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SiriusHardware · 19th Nov 2017, 11:42 pm

OK Itam805, I think you have a few bits of synth gear, but possibly only one computer and / or MIDI interface?

If you have any MIDI sound source which is multitimbral (ie, you can set different sounds on differerent MIDI channels so it can be a 'band in a box') then set each channel on it to a wildly different sound and connect the keyboard directly to the sound source, missing out the computer and its MIDI interface altogether.

If the multitimbral source always sounds the right note but sometimes the wrong instrument, then your suspected problem with the keyboard is probably true.

I agree with AG that, anecdotally, the commonly available cheap 5-DIN -USB MIDI interfaces can be a bit flaky.

If the PC is old enough to have a 15-pin 'D' "Game" port either as part of its motherboard or as part of a plug-in soundcard, the 'Game' port usually has the digital half of a MIDI interface built in, needing only the addition of an open-collector buffer (outgoing) and an optocoupler (incoming). These used to be available in the form of a "Game port MIDI cable".

19th Nov 2017, 11:42 pm	#14
SiriusHardware Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, UK. Posts: 11,570	Re: MIDI keyboard fault OK Itam805, I think you have a few bits of synth gear, but possibly only one computer and / or MIDI interface? If you have any MIDI sound source which is multitimbral (ie, you can set different sounds on differerent MIDI channels so it can be a 'band in a box') then set each channel on it to a wildly different sound and connect the keyboard directly to the sound source, missing out the computer and its MIDI interface altogether. If the multitimbral source always sounds the right note but sometimes the wrong instrument, then your suspected problem with the keyboard is probably true. I agree with AG that, anecdotally, the commonly available cheap 5-DIN -USB MIDI interfaces can be a bit flaky. If the PC is old enough to have a 15-pin 'D' "Game" port either as part of its motherboard or as part of a plug-in soundcard, the 'Game' port usually has the digital half of a MIDI interface built in, needing only the addition of an open-collector buffer (outgoing) and an optocoupler (incoming). These used to be available in the form of a "Game port MIDI cable".