Newbie Groove Agent track & Automation for Dynamics

Cubase
#1

Hi - still pretty new to Cubase and I’m making some basic tracks for demos - nothing too complicated, just scratch tracks whilst I learn.

I’m using Groove Agent for rhythm tracks, and I’ve assigned two automation tracks to control complexity and intensity (just a simple track of notes triggering patterns assigned to those notes - https://youtu.be/gele1bBWq-g).

The problem I’ve got is that the automation tracks seem to only apply to the main rhythm pattern and not the fills. Quiet passages suddenly have huge fills in them.

Do I need to create extra automation tracks for each fill/intro/ending, or is there any way I can get them all to use the two tracks I’ve got?

Or am I doing it completely the wrong way? My plan is - once I’ve got a pretty smooth rhythm track - to record it as MIDI and put the finishing touches in.

#2

You don’t need extra tracks but you need to check that the fills don’t just have their original complexity and intensity settings (sounds like they do).

What do you see on the automation tracks?

Also make sure you don’t have more than one automation track for each controller…use the “Show Used Automation” from the right click. If there is more than one delete the extras.

#3

Thanks for that - I’ll have a look later.

From memory, the automation track for intensity was just set around 60 for the whole track so far (plan to increase when I get further in). When it hits a fill bar though, it sounds like it’s ramped up to 100.

#4

Thanks for that - worked it out. I hadn’t got my head around automation (and still haven’t fully).

Once I’d found the automation tab in the options of Groove Agent, it started to make sense. Assigned the complexity of all pads to one automation channel(?), and all intensities to another, and show those tracks in Cubase. Now able to control these for the whole track.