# Console 1 / Fader in Cubase?



## ALittleNightMusic (Dec 13, 2020)

I've been contemplating getting Console 1 Fader since Cubase has full support for it, but wondering if anybody here has it and has thoughts on it? The Fader seems like a cheaper Avid S1 with more features (also Eucon totally blows still so I don't want an Avid device), but wondering if the normal Console 1 is a better buy and just as easy for level balancing? The fader seems nice because it has 10 motorized faders, plus a few nice sweetening / cleaning up tools (low cut, high cut, character, drive) and sends control (native DAW sends), which could control reverbs then. And I still would use my non-Softube plugins for stuff like compression and eq (so outside the Console 1 system).

Does Console 1 only respect the tracks you've explicitly added the plugin to? Want to ensure random MIDI channels aren't being included and only my audio and instrument tracks.


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## method1 (Dec 13, 2020)

As an alternative suggestion, unless you specifically want the softube plugs & motorised faders, the Nektar P1 is very nicely integrated with cubase & worth a look.


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## ALittleNightMusic (Dec 13, 2020)

method1 said:


> As an alternative suggestion, unless you specifically want the softube plugs & motorised faders, the Nektar P1 is very nicely integrated with cubase & worth a look.



Thanks - my S1 keyboard has everything the P1 has built in, with a larger screen, so if I don't go with the Softube Fader, I'll stick to that. The nice thing about Softube's integration is it is bi-directional in Cubase - that is, if you select a track outside your current bank in Cubase, the Console 1 will auto-bank appropriately (which Mackie / HUI devices don't do).


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## method1 (Dec 13, 2020)

What is an S1 keyboard? 
The p1 is also bi-directional (if I understand the term directly) and will jump to any track you select in cubase.


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## kC_ (Dec 13, 2020)

Hi, my setup i have the console 1 and a Icon M+ (8 channel mackie fader)

firstly for either of the softube console 1 or fader to work, it MUST be an insert on every chanel
(this isnt a problem for me, all of my templates are setup that way and it is so light on CPU its amazing


i can only talk of console one, but it has 99% of what i need on every channel , a great gate/transient/desser, a great EQ, a great Dynamics/comp and an amazing saturation/drive..... so no need to go hunting for other plugins, and its all easily controllable with a physical controller (as long as you have the inserts on your channels)
I really cant reccomend it enough! whatever track im on in cubase, is what the controller is doing and vice versa, i even have a 3rd display dedicated to the console 1 gui, got his thing 6 years ago, and was easily my best purchase!

now my other controller is a the icon pro m+, which is an 8 channel motorized fader (got this way before the console fader was released)... but has one HUGE issue (it doesnt autobank) in the same way that most mackie controllers dont.
so as an example, i load a cubase session, the Icon M+ will be showing the first 8 tracks from the session, bit no matter what i click in cubase, the controller still shows the 1st 8 tracks (i have to manually change banks) either 1 channel at a time or in banks of 8

its so annoying that most of the time as im mixing, i often dont use it! (i just cant be bothered to bank change to find the selection of tracks that im working on! I just end up using the mouse or console one!)


in the past couple of days i saw a video by Dom Sigalis where he shows how console 1 follows the selected track! 
 

id always dismissed the softube fader as it has no scribble strip or channel name display (where my icon m+ does)

but afer seeing that now..... now that is what i want my 8 channel MCU controller to do! no matter what channel i select. the controller is there! I dont want to be manually banking sets of 8 channels to find where i am.. it should be following me!

take into consideration your workflow, i thought the icon pro+ would help me having 8 channels of faders to mix, but as it doesnt follow where i am in the mix console sometimes its a waste of time.
Id quite happily trade for the console fader right now, even if if the console fader has no scribble strip! it follows you through the mix console, and whats in front of you is where you are in cubase...

p.s if anyone in the uk wants a straight up console fader/icon prom+ (with d2 display) trade, lets go!


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## ALittleNightMusic (Dec 13, 2020)

method1 said:


> What is an S1 keyboard?
> The p1 is also bi-directional (if I understand the term directly) and will jump to any track you select in cubase.



NI's S61 keyboard from their Kontrol series. Interesting that P1 does that since I've only seen something like Eucon or Softube's direct integration hardware able to do so.


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## ALittleNightMusic (Dec 13, 2020)

kC_ said:


> Hi, my setup i have the console 1 and a Icon M+ (8 channel mackie fader)
> 
> firstly for either of the softube console 1 or fader to work, it MUST be an insert on every chanel
> (this isnt a problem for me, all of my templates are setup that way and it is so light on CPU its amazing
> ...




Thank you! Yup, that's the unique aspect of Fader (or Avid's S1) - auto-banking! Makes a huge difference I think when you're actual mixing.


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## method1 (Dec 13, 2020)

ALittleNightMusic said:


> NI's S61 keyboard from their Kontrol series. Interesting that P1 does that since I've only seen something like Eucon or Softube's direct integration hardware able to do so.



Nektar has a sort of hybrid approach, selected tracks automatically appear on the controller where you can directly control a bunch of stuff, but moving between banks of 8 is still manual, however the P1 lights up the track that is selected so it's easy to keep track of where you are.

The way I work around this in my template is so that quick control slot 1 is mapped to volume, that way when a track is selected outside of the bank, when the P1 takes control of the track I can control levels without having to change banks.

I think if you are predominantly looking for mixer functions the C1 might be a better choice.
I like the P1 because of all the built in plugin/VSTi mappings.


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## kC_ (Dec 13, 2020)

ALittleNightMusic said:


> Thank you! Yup, that's the unique aspect of Fader (or Avid's S1) - auto-banking! Makes a huge difference I think when you're actual mixing.


yep! most definatley!! i do love the hands on control of console one, and all my tracks of every mix have the plugin inserted, its my obvious next step to ditch the MCU (icon m+) and get the console fader

i was one of the fist to get the console one, especially for PC! as when i bought it, I hadnt done my homework & found there was no windows version released! (luckily though as becoming a beta tester for softube ive got a lot more than i bargained for!)


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## method1 (Dec 13, 2020)

Last punt here on the P1, another quick way of "auto banking" is when you select a track outside the current bank, stepping forward one track on the P1 will automatically jump to that bank, then step back one track to the track you want to control. Not perfect but still handy


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## ALittleNightMusic (Dec 18, 2020)

Just received my Console 1. Decided against the Fader and now that I have the Console 1, I'm glad I did I think. This thing really is quite the complete mixing solution (which the Fader would not be) - you have to make sure you position it in front of you / arms reach, but once you do, it all starts to become muscle memory. The fact that it's always loaded on every channel you need in your template saves so much time IMO - no more hunting through plugins for this or that.

It works well in Cubase (you probably want to turn off automatic track numbering though if you have an orchestral template so you can front load all the relevant tracks into Console 1). The Apollo and UAD integration is also a super nice bonus.

Half-contemplating getting the Fader also, but I think starting with the regular Console 1 was the right move and with track selection reflected bi-directionally, the Fader seems more like a nice to have.


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## ALittleNightMusic (Dec 28, 2020)

Ended up buying the Fader too  I will say that Console 1 is the correct first buy and the Fader is a nice to have. But motorized faders are definitely nice to have. Once you have your template setup the way you want, this system becomes so fast to mix with. I don't know how I could ever go back to hunting through plugins and tweaking with the mouse.


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## mediterrano (May 23, 2021)

For a Cubase user who owns a Console 1 (alongside a CC121), would it make more sense to get the Console 1 Fader or the Avid S1?
I mean Avid S1 is, due to the EUCON protocol, far more advanced than Console 1 Fader but maybe the latter has so much deeper integration with Console 1 that it might make sense to prefer it over S1.
What's your take on this?


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## ALittleNightMusic (May 23, 2021)

mediterrano said:


> For a Cubase user who owns a Console 1 (alongside a CC121), would it make more sense to get the Console 1 Fader or the Avid S1?
> I mean Avid S1 is, due to the EUCON protocol, far more advanced than Console 1 Fader but maybe the latter has so much deeper integration with Console 1 that it might make sense to prefer it over S1.
> What's your take on this?


EUCON was broken for months with Cubase 11. I think Avid and Steinberg finally fixed it in the latest update.

I think depends what you want to do with the more “advanced” nature of S1. Console 1 is meant to be a fully contained system - and in that regard it is way faster workflow than S1. S1 does allow you to control any plug-in but is so slow to do that in my experience.


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## Mithnaur (Jun 21, 2021)

Well, I've been wanting to buy a surface with faders for a while now, I think I'm pretty excited about this Console 1, especially since I saw some videos.
I looked at the Behringer X-Touch (I like all these buttons and colors, my geek side would be tempted ^^), Icon-X, korg NanoControl etc.
Or the very good Avid Artist Mix used by Danny Elfman (doesn't exist anymore I think ?).
But often I come across different opinions, compatibility problems, configuration or design difficulties, faders too short or not ergonomic ...
I also considered home-made expression/dyn controllers (I admit it's a bit envious when you watch people doing it). But I'm not sure if available time, DIY skills and perseverance are enough ^^
The more exotic stuff too like the modular controllers presented by Christian Henson at Spitfire ... which are quite attractive it's true.
I would like something simple and efficient, solid, well designed, well integrated with Cubase, and versatile. And this 1 fader console seems to fit the bill ... [active reflection mode].
It would almost be missing a little KeySwitches/pads area or DAW-customizable buttons to make it all in one (although there are a few of those a priori). But it's also nice to have a hardware really dedicated to a type of use.
Normally I use my Korg Radias for all this. It has a lot of advantages : configure directly on the beast the CC for each button and knob. There is also an arpeggiator and step sequencer ...
It also has the disadvantage of being old and the default microsoft drivers work better than the korg ones.
But most of all... I'm a bit tired of turning knobs for expression/dyn at the same time ^^

I was wondering about a little audio mixer... do some of them do both (midi/audio)?
In affordable prices, I guess not and that makes 2 different architectures and connectors but I was wondering ...


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## janila (Jun 21, 2021)

Don’t think Console 1 is a plugin controller. Yes, the hardware is just that but the product is a combination of software and hardware and you should only get it if you value the software side of it. Softube is maybe the best in the business in emulating analog gear and that’s the point of Console 1. It’s a console. Or several in one. It’s amazing when you see it the way it’s intended.


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## Mithnaur (Jun 21, 2021)

janila said:


> Don’t think Console 1 is a plugin controller. Yes, the hardware is just that but the product is a combination of software and hardware and you should only get it if you value the software side of it. Softube is maybe the best in the business in emulating analog gear and that’s the point of Console 1. It’s a console. Or several in one. It’s amazing when you see it the way it’s intended.


Thank you for these precisions!
As it happens, I don't quite realize the advantages of this console as an analog console emulation. So is the software part an important part of the price?
I already have some softube plugins that were given to me with my focusrite, but they are mixing plugins (very good by the way).
Do you have any examples of use that differ from the control part of plugins + CC?


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## janila (Jun 21, 2021)

Mithnaur said:


> Thank you for these precisions!
> As it happens, I don't quite realize the advantages of this console as an analog console emulation. So is the software part an important part of the price?
> I already have some softube plugins that were given to me with my focusrite, but they are mixing plugins (very good by the way).
> Do you have any examples of use that differ from the control part of plugins + CC?


As I tried to explain, don't think of the Console 1 as hardware or software in the sense that other plugins and hardware controllers are. The software side offers top notch emulations of the classic consoles, the hardware is a high quality controller for them. But the magic is in the combination of both and getting used to the hardware feel and software sound so that you can mix without mouse and your eyes and using your ears and tactile control instead. There's no latency, it feels like turning a real knob. There are channel strips of SSL, Api, Neve, Weiss, Empirical Labs, Chandler, Tube Tech and Summit Audio (paid separately, only SSL 4000 is included but it's really good) and you can mix and match EQs, compressors, gates and drive parts of the strips with the hardware without having to touch the mouse. Yes, you can't use other plugins than the supported ones of Softube and UAD but that's exactly the point. You don't have to patch anything, you don't have to think how the software is mapped on the hardware, you just select your flavor of sound and mix like on a console.


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## Mithnaur (Jun 22, 2021)

janila said:


> As I tried to explain, don't think of the Console 1 as hardware or software in the sense that other plugins and hardware controllers are. The software side offers top notch emulations of the classic consoles, the hardware is a high quality controller for them. But the magic is in the combination of both and getting used to the hardware feel and software sound so that you can mix without mouse and your eyes and using your ears and tactile control instead. There's no latency, it feels like turning a real knob. There are channel strips of SSL, Api, Neve, Weiss, Empirical Labs, Chandler, Tube Tech and Summit Audio (paid separately, only SSL 4000 is included but it's really good) and you can mix and match EQs, compressors, gates and drive parts of the strips with the hardware without having to touch the mouse. Yes, you can't use other plugins than the supported ones of Softube and UAD but that's exactly the point. You don't have to patch anything, you don't have to think how the software is mapped on the hardware, you just select your flavor of sound and mix like on a console.


Thanks again for the details!
I confess I know nothing about SSL consoles etc.
The 1 fader console tempts me just because it seems to be a very popular surface for its quality, and easy integration into Cubase (which I would love).
But unless I've misunderstood again, so it's not meant to be used as the main CC surface for instruments?
I mean, even if for me the mixing part and the softube plugins would be secondary, can it still be a good investment or is it better to turn to something else?
Because I'm having a bit of trouble finding a control surface (except maybe DIY) that has the same kind of advantages in terms of fader quality and compatibility, which is the consensus on cubase.


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## janila (Jun 22, 2021)

Mithnaur said:


> Thanks again for the details!
> I confess I know nothing about SSL consoles etc.
> The 1 fader console tempts me just because it seems to be a very popular surface for its quality, and easy integration into Cubase (which I would love).
> But unless I've misunderstood again, so it's not meant to be used as the main CC surface for instruments?
> ...


No, it doesn’t work as a MIDI controller. The knobs would be all over the place for that use anyway, which makes it perfect for what it is. Softube has sales for the Console 1 every now and then, I got it 30% off. Also the plugins have great discounts. Get it at a discount, use it for what it is and get another controller for synths. That way you can also control the synths without losing the control for mixing.


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## Mithnaur (Jun 23, 2021)

janila said:


> No, it doesn’t work as a MIDI controller. The knobs would be all over the place for that use anyway, which makes it perfect for what it is. Softube has sales for the Console 1 every now and then, I got it 30% off. Also the plugins have great discounts. Get it at a discount, use it for what it is and get another controller for synths. That way you can also control the synths without losing the control for mixing.


I'll make a note of it, thanks again!
Knowing however that I was talking about the faders console for MIDI controls, not the one with knobs.


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## janila (Jun 23, 2021)

Mithnaur said:


> I'll make a note of it, thanks again!
> Knowing however that I was talking about the faders console for MIDI controls, not the one with knobs.


Ok. I think it’s the same, there’s no MIDI control. And I wouldn’t recommend getting the Console 1 Fader without the Console 1 (with the knobs). I see the Console 1 Fader more as an extension to the Console 1, all the channel strip control is in the Console 1 and the Console 1 Fader adds more functionality.


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## ALittleNightMusic (Jun 23, 2021)

I’ve made console 1 fader my primary level controller (and put console 1 to the side). Reason being is fader is GREAT for balancing (better than anything outside of a EUCON controller IMO) but what it gives you in addition to that is the drive and character saturation from Softube’s console emulations. Then after adding that to all tracks, I like reaching into my vast plugin collection for EQ / compression / etc. May end up selling the Console 1 but will keep the Fader.


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## Mark Stothard (Aug 21, 2021)

Hi, I’m interested in the console one fader. Could this be used to map the faders to say CC1, CC7 etc and write automation on my tracks? I just need something that would allow me to record expression and volume automation for orchestral music. Would this help here?


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## StillLife (Aug 21, 2021)

Mark Stothard said:


> Hi, I’m interested in the console one fader. Could this be used to map the faders to say CC1, CC7 etc and write automation on my tracks? I just need something that would allow me to record expression and volume automation for orchestral music. Would this help here?


Console 1/Console 1 fader is a hardware-software system, used to emulate consoles. It is really great at what it is and had improved my mixing workflow tremendously, but it is NOT for controlling cc's. Maybe you could set it up that way, but that would defy its purpose, and there are dar cheaper options dedicated to cc-control out there.
If you're looking for a cc-controller: look elsewhere. If you're looking the make your mixes better and more easy to do (with more fun): this is one of the best things you can get.


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## Mark Stothard (Aug 21, 2021)

StillLife said:


> Console 1/Console 1 fader is a hardware-software system, used to emulate consoles. It is really great at what it is and had improved my mixing workflow tremendously, but it is NOT for controlling cc's. Maybe you could set it up that way, but that would defy its purpose, and there are dar cheaper options dedicated to cc-control out there.
> If you're looking for a cc-controller: look elsewhere. If you're looking the make your mixes better and more easy to do (with more fun): this is one of the best things you can get.


Thanks StillLife, are there any cc-controller’s you can recommend?


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## ALittleNightMusic (Aug 21, 2021)

Nakedboards MC-8. Or if you want to drop some serious cash, ChoiSauce Designs.


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