Patches and discussion for Ensoniq VFX family

On Thu, Dec 25, 2008 at 01:40:55AM +0000, Gordon JC Pearce MM3YEQ wrote:
> markrubin53 wrote:
> > Has anyone developed a .syx file for either a "General Midi Settings"
> > or the "Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth?"
> > When I go into a music program and try to use my Ensoniq VFX sd as the
> > midi instrument, it can't see it. Only in Cakewalk do they recognize
> > Ensoniq. If someone has made a .syx for the General Midi settings
> > either 0-127 or 1-128 it would make our lives much easier.
> > What do you think?
> > Thanks;
> >  Mark
> 
> Most music software won't really "see" the Ensoniq as anything.  It will 
> see a MIDI port, and will cheerfully stuff MIDI commands down it, but it 
> won't actually know (or care) what's on the other end of the MIDI cable.

And further, the VFX cannot be made compatible with General MIDI (GM)
or GS through a simple sound set.  You can't get it to respond the way
GM specifies to program changes above 120, and you'll never get it to
match the GM drum sound layout, and I don't think there's a way to get
it to respond to more than 12 midi channels at once (though on a
VFX-SD you've got 24 channels if you use both song and sequence
tracks, so maybe there's a way); and those are the first three
limitations I can think of, not an exhaustive list.

The General MIDI specification was created after the VFX was designed,
and pretty much modeled after the Roland MT-32 if I remember
correctly.  The VFX just works in a much different fashion.

For existing midi sequences, if you want to play them on the VFX you
probably need to take it into a midi sequencer like cakewalk and edit
as appropriate for the VFX.

For other software, there might be some workarounds.  It would
probably help if you told us what specific software you are trying to
use, and specifically what you'd expect it to do vs. what it does.
"See" and "recognize" are very vague terms.  Although for some things,
like assuming a General MIDI drum note layout, there may not be not
much you can do.

--> Steve
-- 
Steve Wahl    steve@...

Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. 
Art is knowing which ones to keep.    -- Scott Adams