Thank you, that’s so very helpful. I’m on board and understand nearly everything you’ve said regarding GR, MIDI Port usage, avoiding conflicts. I’ve implemented a lot of it and will continue to refine my set-up. In general I’m very pleased with how well things are working, my workflow has never been better. I have tracks operating in the mixer very smoothly, and I’m impressed with the flexibility built into the GR system.
I like your strategies about using automation lanes vs. GR set-ups and, as you pointed out, if a control is used for an automation pass, once the lane is written, the physical control can be easily reassigned for something else.
I’ve read very carefully everything you’ve written and will no doubt further refine my GR based on all the terrific information you’ve posted. While I had been making use of quick controls in a rudimentary way, things are working much better now – a real breakthrough for me, an eye opener. I realize, also, I may have some misunderstanding about my MIDI set-up, but I’ll post that in a new thread so as not veer off topic from this excellent discussion of Generic Remote. This has been so helpful.
I just wanted to drop another note of thanks for this great thread. It put me into a whole new level with Cubase. I realized that there are whole new ways I can now use the program! I worked out how to assign my Akai Advance’s MPC-style pads to control very useful things in Cubase, changing inversions for example! I see, now, how there’s just so much more terrific functionality at my fingertips than I had realized or was making use of.
I thought I had – eight rotary pots and eight switches. Wrong! Turns out, I also have the 8x4 Banks of MPC Pads and two, not one, but two MIDI ports to work with. Along the way I also learned more about USB-MIDI. Great strides for me. The only problem is that I’m spending a little too much time geeking out and exploring all the possibilities. I’m sure that will settle out.
I wanted to upload this here so there would be a duplicate on this server, but the file is too large. The original file is on the OP’s server and I thought it valuable enough that a duplicate here would be a resource for the forum. Some of the items on the menus may have changed a bit, but most, it seems, are pretty much the same.
Thanks to 24dBfs and picturelockaudio for this, excellent work. Really helpful! I think I’m just getting to the place you were when your first posted this. Still sorting things out, but, wow, once you see what can be done it’s rather overwhelming. This graphic really helps sort things out.
Speaking of “tons of options,” I thought you would really like having this for your info-banks, assuming you don’t already have a copy. A real gem, imho. This info graphic lists all the Generic Remote functions and menu trees as of Cubase Version 7.5.
I think handling MIDI controllers in Cubase is pain. I don’t know how it feels in other DAWs though. What really pіsses my off here, that you can not control few VSTI’s quick controls simultaneously. Why you can play few VSTi at once, but you can not control their quick controls? Bummer.
If you want to drive multiple VST automation lanes at once with a single controller load the plugins then stack two Generic Remote maps. Assign the same controller in both maps.
Doe’s that sounds o.k. to you? Not to me.
Why that doesn’t happen by default when I activate rec on each track? I have already mapped what MIDI CC controls Quick Control. Why Cubase couldn’t send the same signal to different tracks simultaneously?
And what if delete Instrument tracks? And than add a new one? Create a new generic remote?
To me it certainly doesn’t works how it should be.
Quick controls are different from Generic Remote Devices. Quick controls snap to a track in a set of 8. You can only one run one plugin or track at a time with them.
Generic Remote Devices are used to remote control the ENTIRE DAW from physical hardware Controllers. I.E. Run CuBase from a fancy mixing console with motorized faders and tons of programmable MPC Pads, buttons, keys, etc. You can control just about anything in CuBase via MIDI events, and if you route the MIDI stream through a MIDI Track and a virtual MIDI loopback port, you can record and play back such controller movements. In really large setups, the Generic Device Maps are meant to stay pretty static…they can grow to be very large and complicated; however, for the average home user with just a few MIDI Controllers at hand, it’s easy enough to manipulate smaller setups at will according to project needs and make/remove things as you need it. In really large setups, producers can easily stack maps, and drive them from other/smaller controllers through a different port. Anytime a map is ‘in the way’, simply set its MIDI input to ‘none’ and it gets disabled.
If you don’t plan to ‘freeze’ the automation made via MIDI → Generic Device on a MIDI track, be sure to export a copy of your Generic Device setup with your project, and make a note of it in the project’s notepad for future reference. If you do freeze the automations onto actual VST automation lanes, then the Generic Remote maps won’t be needed anymore at that point, and any MIDI tracks that were used to build that automation lane should be muted/disabled or discarded.
First I tried linking the same control to different VST/i plugin controls in the same map.
I.E.
Fader 1a, Channel 1, CC33 → HALion6, QC1 (A resonance Filter in this case)
Fader 1b, Channel 1, CC33 → Retrologue, Main Resonance Filter
When I did it this way, it would only automate the top instrument in the Rack with CC33. CuBase did not forward the automation on to the subsequent plugin.
Next I tried making two separate Generic Remote Maps. One for automating HALion6, and another for Retrologue. In this way I was able to use CC33 to automate resonance using the SAME CC33. With two maps, the resonance filter in both plugins change with CC33 simultaneously.
Personally I’d avoid this, and instead use a couple of faders side by side transmitting different CC events all in the same map; however, it is possible to do more than one thing using the same controller if you ‘stack maps’. When the two faders are side by side, it’s easy as pie to move them both together. On my MPK2, I can even reverse one of the faders for A/B style dual fader crossfades.
Yes I totally understand what are you talking about. I was editing my automation for few VSTi as one big sound in the same way: few Generic Remotes.
I just don’t get it why it is not impossible? Isn’t it a “natural way” Quick Controls should work.
I’ve made a set up:
Now I’ve selected two VSTi and they will play simultaneously if I press notes on a MIDI kybrd.
In Quick Controls for every VSTi I selected TUNE in slot 1. Why the heck I can not affect slot 1 parameter for both VSTis simultaneously despite I CAN play them simultaneously. What’s the point than?
I guess it was made for a fancy studio producers with their fancy Steinberg gear aka CC121 (crap for lazy people, I think making stuff with mouse are 10 times faster than distracting what knob to scroll. One arm for hot keys, second for mouse, there’s no third hand for the controller).
But tell me, dear Cubase, how I supposed to control 3 LFOs in three VSTis simultaneously without spawning Remote Controls for every new instance? Instead I could just click Rec button and learn quick controls, but no! Need go to Devices and create generic remote for every VST i want to control. Sick.
Good question. Logic would indicate that if you click to enable the QC set in both plugins, that they’d both respond to the control.
For whatever reasons, that’s not how it works though. Only the top most plugin in the Instrument track gets the message. It is not forwarded on to the next plugin.
I suppose they may have done it on purpose to avoid accidentally moving a bunch of stuff unintended by accident? I noticed that when it comes to automating VST controls with a Remote Device, the same is true unless I ‘stack maps’.
I really don’t see much difference in using a Remote Map through MIDI tracks that can be armed and disarmed (either for recording or just monitoring) and using the QC set. Perhaps it comes with a bit of practice…but I find it easy enough to manage here.
It’s based on that approach, yes, but instead of using the QC set and snapping it to tracks, I just arm and disarm MIDI tracks pointing to the Remote Maps that I’d like to use at a given moment. Actually I use the QCs too, but I have different preset on my MPK2 where I can swap back and forth easily.
The point being, it’s not any more or less ‘clicks’ to get things done. I just do it by arming and disarming tracks. I actually do this via remote control as well (MPC Pad banks or other various buttons I can program on the MPK2…plus I can use Hot-Key commands on my regular computer keyboard, or on my programmable MMO mouse, or the Orbweaver Gaming board, etc.).
After setting up a VST quick control and close the editor you get a question to "save as default, so it’s a one time setup per plug-in. If you setup the instrument rack to only show quick control knobs for the selected plug-in it’s easier to see what’s in focus. The focus shift does work, even with multiple instances of for example U-He Diva, but if I remember correctly it’s by selecting the plug-in in the rack, not selecting the midi channel or plug-in window. (Might have changed in Cubase 9 Pro, not sure.)
After a lot of experimenting and learning, below is how I do it now:
I use an AKAI MPK261 and Avid Artist Mix (2x) and Transport
I’ve added the MPK261 as a generic controller, It’s duties are
Keyboard
transport
bank A > Track Quick Controls
bank B > VST Quick Controls
(if your controller has no banks, you should map only Track or VST quick controls, not BOTH to the same controller values, as you can do this, but it doesn’t work)
I use my artists for EQ, controlling inserts, mutes and faders, I use my transport for transport duties and “assignable knob” (same function as Steinberg AI knob “point and shoot” ) so finally everything works in a simple straight forward way. There are obviously many ways to tackle this, but above works best in my setup.
Hello,
I was wondering if you (or anyone) could give me simple example of this? I use generic remote maps as well as loopMIDI for easier routing of internal + external MIDI in Cubase. I am curious what possibilities there are.
Really interesting. Thanks to all. I had the same idea or approach before working with remote management and same questions arised. Now is a bit more clear, but far from what I would ask. Now I will try to do this with console 1 from softube used as a MIDI controller
Hi using CONSOLE 1 to control some other plugins through MIDI MODE on the hardware controller. I am dissapointed since I can do the mapping to (for example) to a Waves channel strip using generic control, but if I have THE SAME channel strip on another track then I need to map everything again… no way to do proper mapping to a effect plugin…and I need more than 8 controls and not to jump with banks…Why I cannot easily define for each plugin any of the controls defined in the GENERIC REMOTE CONTROL? There I can define many of them but how to relate it to the channel strip knobs??? Any help? Thanks
