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MIDI - Paris [message #104160]

Wed, 07 October 2009 02:40

Micha

Messages: 72
Registered: January 2009

Member

Hi Parists!
I got a ESQ1 synth by Ensoniq, which is by the way pretty cool,
and now I want to control it via midi from Paris (the DAW, not the city Wink

)
Has anyone used the midi functions in Paris?
Does it really work ok? Which midi interfaces are supported (USB?)
How good/bad are the editing functions?

Thanks and greetings!

micha

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104162 is a reply to message #104160]

Wed, 07 October 2009 07:47

mikeaudet

Messages: 477
Registered: February 2009
Location: Canada

Senior Member

Hi Micha,

I wouldn't use the PARIS MIDI. I will occasionally (but eventually) just refuse to work, which is an unacceptable bug for me.

I synch PARIS via 24 frame MTC with Cakewalk Pro Audio 9. Either Cakewalk or PARIS has some kind of timing problem with MTC that is anything other than 24 frames. I make PARIS the master and Cakewalk the slave. The timing is tight.

I hope this helps.

Mike

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104163 is a reply to message #104162]

Wed, 07 October 2009 11:25

kerryg

Messages: 1529
Registered: February 2009

Senior Member
Administrator

mikeaudet wrote on Wed, 07 October 2009 07:47

... I will occasionally (but eventually) just refuse to work...

Me too

Micha - the MIDI in PARIS is a disaster for more than one reason - including a kooky interface that makes 1995 ATARI sequencers like C-Lab Notator look both logical and highly sophisticated, and a tendency to destabilize your entire PARIS system. Avoid it if at all possible, turn off MIDI in your paris.cfg, and sync up your choice of external MIDI sequencers to PARIS - then you have the "best of both worlds".

MTC between PARIS and another sequencer is adequate for general use (you'll get some amount of timing "slop" in the sync). I dislike it myself, I've never managed to get it to feel tight enough for my own use; the two DAWs feel like they're connected by flaky rubber bands.

If you want to achieve sample-accurate digital sync, you can do it providing you have 1) an ADAT card in your MEC and 2) the right combination of hardware and software to read the output from its ADAT sync port. For more info on the ins and outs of achieving sample-accurate sync between PARIS and another DAW, see this thread. I use this method on my own system internally (eg I have the RME and PARIS running on the same PC) and it works great.

"... being bitter is like swallowing poison and waiting for the other guy to die..." - anon

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104164 is a reply to message #104163]

Wed, 07 October 2009 11:49

mikeaudet

Messages: 477
Registered: February 2009
Location: Canada

Senior Member

Hi Kerry,

I did a bunch of testing last week because I'm gearing up to do some recording again, and I found the timing at 24ftps was really quite tight. I've found that at other frame rates, a random offset seems to get inserted into the synch, so there is a consistent slop that changes every time one hits play. But, not with 24fps.

I tested by running heartbeat at 100bps while cakewalk generated a click at the same tempo via midi. After I compensated for the synch delay (around 20 milliseconds or so), the clicks hit at exactly the same time and didn't vary at all.

I also used a utility to test the latency of my MIDI interfaces. My old Opcode Parallel Port interface had a latency of less that 1 ms, but a newer Midiman USB interface had a latency of almost 6ms. The Midiman has been banished to the basement.

I hope this helps someone.

All the best,

Mike

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104165 is a reply to message #104160]

Wed, 07 October 2009 12:15

studiodog

Messages: 9
Registered: May 2009

Junior Member

I have the same keyboard and really like it also- and have a bunch of the carts for it too...

MIDI and Paris - not worth the trouble!! Sad

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104169 is a reply to message #104164]

Wed, 07 October 2009 22:31

JeffH

Messages: 307
Registered: October 2007
Location: Wamic, OR

Senior Member

Mike,

What's the utility?

I wondered why I had so many issues on a couple things I did MIDI before.

Jeff

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104171 is a reply to message #104169]

Wed, 07 October 2009 22:34

kerryg

Messages: 1529
Registered: February 2009

Senior Member
Administrator

Yeah, didn't we all? I'm still digesting the idea that 24FPS works *fine* - that would have been useful info eight years ago! That's getting a Wiki entry shortly.

"... being bitter is like swallowing poison and waiting for the other guy to die..." - anon

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Re: MIDI - Paris [message #104173 is a reply to message #104171]

Thu, 08 October 2009 12:29

Micha

Messages: 72
Registered: January 2009

Member

...I always imagined that Paris has a simple piano roll and works ok,
and you all just don´t use it, because you are more the "real"
instruments recording kinda guys. Very Happy

I know the truth now.

I think Mikes solution with the magical number 24 and synchronize
a sequencer to Paris is cool- I´ll try that instead frigging
around with our favorite daws´ midi bearishness.

thanks

[Updated on: Thu, 08 October 2009 12:31]

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