I would like to play around with the surround sound capabilities of my PC.  I have the sound card and speakers all working properly.  I have tested my surround setup using some of the 5.1 sound tests that are available on the we and they sound great.  Now I would like to try and create some 5.1 audio files in cubase.  I am using the ASIO Directx Full Duplex driver in cubase and I can hear audio through the stero L/R output buses.  But when I add a 5.1 output bus I can not map device ports to the center, LFE and R/L Surr. speakers.  Only the Left and Right are mapped to the output1 and output2 device ports.  I suspect it may have something to do with the driver setup.  I see the number of audio channels for my audio device is “2”.  I’m guessing that needs to be 5 or 6 or something.  I tried to click the value hoping I could modify it but I can’t.  I attached a screen shot of my setup in cubase.

I have a quad-core AMD processor with an integrated Realtek HD Audio interface.  I am running cubase 4.5.2.

Thanks in advance.

Hi,
Quite briefly…
Re: “ASIO Directx Full Duplex” and “Realtek HD Audio interface”
---No and no. Please c/o the specifications for Cubase, and you may also be interested in the thousands (literally) of posts on the Cubase forum about trying to use on-board audio devices in Cubase. Please consider removing the drivers for your Realtek device, disabling it in the BIOS, and adding a recommended digital audio interface from manufacturers like RME, Steinberg, Presonus, M-Audio etc. that have their own solid ASIO driver. For example, if you were to use an RME device, you would use the RME ASIO driver for that device. mLAN from Yamaha is another device to consider and you would then use the mLAN ASIO driver in Cubase. Hope that helps.......frank

I did some basic searches on the motifator and steinberg sites about “surround sound” but didn’t get many useful result. At least nothing as to the point as your response. Thanks for the feedback I really appreciate you taking the time to answer my question. 
Anyway I’m glad I wasn’t dissuaded in my search attempts and I did find another ASIO driver with pretty decent latency controls as well as the surround capabilities I was looking for -and it was free!  The driver is ASIO4ALL V2 and it seems to work well with Cubase.  I’m not a pro and I’m not sure how much some of the digital interfaces you recommended cost.  If I get more serious about the need for surround sound I will certainly investigate them further, but in the meantime the ASIO4ALL driver fits the bill quite nicely.
BTW I mostly use my MLAN/ASIO interface along with my XS8 and Cubase.  But I guess I would still need a higher end sound card to acheive the surround capabilities or could I somehow use my XS8 to do this?

Hi again,
Re. “The driver is ASIO4ALL V2 and it seems to work well with Cubase.”
---Sorry, but once again this driver is NOT recommended. It is sometimes a means of getting by, or it appears to work then other problems occur and the user starts wondering what could possibly be wrong. You definitely will be more successful and more problem free if you invest in a suitable interface with its own ASIO driver. These devices usually cost anywhere from $300-$2000 dollars, and choices depend on needs and quality.
However, I also notice that you mention that you “mostly use my MLAN/ASIO interface along with my XS8 and Cubase”. Well, if that is the case, why then are you trying to use your Realtek device and ASIO4ALL drivers etc. in Cubase?? If you have mLAN and can select its ASIO driver then THAT is what you should be using as your digital audio interface. Is there some kind of confusion as to how to use it?? I prefer to leave mLAN questions for Yamaha’s “Bad Mister” to answer, but if do you have any questions about that device, you can post them here for his attention. Hope that helps............frank

I wanted to play around with the 5.1 surround capabilities of cubase and I don’t thst is possible with the MLAN/ASIO and my XS.  Thanks again for the advice.

In order to do surround (with Cubase) as FrankE is pointing out, you don’t want to use your computer soundcard or drivers that address your computer speaker setup - in general those are consumer ‘playback’ situations. You want to use a ‘professional’ external soundcard device and connect your 5.1 surround speakers to it. FrankE mentioned the RME… trust us, you want to be external to your computer if you thinking about recording.

What Yamaha offers via mLAN is a mixing console called the n12. The n12 is mLAN/Firewire cable and is fully surround mix capable. (Yamaha has an impressive list of gear that is Surround Monitor-ready for the Home Studio musician)… basically they start with the n12, then move up to the 02R96VCM, and then go up until you run out of money. :)

You may want to visit the following site for details on what is involved in Surround monitoring and critical Bass management and will be fully integrated with Cubase:
Digital Mixing via mLAN

Check out the many videos, Features, Specifications at the above link ... and if you have questions, post back here.

The XS, by iself cannot do surround mixing. it does not have the outputs, nor the mixing, panning and bass management functions required in a surround setup… After all its a keyboard (not a mixer). You will need a mixer that is specifically surround capable.

The n12 has the ability to run 5.1 Surround because it has 6 speaker outputs and the ability to control those buses as required in a 5.1 Surround situation. Ask around, you’ll find nothing but raves about this console - There is nothing like it in the marketplace!

The n12 features three pairs of speaker outputs that can be used for full 5.1 surround monitoring: front left and right, center and subwoofer, and rear left and right. If you don’t need surround capability the outputs can simply be used to switch between different stereo pairs for comparison. When the 5.1 mode is selected all three output pairs are active, with the speaker selectors functioning as temporary mute switches. Bass management is also implemented for optimum matching between the full-range speakers and subwoofer. A down mix switch that lets you instantly collapse the 5.1 outputs to stereo.