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+--- Thread: What's up with USB MIDI?? Also wondering about USB host/routing solutions (/showthread.php?tid=5032)
What's up with USB MIDI?? Also wondering about USB host/routing solutions - SynthWizard - 09-24-2019
What's up with USB MIDI?? Also wondering about USB host/routing solutions
<!-- SC_OFF --><div class="md"><p>So I've come across a rather unexpected and irritating limitation of my Roland FP-10 keyboard. I bought it because I'm into learning piano and wanted a full-size weighted keyboard, but I also like to experiment with other sounds and synths, so (in theory) it would be pretty great as a MIDI controller. It works fine with a computer or iPad and I'm happy with the weighted key action.</p> <p>I also recently bought this really cool Yamaha Reface CP, which makes some of the most amazing electric piano sounds. I love it for the sounds and for its extreme portability. HOWEVER... since the FP-10 only has USB MIDI out, I cannot plug it into the Reface as a controller. I <em>have</em> tried a different keyboard with old (round 5-pin) MIDI out and it can play through the Reface without a hitch.</p> <p>I can also plug both the Roland and the Reface into a computer and use a MIDI program to route one into the other, but this is stupidly awkward for my home setup. I really just want to just turn both keyboards on and play - I don't want to add an extra computer into the mix with its own power and space requirements.</p> <p>Everything I've read about USB MIDI makes it sound like it's supposed to be superior - it can supply power, it's two-way, it's faster, more bandwidth, etc. But apparently you can't have one device act as a "host" this way? I must be missing something because it seems absurd that I can plug in two 5-pin MIDI devices and everything just works but not with USB.</p> <p>Looking around at other FP alternatives, it seems you have to spend about 3X as much on a full-size weighted keyboard that has traditional 5-pin MIDI out (how much would one of these cost to add, I mean really??)</p> <p>I also have Roland's UM-ONE MkII USB-MIDI conversion cable, but even this won't allow me to plug the FP into the Reface(!)</p> <p>I understand that I can buy a standalone MIDI host device of some sort. But they're like $200 which seems kind of absurd. I assume it'll need its own power supply as well. So another wire, another slot on the power bar...</p> <p>I've looked into a solution like using a Raspberry Pi Zero as a MIDI host/router but as far as I can tell it would require its own power supply (you cannot use its USB power connector for data unfortunately.) I was hoping there might be some (cheap) DIY solution that could be powered by the Reface or FP <em>and</em> route the MIDI channels, but I don't know of any cheap hardware that can be both powered by USB and transfer data. I'm also not sure if either keyboard actually supplies power.</p> <p>Basically I would like to have:</p> <pre><code>FP --(usb cable)--> [magic box] --(usb cable)--> Reface </code></pre> <p>I realize that any DIY solution would take more than $200 worth of time but I am tempted to work on something out of spite (I am a software developer, so writing a bit of software would be feasible.) Mostly I'm just baffled why you can't plug one USB MIDI device into another the same way you could with 5-pin MIDI. I'm also pretty new to synthesizers and MIDI so maybe I'm just not understanding something obvious...</p> </div><!-- SC_ON --> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/cinaddict"> /u/cinaddict </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/synthesizers/comments/d8hgdv/whats_up_with_usb_midi_also_wondering_about_usb/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/synthesizers/comments/d8hgdv/whats_up_with_usb_midi_also_wondering_about_usb/">[comments]</a></span>