Recording - February 2010 - 50

USB can carry many MIDI In and Out signals on a single cable. Your DAW/computer may require MIDI driver software, and the computer has to be up and running for you to send MIDI over USB, of course. MIDI patchbays, as well as large MIDI interfaces, have largely gone by the wayside in favor of USB. Some of the large 8x8 DAW MIDI interfaces also act as MIDI patchbays, and can even function when the PC is switched off. The Emagic AMT8 and Unitor 8/Unitor8 MkII are still by far my favorites and work great under Windows XP. Many others are on the used market, too, and you can daisychain MIDI patchbays if you suddenly buy a barn full of synths Your computer’s OS can limit you from seeing all of those ports. For example, Windows 98 and Windows 2000 limited you to approximately 11 ports. Windows XP, after numerous service packs and updates, has had its limit of 16 increased it to 32. I have personally seen 26 ports working flawlessly under Windows XP. could be cheaper (and more reliable) than to have, say, eight distant synths connected to your master mix position, each synth with two 25' MIDI cables and two 25' audio cables (or more for multitimbral separate outputs!)—you could be saving on four or more expensive cables per synth! Stack that rack Plan the location of your rackmounted devices in the rack before you mount them. For one thing, consider how often you need to access controls on the front panel—that will dictate their height in the rack. Also consider how deep each device is— it’s no fun to have to reach for I/O ports on the back of a very shallow single-space unit that is mounted between two deep ones—you may not even be able to reach into the gap! Consider using angled plugs where needed, and leave ventilation spacing for anything that warms up. Final considerations Hardware synths and MIDI can be unpredictable—be ready to go for the MIDI panic button (know which of your devices may have one, or know where it is on your DAW’s screen), and the master fader. Working with your DAW and all your keyboards is really a two-way street. Label each cable Adding synths to your studio means adding AC power, audio, and MIDI cables. Repeat after me: Label each cable! At a minimum, label the power cord or wall wart at the plug end for what it’s for, and each MIDI and audio cable with what it’s supposed to hook up to and where it’s supposed to plug into at the other end. You could use colored labels to stick on each end to be able to match pairs, or matching colored cable molding. Good cables cost money, cheap cables waste money, so buy only as much cabling as needed, but of good quality. Reduce the number of long (10' to 30') cables, both MIDI and audio, and save money, by setting up your mixer, your synths, and your MIDI interface/patchbay close to each other. For example, it might make sense to buy a MIDI interface, a small 1U line mixer, and a small rack for eight synthesizers, use ultra-short MIDI cables, and have one single pair of L/R audio cabling run over to the main mix position. ThatRECORDING FEBRUARY 2010 Stuck MIDI notes can happen—a device misses out on a MIDI Note Off command and keeps droning on. The MIDI Panic button sends an AllNotes-Off command on all channels. Sometimes I lay my arm across my keyboard, thus exceeding the MIDI polyphony and shutting notes off that way. And a quick grab of the master fader can save your ears Conclusion Translating what your DAW software does with its samples and virtual instruments into the world of hardware keyboards and rack mount synths and samplers takes a bit of work and planning, mostly for the audio and for the MIDI data routing. But it can be well worth it, and the price is certainly right! Devon Brent (devon@recordingmag.com) is a composer, engineer, and audio computer guru living and working in Jacksonville, FL. He’s really happy to be writing about something other than how to stop audio PCs from catching on fire.
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Recording - February 2010

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