Not sure if the Mac thing would be a huge difference, but here’s my method for syncing to Cubase on Windows. Works well here.
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In Dorcio load the TXL Timecode VST in the playtab’s Instrument rack. Set the Midi Output dropdown to the MIDI port you wish to send the timecode over. In my case I’ve used loopMIDI to set up a virtual port. I’ll leave everything else alone and just go with the defaults and deal with the offsets in my DAW.
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In Cubase’s top menu go to Transport/Project Synchronization Setup and establish these settings.
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This part is optional and one can kind of guess at it instead, but I do it to get an idea of exactly where on the timeline Dorico makes a sound and set my project time code offset accordingly.
I suspect the settings one needs can all change a bit if you change sample rates, or use a different audio device later, etc.
a. Use ASIOLink Pro (or Jack2, or reaStream, or an actual patch cord) to send Dorico’s audio output into the Cubase Mixer. I set up a track to record this input and arm it.
b. Make sure the Cubase Project Setup “Start Time” and “Display Time Offset” are set to zero to begin with. You can get there from the main menu: Project/Project Setup (Shift s).
c. Choose the timecode display option in the transport, DISABLE the tempo track, and click record on the Cubase transport. It turns red but nothing happens yet as the transport is waiting for some time code to tell it to move.
d. I play my Dorico score from the very beginning and let a few bars record in Cubase. Note that it won’t be at the start of the project at this time, but rather, several seconds in.
e. After stopping Dorico disable record on the Cubase Transport if it doesn’t happen by itself. If we don’t do this “Project Set Up” will be grayed out when we need it below.
f. In the Cubase project view select the event that just recorded in Cubase. Tap the l key so the Cubase cursor snaps to the beginning of the part.
g. Double click the cursor position to highlight it, and tap ctrl-c (to copy it into the text buffer).
h. In the Main Cubase Menu go to Project/Project Setup (Shift S).
i. Double click Project Start Time and tap ctrl v to paste in the cursor position.
Click OK
Cubase will ask if it should keep the event at the current time position.
Choose Yes.
At this point the transport is now in sync with Dorico.
Optionally you can set a time code offset in the Cubase Project Setup. In this example I will round up from the start time we pasted earlier to the nearest second so my first bar-line in Cubase shows as 00:00:00:00, and there’s a few frames of leadin for Dorico to get ramped up.
Click OK
This time when Cubase asks if it should move the event to the time position choose NO; because, we want it to stay right where it is, at the beginning of the project.
And now the Cubase transport is locked and loaded. If one wants the grid to kind of match up with what’s going on in Dorico in terms of bar sizes and whatnot, don’t forget that you can export a Master Track in MIDI format from Dorico, and import it into Cubase. Just remember disable the Tempo track after importing it so the transport stays locked up with the time code.
