MIDI is poor quality.

[sjb@platinum.ca]

Hello everyone,
Any idea what causes my MIDI music files play poorly; haltingly, poppingly, scratchily and volume levels changing by itself rapidly.
Audio players: WMA 10.0, RealPlayer 10.5.
MIDI files playback is enabled in only in the Real.
All other file types play normaly.
My OS is XP pro,
Audidio driver: VIA AC'97, version: 5.12.1.3513.
Thank you

[scott]

Few people are satisfied with the MIDI synthesizer software that comes with their computers. I haven't heard one yet that I like. The problems you describe ("haltingly, poppingly, scratchily and volume levels changing") are unusual, but I think the sound chip you are using has a generally poor reputation among people involved in professional recording or professional music. At the minimum, you would want to get a Sound Blaster Live! card for your computer. If you are serious about MIDI, or plan to use MIDI playback for performances or recordings, then you really need one of the solutions described below.

Remember, unlike traditional recordings (such as MP3 or WAV files), a MIDI file is just a stream of note data, the actual sounds are generated by the player and can sound very different on different hardware.

I have seen software titles out there for PC's that claim to reproduce excellent MIDI sounds, but I still recommend that you connect your computer to an external MIDI sound module if you are serious about using MIDI for playing music.

Here are just a few good choices available at zzounds.com and other music sources (prices as of April 2006):

Kurzweil ME1 Multi-Timbral 32-Voice MIDI Module $400
Roland XV2020 64-Voice Expandable Synthesizer Module $600
Yamaha Motif Rack ES Sound Module $1100

You will need a USB to MIDI converter for most sound modules, some come with a USB port built in. Then you can connect the sound module to your system for amplification. You can even connect multiple sound modules together to get the best sound for different instruments. For instance, you can connect your computer to one of the boxes above for general sounds and keyboard sounds, then daisy chain another Sound module specifically for a great organ sound and another module for better drum sounds.

I am of the controversial opinion that MIDI is really intended for use with professional synthesizer hardware only, and that the standard computer synthesizers are so poor at producing enjoyable sounds that they have generally hurt MIDI's reputation.

Hope this helps,
Scott