Bars&Pipes Professional works with any MIDI-compatible synthesizer or sound module. Let's look at some standard ways to connect MIDI instruments to your Amiga computer.
In order to use Bars&Pipes Professional, you must first own a MIDI interface. The MIDI interface serves as a translator between your MIDI instrument(s) and your Amiga.
Before using Bars&Pipes Professional, first connect your MIDI interface to your Amiga's serial port.
NOTE-> If you've installed extra serial ports in your computer, make sure to connect the MIDI Interface to the original serial port.
Most MIDI interfaces feature one MIDI in, one MIDI out, and one MIDI thru port. The MIDI in and MIDI out ports are the most important aspects of a MIDI interface.
Few MIDI interfaces support more than one MIDI in. Those that do require you to set a switch, which in turn selects the currently active MIDI in port. In other words, only one MIDI in is accessible at any given time.
In order to record more than one MIDI instrument simultaneously, you'll need a MIDI merger. Most MIDI instrument dealers sell MIDI mergers. Your MIDI interface only needs one MIDI in port to take advantage of a MIDI merger.
NOTE-> The One-Stop Music Shop sound card provides an additional MIDI Interface to the one on your serial port, thus enabling Bars&Pipes to record from two simultaneous MIDI Instruments without the need for a MIDI merger.
Multiple MIDI Out Ports Some MIDI interfaces have more than one MIDI out. Most of these interfaces send the same data out all MIDI outs, providing the normal 16 MIDI channels on all MIDI outs simultaneously.
The Triple Play Plus interface, on the other hand, has three separately addressable MIDI outs, providing 16 MIDI channels on each MIDI out, for a total of 48 MIDI channels simultaneously.
In addition to 16-bit multi-timbral stereo sound, the One-Stop Music Shop soundcard provides a built in MIDI interface. You can use its MIDI interface to increase the number of simultaneous MIDI inputs and outputs, or to free the Amiga's standard serial port for other applications (such as modems and laser disk controllers.
Please call or write to Blue Ribbon for a free brochure on the Triple Play Plus and/or the One-Stop Music Shop.
If you own only one MIDI device, follow these steps to connect it to your Amiga:
NOTE-> In this configuration, it is sometimes possible to create a MIDI "feedback loop". Such a loop occurs when notes leave the keyboard, enter the Amiga, exit the Amiga's MIDI Out connector, go back into the keyboard, then get passed back to the Amiga again. If you experience this problem, consult your keyboard's manual to learn how to disable this feature.
If you own both a MIDI keyboard and a separate MIDI sound module, drum machine, or other MIDI device, choose from the following instructions, according to your desired configuration:
NOTE-> If your keyboard doesn't have a MIDI thru, you can try connecting the second cable from the MIDI out on your interface to the MIDI in on your sound module, and the third cable from either the MIDI out or MIDI thru on your sound module to the MIDI in on your keyboard.
If you own more than two MIDI modules or keyboards, a multiple out MIDI interface provides the most versatile solution. If your studio requires more than 16 MIDI channels, consider the Triple Play Plus MIDI interface, or the One-Stop Music Shop with its built in MIDI interface.
If you do not own either Triple Play Plus or the One-Stop Music Shop, you can daisy-chain your MIDI devices together. In other words, connect the MIDI thru of each MIDI device in the chain to the MIDI in of the next device.
NOTE-> Remember, each instrument must be set to play on different MIDI channels.
You can also connect and route MIDI devices by using a MIDI patch bay. See your local instrument dealer for more information on MIDI patch bays.