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RTP MIDI System


dan2804
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Hi all,

 

Having browsed the forums regarding RTPMidi, etc I've finally decided to look at giving it a go on my end.

My current setup consists of 6 Digidesign midi i/os (giving me 60 MIDI in/out split across two computers) and a Motu midi 128 (giving me 8 in/8 out).

Currently, I have custom built MIDI multicore cables connecting my PC rack with the Digidesign and Motu i/o to my synth and effects rack.

As I understand it, the RTPMidi board supports 16 virtual cables which I'm guessing equates to 8 in and 8 out or does it mean 16 in and 16 out? 

Ideally what I'd like to do is create a couple MIDI to RTPMidi boxes that I can put in my synth and effects racks so that I can connect all my MIDI gear to my PCs with just ethernet cables rather than my bulky multicore cables.

What I want to know is the feasibility of this. I have very good manufacturing skills, but my design and programming skills are a little bit lacking so any help would be appreciated here.

 

Many thanks

 

Dan

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13 hours ago, dan2804 said:

he RTPMidi board supports 16 virtual cables which I'm guessing equates to 8 in and 8 out or does it mean 16 in and 16 out? 

I don't know about the RTPMidi itself, but connected to a MIDIbox Core in SPI MIDI only 8 ports(cables) are supported, means 8 In/ 8 Out.

Just by curiosity, how many MIDI gears you have in your setup?

Best
Bruno

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Hello

 

2 hours ago, Antichambre said:

Just by curiosity, how many MIDI gears you have in your setup?

With 68 midi I/O guess Vangelis just joint the forum :happy:

Joke aside, I'm not sure you will gain in connector count by using RTPM in your use case, RJ45 will replace USB wire, but not all DIN5...

If you build some boxes that route let say 8 midi i/o to RTPM it will more or less equal to what you already have

Still RTPM have benefit over USB.

Why don't you dispatch your midi i/o devices in various FX/syth rack at the first place ?

Best

Zam

 

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Just by curiosity, how many MIDI gears you have in your setup?

 

I have a lot. About 40 synths and piles of outboard.

 

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Why don't you dispatch your midi i/o devices in various FX/syth rack at the first place ?

The reason why I don't do this is that my racks are a little bit too far apart for USB cables to really work as well as i can trust them and the Digidesign Midi I/Os are a little bit funny with cable lengths between the the PC and the units themselves so I try to keep the USB runs as short as possible so I have longer physical MIDI runs.

 

I want to go with RTP midi for several reasons. The main one being that the USB drivers for the Digidesign units are 32-bit only and haven't been updated since Pro Tools 9 was a thing and Apple are now trying to force the 64-bit world on us, so I'd kind of like to move away from that.

Also, I want to move away from all the bulky midi cables and have much cleaner cable runs

 

Being limited to 8 in 8 out per box is a big limitation for me and I kind of need a way around that  

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I'm also not Papathanassiou ;) but I've got a lot of MIDI gear too and the same problem as you.
It's a long time now I'm looking for a solution to this problem, get all my MIDI connected/accessible without patching.
So if you're someone patient, this is something on the way but not ready yet! A scalable MIDI router composed by multiple 16 In/16 Out Units interconnected.
It's based on the MCAN bus and my m16 interface.
This is the two prototyped units.
file#
It works for me but like every DIY projects it takes time to be ready and available for other people...

Edited by Antichambre
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In my studio I've had a similar problem, but I am not keen on leaving the traditional MIDI 5pin realm - I can live with physical MIDI routing (and merging), and I don't require the central point of the matrix to be a PC or Mac. All of my synths, effects and other equipment still have 5pin DIN connectors.

Around four years ago I came up with the MIDIbox Matrix, a proof of concept that does MIDI routing on an FPGA. In the meantime and with the help of a few people the project has evolved into something that has 64 MIDI in ports and 64 MIDI out ports, that allows merging, and that can be controlled by a piece of java software from the PC (or by a dedicated MIDIbox control UI). The main concepts of modularity and scalability have remained, though, so that the system can be extended in groups of 4 I/O ports that sit in a break out box (BOB).

I guess I should really update the documentation to reflect the current state...

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Both look and sound like very good solutions to the issues I'm having.

Quote

I don't require the central point of the matrix to be a PC or Mac

I have a template in logic pro with all my patch names, etc so I need my setup to revolve around my Mac.

I'm just looking for a bit more of a modern and less bulky solution to what I already have. If I had the ability I'd design something from scratch, but unfortunately, I don't have the skillset to do that.

I know Thorsten and Benoit were looking at an RTP Midi solution and that Thorsten was also looking at redesigning the  MBHP_IIC_MIDI module with something like the PIC18F25K22 in order to connect up to 16 midi i/o's to a single IIC port, but I haven't seen much going on on that end.

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So if you're someone patient, this is something on the way but not ready yet!

I've got a while yet. I'm doing a renovation on my place. Literally stripping everything out to the concrete flooring and brick walls and starting again, so I don't anticipate actually re-wiring equipment for a few months at least.

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