CUBASE PRO - GROUP vs VCA Tracks Explained

Can you create VCA tracks from your group tracks?

Just had the "aha" moment of why my fade-outs usually don't sound good. It's because I'm fading a group fader, not a VCA fader. So the FX processing is fading out when really it should stay the same and just have the VCA level fade out. Brilliant.

I see the VCA channel is just a name, but it does link the fader to the vca fader, in Sonar a bus in the master out section will do the same, it will reduce levels or increase levels without seeing the faders going down, and those busses have automation too. People are a bit easy to pusuade when they hear interesting names like vca channels and such, even when it does or acts very differently in the digital domain.

Thanks Chris for this informative video, just love your knowledge of Cubase. Question, so for group channel, so the idea is to add a group channel and just use one set of plugins from the Console window, is this correct?

Thank you

The word is r-u-t not r-ow-t.

Chris coming with the videos right when I have those questions, love the vids dude!

Great explanation... Thanks Chris!!!

Pro tip: you dont need to go to mixer window to add a group track to selected tracks.

can you please do a video of live looping i. cubase and how to set up. kind of an Ed sheehan thing?

Hi again Chris, sometimes when mixing my stereo buss level ends up too hot, I want to decrease everything but keep the mix relative levels of all channels, not change the mix. Since I have loads of automation, selecting all faders and reducing using Q-link wont work. How do you deal with this problem? Thanks again, Marty

Hi Chris, I’m new to mixing and have been learning a lot from your videos. Quick question…is there a way to detect harshness in a mix without playing it back loudly? Perhaps through an EQ or spectrum analyzer? Thanks!

Hey Chris, how do you do to get colors in the mixer window? I have color in the main window for each channel but not in the mixer. Thanks in advance!

Can I set up the vca to shape velocities for say drums for example? That would be sick

Merci.

Hi Chris, Is there any option to change the default colour of the wave in a region in cubase, as in , is it possible to have a different colour for the wave separate from the region where it lies in

Best explanation I have ever seen for how and why setting up VCAs

Thanks Chris - I just watched Greg Ondo spend 15 minutes brain-farting around this very issue so thank you for the crystal clear explanation!

Darn it. Just bought the Mixing Course then after watching the Mix Template videos, I see there is now 30% off🙈🙈😥

Hey Chris! I love the channel and am trying to be more diligent about catching each of them as they're released.

I have a question. Lately I find myself GASsing for mic preamps. However, my desires are bigger than my bank account 😭

I'm wondering what is the difference [besides adding color] between using an outboard preamp vs just adding gain via the offline processing function? I wouldn't think that there would be any obvious advantage.

Perfect explanation and demonstration 👍🏾 thanks Chris!

Thanks Chris - great, simple explanation with examples. I’ve finally got it! Eureka!

Hi Chris I hope you are doing well i have been using VCA on my FX channel but I can't hear what it do 100% on my Fx channel .maybe i am being slow on understanding the important of it

We just figured the problem out: we neglected to deactivate the cue sends on the mix console! So the group tracks were still routing through. For now….until the next thing

Thanks for your informative videos. We’ve followed instructions, yours and Cubase Pro 11 Manuel’s, carefully. Many times with the same result. For group channel of 2 tracks, solo and mute work fine but the group channel fader has no effect on the volume! It is as though the individual channels volumes are bypassing the group fader entirely. We are out of ideas, new to Cubase ….appreciate any suggestions you may have!

I was just wondering how to do this the other day, glad you made this video! Sometimes I find myself at the end of a mix with not quite enough headroom for mastering - in this case would you recommend running every track through a VCA and bumping down the volume a notch?

You say VCA, I say VEE-CEE-WA-HEY!

thanks Chris. from editing area also you can assign groups to selected track i believe this was added from cubase pro 11

Helpful as always. 😊🙏

Hi Chris, Thanks! My question is about the Softube Console Fader- how can I make it control the VCA Fader since I cannot load a plugin on it? Cheers

You've explain everything that make me confused before! Thanks Chris! It's help me a lot :)
Good luck

Great info as always from Chris! He is the only one I turn to for tips and tricks in Cubase. 🤘

Hi Chris,

I also use a VCA fader in a case like the following: let’s say I have 8 singers, each of them singing individually within verses, and all of them singing together during choruses.

Of course, voices are too loud in the choruses, so I need to automate them. If I use a group, I’m at risk to overload the group’s input. So, in that case, I use a VCA fader in order to automate the voices. And I can also send those voices to a group.

My question is : Do I over-complexify the « problem » ?

Si ma question n’est pas claire, je peux la poser en français.

Merci beaucoup et bravo pour ton excellent travail ?

I was thinking: is it also (I'd never tried) possible to select channels from different groups to one vca together?

Hi Chris, another pre for a vca against a group is that the volume of different channels is going down (or up) procent-wise. In a group the difference between the channels when moving faders stays the same. I'm not able to check right now (I'm in bed 😉 ), but I always had in mind that that was also one of the differences between a group and a vca channel.....

VCA's great for keeping your Master bus level in check. put VCA channels for DRUMS, MUSIC, VOCALS, ie, Enter Vol. value on VCA faders while keeping your mix channels relative to each other.

Very interesting. Thanks! Seems that you need VCA when you send your tracks to the delay or reverb. And use group when you add sends on this group, right? Also you can use both VCA and group on the same parts? Like Strings group and Strings VCA as well..

A lot of important distinctions, and carefully explained, (with details I didn't know!)

Thanks Crhis nice video, for me they must remain named VCA with the name of the function they have to perform regardless

You nailed it.Thank you Chris

Bonsoir
je vais écrire en français car je sais que vous parler le français, j'ai visionné quelques tutos qui étaient en français, il y a fort longtemps...
J'avais juste une question presque ésotérique..
Pourquoi dans votre template et dans presque toutes les templates... ce qui est en haut de la timeline ... ce sont les Batteries....
En fait, je fais toujours le contraire... cad... pour faire simplle je mets tout en bas la batt ( kick,cc...overhead) puis la basse les claviers guitares et je finis par le chant...
perso, je trouve ça plus logique car tout ce qui est rythmique pour moi est lié à la terre et tout ce qui est mélodique est plus lié au ciel donc en haut...
Ce n'est qu'une représentation mentale mais je voulais savoir pourquoi tout le monde fait l'inverse... y a t-il une raison???
Merci d'avance pour votre réponse et merci pour ses supers Tutos
Encore Bravo
Eric


Good evening
I will write in French because I know that you speak French, I watched some tutorials that were in French, a long time ago ...
I just had an almost esoteric question.
Why in your template and in almost all templates ... what's at the top of the timeline ... are the Drums ....
In fact, I always do the opposite ... ie ... for simplicity I put the batt (kick, cc ... overhead) all the way down, then the bass, the keyboards and guitars and I finish with the vocals ...
Personally, I find it more logical because everything that is rhythmic for me is linked to the earth and everything that is melodic is more linked to the sky so at the top ...
This is only a mental representation but I wanted to know why everyone is doing the opposite ... is there a reason ???
Thank you in advance for your answer and thank you for his great Tutorials
Bravo again
Eric

Great info, although its a bit weird to me as a younger generation audio engineer, that when Digital is even in the name of the program group as DAWs, but they still call them VCAs even in side the programs. Mostly for older generation engineers, who still remember using them on analog consoles where they indeed were controlling the voltage, but still...why not name them DCA inside the program? It just sound trickier for beginners of this craft.

I can't tell you how many videos I have watched on this topic. Only now do I really understand the difference! Thank you so much.

Hi Chris. I usually use VCAs on the right side to make a rough mix of the instrumental families before working better using automations on specific instruments if needed. Do you think it's fine or is it a particular reason to use groups for this?

In vers. 12 Qlink should be replaced by temporary grouping: select the channels and you can adjust the volume/Pan of all of them, like in Studio One, Reaper.