Korg Forums

hi, apologies if this topic has been covered before; I am new to this forum and fairly new to Microkorgs and digital recording.

My band recently split up and i have inherited the recordings we made from the drummer who both engineered the sessions and finished the band! I have a 10 song album that is over 3/4 complete and i'm hoping to finish it off for old times sake and a low-key digital release.

I am using Cubase Artist 6 with a Mac laptop. The sessions were recorded in an older version of Cubase.

Many of the songs have midi parts (mostly synth / piano parts and some beats) and virtual instrument tracks. I also need to add some extra VST tracks such as piano. Obviously the old MIDI parts do not play now as i don't have the same outboard equipment.

But I have a Microkorg which off course has MIDI. I have just purchased an Alesis MIdi-USB cable to connect it to my Mac.

But now I get stuck. Can anyone help me with the basics of setting it up and generating sounds? My laptop recognises the USB connection in the Audio Midi set-up.
But do i need to add a device in Audio Midi set-up at this stage and what are the settings?
Do i need drivers for the Midi-USB cable It's meant to be plug in and play)?
What settings do i need on the Microkorg and what settings do i need in Cubase?
The manuals and help topics for all have proved ineffective!
Any assistance much appreciated and i can send you a copy of the album when finished!

For basic operation, simply plug the MIDI Out of the interface (cable) to the MIDI In of the microKorg.

Now set one of your MIDI tracks to go to that output (in the track inspector).

You don't need to set up a MIDI device, only if you want patch name list etc, which for a synth like the microKorg where the patches have no names anyway and are completely reprogrammable, is a bit pointless.
You can choose the program you are going to use from that 1st page on the track inspector too.

Consider though that the microKorg will only play one sound at a time and only up to four notes at a time. You'll need to record the audio from the microKorg back into Cubase through your Audio Interface/Sound Card.

I feel your pain because it took hours and hours for ME to go from opening the midi-interface package (a Hosa, which doesn't require a driver, for 76$) to seeing my MICROKORG fingerings appear on my PIANO ROLL COMPOSER music-editor in real time.

Turn the lower knob to MIDI. Of the five smaller knobs, the first is 1-16 channels, the 2nd put on LOCAL, the third (CLOCK) put on automatic if the MICROKORG is the controller, and the fourth "KPB".

AS FOR YOUR MUSIC-EDITOR: You'll probably need soundfonts and onboard playback synths and don't forget to check volumes of EVERYTHING. Sometimes a window pops up that says "CONNECT AN EXTERNAL MIDI DEVICE" even when my Hosa jumper cables are firmly in place.

At that point, pulling out the USB plug and putting it back in seems to do the trick. I know every computer is different and your music-editor is way more complex than mine, but after three days of trial and error, IN WHICH I NEARLY LOST MY MIND BECAUSE OF THE MONEY INVOLVED, my midi interface suddenly began to work.

I'M STILL NOT QUITE SURE WHY. Maybe the computer somehow realized that I was going to go insane if it didn't co-operate. The TROUBLE-SHOOTING feature on my Windows program was a big help. There are searches and tutorials on EVERYTHING.

And don't forget the MICROKORG manual says outright that some midi interfaces won't enable it. GOOD LUCK.

Sharon Kathleen Johnson wrote:I feel your pain because it took hours and hours for ME to go from opening the midi-interface package (a Hosa, which doesn't require a driver, for 76$) to seeing my MICROKORG fingerings appear on my PIANO ROLL COMPOSER music-editor in real time.

Turn the lower knob to MIDI. Of the five smaller knobs, the first is 1-16 channels, the 2nd put on LOCAL, the third (CLOCK) put on automatic if the MICROKORG is the controller, and the fourth "KPB".

AS FOR YOUR MUSIC-EDITOR: You'll probably need soundfonts and onboard playback synths and don't forget to check volumes of EVERYTHING. Sometimes a window pops up that says "CONNECT AN EXTERNAL MIDI DEVICE" even when my Hosa jumper cables are firmly in place.

At that point, pulling out the USB plug and putting it back in seems to do the trick. I know every computer is different and your music-editor is way more complex than mine, but after three days of trial and error, IN WHICH I NEARLY LOST MY MIND BECAUSE OF THE MONEY INVOLVED, my midi interface suddenly began to work.

I'M STILL NOT QUITE SURE WHY. Maybe the computer somehow realized that I was going to go insane if it didn't co-operate. The TROUBLE-SHOOTING feature on my Windows program was a big help. There are searches and tutorials on EVERYTHING.

And don't forget the MICROKORG manual says outright that some midi interfaces won't enable it. GOOD LUCK.

did you actually read my post in this thread here? you might get some valuable advice from it. Soundfonts are played on your computer. If you're listening to soundfonts, then you're not getting the most out of your microKorg.

MIDI is only for recording 'notes' like in sheet music - it doesn't make any sound until a synth, or soundfont, or softsynth, plays them back.

You're using your microKorg as a glorified MIDI controller. You might as well have bought a microKontrol.