Using the Overlap controls

The Overlap controls let you move the fade area without moving the Offset Point – the “center” of the fade area (see below). This means that the “center” of the fade will be offset in relation to the fade area.

•You can either use the Overlap sliders or you can click in the Overlap fields, change the values numerically and press [Return].

•If “Symmetric Fades” is activated, both the upper and the lower Overlap controls will move both the fade-out and the fade-in area.

Changing the Offset Point

You can also move a fade area by changing its Offset Point. The Offset Point is the “center” of the fade area, i.e. the point where the volume of the event is precisely halfway between full level and zero level.

•Click in the value field, enter the desired value, in accordance with the selected display format (see “The Crossfade display” on page 92) and press [Return].

This will move the Offset Point along with the fade area by the specified amount. Note however that this only applies to the fade-in area!

•The Offset Point is indicated by a dotted vertical line in the crossfade display.

Auto Fades and Crossfades

Nuendo features an Auto Fade function that can be set both globally, i.e. for the entire project, and separately for each audio track. The idea behind the Auto Fade function is to create smoother transitions between events by applying short (1 - 500 ms) fade-ins and fade-outs.

As mentioned earlier, fades are calculated in real time during playback. This means that the larger the number of audio tracks with Auto Fades activated in a project, the higher the demands on the processor.

Note that auto fades are not indicated by the fade lines!

Making global Auto Fade settings

1. To make Auto Fades settings globally for the project, select “Auto Fades Settings...” from the Project menu.

This opens the Auto Fades dialog for the project.

2.Use the checkboxes in the upper right corner to activate or deactivate Auto Fade In, Auto Fade Out and Auto Crossfades, respectively.

3.Use the Length value field to specify the length of the Auto Fade or Crossfade (1-500 ms).

4.To adjust the shapes of Auto Fade In and Auto Fade Out, select the “Fades” tab and make settings as in the regular Fade dialogs.

5.To adjust the shape of the Auto Crossfade, select the “Crossfades” tab and make settings as in the regular Crossfade dialog.

6.If you want to use the settings you have made in future projects, click the “As Default” button.

The next time you create a new project, it will use these settings by default.

7.Click OK to close the dialog.

Making Auto Fade settings for a separate track

By default, all audio tracks will use the settings you have made in the project’s Auto Fades dialog. However, since Auto Fades use computing power, a better approach may be to turn Auto Fades off globally and activate them for individual tracks, as needed:

1.Right-click the track in the Track list and select “Auto Fades Settings...” from the context menu (or select the track and click the “Auto Fades Settings” button in the Inspector).

The Auto Fades dialog for the track opens. This is identical to the project’s Auto Fades dialog, with the addition of a “Use Project Settings” option.

2.Deactivate the “Use Project Settings” option.

Now, any settings you make will be applied to the track only.

3. Set up the Auto Fades as desired and close the dialog.

Reverting to project settings

If you want a track to use the global Auto Fade settings, open the Auto Fades dialog for the track and activate the “Use Project Settings” checkbox.

Event Envelopes

An envelope is a volume curve for an audio event. It is similar to the real-time fades, but allows you to create volume changes within the event, not only at the start or end. To create an envelope for an audio event, proceed as follows:

1.Zoom in on the event so that you can view its waveform properly.

2.Select the Pencil tool.

When you move the Pencil tool over an audio event, a small volume curve symbol is shown next to the tool.

3. To add an envelope point, click in the event with the Pencil tool.

A blue envelope curve and a curve point appear.

4. Drag the curve point to adjust the envelope shape.

The waveform image reflects the volume curve.

•You can add as many curve points as you like.

•To remove a curve point from the envelope, click on it and drag it outside the event.

•The envelope curve is a part of the audio event - it will follow when you move or copy the event.

After copying an event with an envelope, you can make independent adjustments to the envelopes in the original event and the copy.

Ö It is also possible to apply an envelope to the audio clip using the Envelope function on the Process submenu on the Audio menu.

See “Envelope” on page 242.

• To remove an event envelope curve from a selected event, open the Audio menu and select the Remove Volume Curve option.