By Frederic A. Ericksen, Music and MIDI Editor, SaxManFred@aol.com
First, I'd like to thank the person responsible for naming the column I'm writing here in The Amiga Monitor. We had a contest a few months ago and the winning entry (Midi Matters) is now in place. Thanks for all the input on this from our readers.
I've been receiving letters from readers who are currently buying clones, and they want info on how to get files to and from the Amiga and PC.
Here are some ideas:
There is a MIDI standard in place for transferring files between machines. MIDI File Format 0, 1, and 2. These are _supposed_ to make files compatible, and to some extent they do. There are problems with this, though. The problem lies in the age of the MIDI Standard, which is now over 10 years old! If anyone can visualize what this means it would be the avid Amiga user, having been using basically the same processing power for about the same amount of time themselves, and watching as the computing world grows in leaps and bounds, while their platform only takes small steps forward.
The MIDI problem is in the way it's implemented in the software. If software developers worked exclusively within the bounds of the MIDI spec, their hands would have been tied years ago, and we (the end user) would not have the powerful sequencing programs of today. These software developers, visionaries as they are, have come to terms with all this not by discarding the MIDI spec and using their own format, but by working within the constraints of this spec, and adding features that are needed and welcomed. It seems each software package has added something for convenience or necessity in its own way. By adding non-MIDI spec features, each piece of software is getting further and further from the compatibility the MFF (MIDI File Format) was put in place to execute. Again, this is not the fault of the software manufactures, but the fault of an aged agreement between them and the hardware manufacturers, and the music industry.
Here are some examples and work-arounds:
Say you have an Amiga, using brand X sequencing software, and want to export your song to a friend's PC. Using CrossDOS (tm), you format a disk. Remember, you need to format Double Density, not High Density, unless you have an HD drive installed in your Amiga. No problem. Now, there are two ways to save your file as MFF. Always try to save in format type 1, so your text (Track Names, etc.) remains intact. One way to save out a MFF1 file is if your software lets you. The other is to convert it using a conversion program supplied by the manufacturer of the software you are using.
Example:
Using Music-X you cannot save directly to MFF. You 'save as' from the menu, name your file, then using the supplied program "Music-X-to-MIDI", convert it to MFF0 or MFF1. Sounds easy, but sometimes the converted file does not sound exactly the same as the original.
Using Bars & Pipes, again you cannot save directly to MMF. You will use a supplied program called "sMerFF". Again with the same results. Bars & Pipes also has quite a lot of modifiers you can install in the output chain that will not be saved in this way. The solution is to "toolize" the tracks, or embed the modifiers to the tracks. Again you can end up with the same results depending what program you load the converted MMF file to. "It doesn't sound exactly the same."
At this point you have only two options. One is to convert to the MMF as best as you can, load the converted file to the machine/software you are converting to, and then tweak the internal software controls of that program until you get the needed results.
Here is the other option:
You can hook up the two machines (ie. Amiga ->Clone) via the MIDI interface of each. You will then have one as master, one as slave. The MIDI out from the master will patch to the MIDI in of the slave. From the slave's menu select "Sync to MIDI clocks" (consult your manual). Now you're ready to experiment. Some programs will let you split all information regarding MIDI channels to a different track. This way all MIDI channel 1 info will go to track 1, Channel 2->track 2, etc. If the software won't let you do this, sometimes you can "break out" or "expand" the info that was recorded. Example: Record multiple MIDI channel events to track one, then expand track one so all Channel 1 events go to track 2, channel 2 to track 3, etc. The results will be the same. You will have your song on the new machine with almost all events intact. With this option, you should not have to tweak each individual track to get it to sound the same as the original song, on the original machine. You will, however, need to re-enter any text such as track names. Also, if you used a timing device such as a tempo map to control your song, you will need to set the original tempo of the song, and any control events included in the original.
One very big problem with this way of working is bandwith. Can your MIDI interface/software handle 16 tracks of speed metal sequencing all at once?
As is always the case, experiment with your options. What works for one person won't for another. The choice is yours!