Issue: Dawproject export missing midi cc64 (sustain) events - Cubase 15 Pro

The dawproject import/export implementation in Cubase 15 Pro is exceptionally good, however I have observed problems with sustain (midi cc64) event export/import from Cubase 15 Pro (on both MacOS and Win11). I setup a simple test using only a single VST instrument track, recording a basic piano part with sustain pedal events (midi cc64). If I then export this project to dawproject and try to import again, whether it be an import back to Cubase 15 Pro, or another DAW like Bitwig Studio 5, I find that all of the sustain events (cc64) are completely missing. It appears that maybe Cubase is not exporting these events at all to the dawproject files.

When making much more involved test projects, I find that all of the other more complicated stuff, like midi and audio recordings, instrument and processing plugins and settings all get exported and imported completely fine (whether it be to another DAW or back into Cubase). Only the midi cc64 sustain events appear to be missing.

Ironically this seemingly trivial missing cc64 sustain data makes the dawproject format almost unusable for me in Cubase. It’s so close though :slight_smile:

And yes, there is actually a simple, but inconvenient workaround. I have found that for midi instrument tracks with missing cc64 sustain events in dawproject, you can individually export the tracks using plain old midi (.mid) files, and the sustain data is then properly exported and imported (no matter which DAW you import/export from, including Cubase)

Well, anyway, hope the Cubase dev team can eventually fix this issue. It is not a deal breaker for me, but it would definitely be a big help for my workflow, which involves moving data between Cubase and Bitwig.

Speaking of which, kudos to the dev team on Cubase 15, it’s absolutely fantastic, the best Cubase has ever been.

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Can you please report this to Steinberg, @Martin.Jirsak ?

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I thought that these forum posts were the only way to report bugs to Steinberg, thus I have posted the issue here. If there is another channel for bug reports, I would be happy to send them a formal bug report. (please explain how, if you know the process)

Hi,

On my side, it doesn’t import any MIDI CC data. Can you confirm this, please?

It seems like Cubase doesn’t export CC data at all, I did a test (in C14 though) with CC1 and CC64, and none of them show up in the resulting project XML file…

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Hi,

Do you mean the *.dawproject file type or the Track Archive (Selected Tracks) or MusicXML, please?

The issue I reported here is specifically with .dawproject. Ok, so I think you are correct that Cubase 15 is not exporting or importing any CC data at all to/from .dawproject files. I did the following tests to confirm:

  1. Created a project in Bitwig Studio 5 containing a single midi track with CC1 and CC64 data. Exported to .dawproject. Then imported back into Bitwig, the CC data is all there, correctly exported and imported. Then imported into Cubase 15, the CC data is not there, it is all missing.
  2. Created a project in Cubase 15 containing a single MIDI track with CC1 and CC64 data. Exported to .dawproject. Then imported back into Cubase 15, the CC data is not there, all missing. Also imported into Bitwig, the CC data is not there, all missing.

From the above experiments it appears that Cubase 15 is neither exporting nor importing midi CC data to/from .dawproject files.

… which makes the .dawproject format useless with Cubase, when it comes to MIDI tracks, since CCs are basic/mandatory information. Especially CC64, as it determines the “length of notes” in addition

Hi,

It works as specified. MIDI CCs are not currently supported yet, same as Crossfade, Note Expression and the Strip Channel.

Curious from where you see this info (specification)… is it available publicly.? As I read from the operation manual (p1530), detail is lacking about the extent of mentioned Cubase support…

=============================

DAWproject Files

DAWproject is an open exchange file format that allows you to share and exchange digital media and metadata between different systems and applications across multiple platforms.

The DAWproject file format includes audio, video, and MIDI data, and information about tracks, routing, automation, and plug-ins.

For DAWproject file import and export, Cubase supports the following data, settings, and parameters:

• Track types: Audio, instrument, group, effect, marker

• Output channels

• Settings: Volume, pan, channel strip, mute, sends, track color

• Insert plug-ins (VST 3 only)

• Track routing

• Automation: Volume, pan, mute, sends, insert/instrument parameters

==================================

Thanks, @Martin.Jirsak . Specified for Cubase or for the file format?

Interesting. I tried to export from Cubasis recording to Cubase.
Now using midi export/import.
I can live with it, but it is basically a useless format this way.
Waiting for it to mature.