Just wondering if anyone else is experiencing this issue; I often freeze tracks to conserve processing resources on my audio interface (Edirol FA-101 10-in/10-out) especially when those tracks do not require editing for the time being. Tracks I find myself freezing are Audio, VST Instrument and Instrument Rack types. Interestingly enough, whenever I reload a project, there are always some frozen instrument tracks with greyed-out automation lanes. I don’t have this problem with automations from frozen Audio and Instrument Rack tracks, just VST Instrument tracks. The tracks do in fact play but Cubase will not read, for instance, the filter cut-off frequency of a particular VST Instrument track (or whatever I happen to be automating on any particular synth). It doesn’t affect just one type of third-party soft-synth, it varies each time. The only way to “fix” this issue is to un-freeze and then re-freeze the track, which will cause the greyed-out (inactive) automation lane to colorize, therefore indicating a proper read. As you can imagine, however, this is highly irritating when you’ve got numerous tracks to un-freeze and then re-freeze each time I re-open a project. Is anyone else experiencing this issue? I’d appreciate any help.
you shouldnt have to freeze with your system specs… looks like a powerful machine.
It will not eat up any resources from your audio interface in anyway (only from your computer) - your interface has a set amount of what it can handle depending on your samplerate - usually allowing more or less ins and outs.
in anyway, i dont freeze, but you might want to (as a workaround) try to freeze via F11 and using the freeze function in there? idk… lol
Freezing is all about lightening the processing load on your processor. It does this by making an audio file of your Instrument Track. It then “shuts down” your VSTi plugin so that it doesn’t consume any power. You may even set it to be unloaded completely, if you need to recoup the RAM. It also prevents you from editing any MIDI information, since it’s no longer the MIDI track but the Audio file that’s playing back.
There are actually two ways of freezing an Instrument Track: The VSTI only or the VST + plugins. In the first case, only the VSTi (and the MIDI track) is frozen. In the second case the VSTi and all pre-fader plugins are frozen.
Again, since it’s the audio file, not the Instrument Track, that is playing back, it’s impossible to change any animation data, the automation lanes are locked (greyed out). This affects all automation lanes that control the VSTi in both cases and lanes that control pre-fader plugins in the second.
When you un-freeze, Cubase deletes the audio file and reverts control to the Instrument Track.
You say you don’t have this “problem” on Rack Instruments. This is strange, since the same applies here. I’s the audio file, not the Rack Instrument, that is playing back Therefore there is absolutely no point in making changes to the instrument. I can only assume that you, somehow, failed to freeze the Rack Instrument.
Freezing is quite thoroughly explained in the manual. However, it spread out all over the place, so you have to do a bit of searching.
Freezing has absolutely nothing to do with conserving processing resources on your audio interface!
Agreed. To make an automotive comparison, FShkreli’s problem is like having a Lamborghini and fit it with the wheels of the original Fiat 500. He has a powerful computer but the audio interface is about a decade old and was a cheap model to begin with. This is one of the earliest USB 2.0 interfaces, and really USB 2.0 wasn’t properly implemented with audio until RME started to release their own models and all the others copied their ingenious implementation.
Today’s low-end USB 2.0 interfaces are WAY WAY WAY better than anything Edirol has released, so my advice to FShkreli is to get one of the Focusrite Scarlett models. The cheapest (2i2) can be found for around $100 and it’s still a major improvement over the fa101. Or even Steinberg’s UR22 (around $150), which is still very economical and a huge improvement over anything USB 2.0 released before 2008-2009.