Nord / Cubase (help)

[monsterjazzlicks]

(i would say this is aimed more for people like myself using Cubase with Nord to answer. Though of course i am grateful for any universal input offered).

Hi guys,

i think this is quite a basic question so i would guess someone on here can answer it without too much confusion. i am still relatively new to Cubase so i am encountering a few problems along the way. i am using a Nord Stage keyboard and playing it (via midi) into Cubase Artist 6 (thru a Midi Sport 2x2 to convert it from a MIDI lead to a USB).

QUESTION :-

When i have the ARRANGER page open in Cubase (ie. the page were you do all the recording) obviously there is a list of all the tracks of which i have recorded so far, no problem. Now, if i create a MIDI TRACK (to record in Midi info) i can press RECORD on Cubase, play my Nord in, and all the Midi info will be recorded. Again, no problem.

However, lets say i have 3 x MIDI TRACKS. Two have already been recorded on (say, using HALion or whatever VSTi's), and one i am about to record on with the Nord. When i press the SUSTAIN PEDAL on the Nord it turns ON/OFF the MUTE/SOLO switche(s) on TRACK 1 (ie. the top track on the main arranger page). This also happens if the top track is an AUDIO track. It only affects which track is at the very top of the Arranger page.

i am happy to offer more info if anyone needs it. But basically my question is the Sustain Pedal on the Nord is triggering the Mute/Solo switche(s) on the very first track (both Midi or Audio) at the top of the Cubase main Arranger page.

Sustain (i thought) was set to CC-064 by DEFAULT ?? So therefore i am not sure why it is triggering a totally different parameter (such as MUTE/SOLO in this instance) ?? !!

Would be great if you could help me out please.

Thanks,

Paul

[mjbrands]

I have no experience with Cubase, but I was wondering about something: does Cubase consider your Nord a 'controller'?

In both Ableton Live and Logic Pro, I can add any external MIDI device I like but for those I can also choose whether I want those individual devices to 'control' the DAW software. For example, if I connect a keyboard to Live and set it as a controller, keys I press will be sent to any track I happen to have selected, regardless of what MIDI channel is selected as a source for those channels. In Logic it works in a similar way. This works especially well with using the Nord with Local Control turned off (on the Nord).

So if I had an external MIDI sequencer with which I wanted to control a single (software) instrument, I would only configure Live to receive MIDI messages from this device. These incoming MIDI messages would then be sent to any track that had this device set as a MIDI source, but not to any other. If I'd do the same with my Nord, pressing the sustain pedal should only be sent to those tracks. If I also used the Nord as a controller (configured as such in the DAW), the sustain pedal would both be sent to any track which has it selected as a MIDI source (input) but also to the one I happen to have selected.

I hope this makes sense: maybe Cubase is trying to be smart, because it thinks you (always) want to use your Nord as a 'controller'.

[monsterjazzlicks]

In both Ableton Live and Logic Pro, I can add any external MIDI device I like but for those I can also choose whether I want those individual devices to 'control' the DAW software. For example, if I connect a keyboard to Live and set it as a controller, keys I press will be sent to any track I happen to have selected, regardless of what MIDI channel is selected as a source for those channels. In Logic it works in a similar way. This works especially well with using the Nord with Local Control turned off (on the Nord).

Thanks very much for the informative reply.

As far as i can remember, i did not actually do anything specific within Cubase to define the Nord as being a 'controller' keyboard. If anything, i turned lots of things OFF on the Nord (eg. the External Section) because i was getting Midi conflicts.

i just checked and yes the Nord is on Midi Channel 1 (External Section is OFF) and regardless of what Midi Channel each individual Midi Track is on within Cubase, the Nord still triggers that channel. For instance, Midi Track 10 has drums and i also assigned it to Midi Channel 10, my Nord is on Channel 1, and its still triggering the drum sound.

So i think this is what you mean in that i am using it correctly and in the same fashion that you are ??

[monsterjazzlicks]

So if I had an external MIDI sequencer with which I wanted to control a single (software) instrument, I would only configure Live to receive MIDI messages from this device. These incoming MIDI messages would then be sent to any track that had this device set as a MIDI source, but not to any other. If I'd do the same with my Nord, pressing the sustain pedal should only be sent to those tracks. If I also used the Nord as a controller (configured as such in the DAW), the sustain pedal would both be sent to any track which has it selected as a MIDI source (input) but also to the one I happen to have selected.

At the moment, in Cubase my Track #01 is currently an Audio Track. Therefore there is no Midi Channel settings possible for this Track. Only Midi Tracks can have Midi Channel configurations and Audio Tracks have IN/OUT sources relating to the soundcard (as you will obviously already know).

So i am still baffled as to why the Sustain Pedal on the Nord (which i have checked within Cubase and CC-064 is the ONLY information being transmitted from the Nord sustain pedal to Cubase) is turning ON/OFF the SOLO/MUTE switch on a different Audio Track to the one i am recording on ??

If i have (say) 4 x Audio (or Midi) Tracks in Cubase and i record on each of them one at a time (as you would normally do) playing my Nord, the sustain pedal works totally fine for each of the 4 x Tracks during both recording and playback. In other words, it functions perfectly as a sustain pedal should in all respects. The only issue is that its also triggering the SOLO/MUTE on the top track of the Arranger page.

[kojo1234]

I've had similar issues with Ableton Live and Logic as well, unfortunately it looks like if you're sending midi messages it's sending it to all the midi tracks (as far as I've seen anyways) so the only way around this would be to flatten your midi tracks once you're happy with them and just treat them as audio. This way the sustain pedal won't affect these tracks anymore.

[monsterjazzlicks]

so the only way around this would be to flatten your midi tracks once you're happy with them and just treat them as audio. This way the sustain pedal won't affect these tracks anymore.

Thank you.

Do you mean i should record the note information (or whatever) in as Midi from the Nord to Cubase (hence you have a Midi Track) as you would normally do. And then as you record more Midi Tracks, MUTE all the pre-recorded Midi Tracks whilst you are recording the new one ??

And are you saying there is not permanent solution to this issuse ?? ie. only a bunch or workaround possibilities ??

[kojo1234]

Not sure if the feature exists in Cubase but there must be something similar. I came from Logic and now mostly use Live. What I'm talking about is once you're happy with the recorded midi track, convert it to audio so your controller (Nord) won't be sending the unwanted midi signals to it. The only other way as far as I know is to have a different controller for your separate midi tracks (one keyboard per track/ vst/ part) so there is no conflict. Easily done in Live but again not sure about Cubase.

[monsterjazzlicks]

Not sure if the feature exists in Cubase but there must be something similar. I came from Logic and now mostly use Live. What I'm talking about is once you're happy with the recorded midi track, convert it to audio so your controller (Nord) won't be sending the unwanted midi signals to it. The only other way as far as I know is to have a different controller for your separate midi tracks (one keyboard per track/ vst/ part) so there is no conflict. Easily done in Live but again not sure about Cubase.

Ta mate,

So as soon as i am happy with the Midi Track, convert it into an Audio file and MUTE the Midi Track ??

Secondly, do you mean have a physically different keyboard/controller for every single Midi Track in the song ?? Not sure if i am understanding you correctly here dude. If you had 10 x Midi Tracks then that would mean have 10 x keyboards/controllers !!

Cheers,

Paul

[kojo1234]

yes and yes. My suggestion works for a "keyboard live looping" setup with just a few VST's or virtual instruments. Not so much for a larger project but in a larger project you benefit from having more time in which case creating the audio tracks and either muting or deleting the midi tracks shouldn't be as much of a problem.

[monsterjazzlicks]

Thanks Kojo,

Gonna jump topic slightly here but its still directly related to the combination using the Nord in conjuction with Cubase. This is regarding the programing of having Cubase call up the original exact settings (on the Nord) of the Preset configuration for the START of a song.

So, if i record in as a Midi Track a (say) Piano Patch on the Nord which (at the start of the song) is 'dry'. Then halfway thu the song i activate the reverb switch (on the Nord) so that the Piano now has FX on it. This latter mentioned event gets recorded (in Cubase) as Midi information during the initial recording and subsequently turns the reverb ON (on the Nord) at the same point during playback. i may well come back to this later on in this thread, but for now my big question is this :-

i need Cubase to RESET (if thats the correct term) the Nord to having its reverb switch to OFF at the very start of the song. Just to be very clear about the scenario, when the song reaches the END the Piano has the reverb ON. Now, if i want to replay the song i press rewind on the (Cubase) Transport Panel to move the Playback Line back to Bar #01. Now when i press Play, Cubase triggers all the notes on the Nord but the Nord (FX) is 'wet' (as it was at the end of the song). What i need is to get Cubase to RESET the Nord back to the original state required at the start of the song (ie. a Piano Patch with reverb turned OFF).

As far as i am aware (and after much experimentation) there are TWO possibilities to choose from. One would be to set within Cubase CC numbers/values so that they turn On/Off the various parameters as required. This would require different LANES to be created (in Cubase) and then the approriate CC numbers/values configured in each of these Lanes. In the case of a Nord Patch consisting of Drawbar settings, Synth Section tweaks, FX/EQ/Amp settings etc, this would make for a hell of a lot of CC numbers to be set and stored in Cubase !! Though of course this is possible and once you have worked out and written down the matching CC numbers then you have got them for life.

The other way was to set the Nord Patch up via SYSTEM EXCLUSIVE. i pressed Record (in Cubase) and then PATCH DUMP (on the Nord) and the information was sent. However, i am not at all sure how relaible this method would be. And also i would need to leave some kind of gap at the start of the song in order for the SYS EX to be Transmitted to the Nord (and set up the Patch) ??

Thanks a lot.................