Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

--- In DTXpress@yahoogroups.com, "freefunky12" <freakrick@h...> wrote:
> Hello!
> 
> I'm mainly a hands-on drummer, and I haven't pursued my urge to get 
> involved in the world of MIDI just yet. At the moment I have a 
> modest CPU(laptop) with 1000MHz processor, 256 RAM, average 
> soundcard. Would this baby be sufficient when I hook up my 
> DTXpressII to it? Any comments on delay etc?
> 
> I would also like to know what kind of interface you would care to 
> recommend. Not too expensive though, I only need the most necessary 
> (MIDI In/Out). Any comments on your MIDI-experiences will be 
> appreciated, apart from those I find on this page.

Hi Richard,

Good to have you with us. Your laptop exceeds the specs for basic 
meat and potatoes MIDI exchange. Depending on what exactly you want 
to do, your soundcard might be okay. Many people here might know the 
various latencies for popular cards, but in general, if you're just 
looking to send DTXpress information to a sequencer or use a 
sequencer to access the DTXpress module, you should be able to do so. 

Since sound on laptops typically doesn't include a 15-pin MIDI 
option, you'll probably want to get a USB MIDI interface. Yamaha 
makes a basic cable, the UX16, which should do the job. M-Audio makes 
a range of USB MIDI boxes, from the Midisport 1x1 all the way to 
highly elaborate in/outs for complicatd recording purposes. You 
shouldn't have to spend more than $50-$60 at the entry level. THere 
are other companies and PCMCIA connectivity options, too 
(serial/parallel), but USB is the most convenient and least 
disruptive.

I hope that this gets the ball rolling. Some of the people on this 
board are widely experienced with MIDI. When you encounter more 
pressing questions, they will be able to help.

Ed