MIDI Bank Select

[RobinKwick]

I know this is an old thread, but I am spinning my wheels here trying to figure out what I am doing right or what I am doing wrong.

I am using an OLD (30 Year old) Alesis QuadraSynth Plus Piano. I am connecting to Waveform Free 13 via a Roland UM-1 USB MIDI Interface.

It has 5 banks with 127 preset programs. User, Preset 1, Preset 2, Preset 3, Preset 4.

I can record just fine, no issues selecting MIDI channels, but I am having issues selecting User Programs via Waveform.

If I want to stack tracks I have to enter Mix mode on my Alesis to record different sounds on different channels, but of the pop up banks it only recognizes Preset 4. I can actually see the program names if I jump to another track and select "All MIDI in", but if I switch it to "UM-1" then it just shows "Program 0-127".

Anyway I tried following @Watchful's instructions above. The long and the easy ways, but either I don't know what I am doing, or my Alesis is just too old. I'm kinda smart...but hey maybe not as smart as I thought.

Any suggestions or help would be much appreciated. Should I try a different USB MIDI connection device?

[Watchful]

Hmm. You may not need both bank change commands, since you only have 5 banks. You might try omitting one, first, then the other to see if the two commands are conflicting. For example, you probably just need Coarse (MSB), and then numbers 0-4 or 1-5 or however the QuadraSynth interprets the bank numbers. For all I know, it's 10, 20, 30, 40, 50. If you still have the manual for it, you might check the MIDI implementation chart in the back to see what command numbers change which banks.

I'm not familiar with the Alesis QuadraSynth family... how many different programs can be loaded up at one time in Mix mode?

Hardware of that time period typically required you to press a button or switch on the hardware itself to put it into multitimbral mode. That's the "Mix" button. I suppose you'd need to send program change instructions on different MIDI channels, right? Otherwise it will just call up channel 1.

One thought is how fast the QuadraSynth can handle instructions. That was a 90s synth, so it should be pretty fast. I have encountered some hardware that benefited from spacing the commands out quite a bit, so the slower processors could first deal with the bank change before its asked to change the program number.

It sound like the first goal for you should be determining how the bank numbers change... I think you're on the right approach, since you can at least go to bank 4. That means you are successfully chatting with the Alesis. That's the hardest step.

[Watchful]

Two more things to add.

1. You might have more than 5 banks...didn't the QuadraSynth plus have a memory card slot? That could result in different numbers than 1-5! You'll need to figure out what digits correspond to the bank numbers. As I said above, that's the key step and you seem to be very close.

2. If you're expecting to see the actual program names show up in Waveform ("Robin's Lead 1" or whatever), don't bother. Most synths of the day--and even today's--don't report their program names over MIDI. Waveform has the stock GM sounds named for you as a courtesy, but those aren't coming from the synth itself. You could go crazy trying to get that to work, and it's never going to...you just get tricked because it seems like Waveform is receiving some of them...but those are the stock GM names.

[Watchful]

One more thought, building on my earlier comment. The closest I've got is a Roland that has 5 banks of sounds (4 presets, 1 user). I don't have it anywhere near me--and won't for a few days--but changing the banks on it requires a jump in control numbers. I want to say (and I'm probably wrong) that the commands for the five banks are something like 00 for bank 1, 32 for bank 2, 64 for bank 3, 96 for bank 4, and 127 for bank 5.

What you might try is my shortcut tip, and then, within Waveform, scroll through the numbers on the clip from 00 through 127, watching the Alesis for any changes. I think that's how I figured out how to do the Roland.

No, Waveform doesn't make it easy, but to be fair, MIDI didn't make it that easy, either.

And it might not be a bank change command--on the Ensoniq VFX, you had to put in a control command before the program change command to switch to either internal sounds or external card sounds. The Alesis manual will be critical to you.

[RobinKwick]

Thank you for all the information. I will play around with it some more to see if I can get it figured out.

I really don't know how many programs the Alesis QS allowed me to run at once in Mix mode. I never used it except for MIDI playback years ago through good old Master Tracks Pro. I never laid down more than 2 or 3 MIDI tracks at a time though, but I remember it was pretty easy to assign the program per the MIDI channel and I could play everything flawlessly back at once.

I'm not expecting to see the program names by any means, but as I said I noticed names when the MIDI input was selected as All MIDI In. The names match up perfectly to my Preset 4 bank. Though as soon as I change the MIDI input to the UM-1 device they all go away.

Back in the day I would do all my initial tracks at home via MIDI, then I'd go into the studio with my Synth and my PC and we'd run everything through the main board. After which I would then go back over and play live with the in house grand piano over all my quantized synth piano parts, then remove the original track all together.

Thank you again, I will work on this some more as time allows.

[RobinKwick]

Well a quick update. I read my manual. From what other information I was able to uncover is perhaps the Alesis QuadraSynth Plus Piano does not specifically use "MSB" or "LSB" terminology in its features.

Anyway, under the manual it specifically said if "General MIDI" mode is enabled it will only recall Preset 4. This is why it was showing the actual names of each of the programs. So when I turned off "General MIDI" all the program names went away. Then I found by just switching between banks 1-5 in the track itself I can now select program changes.

At least I have full functionality of my keyboard again. Now I guess I need to figure out if I can control VST Plugins with my keyboard, and what settings I may have to change to do that.

Thanks again for your help.

[Watchful]

Glad you're on your way. I knew you were really close to solving it!