Cubase External Instruments: How are you monitoring when recording etc?

Cubase
1

Im cutting over to mostly only hardware synths (just done with software and cutting back on options paralysis/concentrating on actual music hehe)
Currently bring back D70 dlm bass.
I have it all working as an external synth, no problems there.

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Its a great feature and now…I really love it.

However, I normally use direct monitoring for any external input
BUT
How does one do that with this setup where the midi in routed through and there seems to be no automatic way that direct monitor is enabled when I click monitor and Im just getting the latency

Would love to hear how others are doing it. I def dont want answers about latency, even a fast IO still has around 10ms at best which is offputting…as Im percussionist and pretty sensitive to that…I just want to play and hear what Im playing when using external input and getting the direct monitor to auto work like it does in audio tracks

I did try DAW mode but now it seems I cannot implement multi monitor setup with fair complex routings which use the software playback channels to achieve correct outputs eg 2.1 with linear phase xovers etc

If I record into the external track using direct monitor, the result midi info is now out by the latency amount…wow Im must be like doing something wrong…cant be this hard

The only way I can see it actually working in the studio is to use a separate midi track, direct monitor (using totalmix as cubase seems to do nothing remotely to totalmix) and route the midi to the instrument track…what can I be missing?

There is very little info on the forum and anywhere actually that actually solves this so Im guessing not many peeps are doing this or there is something wrong with the RME

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Cheers

2

I’m not totally understanding - you mean you want to direct monitor your outboard synths through cubase?

Have you tried using the “constrain latency compensation” button in the bottom left while recording and see if that helps?

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3

To answer to your thread title question, a long time ago, I gave up using anything related to Direct monitoring : it has always brought me more issues than satisfactions.

Granted, I have an interface that allows me to monitor my external instruments without any perceivable latency, within Cubase. But you also have one of the same brand, it seems, so we are probably using the same driver, and again, I have no latency issue when setting its buffer size to 128 samples.

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4

In summary, i want to "play my stuff in (although it could be a client)

  1. I have set up an external instrument
  2. I want to play/rec that instrument live
  3. The latency when i play through is too much
  4. I hit the monitor button which now route to direct monitoring but it does not
  5. If i use a separate midi track and record, with direct monitor manually set in totalmix mix, this works, however turning off mthe manual direct minitor and outputting midi into the inst track causes the sound to be ahead of time
  6. If i copy the midi parts into the instrument track works but is vey clunky
  7. I have direct monitor ticked in cubase
  8. I have the correct settings ticked in total mix

This is how i imagine it should work

  1. When i click the monitor button on the instrument track, i should now hear the direct sound
  2. record midi
  3. I then turn off monitoring and have the midi plau the external.instrument
    Hth
5

Constrain latency only turns off heavy lqtency plugins…i want to direct monitor…as advertised :slight_smile:

6

If your midi is out by the latency amount in direct monitor you could just adjust the timing control backward in inspector for the latency reported rather than worry about note positions, or move them backward in the piano roll by starting beat location. If you set up as a rack instrument you can adjust latency backward too.

There is also a setting in audio system to “adjust for record latency” you could try uncheck so it doesn’t compensate the midi.