This page is for people who want to link up their PC's to external keyboards, use external sequencers, etc.

 On the Windows 95 platform, setup is relatively easy. I haven't tried it for Win 3.1x yet.

A new section has been added for those people who likes to mess around with electronics. 

1. PC, 486 and above, running Win 95

2. Creative Sound Blaster or 100% compatible sound card. (Any model)

3. MIDI Interface* cable.

4. External MIDI device(Usually controller keyboard and/or synthesizer.)

1. The PC, well, um, that's up to you.

2. Any shop that sells a PC should have a Creative compatible sound blaster. It may be cheaper to get the OEM version if you can lay your hands on one. (OEM stands for Original Electronics Manufacturer - they are original hardware, but meant to be installed in new PC's. So it just comes with the card and a disk containing the drivers, maybe a simple installation guide, and NOTHING ELSE. )

You can probably get one at Sim Lim Square, Funan Center, or even Tampines Mall.

3. I got mine from a shop in Funan Center, quite a few shops have it. It costs only S$28. (or lower) Beware that there are shops selling it at even $35. It looks like this:

4. As I have mentioned elsewhere, the well-known shops are in Ngee Ann City, and the other one in Peace Centre (or next to it).

1. Remove the joystick from the game port ON THE SOUND CARD, if any.

2. Plug the MIDI interface cable into the game port OF THE SOUND CARD- there's only 1 possible way to do it.

3. Plug the joystick back to the other end of the MIDI Interface cable, if you removed it in step 1. (There is no need to touch the joysticks connected to other peripheral cards.)

4. Plug the 2 dangling round 5-pin MIDI connectors into the MIDI device of your choice. Be sure to plug the "IN" plug into the "IN" port, and the same on the "OUT" plug - it's labeled on the plug.

(*Note: Beware that some cheap 3rd party cables has the IN & OUT plugs labeled in REVERSE. If nothing happens during testing, try swapping the IN and OUT plugs)

*Caution! The MIDI Interface cable maybe short, but do not anyhow buy a cable to extend its length. There are at least 2 types of cables out there that look very similar. One is the PC keyboard extension cable (female/male), the other is an audio connector for certain HI-FI systems (male/male). They may not work as MIDI cables as their pin assignments may be reversed.

1. Any MIDI sequencer software (e.g.: Cakewalk, MIDISoft Studio, etc)

1. Boot up Win 95.

2. In Control Panel, double-click on "Multimedia Properties".

3. Click on the MIDI tab.

4. The current device selected should be the name of you sound card. Change it to 'MIDI for external port'. Remember the original name.

5. Click OK.

6. On the Multimedia Properties panel again, click 'Advanced'.

7. Double-click on 'MIDI devices and Instruments'

8. Double-click on 'MIDI for external port'.

9. Click on the 'Details' tab.

10. Select the MIDI device of your choice (Usually Percussion on CH 16)

To be on the safe side, restart windows.

To test your connection, just turn on your external keyboard/synth, amps, etc. Make sure that the synths are ready for action (send it some MIDI data to make sure). Launch Media Player (mplayer.exe), open any *.mid song (e.g.: canyon.mid), and hear it come from your synth!! If you can't hear anything, double-check all connections, and perform a logical troubleshooting starting with your synth. It's OK if all the instruments come out wrong - the *.mdi files usually come in General MIDI format, and if your synth is not on General MIDI, you'll need to create a patch table to remap all the program changes to General MIDI on your synth, or change the instruments on the *.mid file to match your synth.

To return you PC to normal operation (e.g., MIDI music in games), change the 'MIDI for external port' back to the original name of your sound card and click OK.

Since no 2 software is the same, here are just the general guidelines:

1. In a 'setup' menu or equivalent, get to the 'MIDI Driver setup' dialog box.

2. Select the appropriate MIDI Driver (Usually General MIDI CH 1 - 16)

If you like to build your own gear, or you just couldn't find some necessary parts in your country (that is, other than Singapore) you may want to build some of it yourself. Here's how:

This couldn't be easier. All you need are 2 DIN 5-pin male plugs, and a 2-core shielded cable. (Limited to a maximum of 15 m) The way to solder them together are as follows:

This one's tough. You'll need some experience with electronics to do this one. You'll need 2 female DIN 5-pin plugs (as opposed to the standard cable, where the plugs are male - they presume that your MIDI gear is always sitting next to your PC, so you can plug them in directly) some diodes, resisters, and an HP 6N138 Optoisolator (or optocoupler), and a ton of patience. The wiring and schematics are shown in the diagram below.

This is also super easy - just buy 3 DIN 5-pin female plugs (preferable the mountable type), a 6-pin 2-way switch, some wires and a little plastic box. Wire it up as follows:

*Note: If these instructions really helped, please drop me a line. It'll be great to know that they've been useful.

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