Chapter 10. Performing With An External Midi Device; About Midi; Midi Connectors; Midi Channels And Multi-Timbral Sound Generators - Roland RS-5 Owner's Manual

Chapter 10. Performing With An External MIDI Device

About MIDI

MIDI (Musical Instruments Digital Interface) is a standard
specification that allows musical data to be exchanged
between electronic musical instruments and computers.
MIDI With a MIDI cable connecting MIDI devices that are
equipped with MIDI connectors, you can play multiple
instruments with a single keyboard, have multiple MIDI
instruments perform in ensemble, program the settings to
change automatically to match the performance as the song
progresses, and more.
If you mainly use the RS-5/9 as a standalone keyboard
instrument, you may really not need to know much at all
about MIDI. However, the following MIDI-related
information is provided so you can play the RS-5/9 using an
external MIDI device, or master other advanced techniques.

MIDI connectors

The RS-5/9 has the following three types of MIDI connectors.
fig.R10-01
MIDI IN Connector
Performance messages from an external MIDI device are
received here. The RS-5/9 that receives MIDI messages can
output sounds, exchange tones, and perform other
operations.
MIDI OUT Connector
These connectors transmit MIDI messages to external MIDI
devices. The RS-5/9's MIDI OUT connector is used for
sending the performance data of the keyboard controller
section as well as data used for saving various settings (Bulk
Dump; p. 115).
MIDI THRU Connector
MIDI messages received at MIDI IN connector are re-
transmitted without change from this connector to an
external MIDI device. Use this in situations such as when
you use multiple MIDI devices simultaneously.
118
MIDI Channels and Multi-timbral
Sound Generators
MIDI transmits many types of data over a single MIDI cable.
This is made possible by MIDI channels. MIDI channels
allow messages intended for a given instrument to be
distinguished from messages intended for another
instrument. In some ways, MIDI channels are similar to
television channels. By changing the channel on a TV
receiver you can view the programs of different stations. This
is because the television set has thus been directed to
selectively display only the information being transmitted by
a particular station. In the same way, MIDI also allows a
device to select the information intended for that device out
of the variety of information that is being transmitted to it.
fig.R10-02exp
The cable from the antenna carries the TV
signals from many broadcast stations.
Station A
Station B
Station C
The TV is set to the channel of the station
you wish to watch.
MIDI uses sixteen channels, numbered 1–16. Set the receiving
device so that it will receive only the channel that it needs to
receive.
Example:
Set the RS-5/9 to send Channel 1 and Channel 2, then set
sound module A to receive only Channel 1 and sound
module B only Channel 2. With this setup, you can get an
ensemble performance, with, for example, a guitar sound
from sound module A and bass from sound module B.
fig.R10-03exp
MIDI OUT
Transmit channel: 1, 2
MIDI keyboard
When used as a sound module, the RS-5/9 can receive on up
to sixteen MIDI channels. Sound modules like the RS-5/9
which can receive multiple MIDI channels simultaneously to
play different sounds on each channel are called "multi-
timbral sound modules."
MIDI IN MIDI THRU
Receive channel: 1
Sound
Module
A
Receive channel: 2
MIDI IN
Sound
Module
B