MIDI Questions

[Beryllioknight]

Me and a friend are having a dispute about MIDIs

I have two questions for a general poll for proof.

1. What is the general opinion of MIDIs?

2. Are they actually sound files?

Apologies if I posted this in the wrong section.

[DarkeSword]

MIDIs (by which you are most likely referring to .mid files), don't contain recorded audio, so I guess you could say they're not "sound files." MIDI files are like sheet music for your computer; they contain instructions that your computer uses to generate sounds/music through either a sampler or a synthesizer.

As for the general opinion of MIDIs? Not really sure. In the day and age of broadband internet, actual recorded music is much more accessible than it used to be, so looking for MIDIs of songs just to hear your favorite tunes doesn't really have the same impact anymore. Still, I believe artists still find the file format convenient for a variety of reasons (reference, collaboration, etc.).

[Meteo Xavier]

As for the general opinion of MIDIs? Not really sure. In the day and age of broadband internet, actual recorded music is much more accessible than it used to be, so looking for MIDIs of songs just to hear your favorite tunes doesn't really have the same impact anymore.

I disagree, it's just as impactful nowadays to find MIDIs of songs you really like and can now study in your DAWs to see how they work and come together. I also dare say there are still MIDIs out there that actually, somehow, sound even better than the source material - not to mention it's arguably easier to remix in MIDI so sometimes you find some good MIDI remixes of stuff too.

I think it's always good and impactful to hear a different version of a song you really like, no matter what the version is.

[Overflow]

Using .mid files can be really frustrating, however, since they sound different of ever machine.

But Midi also refers to computer generated sounds, doesn't it? For example, the songs here on OCRemix are exported as .mp3s, but they were made using midi sound files, weren't they? If it's a selection of pre-recorded sounds (where each key on the synth-keyboard is a different pitch of a recorded instrument, for example) then that would be a sampler, but when it's a generated sound (like most sounds in Logic or Garageband, for instance) those would be considered midis, right?

[Rozovian]

A general poll? lol

Some variation of midi is still used inside most DAWs, and it's used to communicate between hardware devices (musical hardware like physical synths and music keyboards, thatis). When we write notes on the computer, or record with our keyboard controllers, we're recording midi data into the music program. The software synths and samplers (the ones in the computer) are controlled by midi; even if the DAW can automate some of the controls in a synth by other means, midi is used for note data and "cc" control change messages... like pitch bend.

And they're not sound files, they're sheet music for machines.

edit: Overflow, afaik, most computers will produce roughly the same midi sound, it's when you send it to a keyboard/synth thing that you'll start to hear a greater variety in sound. Correct me if I'm wrong, anyone. When ppl on the wip board say stuff like "it sounds like a midi", they mean it sounds like midi files sound on most computers, a mechanical, unprocessed, simple-sample sound.

You're confusing the term midi with synth. Midi is basically note data, whether it's sent to a sampler (it plays sampled audio files) or a synth (it creates its own audio). On a hardware synth, you can generate sound without using midi at all, just an on/off signal to an oscillator set to a specific pitch, and get sound. midi is a standardized format for communicating between instruments, whether virtual or physical. Audio is sound.

[Frederic Petitpas]

[........]

[DarkeSword]

I disagree, it's just as impactful nowadays to find MIDIs of songs you really like and can now study in your DAWs to see how they work and come together. I also dare say there are still MIDIs out there that actually, somehow, sound even better than the source material - not to mention it's arguably easier to remix in MIDI so sometimes you find some good MIDI remixes of stuff too.

I think it's always good and impactful to hear a different version of a song you really like, no matter what the version is.

Part of what you said is exactly what I said, and the other part is not really what I'm talking about.

[Nabeel Ansari]

1. MIDI is sheet music for computers.

2. MIDI is sheet music for computers.

[drake7707]

MIDI is also the protocol used when you hook up a synth keyboard to your computer for recording. A midi file is (well more or less) nothing more than a dump of that protocol to a file.

Software can interpret midi files as sheet music, but they aren't stored as such. In essence, a midi file is of the most part a long list of:

note <index> on

note <index> off,

note <index> on,

note <index> off

along with their timestamps in delta ticks on 1 or several channels (tracks). And each channel (track) has a current instrument defined.

[PROTO·DOME]

'Wingroove' is the next chiptune.

[A-RoN]

1. What is the general opinion of MIDIs?

2. Are they actually sound files?

1. The technology should be used in at least one part of digital composition unless everything you do is live.

2. They do go through your soundcard, so I'll let you decide for yourself on this one. It really depends on what you mean by sound files.

[Kenogu Labz]

This is unfiltered information, so some of it (if not all) is bound to be entirely wrong, but here's the impression I get:

Midi files, by themselves, only describe properties of a sound: pitch, velocity and patch number (perhaps also note length). Some variations of midi files will allow you to store other types of information, but core Midi is based on a very small set of parameters, thus limiting the medium. For example, you can't detune directly in standard Midi; the only frequencies available are those corresponding to standard notes.

Despite this, Midi's strength lies in its universal notation. If nothing else, it is able to describe the structure of most songs, which is helpful for those attempting to arrange those songs, as they can more easily analyze the songs visually than they would be able to by ear.

Basically, while Midi was frustratingly poor in its design, it's still useful enough for many practical purposes.

[Rozovian]

Midi files, by themselves, only describe properties of a sound: pitch, velocity and patch number (perhaps also note length). Some variations of midi files will allow you to store other types of information, but core Midi is based on a very small set of parameters, thus limiting the medium. For example, you can't detune directly in standard Midi; the only frequencies available are those corresponding to standard notes.

MIDI's primary functions include communicating event messages about musical notation, pitch, velocity, control signals for parameters (such as volume, vibrato, panning, cues, and clock signals (to set the tempo)) between two devices ...

You're underestimating midi. It also doesn't describe sound any more than sheet music describes how a piano sounds. It describes music.

[Beryllioknight]

Whoa, so many responses.

I also meant to have one more question initially, but forgot it when I was typing up the post.

3. Do you, as a music creator, find MIDIs useful?

[Tensei]

Anyone who doesn't deal with 100% live recordings will find MIDI useful, so yes.