Need "how to setup up midi for idiots" help

  • Thread starter Thread starter Nate74
  • Start date Start date
BTW, I'm running XP Home Edition.

I've now downloaded and installed the new driver. I tried both ASIO and WDM driver settings in CW and still nothing... :confused:

What next do you think?
 
Nate74 said:
I have the audio driver in CW set to ASIO because it seems to be the only one that supports 96/24 files...
Click to expand...
The note I posted above from the Echo web site indicates that the midi function of your card will only operate using WDM drivers. So ditch the ASIO. There is no reason 24/96 operation shouldn't work under WDM.

I'm still at a loss as to the source of your problem. It could be the card itself. It could be that funky midi cable that is supplied with the card. However, I still think the answer lies somewhere in the drivers.

Here's what I would suggest. Go back to the previous drivers, and set Home Studio for WDM mode, 16 bits and 44.1 sample rate. Remember you have to reprofile the sound card and exit and re-enter HS anytime you change bit depth or sample rate.

Load one of the demo midi files supplied with HS (or any midi file you have) and change the track(s) settings as needed. Play the file and see what you get while monitoring from headphones plugged into the keyboard.

If that works, you can then test the audio return from the keyboard, and start building your way back up to 24/96.

If it doesn't work, I'm pretty much out of ideas, short of swapping the card for a new one to eliminate the card/midi adapter as the source of the problem.
 
Nate- when CW launches, an icon w/ some red buttons (usually -- at least in the products I've owned) appears in the taskbar area. These red buttons indicate midi in and midi out of the CW program.

When you run CW and are intending to use midi, are either of the red buttons lighting up?

Kev.
 
Kev,
Yes. The Midi Out red light flickers when I'm playing a midi part/file. There is no activity however on the Midi In light when I play my keyboard with it connected to the MiaMIDI.

I'm now about 99% certain that the issue is either the soundcard (most likely) or my keyboard (less likely).

I paid a local computer shop to build this PC and they are the ones who installed it. Is there any way to check, perhaps through hardware profiles etc. to see if they did it correctly? I ask because I see not only reference to the MiaMIDI but also to something called Vinyl AC'97??? Is that an additional soundcard or something else...
 
Nate74 said:
Kev,
Yes. The Midi Out red light flickers when I'm playing a midi part/file. There is no activity however on the Midi In light when I play my keyboard with it connected to the MiaMIDI.

I'm now about 99% certain that the issue is either the soundcard (most likely) or my keyboard (less likely).

I paid a local computer shop to build this PC and they are the ones who installed it. Is there any way to check, perhaps through hardware profiles etc. to see if they did it correctly? I ask because I see not only reference to the MiaMIDI but also to something called Vinyl AC'97??? Is that an additional soundcard or something else...
Click to expand...

AC97 is a chip popular for onboard sound cards.
You might want to go into your bios and disable onboard audio.

For the keyboard to transmit midi, you must have a midi cable connecting the midi out of your keyboard to the MIA's midi in port.
 
fraserhutch,
Yeah, had the midi cables connected alright.

Been a while since I went into my BIOS, can you give me a 20 second review?

Thanks
Nate
 
Well, that didn't seem to do anything either. I can still play my audio files in CW no problem but still nothing MIDI....
 
Do you have a soundblaster card laying around, or are you in a position to borrow a card from someone to see if its the card or the synth?
 
No I don't have a Soundblaster card anywhere.

Is there any other way I could test the keyboard? to eliminate that as a variable?

This computer shop didn't seem that familiar with the MiaMIDI and since the keyboard is only about a year old and has never really been used that much and never outside my safe little studio... I tend to think it's the card.
 
Dont you have a MPC module of some type? if you could hook another midi device to it and test send and receive you can rule out the synth and look aat the card next.
 
I looked in your manual for the S03. Here is an important step in using the s03 as a sound module hooked to an external sequencer.

"You can connect an external MIDI device using a MIDI
cable (available separately) and control it from the S03.
You can also use an external MIDI keyboard or
sequencer to control the S03’s internal sounds. This
section introduces several different MIDI applications.
nThe HOST SELECT switch on the rear panel should be
set to “MIDI” Otherwise, MIDI data will not be
transmitted from the S03’s MIDI OUT connector."

Here`s a clip on using the synth as a tone generator playing multiple parts by a sequencer.

"Multi Play Mode
Select this mode when you want to
use the S03 as a multi-timbral tone
generator. In this mode, you can use
an external MIDI sequencer to play
several different instrument parts
simultaneously."

here`s something I found that would prevent it from receiving any midi data.

 Is either the Demo mode (page 16) or the Compare function (pages 55 and 70) active? When either of these are active, incoming MIDI data is ignored.
 
Holy crap!!! I haven't looked at the back panel in ages. But there it sits, a switch clearly labeled MIDI. I switched it to MIDI and PRESTO!!!!

I can't tell you A) how greatful I am, and B)what an absolute IDIOT I feel like.

Thank you all for your help. I won't even get into how I managed to miss that section in the manual... BTW what page was that on (RED FACED)?
 
Good job, Kenny!!

It was becoming pretty obvious that this was goiong to be hardware related. Great detective work.

Our work is done here, men. Carry on. :D :D
 
I have one final question, though. Does this mean that the keyboard can either be used in MIDI mode, or Audio mode, but not both simultaneously.

If so, that is going to make it impossible to use it as a synthesizer being sequenced from Home Studio, no? If you set it up to received MIDI from HS, then it won't return audio. Or did I misunderstand the MIDI switch.
 
...and VOILA' !!!!

Checking each component, one by one, on the midi signal chain from the software (which was working) to the keyboard was exactly the correct approach, and I'm thrilled Ken solved the trouble for you.

Sometimes the old Maytag repairman commercial still pops up (the one where he shows up and plugs in the plug to the elec outlet?), and it's a simple as throwing the right switch (as it was here).

Now go make some noise!!!

Best,

Kev.
 
dachay2tnr said:
I have one final question, though. Does this mean that the keyboard can either be used in MIDI mode, or Audio mode, but not both simultaneously.

If so, that is going to make it impossible to use it as a synthesizer being sequenced from Home Studio, no? If you set it up to received MIDI from HS, then it won't return audio. Or did I misunderstand the MIDI switch.
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike, I just hoped you could use some teamwork on this one, and I hated to see the synth sittin there not working with frustration mounting.
according to the manual and the setup pics, when put into midi mode as a tone generator, the midi input is echoed to out and thru. The audio outs are active just as in voice mode. When not in midi mode or placed in voice mode the midi synth is confined to local control with echo on the thru port.
Page 38, 55, 92.
 
dachay2tnr said:
I have one final question, though. Does this mean that the keyboard can either be used in MIDI mode, or Audio mode, but not both simultaneously.

If so, that is going to make it impossible to use it as a synthesizer being sequenced from Home Studio, no? If you set it up to received MIDI from HS, then it won't return audio. Or did I misunderstand the MIDI switch.
Click to expand...

It appears that by setting the switch to "MIDI", all you are doing is activating the two (well actually three) MIDI ports. I doesn't de-activate the audio out ports. I don't exactly understand what the point of this is come to think of it.

There are also settings for Mac and PC-2 back there. I don't even want to know what those are for....

Sincerely though, thanks go everybody for helping me figure this out. :)
 
Glad you got it running man.
I was looking around in that manual. The synth is much stronger than I realized. It has some awesome data manipulation abilities.
The midi switch apparently lets the midi interface take control of the routing in and out of the data and the controllers effect on the midi data. When its switched to the PC setting it sends all the data and controller information thu the computer interface strictly to a PC. In the mac position, it will send the data and controller information out and in the computer interface in Mac format. Really smart engineering thinking there and some good craftsmanship without a real heavy price tag.
 
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