactivated instead).
is shown in red.
• If you are entering chords with the mouse, the Chorder
will not jump to the next layer automatically.
You can select/deselect as many notes as you wish and then click on an-
other layer or deactivate the Learn mode to continue.
The keyboard display in Learn mode 4. Repeat the above with any other keys you wish to use.

Using Layers
The Layers pop-up menu at the bottom right of the win-
dow allows you to set up chord variations in the layer dis-
play above the keyboard. This works with all three modes
and provides up to eight variations for each assignable
key (that is, a maximum of 8 different chords in Global Key
mode, 12 x 8 chords in One Octave mode and 128 x 8
chords in All Keys mode).
The different layers can be triggered by velocity or interval.
The second layer in Learn mode
Proceed as follows to set up your layers:
Proceed as follows:
1. Open the Layers pop-up menu and select Velocity or
1. Click the Learn button at the top of the Chorder win- Interval. Set this to Single Mode if you want to set up only
dow to activate Learn mode. one chord per key.
The chord indicator lane is now tinted red, indicating that it is active.
2. Use the slider below the Layers pop-up menu to spec-
2. Select the key to which you want to assign a chord by ify how many variations (layers) you want to use.
clicking on it on the keyboard display, or by pressing the
key on a connected MIDI keyboard. 3. Enter the chords as described above.
The red bar will now move to the first layer, indicating that you are ready 4. Now you can play the keyboard and trigger the varia-
to record the first chord. tions according to the selected layer mode.
Ö In Global Key mode you do not have to choose a trig- The layer modes work as follows:
ger key. The first layer is activated directly.
Trigger mode Description
3. Play a chord on the MIDI keyboard and/or use the Velocity The full velocity range (1–127) is divided into “zones”,
mouse to enter or change the chord in the layer display. according to the number of layers you specified. For ex-
Any notes you enter are immediately shown in the Chorder display. The ample, if you’re using two variations (Number of Layers is
set to 2) there will be two velocity “zones”: 1–63 and
notes are shown in different colors, depending on the pitch. 64–127. Playing a note with velocity 64 or higher will
trigger the second layer, while playing a softer note will
• If you are entering chords via a MIDI keyboard, the trigger the first layer.
Chorder will learn the chord as soon as you release all Using the “Velocity spread” slider at the bottom right of
keys of your MIDI keyboard simultaneously. the window, you can change the velocity ranges of the
layers so that a different layer will be activated using the
As long as a key is pressed, you can continue looking for the right chord. same velocity value.

47
MIDI effects
Trigger mode Description Playstyle Description
Interval In this mode, the Chorder will play one chord at a time – fast down Similar to “fast up”, but starting with the highest note.
you cannot play several different chords simultaneously.
When the Interval mode is selected, you press two keys on slow down Similar to “slow up”, but starting with the highest note.
your keyboard to trigger the desired layer, with the lower fast random In this mode the notes are played back in a rapidly
key determining the base note for the chord. The layer changing random order.
number will be the difference, i.e. the interval, between the
two keys. To select layer 1, press a key one semitone slow random Similar to “fast random”, but the note changes occur
higher than the base note, for layer 2, press a key two more slowly.
semitones higher, and so on.
Single Mode Select this if you do not wish to use different layers.
Compressor
Empty layers
If you enter less chords than layers present for a key, these
layers will be filled automatically when you end the Learn
mode.
This works according to the following rules:
• Empty layers are filled from bottom to top.
This MIDI compressor is used for evening out or expanding
• If there are empty layers below the first layer with a differences in velocity. Though the result is similar to what
chord, these are filled from top to bottom. you get with the Velocity Compression track parameter, the
An example: Compress plug-in presents the controls in a manner more
like regular audio compressors. The parameters are:
If you have a setup with 8 layers, and you enter the chord
Parameter Description
C in layer 3 and G7 in layer 7, you get the following result:
chord C in layers 1 to 6 and G7 in layers 7 and 8. Threshold Only notes with velocities above this value will be affected
by the compression/expansion.
Resetting layers Ratio This determines the rate of compression applied to the
velocity values above the threshold level. Ratios greater
In Learn mode, you can use the “Reset layers” button at than 1:1 result in compression (i.e. less difference in ve-
the top left of the Chorder window to delete all notes in locity) while ratios lower than 1:1 result in expansion (i.e.
greater difference in velocity).
the different layers for the selected trigger key. What actually happens is that the part of the velocity
value that is above the threshold value is divided by the
ratio value.
Gain This adds or subtracts a fixed value from the velocities.
Since the maximum range for velocity values is 0–127,
you may need to use the Gain setting to compensate,
keeping the resulting velocities within the range. Typi-
cally, you would use negative Gain settings when ex-
Playstyle panding and positive Gain settings when compressing.
From the Playstyle pop-up menu at the bottom of the pane
you can choose one of seven different styles that deter-
mine in which order the individual notes of the chords are
played back.
The options are as follows:
Playstyle Description
simultaneous In this mode all notes are played back simultaneously.
fast up In this mode a small arpeggio is added, starting with
the lowest note.
slow up Similar to “fast up”, but using a slower arpeggio.

48
MIDI effects
Context Gate Mono Mode – Channel Gate
When this is activated, only single note events in a speci-
fied MIDI channel are let through, which can be used with
MIDI controllers that can send MIDI over several channels
simultaneously, for example guitar controllers which send
data for each string over a separate channel.
• You can set Mono Channel to a specific channel (1–16),
or to “Any”, i.e. no channel gating.

Mono Mode – Velocity Gate

This can be used independently or in conjunction with the
Channel Gate function. Played notes will sound (no note-
off message) until a note is played inside the set range (and
additionally the set Channel Gate channel, if checked).
• The Key Range Limit sliders are used to set the key
range.
The Context Gate allows for selective triggering/filtering Only notes within this range will be let through.
of MIDI data. It features two modes: in Poly Mode the
Context Gate recognizes certain chords that are played • Notes below the Minimum Velocity threshold value will
and in Mono Mode only certain MIDI notes are let through. be gated.
These modes can be used for context selective control of
Auto Gate Time
MIDI devices and are, for example, very useful in certain
live scenarios. If there is no input activity, all resounding notes are sent a
note-off message after the set time, in seconds or milli-
The following parameters are available:
seconds.
Poly Mode – Polyphony Gate
Panic Reset button
This allows you to filter MIDI according to the number of
Sends an “All Notes Off” message over all channels, in
pressed keys within a given key range. This can be used
case of hanging notes.
independently or in conjunction with the Chord Gate
function. Learn Reset button
• The Key Range Limit sliders are used to set the key When this is activated, you can specify a Reset trigger
range. event via MIDI. Whenever this specific MIDI event is sent,
Only notes within this range will be let through. it triggers an “All Notes Off” message. When you have set
• The “Minimum Polyphony” value field allows you to spec- the Reset event, the Learn button should be deactivated.
ify the minimum number of notes required to open the gate.

Poly Mode – Chord Gate

When Chord Gate is activated, only notes in recognized
chords are let through.
• Two Recognition modes are available: Simple and Nor-
mal. In Simple mode, all standard chords (major/minor/b5/
dim/sus/maj7 etc.) are recognized, whereas Normal mode
takes more tensions into account.

49
MIDI effects
Application examples Density
Poly Mode
In Poly mode, you could use the Context Gate to accom-
pany yourself during a live guitar performance using a VST
instrument. To do this, you might use a guitar to MIDI con-
verter: You could then program the Context Gate, for exam- This generic control panel affects the “density” of the notes
ple, to allow only those notes to pass the gate that are part being played from (or thru) the track. When this is set to
of a four-note chord. During your performance you would 100%, the notes are not affected. Lowering the Density
then play a four-note chord every time that you want to trig- setting below 100% will randomly filter out or “mute” notes.
ger the VST instrument. The instrument will play until the Raising the setting above 100% will instead randomly add
Auto Gate Time is reached and fade out. For more complex notes that have been played before.
performances this can be combined with an arpeggiator,
without having to use external pedals to trigger the effect.
Micro Tuner
Mono Mode
In Mono Mode you could use the Context Gate to trigger
variations played with a drum machine/VST instrument. To
do this, you will need a guitar to MIDI converter: You could
then filter the MIDI channel using the Input Transformer
(optional) and program the Context Gate to allow only
certain notes on your guitar to pass the gate (e.g. begin-
ning at the 12th band). When you now play one of these
notes, the note-off command will not be send out and the
corresponding note will sound until the note is played
again, a new note is let through, or the Auto Gate Time is
reached. This way you can trigger lots of different effects
or notes using the high notes on you guitar without having
to use an additional MIDI instrument.
The Micro Tuner lets you set up a different microtuning
scheme for the instrument, by detuning each key.
• Each Detune slider corresponds to a key in an octave (as indi-
cated by the keyboard display). Adjust a Detune field to raise or
lower the tuning of that key, in cents (hundreds of a semitone).
• By keeping the [Alt]/[Option] key pressed, you can adjust all
keys by the same amount.
The Micro Tuner comes with a number of presets, includ-
ing both classical and experimental microtuning scales.

50
MIDI effects
MIDI Control This is an advanced MIDI Echo, which will generate addi-
tional echoing notes based on the MIDI notes it receives.
It creates effects similar to a digital delay, but also features
MIDI pitch shifting and much more. As always it is impor-
tant to remember that the effect doesn’t “echo” the actual
audio, but the MIDI notes which will eventually produce
the sound in the synthesizer.
The following parameters are available:

Velocity Offset
This parameter allows you to raise or lower the velocity
values for each repeat so that the echo fades away or in-
This generic control panel allows you to select up to eight creases in volume (provided that the sound you use is ve-
different MIDI controller types, and use the value fields or locity sensitive). For no change of velocity, set this to 0
sliders (which are displayed when you click on a value field (middle position).
while holding down the [Alt]/[Option] key) to set values for
these. A typical use for this would be if you’re using a MIDI Pitch Offset
instrument with parameters that can be controlled by MIDI If you set this to a value other than 0, the repeating (echo-
controller data (e.g. filter cutoff, resonance, levels, etc.). By ing) notes will be raised or lowered in pitch, so that each
selecting the correct MIDI controller types, you can use the successive note has a higher or lower pitch than the pre-
plug-in as a control panel for adjusting the sound of the in- vious. The value is set in semitones.
strument from within Cubase Essential, at any time.
For example, setting this to -2 will cause the first echo
• To select a controller type, use the pop-up menus to the right. note to have a pitch two semitones lower than the original
• To deactivate a controller slider, set it to “Off” (drag the slider note, the second echo note two semitones lower than the
all the way down). first echo note, and so on.

Repeats
MIDI Echo
This is the number of echoes (1 to 12) from each incom-
ing note.

Beat Align
During playback, the Beat Align parameter quantizes the
position of the first echo note. You can either set this to
“rhythmically exact” values (displayed as note values – see
the table below) or activate the PPQ button and choose a
PPQ value.
Setting this to “1/8”, for example, will cause the first echo
note to sound on the first eighth position after the original
note.

Ö The echo time can also be affected by the Delay De-

cay parameter.

Ö During live mode, this parameter has no effect since

the first echo will always be played together with the note
event itself.

51
MIDI effects
Delay tween the rhythmically relevant values (displayed as note
values), the following table can also be of help, showing
The echoed notes will be repeated as set up with this pa-
you the most common note values and their correspond-
rameter. You can either set this to “rhythmically exact” val-
ing number of ticks:
ues (displayed as note values – see the table below) or
activate the PPQ button and choose a PPQ value. This Note Value Ticks
makes it easy to find rhythmically relevant delay values, but 1/32 note 60
still allows experimental settings in between. 1/16 note triplet 90

Delay Decay 1/16 note 120

1/8 note triplet 160
This parameter lets you adjust how the echo time should
1/8 note 240
be changed with each successive repeat. The value is set
as a percentage. Quarter note triplet 320
Quarter note 480
• When set to 100% (middle position) the echo time will be the
same for all repeats (as set with the Delay parameter). Half note 960

• If you raise the value above 100%, the echoing notes will play
with gradually longer intervals (i.e. the echo will become
slower).
MIDI Modifiers
• If you lower the value below 100%, the echoing notes will be- This plug-in is essentially a duplicate of the MIDI Modifiers
come gradually faster, like the sound of a bouncing ball. section in the Inspector. This can be useful, for example, if
you need extra Random or Range settings.
Length
The MIDI Modifiers effect also includes an additional func-
This sets the length of the echoed notes. This can either
tion that isn’t available among the track parameters:
be identical with the length of the original notes (parame-
ter set to its lowest value) or the length you specify manu- Scale Transpose
ally. You can either set this to “rhythmically exact” values
(displayed as note values – see the table below) or activate
the PPQ button and choose a PPQ value.

Ö The length can also be affected by the Length Decay

parameter.
This allows you to transpose each incoming MIDI note, so
Length Decay that it fits within a selected musical scale. The scale is
specified by selecting a key (C, C#, D, etc.) and a scale
This parameter lets you adjust how the length of the ech- type (major, melodic or harmonic minor, blues, etc.).
oed notes should change with each successive repeat.
The higher the setting (25–100), the longer the echoed Ö To turn Scale Transpose off, select “No Scale” from
notes will be, compared to their original notes. the Scale pop-up menu.

About ticks and note values

The timing and position-related parameters (Delay, Length
and Beat Align) can all be set in ticks (or PPQ which de-
notes the same thing here). There are 480 ticks to each
quarter note. While the parameters allow you to step be-

52
MIDI effects
MIDI Monitor Ö The larger the buffer, the more processing resources
are required. To avoid a negative impact on your system’s
performance, make sure to use the smallest possible buffer
size.

Export function
Click the Export button to export the monitoring data as a
simple text file.

Record events button

Use this button to the left of the Inputs section to start or
stop the monitoring of MIDI events.

Clear list button

The Clear List button to the left of the Show section al-
lows you to clear the table of recorded MIDI events.
The MIDI Monitor is used to monitor incoming MIDI events.
You can choose whether to analyze live or playback events Note to CC
and which types of MIDI data are to be monitored. Use this,
for example, to analyze which MIDI events are being gener-
ated by a MIDI track, or to find “suspicious” events, such as
notes with velocity 0 that certain MIDI devices might fail to
interpreted as note-off events.
This effect will generate a MIDI continuous controller
Inputs section event for each incoming MIDI note. The value of the con-
In this section you can choose whether to monitor Live troller event corresponds to the velocity of the MIDI note,
Events or Playback Events. which is then used to control the selected MIDI controller
(by default CC 7, Main Volume). For each note end, an-
Show section other controller event with the value 0 is sent. The incom-
ing MIDI notes pass through the effect unaffected.
Here, you can activate/deactivate the different types of
MIDI events, e.g. notes or program change events. If you The purpose of this plug-in is to generate a gate effect. This
choose the Controller option you can also define which means that the notes played are used to control something
type of controller to monitor. else. For example, if Main Volume (CC 7) is selected, notes
with low velocity will lower the volume in the MIDI instru-
Data table ment, while notes with a high velocity will raise the volume.
In the table in the lower section of the window, you will see ! Note that a controller event is sent out each time a
detailed information about the monitored MIDI events.
new note is played. If high and low notes are played
Buffer pop-up menu simultaneously, this may lead to confusing results.
Therefore, the Note to CC effect is best applied to
In the Buffer pop-up menu you can set the buffer size to monophonic tracks (playing one note at a time).
100, 1000 or 10000 events. This is the maximum number
of events that is kept in the list of monitored events. Once
this list is full, the oldest entries will be deleted when new
events are received.

53
MIDI effects
Quantizer Step Designer
Shift octave Shift steps Number of Step Swing
up/down left/right steps size

Quantizing is a function that changes the timing of notes

by moving them towards a “quantize grid”. This grid may
consist of e.g. straight sixteenth notes (in which case the
notes would all get perfect sixteenth note timing), but
could also be more loosely related to straight note value
positions (applying a “swing feel” to the timing, etc.).
Controller pop-up menu Pattern selector
Ö The main Quantize function in Cubase Essential is de-
scribed in the Operation Manual. The Step Designer is a MIDI pattern sequencer that sends
out MIDI notes and additional controller data according to
While the Quantize function on the MIDI menu applies the
the pattern you set up. It does not make use of the incom-
timing change to the actual notes on a track, the Quantizer
ing MIDI, other than automation data (such as recorded
effect allows you to apply quantizing “on the fly”, changing
pattern changes).
the timing of the notes in real time. This makes it easier to
try out different settings when creating grooves and Creating a basic pattern
rhythms. Note however, that the main Quantize function
contains settings and features that are not available in the 1. Use the Pattern selector to choose which pattern to
Quantizer. create.
Each Step Designer can hold up to 200 different patterns.
The Quantizer has the following parameters:
2. Use the “Step size” setting to specify the “resolution”
Parameter Description
of the pattern.
Quantize Note This sets the note value on which the quantize grid is In other words, this setting determines how long each step is. For exam-
based. Straight notes, triplets and dotted notes are avail- ple, if this is set to “1/16” each step will be a sixteenth note.
able. For example, “16” means straight sixteenth notes
and “8T” means eighth note triplets. 3. Specify the number of steps in the pattern with the
Swing This allows you to offset every second position in the “Number of steps” setting.
grid, creating a swing or shuffle feel. The value is a per- As you can see in the note display, the maximum number of steps is 32.
centage – the higher you set this, the farther to the right
every even grid position is moved. For example, setting “Step size” to 16 and “Number of steps” to 32
would create a two bar pattern with sixteenth note steps.
Strength This determines how close the notes should be moved to
the quantize grid. When set to 100%, all notes will be 4. Click in the note display to insert notes.
forced to the closest grid position; lowering the setting
You can insert notes on any of the 32 steps, but the Step Designer will
will gradually loosen the timing.
only play back the number of steps set with the Step size parameter.
Delay This delays (positive values) or advances (negative val-
ues) the notes in milliseconds. Unlike the Delay setting in
the Track Parameters, this delay can be automated.
Realtime During live mode this option can be used to change the
quantize timing of the notes played so that they fit the quantize grid.

54
MIDI effects
• The display spans one octave (as indicated by the pitch Adding controller curves
list to the left). You can scroll the displayed octave up or
The Controller pop-up menu has two more items: two
down by clicking in the pitch list and dragging up or down.
controller types.
This way you can insert notes at any pitch. Note that each step can contain
one note only – the Step Designer is monophonic. • You can select which two controller types (filter cutoff,
resonance, volume, etc.) should be available on the pop-
up menu by clicking the Setup button and selecting con-
trollers from the lists that appears.
This selection is global, i.e. it applies to all patterns.
• To insert controller information in a pattern, select the
desired controller from the pop-up menu and click in the
controller display to draw events.
Click and drag to view other octaves.
The MIDI controller events will be sent out during playback along with the
notes.
• To remove a note from the pattern, click on it again.
5. On the Controller pop-up menu, select Velocity.
This pop-up menu determines what is shown in the lower controller
display.
6. Adjust the velocity of the notes by dragging the veloc-
ity bars in the controller display.

Ö If you drag a controller event bar all the way down, no

controller value is sent out on that step.

Other pattern functions

The following functions make it easier to edit, manipulate
and manage patterns:
7. To make notes shorter, select “Gate” on the Controller Function Description
pop-up menu and lower the bars in the controller display.
Shift Octave These buttons allow you to shift the entire pattern up or
When a bar is set to its maximum value (fully up), the corresponding note up/down down in octave steps.
will be the full length of the step (as set with the Step size parameter).
Shift Steps Moves the pattern one step to the left or right.
8. To make notes longer, you can tie two notes together. left/right
This is done by inserting two notes and clicking in the Tie Reverse Reverses the pattern, so that it plays backwards.
column for the second note. Copy/Paste Allows you to copy the current pattern and paste it in an-
When two notes are tied, the second note will not be triggered – the other pattern location (in the same Step Designer in-
previous note is lengthened instead. Also, the tied (second) note will au- stance or another).
tomatically get the same pitch as the first note. You can add more notes Reset Clears the pattern, removing all notes and setting con-
and tie them in the same way, creating longer notes. troller values to default.
Randomize Generates a completely random pattern – useful for ex-
9. If you now start playback in Cubase Essential, the pat- perimenting.
tern will play as well, sending out MIDI notes on the track’s
Swing The Swing parameter allows you to offset every second
MIDI output and channel (or, if you have activated the step, creating a swing or shuffle feel. The value is a per-
Step Designer as a send effect, on the MIDI output and centage – the higher you set this, the farther to the right
channel selected for the send in the Inspector). every even step is moved.
Presets Handling of presets is described in the chapter “MIDI re-
altime settings” in the Operation Manual. Note that a
stored Preset contains all 200 patterns in the Step De-
signer.

55
MIDI effects
Automating pattern changes Track Control
You can create up to 200 different patterns in each Step
Designer – just select a new pattern and add notes and
controllers as described above.
Typically, you want the pattern selection to change during
the project. You can accomplish this by automating the
Pattern selector, either in real time by activating the Write
automation and switching patterns during playback or by
drawing in the automation track for the Step Designer’s
MIDI track. Note that you can also press a key on your MIDI
keyboard to change patterns. For this, you have to set up
the Step Designer as an insert effect for a record enabled
MIDI track. Press C1 to select pattern 1, C#1 to select pat-
tern 2, D1 to select pattern 3, D#1 to select pattern 4 and
so on. If you want, you can record these pattern changes as
note events on a MIDI track. Proceed as follows:
1. Select the desired MIDI track or create a new one and
activate the Step Designer as an insert effect.
2. Set up several patterns as described above. The Track Control effect contains three ready-made control
3. Press the Record button and press the desired keys panels for adjusting parameters on a GS or XG compatible
on your keyboard to select the corresponding patterns. MIDI device. The Roland GS and Yamaha XG protocols are
The pattern changes will be recorded on the MIDI track. extensions of the General MIDI standard, allowing for more
sounds and better control of various instrument settings. If
4. Stop recording and play back the MIDI track. your instrument is compatible with GS or XG, the Track
You will now hear the recorded pattern changes.
Controls effect allows you to adjust sounds and effects in
Ö This will only work for the first 92 patterns. your instrument from within Cubase Essential.

Selecting a control panel

At the top of the Track Controls effect window you will
find a pop-up menu. This is where you select which of the
available control panels to use:
Control panel Description
GS 1 Effect sends and various sound control parameters for
use with instruments compatible with the Roland GS
standard.
XG 1 Effect Sends and various sound control parameters for
use with instruments compatible with the Yamaha XG
standard.
XG 2 Global settings (affecting all channels) for instruments
compatible with the Yamaha XG standard.

56
MIDI effects
About the Reset and Off buttons XG 1
Regardless of the selected mode, you will find two buttons The following controls are available when the XG 1 mode
labelled “Off” and “Reset” at the top of the control panel: is selected:
• Clicking the Off button will set all controls to their low- Control Description
est value, without sending out any MIDI messages. Send 1 Send level for the reverb effect.

• Clicking the Reset button will set all parameters to their Send 2 Send level for the chorus effect.
default values, and send out the corresponding MIDI mes- Send 3 Send level for the “variation” effect.
sages. Attack Adjusts the attack time of the sound. Lowering this value
For most parameters, the default values will be zero or “no adjustment”, shortens the attack, while raising it gives a slower attack.
but there are exceptions to this. For example, the default “Send 1” setting Middle position means no adjustment is made.
is 64. Release Adjusts the release time of the sound. Lowering this value
shortens the release, while raising it makes the release
GS 1 time longer. Middle position means no adjustment is made.
Harm.Cont Adjusts the harmonic content of the sound.
The following controls are available when the GS 1 Con-
trols mode is selected: Bright Adjusts the brightness of the sound.
CutOff Adjusts the filter cutoff frequency.
Control Description
Resonance Adjusts the filter resonance.
Send 1 Send level for the reverb effect.
Send 2 Send level for the chorus effect.
XG 2
Send 3 Send level for the “variation” effect.
In this mode, the parameters affect global settings in the
Attack Adjusts the attack time of the sound. Lowering the value
shortens the attack, while raising it gives a slower attack. instrument(s). Changing one of these settings for a track
Middle position (64) means no adjustment is made. will in fact affect all MIDI instruments connected to the
Decay Adjusts the decay time of the sound. Lowering the value same MIDI output, regardless of the MIDI channel setting
shortens the decay, while raising it makes the decay of the track. Therefore, to avoid confusion it might be a
longer.
good idea to create an empty track and use this only for
Release Adjusts the release time of the sound. Lowering the value these global settings.
shortens the release, while raising it makes the release
time longer. The following controls are available:
Cutoff Adjusts the filter cutoff frequency.
Control Description
Resonance Adjusts the filter resonance.
Eff. 1 This allows you to select which type of reverb effect should
Express Allows you to send out expression pedal messages on be used: No effect (the reverb turned off), Hall 1–2, Room
the track’s MIDI channel. 1–3, Stage 1–2 or Plate.
Ch. Press. Allows you to send out aftertouch (channel pressure) Eff. 2 This allows you to select which type of chorus effect
messages on the track’s MIDI channel. This is useful if should be used: No effect (the chorus turned off), Chorus
your keyboard cannot send aftertouch, but you have 1–3, Celeste 1–3 or Flanger 1–2.
sound modules that respond to aftertouch. The default
value for this parameter is zero. Eff. 3 This allows you to select one of a large number of “varia-
tion” effect types. Selecting “No Effect” is the same as
Breath Allows you to send breath control messages on the turning off the variation effect.
track’s MIDI channel.
Reset Sends an XG reset message.
Modul. Allows you to send modulation messages on the track’s
MIDI channel (just as you normally do with a modulation MastVol This is used to control the Master Volume of an instru-
wheel on a MIDI keyboard). ment. Normally you should leave this in its highest posi-
tion and set the volumes individually for each channel
(with the volume faders in the Cubase Essential mixer or
in the Inspector).

57
MIDI effects
Transformer Column Description
Condition This determines how the Transformer should compare
the property in the Filter Target column to the values in
the Parameter columns (Equal, Unequal, Bigger, etc. –
see the separate table below). The available options de-
pend on the Filter Target setting.
Parameter 1 Here you set which value the event properties should be
compared to (a numeric value or a choice from a pop-up
menu, depending on the Filter Target).
Parameter 2 This column is only used if you have selected one of the
“Range” options in the Condition column. Typically, this
allows you to find all events with values inside (or out-
side) the range between Parameter 1 and Parameter 2.
Right bracket This is used for “bracketing” several lines together, see
With the Transformer you can perform very powerful MIDI “Combining multiple condition lines” on page 60.
processing on the fly, without affecting the actual MIDI bool This allows you to insert the boolean operators And/Or,
events on the track. when creating conditions with multiple lines, see “Com-
bining multiple condition lines” on page 60.

Setting up filter conditions

Conditions
Depending on the Filter Target setting, the following op-
tions can be selected in the Condition column:
The upper list is where you set up the filter conditions, de-
Condition Events will be found if their Filter Target property…
termining which elements to find. The list can contain one
Equal …has the exact same value as set up in the Parameter 1
or several conditions, each on a separate line. column.
• To add a new condition, click the Add button (+) below Unequal …has any value other than the one set up in the Parameter 1
the list. column.
A new line is added at the bottom of the list. If there are many lines, you Bigger …has a value higher than the one set up in the Parameter 1
may need to use the scrollbar to the right to view them. column.
Bigger or …has a value that is the same as or higher than the one set
• To remove a condition, select it and click the Delete Equal up in the Parameter 1 column.
button (-) below the list.
Less …has a value lower than the one set up in the Parameter 1
column.
Ö If you have already defined filter conditions and/or ap-
plied a preset, but want to start again from scratch, you Less or …has a value that is the same as or lower than the one set
Equal up in the Parameter 1 column.
can initialize the settings by selecting the Init option from
the Presets pop-up menu. Inside …has a value that is between the values set up in the Para-
Range meter 1 and Parameter 2 columns. Note that Parameter 1
You set up a filter condition line by clicking in the columns should be the lower value and Parameter 2 the higher.
and selecting options from the pop-up menus that appear. Outside …has a value that is not between the values set up in the Pa-
Range rameter 1 and Parameter 2 columns.
Here is a brief description of the columns:
Note is …is the note specified in the Parameter 1 column, regard-
Column Description equal to less of octave (Pitch only). Lets you find e.g. all C notes, in all
Left bracket This is used for “bracketing” several lines together when octaves.
creating conditions with multiple lines and the boolean
operators And/Or, see “Combining multiple condition
lines” on page 60. Ö The Conditions for the “Property” filter target are dif-
ferent, see “Searching for properties” on page 60.
Filter Target Here you select which property to look for when finding
events. Your choice here affects the available options in Below, the different Filter Targets (and their correspond-
the other columns as well, see below.
ing Condition and Parameter options) are described in
more detail.

58
MIDI effects
Searching for Value 1 or Value 2 • The Filter Targets Value 1 and Value 2 will be displayed as
“Pitch” and “Velocity” respectively, making it easier to grasp
A MIDI event is composed of several values. What is dis-
the function of the filter condition.
played for Value 1 and 2 depends on the type of event:
• Pitch values in the Parameter columns will be displayed as
Event type Value 1 Value 2 note names (C3, D#4, etc.). When entering pitch values you
Notes The Note Number/Pitch. The velocity of the note. can either type a note name or a MIDI note number (0–127).
PolyPressure The key that was The amount of pressure for • When Value 1 (pitch) is selected as Filter Target, an additional
pressed. the key. option appears in the Condition column: “Note is equal to”.
Controller The type of Controller, The amount of Control When this is selected, you specify a note name in the Param-
displayed as a number. Change. eter 1 column but without any octave number (C, C#, D, D#,
Program The Program Change Not used. etc.). The Transformer can then find all notes of a certain key,
Change number. in all octaves.
Aftertouch The amount of pressure. Not used.
See “Combining multiple condition lines” on page 60 for
Pitchbend The “fine tune” of the The coarse amount of
bend. Not always used. bend.
more info on working with multiple filter condition lines.

Searching for controllers

Ö System Exclusive events are not included in the table
above, since they do not use value 1 and 2. There is similar extended functionality when searching for
controllers: If you’ve added an additional “Type = Control-
Since value 1 and 2 have different meanings for different ler” condition line, the Transformer will “know” you are
events, searching for value 2 = 64, for example, would both searching for controllers. The Parameter 1 column will
find notes with the velocity 64 and controllers with the then show the names of the MIDI controllers (Modulation,
amount 64, etc. If this is not what you want, you can add an Volume, etc.) when Value 1 is selected as Filter Target.
additional filter condition line with the Filter Target “Type”,
specifying which type of events to find (see below). Searching for MIDI channels
! This is particularly useful when searching for note Each MIDI event contains a MIDI channel setting (1–16).
pitch or velocity values, as described below. Normally, these settings are not used, since the MIDI event
plays back on the MIDI channel set for its track. However,
The general procedures when searching for value 1 or 2
you can come across MIDI parts with events set to differ-
are:
ent channels, for example in the following scenarios:
• If you select any Condition other than the Range options,
• If you have recorded MIDI from an instrument sending on sev-
you set up a specific value in the Parameter 1 column.
eral different channels (e.g. a master keyboard with different
key zones).
• If you have imported a MIDI file of type 0 (with a single track,
Here, the Transformer will find all events with a value 2 less than 80.
containing MIDI events with different channel settings).
• If you select Inside Range or Outside Range in the Con-
dition column, the range consists of the values between Searching for MIDI channel values is straightforward; you
Parameter 1 and Parameter 2. select a Condition and enter a MIDI channel (1–16) in the
Note that Parameter 1 should have the lower value. Parameter 1 column (and, if you’ve selected one of the
Range Conditions, a higher channel in the Parameter 2
Searching for note pitch or velocity column, creating a value range).
If you add another condition line with the Filter Target
“Type”, Condition “Equal” and Parameter 1 set to “Note”,
the Transformer will “know” you are searching for pitch or
velocity. This has the following benefits:

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MIDI effects
Searching for element types Below, you will find a few examples on how the Last Event
filter target can be used.
Selecting Type as the Filter Target allows you to find ele-
ments of a certain type only. Here, the action will only be performed when the sustain
pedal is down:
• The Condition column contains only three options: Equal, Un-
equal and All Types. Filter Target Condition Parameter 1 Parameter 2
• Clicking the Parameter 1 column displays a pop-up menu, list- Last Event Equal MIDI Status 176/Controller
ing the available types (Note, Poly Pressure, Controller, etc.). Last Event Equal Value 1 64
The Transformer will find all elements matching or not Last Event Bigger Value 2 64
matching the selected type (depending on the Condition).
In this example, the action will be performed when the
! As mentioned above, selecting Type = Note or Type note C1 is playing:
= Controller adds some additional functionality to
the Transformer. You should make it a habit to add a Filter Target Condition Parameter 1 Parameter 2

Type condition when applicable. Type is Equal Note

Last Event Equal Note is playing 36/C1
Searching for properties
On the Filter Target pop-up menu, you will find an option In this example, the action will be performed after playing
called Property. This allows you to search for properties the C1 note:
that are not part of the MIDI standard but rather Cubase Filter Target Condition Parameter 1 Parameter 2
Essential-specific settings. Last Event Equal Value 1 36/C1
When the Property option is selected, the Condition col-
umn has two options: “Property is set” and “Property is not Combining multiple condition lines
set”. Which property to look for is selected in the Parame-
As described above, you can add condition lines by click-
ter 1 column. The options are “muted” and “selected”. Two
ing the Add (+) button below the list. The result of com-
examples:
bining condition lines depends on the boolean And/Or
operators and the brackets.
Here, the Transformer will find all muted events. The bool column
• By clicking in the “bool” column to the right in the list, you
can select a boolean operator: “And” or “Or”. A boolean
Here, the Transformer will find all events that are selected and muted. operator combines two condition lines and determines the
result in the following way:
Searching for event contexts
• If two condition lines are combined with a boolean And,
On the Filter Target pop-up menu, you will find an option both conditions must be fulfilled for an element to be found.
called “Last Event”. This can be used to perform context-
dependent searches.
“Last Event” indicates the state of an event which has al-
The Transformer will only find events that are notes and are muted.
ready passed the Transformer. The condition has to be
combined with Parameter 1 and Parameter 2.

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MIDI effects
If two condition lines are combined with a boolean Or, one Selecting a function
of the conditions (or both) must be fulfilled for an element
to be found.

The Transformer will find all events that are notes (regardless of mute
status) and all events that are muted (regardless of their type).
The Function pop-up menu at the bottom of the Trans-
When you add a new condition line, the boolean setting
former is where you select the function – the basic type of
defaults to And. Therefore, if all you want to do is set up
editing to be performed.
two or more conditions that all must be met for an element
to be found, you do not have to think about the boolean The following options are available:
column – just add the required lines and make the usual
filter settings. Delete
This function will remove (or “mute”) all found elements
Using brackets from the “output stream” – the actual elements on the
The bracket (parenthesis) columns let you enclose two or track are not affected.
more condition lines, dividing the conditional expression
into smaller units. This is only relevant when you have three Transform
or more condition lines and want to use the boolean Or op- Changes one or several aspects of the found elements.
erator. This is how it works: You set up exactly what should be changed in the action
• Without brackets, the conditional expressions are eval- list, see “Specifying actions” on page 62.
uated according to their order in the list. Insert
This will create new elements and insert these into the
output stream. The new elements will be based on the el-
In this case we have the expression Type = Note AND Event is muted ements found by the Transformer effect’s filter conditions,
OR Channel = 1, without brackets. This means that the Transformer will but with any changes you have set up in the action list ap-
find all muted MIDI notes, as well as events (regardless of their type) set plied.
to MIDI channel 1.

Maybe you wanted to find all notes that are either muted Another way of expressing this is that the Insert function
or use the MIDI channel 1 (but no non-note events)? Then copies the found elements, transforms them according to
you need to add some brackets: the action list and inserts the transformed copies among
the existing elements.

Insert Exclusive

Here the expression is Type = Note AND (Event is muted OR Channel This will transform the found elements according to the
= 1), which will find what you want. The rule behind this is: action list. Then, all elements that were not found (that did
• Expressions within brackets are evaluated first. not meet the filter conditions) are removed from the output
If there are several layers of brackets, these are evaluated “from the in- stream.
side out”, starting with the innermost brackets.
You add brackets by clicking in the bracket columns and
selecting an option. Up to triple brackets can be selected.

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MIDI effects
Specifying actions Multiply by
Multiplies the Action Target value with the value specified
in the Parameter 1 column.
The lower list in the Transformer window is the action list. Divide by
This is where you specify any changes that should be
made to the found events (relevant for all function types Divides the Action Target value by the value specified in
except Delete). the Parameter 1 column.
The handling of the action list is similar to the filter condi- Round by
tion list, but without the brackets and booleans. You sim-
This “rounds” the Action Target value using the value
ply add lines by clicking the Add button (+) below the list,
specified in the Parameter 1 column. In other words, the
and fill out the columns as required. To remove a superflu-
Action Target value is changed to the closest value that
ous action line, select it and click the Delete button (-).
can be divided by the Parameter 1 value.
Action Target Set Random Values between
This is where you select the property that should be This will set the Action Target value to a random value
changed in the events: within the range specified with Parameter 1 and 2.
Option Description
Set Relative Random Values between
Value 1 This adjusts value 1 in the events. As described in the
section “Searching for Value 1 or Value 2” on page 59, This will add a random value to the current Action Target
the property of value 1 depends on the event type. For
notes, value 1 is the pitch. value. The added random value will be within the range
Value 2 This adjusts value 2 in the events. As described in the
specified with Parameter 1 and 2. Note that these can be
section “Searching for Value 1 or Value 2” on page 59, set to negative values.
the property of value 2 depends on the event type. For
notes, value 2 is the velocity value. For example, if you set Parameter 1 to -20 and Parameter
Channel Allows you to change the MIDI channel setting, see 2 to +20, the original Action Target value will get a ran-
“Searching for MIDI channels” on page 59. dom variation, never exceeding ±20.
Type Allows you to change an event from one type to another,
e.g. transform aftertouch events to modulation events. Set to fixed value
Value 3 This adjusts value 3 in the events, which is used for han- This sets the Action Target to the value specified in the
dling note-off velocity when searching for properties, see
“Searching for properties” on page 60.
Parameter 1 column.

Transpose to Scale
Operation This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 1,
This setting determines what to do with the Action Target. and when the filter conditions are specifically set up to
The options on this pop-up menu are different depending find notes (a “Type = Note” filter condition line has been
on the selected Action Target. Below, all available opera- added). When “Transpose to Scale” is selected, you can
tions are listed: specify a musical scale using the Parameter 1 and 2 col-
umns. Parameter 1 is the key (C, C#, D, etc.) while Pa-
Add rameter 2 is the type of scale (major, melodic or harmonic
Adds the value specified in the Parameter 1 column to the minor, etc.).
Action Target. Each note will be transposed to the closest note in the se-
lected scale.
Subtract
Subtracts the value specified in the Parameter 1 column
from the Action Target.

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MIDI effects
Use Value 2
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 1.
If this option is selected, the Value 2 setting in each event
will be copied to the Value 1 setting.
For example, this would be useful if you are transforming
all Modulation controllers to Aftertouch events (since con-
trollers use Value 2 for their amount, while Aftertouch uses
Value 1 – see “Searching for Value 1 or Value 2” on page
59).

Use Value 1
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 2.
If this option is selected, the Value 1 setting in each event
will be copied to the Value 2 setting.

Mirror
This is only available when Action Target is set to Value 1 or
Value 2. When this option is selected, the values will be
“mirrored” around the value set in the Parameter 1 column.
In the case of notes, this will invert the scale, with the key
set in the Parameter 1 column as “center point”.

Applying the defined actions

When using the Transformer effect, the processing is ap-
plied to the events played back from the track (or played
live “thru” the track) as soon as you set it up.
Since no existing events on the track are affected by the
Transformer setting, there is no need for undo.

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MIDI effects
Index
A MIDI Monitor (MIDI effect) 53 U
AmpSimulator 7 MIDI Step Sequencer 54 UV22HR 14
Apogee UV22HR 14 Modulation plug-ins 15
Arpache 5 38 MonoDelay 6 V
Arpache SX 39 MonoToStereo 24 Vibrato 19
Arpeggiator 38, 39 N VST Instruments
Auto LFO (MIDI effect) 40 HALionOne 35
Note to CC (MIDI effect) 53 Prologue 26
AutoPan 15
O VSTDynamics 11
B
Beat Designer (MIDI effect) 41
Octaver 21 W
Other plug-ins 20 WahWah 14
Bitcrusher 20

C P X
Pattern Sequencer 54 XG Control Panel 56
Chopper 20
Phaser 17
Chorder (MIDI effect) 46
Chorus 15
PingPongDelay 7 Y
Pitch Correct 22 Yamaha XG Control Panel 56
Compressor (MIDI effect) 48
PitchShift plug-ins 22
D Prologue
DaTube 8 Modulation parameters 30
Delay plug-ins 6 Sound parameters 26
Density (MIDI Effect) 50 Q
Distortion 8
Quantizer (MIDI effect) 54
Distortion plug-ins 7
Dither 14 R
Dynamics plug-ins 9
Restoration plug-ins 23
F Reverb plug-ins 23
Ringmodulator 17
Flanger 16
Roland GS Control Panel 56
G RoomWorks SE 23
Gate 9 Rotary 18
Grungelizer 23 S
GS Control Panel 56
Spatial plug-ins 24
L Step Designer (MIDI effect) 54
Limiter 9 StepFilter 13
StereoEnhancer 24
M
T
Mastering plug-ins 14
Metalizer 16 ToneBooster 14
Micro Tuner (MIDI Effect) 50 Track Control (MIDI Effect) 56
MIDI Context Gate (MIDI effect) 49 Tranceformer 19
MIDI Control (MIDI Effect) 51 Transformer (MIDI effect) 58
MIDI Echo (MIDI effect) 51 Tremolo 19
MIDI Gate 10 Tuner 21
MIDI Modifiers (MIDI effect) 52

65
Index