Should I use Control Room?

[BaseCu]

After playing with CR a bit more I realized that you don’t need to assign Cue Mixes to physical channels. All you have to do is create them in VST Connections, assign plugins to each one using the CR setup tabs (thanks, BriHar), and then just click the button corresponding to the Cue Mix you want to hear. Awesome!

[raino]

@BaseCu

Hi, I’ve been trying to do something like this with Control Room but without success. I’d like to set up several different alternative mixes with different sets of plugins (e.g., Mix1=Stereo Out; Mix2=Stereo Out+mastering effects; etc.).

I considered using one Cue Mix for each alternative mix, but you have to assign a unique physical output channel to each one (in VST Connections). However, this would prevent me from clicking one of the Cue Mix buttons to send the different sets of plugins to the same output channels and monitors/headphones such that the only difference between the mixes is the plugins.

Can this sort of thing be done in Cubase 8?

Independent of the physical output each cue mix is assigned to, you also have the ability to send any of them to the main Control Room meters and output. By default this plays the Stereo Out, but you can change it on the fly to any of the cue mixes. But since there are no inserts associated with each cue send on a channel you can’t have different plugs on them. So you can’t directly use the cues to change plugs.

However you can use Direct Routing to set this up. Say you have a guitar track and want to try 3 different plug-in variations. Create 3 Group Channels and call them GMix1, GMix2 & GMix3. Then use Direct Routing to send the guitar track to all three group channels. On each of these Group Channels set the regular routing to “No Bus”. Then enable and set the level for Cue 1 in GMix1, Cue 2 in Gmix2, etc. Now you can set up different plug-ins on each of the group channels. Repeat the above for other tracks you want to process different in each mix. For tracks that you want the same in all the mixes enable all their cue sends.

Now in the Control Room you can use different cue mixes for playback on the fly. Once you have decided which mix you like the best set their regular routing to Stereo Out and for all the channels you don’t want to use either mute them or set their regular routing to 'No Bus"

[raino]

@BaseCu

After playing with CR a bit more I realized that you don’t need to assign Cue Mixes to physical channels. All you have to do is create them in VST Connections, assign plugins to each one using the CR setup tabs (thanks, BriHar), and then just click the button corresponding to the Cue Mix you want to hear. Awesome!

The problem with doing that is the plug-in will effect every track you are monitoring via that cue. So if you are sending a guitar, drums and bass to Cue 1 and then insert Amp Rack as an insert for the cue it will end up distorting all three instruments instead of say just the guitar. It is functionally the same as putting a plug on an insert for Stereo Out instead of a specific track.

By the way it really make no difference to what you are hearing from your main speakers if the cues are assigned to a physical output or not. What you describe in the quote would work exactly the same even if the cue was assigned to a physical output. If in the CR you select C1 instead of Mix you will hear what ever is being routed to Cue 1. If Cue 1 is assigned to a physical output then whoever (if anyone) is listening to phones connect to that output will hear the Cue 1 mix and that mix will also be routed to the studio monitors. If it isn’t connected to a physical output then the Cue 1 mix will only be heard on your studio monitors.

[BaseCu]

Hi raino,

@raino

Independent of the physical output each cue mix is assigned to, you also have the ability to send any of them to the main Control Room meters and output. By default this plays the Stereo Out, but you can change it on the fly to any of the cue mixes.

Yes, I discovered this after playing around with the CR. Thanks…

@raino

But since there are no inserts associated with each cue send on a channel you can’t have different plugs on them. So you can’t directly use the cues to change plugs.

Hmm. I guess I don’t understand what you’re saying here because I was able to assign a different set of plugs to each Cue Mix in the CR setup. This is what I was originally trying to do. My goal was to be able to try out different sets of mastering plugs and quickly switch between them (after normalizing the volumes, of course).

@raino

However you can use Direct Routing to set this up. Say you have a guitar track and want to try 3 different plug-in variations. Create 3 Group Channels and call them GMix1, GMix2 & GMix3. Then use Direct Routing to send the guitar track to all three group channels. On each of these Group Channels set the regular routing to “No Bus”. Then enable and set the level for Cue 1 in GMix1, Cue 2 in Gmix2, etc. Now you can set up different plug-ins on each of the group channels. Repeat the above for other tracks you want to process different in each mix. For tracks that you want the same in all the mixes enable all their cue sends.

I hadn’t considered doing this, but I can see how it would be very useful. That’s what I like most about this forum; sometimes you get answers to questions you didn’t even ask (or were smart enough to imagine).

Cheers…

[BaseCu]

@raino

@BaseCu

After playing with CR a bit more I realized that you don’t need to assign Cue Mixes to physical channels. All you have to do is create them in VST Connections, assign plugins to each one using the CR setup tabs (thanks, BriHar), and then just click the button corresponding to the Cue Mix you want to hear. Awesome!

The problem with doing that is the plug-in will effect every track you are monitoring via that cue. So if you are sending a guitar, drums and bass to Cue 1 and then insert Amp Rack as an insert for the cue it will end up distorting all three instruments instead of say just the guitar. It is functionally the same as putting a plug on an insert for Stereo Out instead of a specific track.

Correct! But this was my intention. I’m in the process of learning about ‘mastering’ plugs like Steinberg’s multiband compressor, maximizer, and Magneto. And I wanted to try out what I saw here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KA5yfKbMtjU .

Initially I put these three plug-ins on the Stereo Out (as you mentioned). But that did not allow me to compare different settings within these plug-ins, or compare the results from comparable plug-ins from other companies.

So that’s how I ended up doing this with CR. Now I have three Cue Mixes with three different sets of plug-ins. All I have to do is to click one button and I instantly get a totally different mix!

[Patanjali]

For a multi-instrumentalist doing their own multiple tracks, the cue mixes allow having different foldback mixes to be set up for the different song layers. They don’t have to be routed to physical outputs, as you can just use your normal monitoring headphones and select between the different cue mixes or the main mix.

[Freddie_H]

@jono not bono

Howdy,

After reading a Feature Request about a Mono Button on the Master section I am wondering a few things about Control Room and so thought I’d make this thread.

Basically, I monitor Audio when Recording with my Motu HD192 Near Latency Free Cuemix and since using it, I haven’t turned on Control Room. I didn’t think I needed it. I am just wondering if there is something I am missing because I thought Control Room was there to allow me to monitor through Cubase (and this gives more latency than using Motu’s Cuemix and onboard DSP) if I wanted to. I would love to know what, if anything, I am missing about Control Room because many people have been praising how Powerful it is.

Thanks for any advice and knowledge

Jono

Yes you should use it!
Its one of the best or most expensive features in Cubase PRO 8. The meter section cost 3x times more then Cubase alone.
If you would buy 3part solution it would cost $3000-5000 or more. So use it and activate it!



Best Regards
Freddie