Cubase LE 4 (and Yamaha)

[Scooter1]

I've been doing some presales research and need to clarify...

1. Cubase LE 4, the one that's bundled with the Presonus FireStudio, will only record 8 simultaneous tracks?

2. Cubase LE 4 can be upgraded to studio, correct?

3. Can my Yamaha AW4416 talk to Cubase? Can I use my Yamaha to control some of the Cubase parameters. I know that was the case with earlier verisons of Cubase. Can I load my Yamaha recordings into Cubase?

I've looked around for the answers to these questions with little success. Maybe ya'll can hook me up. Thanks.


Scooter

[Electriclight]

1, No, it can record 48 audio tracks and unlimited MIDI tracks.

2. Yes they offer an upgrade discount.

3. Yes you can use it as a controller. The Yamaha site has templates for cubase. Install it as a generic controller:
AW2816 MIDI Remote Template for Steinberg Cubase - Read Me

As far as directly importing audio files into Cubase...I'm not sure. They reference optional audio interface cards.

However, it worth remembering that Yamaha OWNS Steinberg (Cubase) so if it's possible with anything is possible with Cubase. I don't think the LE4 version would have any limitation on that aspect.

[Scooter1]

Thanks for clarifying. I'm one step closer to buying a Mac and a FireStudio interface now...

I read another post in the forum with someone complaining that Cubase LE 4 only records 8 simultaneous. I'll try to find that post and reply. I hope I can get my 4416 to work with Cubase, even though it is discontinued. I didn't know Yamaha owns Cubase. Good to know. Thanks again.

Scooter

[Electriclight]

Thank god that year is gone because it seems I made a mistake. I was thinking of playback tracks instead of physical inputs. LE4 DOES have a limit of 8 physical inputs and outputs. Here is a chart with the comparison of versions:

[Scooter1]

Thanks man, that's the page I was looking for. Got on the website yesterday and joined, then I got sidetracked by the forum and went down the rabbit hole. More questions.

On the chart where it says:

"External instruments...no", obviously it doesn't mean that I can't record my bass, git, and drums into the program...so what's an external instrument?

"External Effects...no", What does that mean? I can't insert any effects, like a delay, etc. into a channel once it's already recorded?

"Sidechain Inputs...no" Again, I'm unclear.

Thanks for being patient with me. You're really helping me out. I've been teaching myself to record for some years now, but I haven't done it on a computer yet, and I don't have anybody else to ask about this stuff now that I'm married with children and not hanging out with the other musicians anymore.

Scooter

Scooter

[Electriclight]

"External instruments...no", obviously it doesn't mean that I can't record my bass, git, and drums into the program...so what's an external instrument?

This would have to do with routing the Cubase track back to an external instrument like a keyboard or, like your next question, hardware effects, and then back into Cubase. It would work like the effects loop on a guitar amplifier. I think that it would only be useful if you were doing some kind of big time live performance.

"External Effects...no", What does that mean? I can't insert any effects, like a delay, etc. into a channel once it's already recorded?

See above. This is Cubase routing where a signal goes into Cubase, then leaves the computer, goes through a hardware effects rack, and then returns to Cubase. I've never heard of anyone doing that.

"Sidechain Inputs...no" Again, I'm unclear.

Ok, this is a little more useful and practical, but not a big deal. Hardware compressors often have a sidechain input where one signal can affect the compression level of the other. For example ducking is when say a guy on the radio starts talking and the music gets quieter. It can be useful in software compression by say, letting the kick compress the bass or whatever. Again, it comes down to sophisticated routing. There are some software compressors that could take advantage of a sidechain capability. Obviously, if you don't know what a sidechain input is, it's probably not going to be a deal breaker.

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[Scooter1]

Thanks Electriclight. I'm all clear. I've actually experimented with ducking, just to try it, with little success. I'm really interested in gating with my kick and bass, I've tried that too with a dbx unit with little success, but I've never really sat down and stuck with it, just figured I'd learn to play tighter (with success). Maybe you can help me out in the future. Peace.