Is a Midi Daisy Chain Really that bad???

[munkee]

I just reconfigured my system(fatar midi keyboard controller-OUT- to-IN-of sound module-MIDI THRU- IN,2nd sound module-THRU-IN,3rd sound module.

That's how it is now. SO far No problems. I had a friend say I really need a bigger Midi Interface. Like a 4in/4out. Therefore, everything would be handled properly. Could this cause problems in the long run?

I ask since I just purchased a Midisport 2x2 to handle the input of my Fatar and Input of Vdrums. I can return it for an upgrade, if I do it within a month. Should I spend the extra $100.00 for a Midisport 4x4???

I was also using a Midiman 1x4 Thru box(as you may have seen in a earlier post)but it wasn't working with my new MS 2x2.

 

[dabmeister music]

Hi munkee, I see you've been doing a little experimenting with this midi stuff. This is a reply to your daisy chain setup. It will work per say but you'll have a lot of short comings if you're going to do "multi-timbre/track" midi recording. Theoretically (someone correct me if I'm wrong), you'll only have access to 16 midi channels and not the 16 given per module. Here's an example. You have a interface w/ 1 port out. It's only going to transmit 16 midi channels. 2 ports...32 channels, 8 ports...128 midi channels. Each port will handle any addressable midi instrument.

I had a friend say I really need a bigger Midi Interface. Like a 4in/4out. Therefore, everything would be handled properly.

I really do agree with your friend. Definitely no short comings here.

[ September 25, 2003, 06:53 AM: Message edited by: dabmeister17 ]

 

[Nate Tschetter]

Howdy

For every MIDI out that is separately addressable from your interface, you get 16 MIDI channels. So, if you only have one, you only have 16 to play with, no matter what. Yes, you can use MIDI Thru to address different channels on different instruments but the limitation will be 16 total channels from that single MIDI out.

If you have separately addressable MIDI outs, you can have 16 channels _per_ output. If you have 2 outs, you get 32 channels.

 

[mjones4th]

I would also think that you would have timing problems?

 

[Kev]

In the early days, this is how we did everything.
It worked.
BUT
these days the machines are very powerfull and the MIDI bus will get very quickly overloaded and things will have to go missing.

Much of this depends on your demands of MIDI.
To have a port per sound module is an advantage and to have an in and an out for each module is great when using patch editors like SoundDiver.

 

[Nate Tschetter]

Howdy

Having discrete ins and outs is really an advantage.