Hello! Has anyone tried using outboard gear (compressor, stereo reverb, etc) for mixing recorded tracks in Cubasis? I’m thinking of getting a Focusrite 4i4 and use the extra line outputs (3/4) to route the dry audio track through a hardware compressor and then back through the Focusrite Scarlett 4i4 line inputs so I can twist the compressor knobs and hear the changes along with the rest of the mix in my monitors (line out 1/2) and record the result back into Cubasis on another pair of tracks. Can this be done at all in Cubasis? Do I need to use the Focusrite Control app or does it work using Cubasis only? Thanks for any help with this!
Get a mixer with inserts or return/send and do what you want to do just a lot easier.
Thanks for the reply David, much appreciated! I’m still trying to figure out what goes where though. I’m assuming I need two pairs of line outs from the interface routed into a hardware mixer where one pair is the main out and the other is the channel I’m eventually routing into the hardware compressor, correct? And this second pair is then somehow routed back into a pair of line ins on the interface for recording the processed result. And I obviously also need to hear the channel being compressed and also alongside the full mix through my studio monitors (or headphones if that’s the only option)? Is there a basic connection scheme to be found anywhere maybe? Are there any particular things to consider inside of Cubasis for setting this up? I’m thinking of getting the Steinberg UR-44 for this now, maybe there are fewer surprises using an interface from the same manufacturer. Sorry if these questions are too basic for everyone else, but I haven’t found any detailed resources online. So again, thanks for any help!
Or do you maybe mean omitting the audio interface altogether and use a mixer with a built-in interface instead? I guess that would make things easier, given the mixer/interface is fully compatible with iOS devices.
Hi krischan23,
Unfortunately there is only one stereo output and one stereo input on the iPad.
I have a Alesis Multimix8 usb mixer connected to my iPad Air 4, I would love to be able to send individual track audio out from Cubasis for treatment and be able to monitor the whole mix at the same time.
This can all be done inside Cubasis but not using external fx units. I would love someone to tell me I’m wrong though 
Yeah, me too! 
I guess a clunky workaround with only two lines in and out available would be to mute everything except the tracks you want to process with external effects and then run this through the main out, through the outboard gear, then back into the two line ins on the interface/mixer, adjusting “by ear” (i.e. without hearing the full mix), and then print/record the processed version on another pair of tracks, THEN un-muting the rest of the mix and listening to the combined results, and maybe then doing it all over again if the processed track/s don’t sit well in the mix. Far from ideal obviously, but maybe it would at least enable using outboard gear for mixing with a very basic setup and Cubasis. I assume the grown-up solution would be to get a computer and a full-featured version of Cubase instead, but I enjoy the Cubasis workflow a lot and happen to have some outboard gear lying around and thought I’d make them useful again. Might put less strain on the iPad too by limiting the use of processing with plug-ins?
I have some external equipment I wanted to use with Cubasis too, but since I started using the Waves bundle and the Cubasis built-in internal fx units, which all have loads of ready made presets to suit most applications, besides, they can all be automated throughout the project, so I now consider my outboard gear redundant. YouTube is full of videos demonstrating Cubasis internal fx and the Waves bundle. If you haven’t already seen it - check out the Getting Started video (link below) in the Cubasis launch screen, Dom Segalas goes through some of the fx to great effect.
I completed a large project using Cubase desktop and used some of the the Waves Diamond Collection processing fx, very impressive sound, I then recreated the same project on iPad Cubasis using its above mentioned onboard fx and the only difference between the two versions is I was tied to my desktop with the first version, sound quality is equally as good on both devices.
As I mentioned in my first message, I’m using iPad Air 4 and have no problems with the DSP.
Wow, sounds great! I also use the Waves bundle and other internal effects, but I thought I’d mix things up a little and maybe find a hybrid-type setup with both kinds of effects. Oh, well. Maybe it’s not worth it after all. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to reply!
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I have just seen this in the Cubasis Help section under Mixer:
The number of available outputs depends on capability of the connected audio hardware. If no audio interface is connected, only 2 output channels (stereo pair 1/2) are available.
So, it seems like sending out a stereo pair for processing whilst monitoring the overall at the same time is possible after all, I’m trying to find a YouTube video showing this procedure.
You might find this video interesting, it shows multiple outputs with in Cubasis for processing individual sections of any instrument, I will still look for multi audio output videos.
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Found this on an Audiobus forum. Not sure I follow all of it but it seems like he’s able to monitor incoming audio alongside the rest of the mix using the Behringer UMC404HD. https://youtu.be/YUucqDjB2GY?si=Go562uvryK5wjHZz
Thanks for the link.
I watched the video but it appears to be just focusing on audio out and the ability to monitor inputs A & B, there is no mention of retuning a processed stereo signal back into a DAW.
Your particular interface has one pair of line inputs and two pairs of line outputs, I can’t see how you can send two separate outputs from Cubasis into Scarlett, unless this can be achieved using usb. I have tried sending a second output to my Alesis mixer but obviously my mixer is not suitable for this, so I think what you are trying to achieve is not possible with your present setup.
We really need info from someone who has been able to send two separate outputs from Cubasis.
Sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.
Mike