talkback

WaveLab
#1

Hi
I have been using cubase for a few years, since sx3, and I am trying to get a better configuration for talkback. Currently (cu8.5) I just plug in a cheap dynamic hand held that has an on-off switch and leave talkback ON always. This sucks because I cant use the tb DIM features. Also I have to pass around the mic to clients in the control room and they have to get used to using the switch on the mic…

Clients are not necessarily studio savvy and at 150+/hour people need a lot to make them comfy. I want a stupid simple talkback solution that lets me use the features in the cubase talkback sections of the control room, like stupid simple, like a mic with a button that communicates with cubase

I saw this mic stand from Heil Sound Heil CB-1 PTT with a push to talk button. This is PERFECT, like exactly what I want, but it doesnt talk to cubase to say “turn on or off talkback”, I would have to leave the talkback enabled with no DIM and then use it.

Is there ANYTHING at all that is out there to accomplish this? If there is no “smart mic” in the general concept of the Heil stand, I am probably looking at hanging one of those AT choir hanging mics and then getting one of those stupid USB “Big Button” deals. Im not crazy about a pretty lame button that does not look like great construction being the thing that every client will use to talk to the studio rooms but id rather do that than leave talkback ON in cubase and not get to use the features.

Any ideas thoughts or suggestions? Thank you!

#2

If there is no hardware that will cover this, is there any way to setup in the control room a noise gate that triggers talkback?? So like I buy that Heil mic stand, slap in a cheapie mic, and then anytime I hit push to talk and start talking, it pushes the thresh on the gate and that tells cubase to enable tb? that would be pretty cool!

#3

I went ahead and bought the heil cb-1 tbb, anyone have any links on making this 1/4" t-s jack work to control cubase talkback? Thanks!

#4
  • First you have to convert that push button to MIDI data (for example by hooking it on keyboard’s sustain pedal connector).
  • Then create Generic Remote Control in Cubase and assign whatever MIDI data this button now generates into whatever function you like it to do.
#5

It annoys me immensely that Cubase doesn’t have a standard noise gate that can be used in the input channel so you can use any old cheap PA push to talk mic for talkback. I spent hours trying to sort out a decent solution and failed time and time again until I switch to UAD Apollo which meant I could ignore Cubase altogether and just have a live push to talk mic running all the time with a noise gate on the channel sending to the monitor channels. When doing the job through Cubase, I had to monitor the channel incurring the CPU wrath of ASIO guard. Not good!

I use this mic. for the purpose: https://www.amazon.co.uk/MICROPHONE-microphone-omni-directional-windshield-Connection/dp/B00OHGYQEE/
Which used to be about £25 but it seems has gone up a bit.

#6

So I got it working. I am using the CB1-ptt as the mic stand and the push button i plugged into a novation ZeRO sl mk2 sustain pedal jack, then in automap, i made it set to an unused CC (im using 110), set to “momentary”, then in cubase I made a “generic remote” setting in and out to “Automap MIDI” and then i made a new controller called PTT set to cc110, and then below VST Control Room -> device -> Talkback set to “NOT AUTOMATED” (since the automap is already sending cc110 127 while pushed and 0 when not. Works like a champ

#7

Cricky that’s a lot of mucking around - you would have thought a professional audio production product would make this kind of thing easier. There should be a dedicated always present talkback input channel (not tied to the control room which not everyone uses) with a built-in adjustable gate (and low/high pass filters) to support push to talk mics. When the gate trips, the monitor and cue outputs should duck all other channels by an adjustable amount. You don’t have to worry about latency, asio guard etc with a talkback channel, coding this would be trivial.