SX600 - connecting MIDI piano

[fiskus]

In the past, I have often used my Korg stage piano MIDI connected to arranger keyboards to benefit from the weighted keys. I'm keen on getting an SX600 but notice that it does not have MIDI connectors so would I still be able to do this, via USB using a USB to MIDI cable in the same manner, without involving a computer?

[overover]

Hi fiskus,

You can use a "USB MIDI Host" device. You connect this with a USB type AB cable ("printer cable") to the USB to Host terminal of the SX600. Connect the DIN MIDI IN socket of the USB MIDI Host device to the MIDI OUT socket of the Korg stage piano using a standard MIDI cable.
>>> https://www.thomann.de/gb/miditech_usb_midi_host.htm






Best regards,
Chris

[erikb]

Hi, I am attempting to connect my Korg pa300 as a slave to my Yamahasx900 using a DoreMidi usb midi host. The Korg only has usb type midi out where the yamaha has the old round type. I got it to work once but when I came back it did not. However, having had it work once proves it is the way to go. Believe I have not got programming set up right

[overover]

Hi, I am attempting to connect my Korg pa300 as a slave to my Yamahasx900 using a DoreMidi usb midi host. The Korg only has usb type midi out where the yamaha has the old round type. I got it to work once but when I came back it did not. However, having had it work once proves it is the way to go. Believe I have not got programming set up right

Hi erikb,

In your case you have to connect the MIDI OUT socket of the SX900 to the MIDI IN socket of the USB MIDI Host, and the USB to Host terminal of the Korg Pa300 with the USB type A terminal "USB HOST" of the "DORE USB MIDI Host" device.

Of course, a suitable MIDI template must be set on the SX900. (It depends on which parts of the SX900 you want to send to the Pa300.) And on the Pa300, too, you will normally have to make certain MIDI settings in order to determine how the incoming MIDI messages are to be interpreted there.

Note: A DIN MIDI cable can only transmit a maximum of 16 MIDI channels at the same time. Yamaha keyboards have 32 parts internally (2 * 16 MIDI channels). So you have to specify (using a MIDI template) which parts should be sent via the DIN MIDI OUT.


Best regards,
Chris

[Graham UK]

Chris. Do you know why the MIDI IN & OUT connections stopped being provided on some keyboards and replaced with USB ?.

[overover]

Chris. Do you know why the MIDI IN & OUT connections stopped being provided on some keyboards and replaced with USB ?

Hi Graham,

USB-MIDI has the advantage that several USB ports are supported and transmission is possible in both directions at the same time. Yamaha models such as Tyros 1-5, Genos and PSR-S/SX can receive via USB-MIDI on 2 ports (2 * 16 channels) and transmit via port 1 (1 * 16 channels) at the same time. In addition, USB Audio can be transmitted at the same time (with devices that support this).

Since a USB interface has become indispensable for keyboards, the standard DIN MIDI sockets are often omitted, especially with cheaper models. But almost all professional keyboards / synths / stage pianos still have DIN MIDI sockets, e.g. to be able to easily connect devices directly to one another.


Best regards,
Chris

[Graham UK]

Chris. Thank you for replying with your input and I now understand the reason.
Being old school I have in the past always used MIDI connections.

Cables needed are expensive !!!

[andres_fprado]

Chris. Do you know why the MIDI IN & OUT connections stopped being provided on some keyboards and replaced with USB ?.

To add to previous answers (and this is going to be a long one): MIDI is a very old standard in terms of technology evolution. The MIDI standard was released in 1983 (almost 40 years ago!) and it was extremely futuristic (almost beyond state-of-the-art) at realease. But technology evolved since then...

The MIDI communication channel is a very slow one trasmitting data at 31250 bits per second (for those old enough to remember, that is telephone-modem speed!). With every byte occupying 10 bits in the transmission channel, and a NOTE-ON message in MIDI encompassing 3 bytes typically, this means no more than ~1000 notes per second can be transmitted (and note release counts as a separate note). Sounds like a lot, but really isn't when 16 channels are considered... and there is an additional problem: two separate notes must be at least 1ms (1 millisecond) apart, as they are transmitted sequentially. On fast passages with many chords this can become noticeable. And especially if a DAW is involved, which could easily send this and more (and I'm not even counting other messages, like pitch bend, modulation, filter control, and so on!)

When MIDI is transmitted over USB, the speed limitation is mitigated, as USB is a very fast protocol (up to 480Mbps on USB2), and we also can have multiple USB "ports" on the same cable.

The next step-up will be the newly released MIDI 2.0 standard. Amongst (many) other things, it increases the number of channels to 256 (up from 16), and adds lots of new functionality while remaining backwards compatible. But, to use all of the new functionality, the traditional "round connector" MIDI interface is no longer supported (*), and one of the favored interfaces is USB. The standard was released in 2020, and Yamaha is one of the developers, so I expect we will start to see a move towards this standard in the future. As this happens, traditional MIDI connectors will be dropped from products...

(*) Technically, it is supported with partial functionality, as MIDI 2.0 is backwards compatible.

If someone wants to read about MIDI 2.0, a couple of links:

• https://www.midi.org/midi-articles/details-about-midi-2-0-midi-ci-profiles-and-property-exchange
• https://www.soundonsound.com/music-business/introducing-midi-20
• https://www.musicradar.com/news/what-is-midi-20-and-what-does-it-mean-for-musicians-and-producers

Regards!