Multiple MIDI Devices sending to one MIDI Input

[Kanthos]

I'm considering buying the rack version of this.

The keyboard versions allow a dual-manual mode for the organ using an external MIDI keyboard, with the Electro acting as the upper manual and the external device acting as the lower manual. With the keyboard version, input from the upper manual is generated from the keyboard itself.

With the rack version, however, there's no keyboard, so MIDI data for both organ manuals would have to come from external sources and go through the single MIDI input.

What could I do to get input to the rack on two MIDI channels from two devices?

Using my laptop for synths also adds another wrinkle. What I suspect I could do is this:

Keyboard 1 is connected to the laptop via USB.

Keyboard 2's MIDI out is connected to keyboard 1's MIDI in (so keyboard 1 receives data from both the laptop and keyboard 2 and sends data both from itself and keyboard 2 to the laptop).

Keyboard 1's MIDI out is connected to the rack's MIDI in

If I do this, the rack should (if I understand everything correctly) be getting data from the laptop (program changes generated through Native Instruments Kore), keyboard 2 (via keyboard 1), and keyboard 1.

Can any MIDI gurus (analoq, maybe?) let me know if I understand everything correctly or if there's something I haven't accounted for?

[dannthr]

Well, one thing to consider, and I don't know the Nord racks very well, but all MIDI ports have 16 MIDI channels.

If the NORD rack is as MIDI capable as my dinosaur Roland JV1080, then you should be able to get 16 MIDI tracks going at once.

Now, to get the MIDI into the RACK from multiple sources, there are a few ways to think about this.

The old skool method is daisy chaining, but I don't think you'll need to do this. Any MIDI rack worth its salt has a MIDI Input a MIDI Output and a MIDI Thru. The MIDI Thru allows MIDI ports to travel through the device to the next device.

Most racks have a Device ID which can be selected to route MIDI ports through a daisy chain.

But like I said, this is OLD SKOOL!

What I would suggest is looking at your computer/laptop as a MIDI hub of sorts. Have your keyboard inputs go to your computer and any DAW worth its salt can route MIDI signals to any device necessary.

[Yoozer]

What could I do to get input to the rack on two MIDI channels from two devices?

http://www.midisolutions.com/prodqmr.htm

or combined with the laptop:

http://www.zzounds.com/item--THKMIMMS22 (secondhand, won't work standalone)

or new:

http://www.zzounds.com/item--MTUMICROLITE (won't work standalone)

or secondhand:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpDDkP1Xquc

Yes, it's huge, but it'll do the job standalone and they aren't expensive anymore, secondhand. Both Kawai (MAV-8 I think) and Roland (A-880) have these interfaces and it's probably not that easy to program them, but once you've done that anything can go to anything.

I would not recommend the daisy-chaining route; it's a stopgap measure and things get a lot easier when you don't have to disable channels on the synths themselves because the 16 MIDI ones are getting too crowded.

[Kanthos]

Well, one thing to consider, and I don't know the Nord racks very well, but all MIDI ports have 16 MIDI channels.

If the NORD rack is as MIDI capable as my dinosaur Roland JV1080, then you should be able to get 16 MIDI tracks going at once.

Not in this case. It's really intended to be used for live performance as opposed to processing MIDI data on a large number of MIDI channels at once. The device is monotimbral (with the "exception" to that being that I can run upper and lower organ manuals with different drawbar settings). Playing back MIDI data on one channel (two if you count the second organ) is one thing, but I'd be forced to freeze tracks if I wanted it to play back multiple sounds at the same time.

For the average synth, I wouldn't like that, but given that this isn't really a synth (it's got a great B3 emulation and has samples of other classic keyboards and grand pianos plus effects), it's not that surprising. Most people who buy it would go for one of the keyboard versions; in my case, I'm hoping to save money and keep using the perfectly good controllers that I already have.

What I would suggest is looking at your computer/laptop as a MIDI hub of sorts. Have your keyboard inputs go to your computer and any DAW worth its salt can route MIDI signals to any device necessary.

I'm using Kore as a DAW, since I mainly play live, but I know Cubase could do this kind of thing as well for when I wanted to record the MIDI and use the Electro rack to play it back.

If I'm playing with all my own gear, that routing should be possible; both my controllers work via USB. I'd have to use one of the keyboard's MIDI out ports for my PodXT (guitar effects box; the only MIDI I send to it is a program change message, so I really don't care much about efficiency here), and run the rack off my audio interface's MIDI ports.

When I play at church, they have a keyboard there already that I use as a controller. Since it doesn't have USB, I've been running it through the one keyboard I'll bring with me (which does have USB). Adding a rack to the mix would force the keyboard with USB to act as a two-way hub, which I take it you both are suggesting is best avoided by getting a USB-powered MIDI interface.