MIDI Echo

This is an advanced MIDI echo, which generates additional echoing notes based on the MIDI notes it receives. It creates effects similar to a digital delay, but also features MIDI pitch shifting and much more.


 

Cubase LE

Cubase AI

Cubase Elements

Cubase Artist

Cubase Pro

Nuendo

Included with

X

X

X




The effect does not echo the actual audio, but the MIDI notes which eventually produce the sound in the synthesizer.

Velocity Offset

Allows you to raise or lower the velocity values for each repeat so that the echo fades away or increases in volume (provided that the sound you use is velocity sensitive).

Pitch Offset

If you set this to a value other than 0, the echoing notes are raised or lowered in pitch, so that each successive note has a higher or lower pitch than the previous. The value is set in semitones.

For example, setting this to -2 causes the first echo note to have a pitch two semitones lower than the original note, the second echo note two semitones lower than the first echo note, and so on.

Repeats

The number of echoes (1 to 12) of each incoming note.

Beat Align

During playback, this parameter quantizes the position of the first echo note. You can either set this to rhythmically exact values or activate the PPQ button and choose a PPQ value.

Setting this to 1/8, for example, causes the first echo note to sound on the first eighth position after the original note.

Note

The echo time can also be affected by the Delay Decay parameter.

Note

During live mode, this parameter has no effect since the first echo is always played together with the note event itself.

Delay

The echoed notes are repeated according to this value. You can either set this to rhythmically exact values or activate the PPQ button and choose a PPQ value. This makes it easy to find rhythmically relevant delay values, but still allows for experimental settings in between.

Delay Decay

Adjusts how the echo time changes with each successive repeat. The value is set as a percentage.

  • If this is set to 100 % the echo time is the same for all repeats.

  • If you raise the value above 100 %, the echoing notes play with gradually longer intervals, that is, the echo becomes slower.

  • If you lower the value below 100 %, the echoing notes become gradually faster, like the sound of a bouncing ball.

Length

Sets the length of the echoed notes. This can either be identical with the length of the original notes (parameter set to its lowest value) or the length you specify manually. You can either set this to rhythmically exact values (displayed as note values – see the table below) or activate the PPQ button and choose a PPQ value.

Note

The length can also be affected by the Length Decay parameter.

Length Decay

Adjusts how the length of the echoed notes changes with each successive repeat. The higher the setting, the longer the echoed notes.

About Ticks and Note Values

The timing and position-related parameters (Delay, Length, and Beat Align) can all be set in ticks. There are 480 ticks to each quarter note. The parameters allow you to step between the rhythmically relevant values. The following table shows the most common note values and the corresponding number of ticks.

Note Value

Ticks

1/32 note

60

1/16 note triplet

90

1/16 note

120

1/8 note triplet

160

1/8 note

240

Quarter note triplet

320

Quarter note

480

Half note

960