major progress: i was able to get one of the files to null.

it seems like it is some kind of cubase corruption. and it's the weirdest thing. i've managed to create tracks that are identical (they source from the same file, have the same start and end points, same effects) and yet do not null. but the newly inserted version nulls with the render from last month, whereas the version saved to last month does not.

hopefully, this is repeatable. if it is, i've determined what i need to do to get back to where i was.

the next thing i need to do is figure out which one of these inserts nulls with the original file. that's easy enough - i just need to render them both clean. i know they don't null with each other, against all logic. but, which one is corrupt?

i suspect that it will be the new insert that is corrupt - that is that the renders after the reinstall are the correct ones and the renders before the install are corrupt. if that's the case, i can trust the projects as i make final changes to the mixes. if not, i'll need to modify all the projects and then make final changes.

you can't accuse me of a lack of rigour, anyways.