Cubase 11: I love the new Export Audio, but have two complaints

Cubase
#1

I love the new capabilities in Export Audio, making it much easier to mix down to stems. I usually use the option to create a new Cubase project with these, in a different folder, which works great so far, save for a couple things:

  1. Need to be able to export the global tracks to the new project, too, e.g., Markers, Tempo Track, Signature Track, Transpose Track, et al. It’s ironic that these are not there, given that having the global tracks in the Key Editor is a new C11 feature. Me, I especially need the Marker Track in the new project. The workaround: open both the original and new Project and copy the tracks.

  2. The new Project really should be a clone of the original Project, wrt. Audio Connections, Project Colors, Project Window layout (for example, I enable the option for Transport Bar to be at the bottom of the Project Window, but this setting is not set in the new Project. It’s just an annoying waste of time to have to find and fix all these different settings, and that impedes workflow.

I suppose you could get fancy and have an option for the new Project to be configured like another Project, i.e., the current (original) one, another Project, a Project Template, or Factory Defaults. Actually, that makes a lot of sense, as often you’re creating a stems Project to give to someone else; if they gave you a Project or Project Template configured like they like it, the stems Project you create would be immediately ready-to-go in the new environment.

cheers,

– jdm

#2

Does Project Backup accomplish what you want?

Have you tried just making a copy in Explorer or Finder?

#3

the File | Export… | Audio Mixdown creates a new project, not a copy of one. my complaint here is that the Project it creates has different option settings from the original, whereas IMHO it should have identical settings, as clearly those are the ones I’ve configured as my preferences.

as I suggested, an advanced option would be to be able to specify any project or template for the newly created Project. I would use this feature heavily, as one part of my workflow has me mixing down to stems to take to another studio to record drums, so there are different audio settings, configuration for a smaller screen (laptop), etc. it would save a lot of busy-work & time to create the new Project from a project template I have created for that other environment. Same thing for collaborating with other people - they could send you a template from their studio, so when they open the project you’ve sent, it’s ready to go immediately.

#4

I think you’ve got something confused - Audio Mixdown creates Audio files not Project files.

#5

try using Back up project there you will save project files and audio files etc

#6

No confusion here amigo - look at the Export Audio Mixdown dialog again, notably the “After Export” drop-down, and “Create New Project” is the option in question. With that selected, a new Project will be created and the exported audio will be imported into it.

Other options there include “Insert Into Pool” and “Create Audio Track”.

One use of the “Create New Project” option in Export Audio Mixdown is to take the project to the drum studio, where I just have my laptop and e-Drums, not all the UAD satellites, Waves SGS, etc. Usually I mute the Superior Drums 3 track I’ve had in place as a guide, but then include it in the list of Channels that get exported, so I can lift a fader in the drum studio to hear it as reference, if need be. It’s brilliant that muting it in the mix does not mute that Channel!

Of course it’s perfect for mixing down to stems at various stages, e.g., Mastering. I’ve also used it between Tracking and Mixing, but usually I do a “Back Up Project”, dropping unneeded audio, etc.

I also do it to archive the project when finished, among other things, trying to future-proof.

– jdm

#7

Yes, that’s a great feature, as well - I use it when switching from Tracking to Mixing modes.

But this is not the same.

I’m talking about the “After Export” setting in “Export Audio Mixdown”, specifically the “Create New Project” option. It imports all the exported audio into a new Project, which is very handy, indeed; it just needs a few niggles fixed. Yes, I could manually create a new Project and manually import all these exported files, etc. but that’s a PiTA - and clearly the “Create New Project” option is meant to save you this hassle. They just forgot a coupla things, IMHO, like Marker Track and my configuration.

If you haven’t used this feature, check it out. It’s been in Cubase for a very long time, but it’s slightly more hidden now, as it’s a drop-down, rather than check-boxes. I preferred the checkboxes, to I could also select Create Audio Track to put the exported tracks into the current project, too. But I can live with that; if I need that I’ll just copy them from the new project to the old - same as you have to do with the Marker Track the other direction, as Marker Track is, unfortunately, one of the tracks you can select for export into this new project.

– jdm

#8

I just replicated the process here on Cubase Pro 11, Win 10 1909/18363.1198.

I agree, there should be an extra set of preferences of what to copy over into the new project (separate tracks, mixconsole/settings, etc) - not just create a blank project and add a bunch of tracks to it.

#9

I’m handling this just by export anything I want to export & the option ‘create track’, then delete anything I don’t want/need in the new project and do a backup to new project.

Everything will be in place, all markers, tempo track. mixer settings etc.

The downside is that the original project has audio files or references to files now, bloating the original. Can be deleted manually. I often leave it all in place but disable tracks and park them in a folder etc.

I completely agree with @ johndavidmiller that it would be useful to have another option like ‘Create New Project based on Active Project’ or similar.

#10

Oh that is a cool new feature. And you are right it needs to allow folks to replicate the current Project both fully & on a Track by Track basis.

#11

Hi
its a Good idea actually, to export audio to new project and have the global tracks also transferred with option to preserve routings and settings.
so you start a mix with audio only project and everything(tempo, signature, markers) is already there.
meanwhile a workaround would be to “backup project” to create new folder project ,render in place all VSTi , and afterwards delete the instruments tracks, and clean from pool all unused audio

#12

I think it’d get almost all the way there by asking for a Project Template to use to creater the new Project, as you could set up literally anything you wanted in such a Template, e.g., configured for another studio, or for mixing, mastering, whatever.

And it should be damn easy for Steinberg to implement, as they have that “generate new Project from Template” code already.

In the meantime, if you want the new Project to be just like the current project, you can:

  1. Do “File | Export | Audio Mixdown” and in “After Export” choose to have the exported tracks added to the current Project
  2. In the Pool, select the “Prepare Archive…” in the right-click menu (this is critical for the “File | Back up Project…” function to work right, whenever you use it!! (or you may get “missing files”)
  3. Do the 1st “File | Back up Project…” to copy to another folder, optionally choosing “Remove Unused Files”.
  4. Open the new Project and delete all the old tracks
  5. In the Pool, select the “Prepare Archive…” again
  6. Do the 2nd “File | Back up Project…” to copy to another folder, choosing “Remove Unused Files”
  7. Open this new project
  8. Et voilà!

You might get clever and get this down to just one “Back up Project” but I’m paranoid about files going missing, etc., so doing it this way is much safer, IMHO, and it gives you a “clean” backup of the original Project, too.

Oh, and btw, the Create New Project (with the exported tracks) has been in Cubase for quite a while, but it’s more powerful now with the improved Export Audio Mixdown capabilities. Good stuff!

– jdm

#13

What happened to the option to export audio in mono? That is a function I used all the time on Cubase 10.5. Am I missing it?

#14

It’s there at the “export as” tab: 1)Interleaved, 2)Split channels, 3)Mono Downmix

#15

Thanks for the info. I’ll check it out.