Cubase SX3: Why does it hate me?

OK, I'm gonna keep this as short and sweet as I can, any help would be greatly appreciated.

1) I can't seem to get any kind of audible output from Cubase, either from audio or MIDI files. I have used this software before on the university computers and never had this sort of problem.

2) The "Synth" and "Drums" folders of the included VST plugins don't show up under "VST Instruments", which is a real pain as I need to use EWQL.

3) ..How do you set up EWQL in Cubase SX3 then? As I may be missing something.

Any help greatly appreciated, my soundcard is a Creative Soundblaster X-Fi.

1. Probably your card is not setup properly. Go to Device -> Device setup -> VST audiobay . Check what is there, change stuff, in the end of all things google "asio4all" and download it. Excellent drivers that will run with pretty much everything. Midi might not work, if your soundcard doesn't have a midi synth (GM!) Mine doesn't so I can't hear scraggy of midi anymore! But if you take any mp3 you have and just drag and drop it into Cubase in a project, it should play.

Make sure that your soundcard has ASIO or direct sound. If it's ASIO, ASIO works only for 1 devices unless you "release to background". So if you have winamp, for example, open, it might stop Cubase from sounding. And some devices do that, without actulaly playing anything! for example Y! messanger does that, so I had it uninstalled!

2. I'm not sure I understand. You have a PC, right? In the Steinberg folder in program files -> Steinber you should get the Cubase SX3 folder, as well as VST plug-ins folder. The VST plugins is the main folder which feeds Cubase, HOWEVER there is a second folder inside the Cubase SX3 one, which should have subfolders "drums", "synth", etc.

Still don't know what you mean though.

3. Press F11, get instruments out. Go to the first available slot, click on it, get the list of instruments, find EWQLSO, click on it. The orchestra is loaded. Load an articulation. Click on the keyboard, it might not play. Go back to the project, add a new midi track (right click, midi track), go to the ins and outs on the left hand. On the out choose EWQLSO from the pull down menu. Go back to the EWQLSO window, click on the keyboard, it should play.

etc, etc

Hope it helps.

If not you need to be a bit more clear about things I'm afraid.

Heya Sorry. I'll try to explain more carefully the problem regarding the Virtual Instruments.

Under Program Files-> Steinberg-> Cubase SX3-> Vstplugins, there is a bunch of folders. "Drums", "Synths" etc, with the plugins that you load up with F11 in Cubase. The way I understand it, when you are IN cubase, each folder will have a corresponding sub menu when you click on an empty virtual instuments slot.

For example I should be able to click slot 1, then go "Synths" -> "Embracer". However, the two menus "Synths" and 'Drums" are not in the menu as I expect them. Which means the only tab I can find EWQL under is the "Direct X" one, which doesn't actually load the player.

This means I can't then slect 'EWQL" from the drop down menu of the MIDI track, because it hasn't loaded the library or KONTAKT player application. I hope that's a bit clearer, though I can post screens if that would be better

EDIT: AHA! Almost almost done now! A reinstall and re-update fixed alot of these issues. Unfortunatly, I still can get no playback whatsoever. Not just no sound, no PLAYBACK. When I hit the play button the marker doesn't even scroll. Oh and my input/output latency's have both dropped to 0.

Any thoughts?

The playback issue is a weird one. The only thing I could think of is that Cubase is not setup to your soundcard. Did you go to device - > device setup -> VST Audiobay? This is where you setup your soundcard. What does it say there? Maybe you have your Soundblaster hooked to monitors, but your native soundcard is playing instead? Or something like that?

Thanks for trying, Nikolas! But Cubase has now decided that it wants to have a critical error and crash everytime it boots so I think I'm just gonna give up until I get my new computer and manage with Reaper for a while :)

Ok

What are your specs? and

With all due respect, is it a legal copy of Cubase?

Cause as far as I know SX3 is a fine program with very little to no bugs, so it's either your system, or your copy of Cubase.

^ For arguments sake lets say yes. But let us also assume it is a dodgy copy :)

Which is pretty likely, cause yeah its a download and my computer has so much crap on it it can't help. And before anyone judges me about the download, I always buy my software once I have the cash, torrents and stuff are just a temporary measure to quench my impatience!

Still, getting the hang of Reaper now. It ent actually that bad. Massive step up from Audacity. Will get a legit copy of cubase when I grab my new comp in september.

Ok

Then there are 2 steps you need to do.

1. uninstall Cubase all together. I'm not hardcore about piracy or anything and this is not the thread to discuss it.

2. Before you go and get reaper, see what you can get rid of in your computer! Make sure you are clean of viruses and spyware and stuff. Get CCleaner and clean your registry. Unisntall any crap you have. Take off your hard disk any unecessary movies/mp3s you have which take loads of space. Make your computer healthier and then get reaper, which you can get for free, as an unlimited shareware and try it out!

As you said, with your new computer, go get Cubase and you'll be fine.

Will do! Thanks Nikolas :)

a friend of mine has had this, you must have got your copy from the H20 store right? :P

re-installing windows worked for him.

people need to learn internet and DAWs don't go well together, it's only a matter of time before reaper will give you crap too.

good luck.

OK, assuming a legit copy will work, I'm thinking of buying SE3. It's affordable and has all of the basic features that SX3 has, and I'm still VERY new to sequencers on the whole. What do you reckon guys? Good idea?

nonononono! Get a few more and go for studio 4, or regular 4! SE 3 is SO stripped down that it's not worth it!

If you are a student you can get a student copy. And actually if you have afriend you could do the same, if you trust them...

nonononono! Get a few more and go for studio 4, or regular 4! SE 3 is SO stripped down that it's not worth it!

If you are a student you can get a student copy. And actually if you have afriend you could do the same, if you trust them...

Studio 4 is about 150 quid more!!! Is it really that much better?

OK, assuming a legit copy will work, I'm thinking of buying SE3. It's affordable and has all of the basic features that SX3 has, and I'm still VERY new to sequencers on the whole. What do you reckon guys? Good idea?

you assume wrong, most likely none of the cubase releases will work efficiently on your current setup.

like i said, either re-install your windows or get a dedicated pc.

i agree with nikolas, go for cubase 4, the regular release that is.

Studio 4 is about 150 quid more!!! Is it really that much better?

yes.

I think I'll look into getting Studio 4. Can't justify forking out for the main release but Studio 4 doesn't look like it loses too much important stuff that I'll be using...although I am still at the stage of not being certain what I will and wont need lol.

you could always upgrade afterwards, if some day you find yourself needing the extra features.

AWESOME NEWS!

I ordered Cubase Studio 4....and they sent me the wrong one! So I now have a fully functional, fully lisenced version of Cubase 4!

One question, I have input from my MIDI keyboard working and EWQL as well, but sometimes I get a crackling noise when I'm playing/recording from the keyboard into cubase. (A MIDI recording).

Any idea what this is and/or how to solve it?

It's not urgent but it does show up during playback as well which is a scallop.

AWESOME NEWS! If you can replicate the error, let me know how! :D

On your problem now.

1. DFD settings on EWQL. Open Kompakt, or Kontakt, whatever you use, and go to the DFD settings. Play with them, nothing can break! :D

alternatively

2. Go to (inside Cubase) menus -> devices -> device setup -> VST aduiobay -> YOUR soundcard (right bellow) -> control panel. Take a look at the buffers. Increase them to 512, or even 1024.

Hey Nikolas! Thanks alot! That really helped. I had to change what I did a little because when I clicked "Control Panel" I got an ASIO LATANCY setting, but I just increased that slightly (it was 4, I made it 5) and the crackling has gone at the cost of a small latency increase. But 7 milliseconds to 9 millseconds isn't too bad!

I also played around with DFD settings but didnt really know what I was doing, how does the DFD stuff work?

First of you do need to go to the official home of EW (Sounds Online) go to the updates and find for the product you use. There should also be a DFD update (otherwise they don't work! :D). Now if you don't own the copy legally, I don't think there should be any problem, but then again... :-/

anyways, to the DFD settings you can set how much of the sample "head" you will load on your memory. The more you load, the more RAM you use, but the less trouble is for your harddisk. If for example you load 2 secs, in the 2 secs kompakt needs to go to the hard drive find what is missing and collide it with what is currently playing. If you are playing 50 notes at the same time, this IS a lot and maybe your hard drive, and your CPU can't handle it. If you tell kompakt to load 3 secs, instead of 2, then there will be more time and less crackles, pops, etc.

9 msecs is not bad. When you need more detail, just solo the one you use and the necessary and reduce buffer again to 7 msec, etc. It also has to do with your soundcard (and I'm currently at 3 msecs, when working on a piano, and don't use it for a full orchestra, since it's at 24 msecs! :D)

EDIT: I really need some kind of salary in here! :D (joking of course)

Brilliant, Thanks Nikolas!

I gotta say I'm loving Cubase now. I've been composing solely with Sibelius for so long, some of my music was failing where my notation was failing. Percussion, for example, I've never been able to effectivly notate. But just bashing it in on the keyboard is awesome.

Tell ya what, I'll donate some good thoughts to you :D

BY THE WAY: Anyone know where I can get some reasonable drum kit sounds to use in cubase? All I have atm is general midi and orchestral percussion.

AWESOME NEWS!

I ordered Cubase Studio 4....and they sent me the wrong one! So I now have a fully functional, fully lisenced version of Cubase 4!

One question, I have input from my MIDI keyboard working and EWQL as well, but sometimes I get a crackling noise when I'm playing/recording from the keyboard into cubase. (A MIDI recording).

Any idea what this is and/or how to solve it?

It's not urgent but it does show up during playback as well which is a scallop.

You lucky bastard! :P

BY THE WAY: Anyone know where I can get some reasonable drum kit sounds to use in cubase? All I have atm is general midi and orchestral percussion.

Cubase has some drum machine inside which could work somehow...

The other alternative would be to go to KVR: Virtual Instruments, Virtual Effects, VST Plugins, Audio Units (AU), DirectX (DX), Universal Binary Compatibility - Audio Plugin News, Reviews and Community and search there for free stuff.

If you want to buy stuff there are opinions... But try the free ones first.

the 909 kit is all you need :P

Out of drums I'd recommend the newest Battery from Native Instruments, that's what I use.

I used to use Cubase SX3 but recently switched to Sonar Producer Edition and I like it more.