[linux-audio-dev] Re: MIDI

[Dave Robillard]

On Sat, 2006-11-11 at 21:41 -0500, Gene Heskett wrote:
> On Saturday 11 November 2006 21:00, Tony Nelson wrote:
> >At 4:21 PM -0500 11/11/06, Gene Heskett wrote:
> > ...
> >
> This thread might be of interest to the linux-audio-dev group, so I've 
> added them to the Cc:
> 
> >>Yup, and its been a constant src of amazement to this old fart that
> >> when the midi spec was setup, they used a serial port, thats fine, but
> >> when they set the data rate at only 31,250 baud, ...
> >>
> >>Consistently attrocious timeing, with the horns always 1/16 beat late
> >>unless the actual output order of each instrument is scrambled in the
> >>order output.  That would make it sound a heck of a lot less
> >> mechanical. And there isn't a heck of a lot that can be done until we
> >> put midi on an optical circuit running at several megabytes/sec. 
> >> Something like TOS maybe?
> >
> >Firewire.  Many products already, plenty of speed, almost robust enough.
> >1/8 millisecond isoch cycle times; each cycle can contain packets from
> > many senders; each packet can contain lots of notes.
> 
> More robust IMO than the din connectors now used for midi interconnects, 
> however the cabling itself can't help but be more fragile when subjected 
> to the rigors of a jam session with bodies walking on them all night.  
> And that has to be a consideration else the first users will get 
> discouraged at the high cable failure rates and revert, particularly if 
> they have a tin ear and can't hear what to many of us would be an 
> extremely obvious improvement.
> 
> But I like that idea, a lot.  Maybe some enterprising LAD people could get 
> together and spec something like a midi interface running over firewire, 
> complete with the repeaters so it can be daisy-chained just like midi can 
> be, and hopefully release it into the PD as a new midi-2 interface 
> standard.  And design it such that it never, ever gets into the snails 
> trail of the 31,250 baud interface it uses today.

Forget Firewire - Ethernet!

Far cheaper, far more common, more hardware available (eg switches)

-DR-