Let’s face it, Cubase’s comping system sucks. Its like it was designed by someone who has never comp’d drums in their entire life… yet alone multi-track drums… yet alone multi-track drums with multiple takes. I’ve used every DAW in existence and Cubase has, by far, the worst implementation of any of them. but FEAR NOT!! By adding a few check box options, it can all be fixed!
CHECK BOX #1: In Editing → Tool Modifiers → Categories
There needs to be a category for Comp Tool.
In the new Comp Tool Category, as well as the Select Tool, and the Split Tool, there needs to be a box that says “Set Cursor Position with Left Click”
Currently you can only set the cursor position by holding Shift, which is great if you enjoy pushing extra buttons to get anything done, but for the rest of us, making a simple check box to move the cursor position anywhere you click is essential, and it BLOWS MY MIND that this is not an option already.
CHECK BOX #2: In Editing → Tool Modifiers → Categories → Comp Tool “Comp Tool always select the lane that is clicked on.”
In this example, I have Lane 2 selected with the Comp Tool. If I click on Lane 3, it switches to Lane 3… great so far. But when I click on Lane 3 again, it switches back to Lane 2, WHAT IN THE ACTUAL @#$%^&*??? Who thought this was a great idea? It renders the Comp Tool effing worthless!
And have a modifier so that when you use hold Command so the Split Tool appears, it doesnt just play the track, it actually splits all the lanes like you would think when using a Split tool… even if you’re clicking directly on the lane and not on the track. Watch this video here, when I split on the track, it splits as you would expect, but you cant select a lane that way. But if you try to split directly on the lane you wish to choose, it just plays the clip in solo.
Because playing the clip instead of Splitting when the Split tool is being shown is so mind-bogglingly stupid, I can’t guess as to how many direct blows to the head it would’ve taken for me to come up with that. Playing the clip in solo should be another modifier, like Shift
Man there are so many issues with multi track comping in Cubase and its been like that as long as I can remember. Since I started using Cubase at version 4. For some reason in order to group edit/comp multitrack drums you need to first open ALL the lanes for each track individually THEN and only then will Cubase know that when you make a comp on one of the tracks, that you want them too all follow with that comp too. For some reason it does NOT safely assume that if you have group editing on and you have a track with a lane open and you comp a track, that it is with complete certainty that you meant for all the tracks to change to that comp too.
I fear you are wasting your breath. I have be scream about this into the void for a decade now. Many people have. All I ever got back was silence.
I’m having a hard time comprehending the details of their incompetence, but simply put: They need to have a way to combine the Split Tool and the Comp Tool… they’ve already done it with the Select Tool and the Range Tool, so I know their big brain programmers can do it! I’ve got a good workaround with the Streamdeck, but its missing one last final essential button before I can say I fixed their mess.
They could just simply have the Comp Tool make a cut on all the lanes by a single click, instead of making us listen to the track → draw a ridiculous box → listen to the track again → figure out where we want to switch to a different lane-> then move the right edge of the Split to that spot (without losing our place)… like I said, I just barely am starting to understand the details of their incompetence.
Regarding clicking on lanes I like the way it is as it switches lanes without moving the mouse, why would you like to click twice in the same lane??
Regarding the split tool I use the Alt key with the comp tool, which is the problem with that? I don´t get it.
Thanks for the reply man! The reason why I dont want it to switch to a lane that I didnt click on is because it gets really confusing really fast when you have as many tracks and takes as I do. So if I’m using the Comp tool, and I’m on Lane 3, and I click on Lane 3 again, it should stay on Lane 3, not go to some random ass lane that I have no idea where its going, and then I lose my place.
Regarding the Comp Tool, if I hold down Alt, it shows me the Split thingy, but it doesn’t split, it does the action that the Play Tool would do! Look at the last video I posted… it shows me using the comp tool, and I use the modifier to temporarily switch to the scissors, and if I click on the track, it works as expected, but if I click on the lane, it just plays the lane in solo for some stupid reason.
First of all, I very much like the two suggested ‘improvements’ posted in your original post @David_Velez .!
Have now watched the playback of this Livestream from last night (15th Aug). Given the ‘issues’ reported here (along with @Alex_Nasla), was keen on seeing Greg’s take (excuse pun) on this workflow…
Sadly, seems Greg wasn’t aware (or at least did not demonstrate) any of the concerns brought up in this thread - he simply shows use of the Comp Tool on the Lanes alongside the Range Tool for highlighting desired segments to ‘promote’ into the Master Comp track.
After his initial hiccup of selecting ‘Group Editing’ on the wrong folder and wondering why things weren’t working, he eventually corrects himself and proceeds thus:-
So, overall we’re none the wiser I’m afraid.
The current standard, accepted (official) audio comping workflow is, as they say, what it is…
For me, its ok and I get stuff done; I’ve adapted/learnt the ‘Cubase way’.
There again, I’m a simple man; 8 - 10 mics, record how ever many ‘takes’ you like. BUT before doing any work, only end up with (via drummer/band approval) the best 5 or 6 drum takes max. Nothing is lost of course; discarded attempts being archived away in a separate project (should they need to be revisited after offline review).
Summary, no-one hold their breath hoping these things will change/improve, any time soon.
I have been at it for sooo lon. Probably a decade… I have given up though. Even though I have given them a report (several times) on how to get aroud it. In the hopes that they would really look into it.
Anyway, here is a workaround… I have no time for a long explaination now, but the trick is:
To NOT use the Comp Tool to split the files (within the open lanes)… If you use the good old Scissors Tool (or Alt + left click) to split the files, and then select your bits (with the Comp Tool)… All the tracks included in that Folder/Edit Group will choose the same lane selections.
When you get the hang of it (and trust it) you don’t have to open the lanes across all the multitracks.
That said… for multitracking drums I tend to use the Track Versions instead.
PS. Try on some test/backup projects before going at it… I have found this to work well.
I have figured out a pretty good solution, I just have to do it enough that my fingers move exactly where I want them to when I think of something.\ I’ll post about it as soon as I finish tracking my next song, so I have a sufficiently large session to demonstrate whats happening. The short story is I made PLE presets to jump to a specific track instantly, and made Option+Shift the Tool Modifier for Slip Events in Contents. I had to make several different ways of doing the same this so I had to use Keyboard Maestro for a couplem things and made a boatload of shortcuts on my Streamdeck, but it can technically all be done without Keyboard Maestro and the Streamdeck.
That is correct. You are forced to open all the lanes first in order for Cubase to sync and pick the right takes. Regardless of having Group Editing on.
Note to everyone in the thread. Vote up this request so that Steinberg can maybe, finally fix this decade long problem.
Try my suggestion 3 posts above your… and you should make it work.
The key is to split at the right place with the regular split/scissors tool (by Alt + Click with the Selection Tool) or Split At Cursor (Alt + X).
First then you can select with the Comp Tool… And it will then select the same take across all the tracks in the folder (Group Editing on), even with just one Track/Lanes open.
If you drag and split your takes/lanes with the Comp Tool it WON’T work.
I have reported this workaround several times to Steinberg (for probably a decade) so that they maybe have a starting point to look into the issue… Not ever have I gotten any respons
I use my method above when I need to… but I usually use Track Versions when recording large groups of multitracks, like when recording drums.
How do you go about it with Track Versions? Im usually dealing with like 16 drum tracks and like 6 lanes each. Soooooo it just very unwieldy very fast.
Ok it’s good (but not good) to see more people having this issue. If you search for Folder Sync bug on the forum you’ll see lots of posts by me and others. This goes right back to Cubase 8 at least.
I can break the sync though without ever using the comp tool. So it’s not the comp tool. There’s something with the front to back track ordering that breaks it. And it’s using the scissors to cut the event - often at different positions on the part will major it either cut in sync across multitrack or not by in sync from that point.
Have you ever noticed when you pull the edges of a multitrack drum part when sync has been lost that one or more of the tracks will disappear behind other takes?
I can break folder sync easily with the beam tool by mousing over audio on one track and quickly hitting delete. This has been accepted as an issue on another thread.
All we have to do it bitch about it incessantly. Every time it screws something up for you, feel free to make a post about it and complain in detail… the more swearing, the better! It also helps if you get your Cubase friends to upvote this feature request. Allegedly, once every Halley’s Comet, someone at Steinberg spends 9 seconds looking at the feature requests before going back to swimming in his pool of gold coins like Scrooge McDuck
“Set Cursor Position with Left Click”
