Some blah from me.
> Ive decided to take the plunge and buy an Atari ST after reading that it still has the best MIDI timing. 1ms! The lowest I have been able to achieve with a windows PC is around 10ms. And thats with a clean install of XP/7, MOTU interface, Renoise. It just sounds like a DISASTER!
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Yeah, modern hardware is not good for MIDI. Mostly because it's crap and its rule is "to sell worse sh*t for more money" but also the MIDI protocole itself it actually obsolete, to be honest.
Last times I played my old MIDI songs from 1996, taken from 1040STfm into PC. The FruityLoops plays them internally (I don't actually think it's even real MIDI) and they were much coherent/smooth/fast-on-track-gluing then the original ones.
> - Must have at least 1 MIDI out
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Always 2 of them, IN and OUT, in all the 16/32 Ataris.
> - Be able to be modified to output to VGA, Scart or HDMI.
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Hmm. There must be some RGB to VGA converter for sure.
But Panda Chan is actually right - this cable http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/like/3903222 … mp;viphx=1 is very good.
I connect it to the SCART
and it works perfectly well. For low-res progs (like trackers).
About the ST/STE. There should be standard PC memory slot in all STE, so it's easy to espand its memory into 4Mb.
They use 4x "1Mb short 8bit SIMM" like from old PC or AWE32 sound-card.
All STEs have 5 channels on the Maxymizer (3 synths + 2 digi channels).
Most of STE models has a factory bug having the cinch sound-ouptut strongly distorted. More or less, but still.
My Atari friend Mono has an STe that - no matters what music it plays - it sounds always like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIf2GgA1rGc
As for me, I was searching for the most clean sound, hence I stick with possibly the earliest models, like 520ST or similar. Their sound is almost clear. But You have only 3 channels of synthesis there.
Of course I play on them 6 channels digital music but it has nothing to do with MIDI.
Maxymizer - like they wrote on the site mentioned by JeffTheWorld - "maxYMiser is free, features a full MIDI implementation". So, I gather, it's true. What does it mean for You as a musician? Dunno. I have never merged chiptunes with MIDI this way, there were usually totally separate worlds to me.
Yogi:
> I think the only diff with the STe models is the RAM amount, same mobo.
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I suspect so, too. having regular SIMM slots might be an issue here but I'd rather suspect all STEs to have those, after all.
Panda Chan:
> The main MIDI software for the ST was stuff like Cubase for ST, Notator,
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Yes. And I don't think You can use YM with those.
> These are all really good however they do require specific Dongles that act as a key to 'unlock' the software (to stop piracy)
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Cubases from 80s are abandonware as far as I know.
Several such programs are downloadable from AtariMusic.Net:
http://atarimusic.net/index.php?option= … Itemid=221
althought You'd have to test which prog works on Your machine. It WILL take time.
...and all the Xyno said, I suppose. Including the monochrome mode of Cubase. This one would required VGA indeed. There was some converter, I recall...?
Yes, there was - http://atariage.com/forums/topic/170385 … y-adapter/
).
