Staying in record after stop

Cubase
1

Hey, guys.

I’m working through a scenario for live recording. I have two laptops running Cubase, with a midi cable connecting them. The playback laptop sends backing tracks to the mixer. The recording laptop takes 16 non-backing tracks from the mixer (the actual performances). The playback laptop has all the songs in a single project, with a minute gap between each and a marker at the start of each song. At the end of each song, the sound man locates the next marker and when we’re ready presses play.

I have the recording laptop synced via midi to the playback laptop. I arm the tracks, and then press the * to record. It waits for the playback laptop, and when it detects the playback, it starts recording. So far, so good.

Here’s the problem I’m trying to solve. When the playback laptop stops, the recording laptop dutifully does the same. However, it also drops out of record, so that when the next song is started on the playback laptop, the recording laptop syncs to the proper position but only plays, as it’s no longer in record.

Is there some way to configure the reocrding laptop to not drop out of record when it’s stopped? I don’t want the sound man’s attention divided by having to babysit the recordng laptop, pressing record each time before he can turn back to the playback laptop to start our next song. I’d like it to be automated so that it’s all controlled by the playback laptop, and each song records on the other recording laptop without any further action required.

By the way, I have backing tracks, etc. on the playback laptop coming into the mixer, but I only have 16 available outputs for recording (exactly enough for drums, bass, guitar, vocals). This is why I have the recording laptop synced up. This way, If I want to mix a live recording after a gig, I can just drop the backing tracks in at the song markers in the recorded project and they’ll snap to line up. If I pressed record and let it run wild for the entire set, it would be a pain in the posterior to try and exactly line up each song’s backing tracks with the individual songs recorded tracks.

I also know that I could just record in the Cubase project that’s doing playback, but that computer drives the entire show and I’m just too paranoid to add the extra load on that laptop as it’ll make us look very stupid should it lock up. Hence the two computer setup.

So, if I can get the recording laptop to not drop out of record when stop is pressed, I have a very clean solution. Any insights on how best to skin this particular cat would be most appreciated.

Thanks!

2

Cubase will always drop out of Record when Stopped.
But, I think the following may be an acceptable workaround…
You have a MIDI cable connecting the two computers, yes?
So… on the “Playback” computer, add a MIDI track that has a “trigger” MIDI note (of your choice) placed at the start of every individual song.
On your “Recording” computer, create a Generic Remote Device, with the MIDI output from the Playback machine as its input. (I think that, when you create a new Generic Remote, it defaults to several lines of data. Delete all but the first line.)
Let’s assume you have chosen MIDI note #127.
Change the remaining line in the upper section as follows…
Control name = (how about, “Record Trigger”, :wink: )
MIDI Status = Note On
MIDI Channel = 1 (presuming, of course, that the Playback computer will be transmitting the trigger MIDI note on channel #1 :wink: )
Address = 127 (the MIDI Note number)
Max. Value = 127 (in fact, this is the note’s velocity, not that it matters here :wink: )
Flags = “R” (“receive”)

Set the corresponding line in the lower section as follows…
Control Name = (it will default to the “Record Trigger” name that you entered in the upper section)
Device = “Command”
Channel/Category = “Transport”
Value/Action = “Record”
Flags = “P” (in fact, cannot be changed, when Device = “Command”… don’t worry about it :wink: )

Don’t forget to hit “Apply”.
Now, whenever the Playback machine goes into Play (at the start of each song), it will also send the “Record” command.
In practice, you may find that the Trigger note needs to be sent a little earlier.

If you get all that working o.k., you can, if you wish, refine the process a bit further, and get the Playback machine to also send command for “Locate Next Marker” (provided of course that you have created Markers for each Song Start on the Recording machine :wink: )

3

That’s perfect, just the sort of thing I was hoping for. It didn’t occur to me that I could wire up my own generic device like that.

Midi is at the heart of the show, so it’s a very natural solution. There’s a click track with at least one bar of countoff for every song, and that’s when I fire program changes to guitar amps, the mixer, etc. to set things up. It’ll be easy to fire the command in that bar to arm the recording.

Thanks for the help and for taking the time to go into such detail, man. Much appreciated!

4

(have a good gig! :wink: )