Problem

Audio files imported into Cubase or Nuendo are played back at the wrong pitch and speed.

They either sound too high, are played back too quickly and appear to be too short - or they sound too low, are played back too slowly and seem to be too long. .

The deviation can be extreme (Mickey Mouse or slow motion effect) or very subtle - like a slight detuning.

Background

Incorrect pitch, speed, and length of audio files almost always indicate a sampling rate conflict.

The settings in Cubase/Nuendo under Project > Project Setup... in kilohertz (kHz) represents the basic grid of the temporal resolution of a project, to which all audio signals are assigned.

When importing audio files whose sampling rate differs from the project setting, Cubase asks in a dialog box whether the sampling rate of the file should be adjusted to the project setting.

Dialog: Convert audio files to new rate?

If the conversion is skipped by clicking No, files with a lower sample rate will be played back too fast and therefore too high. Files with a higher sample rate will be played back too slowly and too low.

For example, a 48 kHz file in a 44.1 kHz project would be down-tuned and too slow, as only 44,100 of the originally intended 48,000 samples per second would fit into one second of the project. In a 96 kHz project, on the other hand, a 48 kHz file would be played back twice as fast and an octave higher, as it would only fill half of a second.

Missing import dialog

If no dialog appears when importing audio files with a different sampling rate, it has probably been deactivated beforehand. In this case, the last import settings made are used during import. This can be changed in the Preferences... (Windows: Edit menu, macOS: Cubase menu) under Editing > Audio. To achieve this, set the option "On Import Audio Files" to "Open Options Dialog".

Solution

If a project already contains audio files that are played back at the wrong speed and pitch, there are various options.

First, you should know the sample rate of the project. It can be found under Project > Project Setup... under Recording Format. Depending on the Cubase version and setting, it is also displayed in the "Record Format" field directly in the menu bar of the project window.

Now open the Pool by simultaneously pressing command + P (macOS) or Ctrl + P (Windows) to check the sample rate of the audio files in your project. You can also do this via the menu Media > Open Pool Window.

The sample rate of each audio file is displayed in the Pool window, and you can decide whether it makes sense to adjust individual files to the sample rate of the project. You can do this by right-clicking on an audio file and selecting "Convert Files..." from the contextual menu.

Alternatively, you can of course also change the sample rate of the project in the Project Setup... (Project menu). This is preferable if all files in the project have the same different sample rate.