LinuxMusicians

I've tried two different types of MIDI cables so far, the cheap one that cam with my M-AUDIO HAMMER 88 keyboard, and another one with ferrite cores on each end to block noise. The first was 6' and the second 10'. Both had the connection between LMMS and the keyboard failing constantly at random intervals (sometimes days, sometimes hours or less). When it fails, and I restart LMMS after unplugging both ends for about a minute, it sometimes still fails and I have to repeat the process several times.

Is the cheap USB to the old printer type USB just a basically bad cable for MIDI? Should I instead go to one of those MIDI cords with the 5 pin DIN connectors at one end, a converter close to the USB side, and then a USB C connector after that? The keyboard MIDI controller only has the pin MIDI OUT, so one of those would just be left dangling.

I have read a bit, but the more I read, the less I understood. First, the minimum I can use is 6', and that's running the cable across my computer desk to get to my laptop's USB ports.

Suggestions, anyone?

Thanks

I haven't found anything fundamentally wrong with USB MIDI. It could be USB autosuspend, which is a power saving feature. The kernel parameter to turn it off is usbcore.autosuspend=-1.

Edit /etc/default/grub and add usbcore.autosuspend=-1 to the line GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=

Then update GRUB, and how you do that depends on the distro you are using.

Uh oh. You're pluging a usb-midi keyboard (most of which still are at USB 2) into a usb C connector? That connector would then be USB 3. See if you have a usb 2 port on your computer.

Theoretically, you could have a C connector on a USB 2 port. But since the C connector didn't appear until about the time of USB 3, all the systems I've seen with a C connector are USB 3.

The USB specification is a bit of a mess. When a situation gets that way, you have lots of confusion, and there's a higher incidence of products that may be slightly incompatible. For example, you're supposed to be able to plug a USB 2 device into a USB 3 port, and it should work. (ie, USB 3 is supposed to be backward compatible). But the other month, I plugged a USB 2 device into a computer's USB 3 port, and the device did not work, Its power led didn't even light. I plugged it into a USB 2 port on that same computer, and it immediately sprung to life.

Bottom line: Plug USB 1 devices into a USB 1 (1.3) port (if you have it). Plug USB 2 devices into a USB 2 (2.1) port. Plug USB 3 devices into a USB 3 (I think we're curently at 3.1). And hide under your bed, because here comes USB 4.

He is on Slackware and this is his keyboard.

https://www.thomann.de/nl/m_audio_hammer_88.htm

It has a midi out (DIN) and a "printer" USB port.

MAudio's keyboards have always been USB-MIDI standard, and worked with alsa's usb-midi driver.

I doubt the problem is with the keyboard, or his usb cord, or alsa itself. Is he plugging this keyboard into some sort of usb hub that's running to a (usb 3) C connector on his computer? If so, I'd recommend he check for a usb 2.1 port on his computer, and directly plug his keyboard into there.

Gps wrote: ↑Fri Jul 07, 2023 11:05 pm

a "printer" USB port.

I think they are called "USB Type-B" connectors.

Simply put, USB has gotten faster through its existence :

Even that is not quite right. 12Mb/s is USB 1.1. USB 1.0 was 1.5Mb/s, and it wasn't until USB 1.1 that audio over USB was feasible.

sunrat wrote: ↑Sat Jul 08, 2023 3:04 am

Gps wrote: ↑Fri Jul 07, 2023 11:05 pm

a "printer" USB port.

I think they are called "USB Type-B" connectors.

Its not easy to keep them all apart.
Last time I needed a cable like that, the seller called it a printer cable.
That was also why I at first could not find the right cable. I was not searching for a printer cable.

I have seen this connection on other Maudio keyboards too. The square ? usb port.
I once soldered a new USB port like this onto the circuit board of an Maudio keyboard.