MIDI Playback

[MetalheadGautham]

Well, I know this issue must have come up before, but here I am asking it again: can VLC include MIDI Playback? I have to use van basco karaoke player for MIDIs, and if VLC could do the playback, it would just rock.

VLC can have the ability to play midi files without difference in quality by storing the instruments in VLC itself, like timidity. this will rock too. No dependency on codecs, No dependency on sound card for midi.

PS: VanBasco's Karaoke player is the best midi/karaoke player around, and you have tonnes of cool options in that, including synchronised lyrics, pausing instruments, FF, etc. VLC will have a hard time throwing in that many features

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

NO.

For various reasons already stated around here.

[MetalheadGautham]

I did not see anything mentioned in the faq and the wiki. I did control+f and typed midi and found nothing at all (the word mid and midi did not exist there)

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

viewtopic.php?t=31295&highlight=midi

[MetalheadGautham]

then what about timidity++? isn't it cross platform?

[DGMurdockIII]

what about using timidity++ for midi playback http://timidity.sourceforge.net/

[VLC_help]

I have said this earlier, but is there "Uses Gravis Ultrasound compatible patch files and/or SoundFonts as the voice data" GPL version of any of those "instruments"?
Because TiMidity itself ain't enough. And forcing users to download something extra for VLC ain't that nice (for that guy who comes here and says that people can find their own midi instruments).

[DGMurdockIII]

any other way to get midi file support them

[VLC_help]

Instruments are required on all the cases because midi files don't include any samples. On Windows you could use Windows MIDI API but again it ain't crossplatform.

[DGMurdockIII]

can this be added now

[VLC_help]

AFAIK nothing has changed.

[Arite]

There appears to be some MIDI development in trunk, however I do not know if that will be for a in-built MIDI synthesiser. The fluidsynth libraries (similar functionality to TiMidity++ - uses SoundFont (*.sf2) files) appear to be being used here:
http://trac.videolan.org/vlc/browser/tr ... uidsynth.c

Also - the Standard MIDI File demux module (smf.c):
http://trac.videolan.org/vlc/browser/tr ... emux/smf.c

Arite.

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

You are right. However, I don't know yet if this for windows too. And I lack the knowledge of how it truely works.

[Arite]

Well since synthesiser programs (such as fluidsyth, TiMidity++ and WildMidi) are software synthesizers no MIDI hardware drivers are required and so should operate fine on multiple OS's. Rather than using MIDI hardware to output the audio instead they read the input note/instrument and playback the appropriate sample which it is assigned to in the SoundFont archive (or Gravis Ultrsound patches, although I don't think fluidsyth supports them).

That is my understanding anyway .

Cheers, Arite.

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

My understanding is also that we can't distribute SoundFonts...

[Arite]

Hmm... yes, perhaps there are licensing issues (SoundFont is a registered trademark of E-mu and Creative Labs).

You can get free/open source samples and GUS patches and the from here:
http://freepats.opensrc.org/

And in the /tools/sfubar-9/ directory there is an open source tool (sfubar) which can be used to create and edit *.sf2 files.

There are also some open source SF2 tools here (Win32 - sources written in Delphi I think):
http://www.geocities.com/lstnght2000/

So where is the licensing issue - it is with the format, or the samples? If it is the samples then presumably using the freepat samples to create a "open" *.sf2 would be OK for distribution?

Arite.

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

I really don't know. But you seem to know. I will see what we can do to include that on windows.

[CloudStalker]

I guess this could be useful for CloudStalker. One more reason to NOT use WMP.

[Delta-Surfer1319]

Hello,
there is time in land since this midi experiment.

How far are developings?

It's a pity but vlc player can't play midi files to this date...

It would be nice if some developers could fullfil this midi-work... in this list http://www.videolan.org/vlc/features.html there is the information for midi files "untested" so I have tested and it don't work

vlc player is very good but it should work with every useable format

greetings d.1319

[Jean-Baptiste Kempf]

Midi works on VLC/linux.

[Delta-Surfer1319]

Midi works on VLC/linux.

Hello,
yes with Linux systems it works see image there it is tested http://img401.imageshack.us/img401/8192 ... idiox9.jpg

but I often use Windows Vista [Home Premium] there it don't work.

for midi examples I visited https://www.hitbit.com/titel/%5Eo/T:Tit ... d71ad66f3e if I open a song with WMP 11 it works preperly.....

greetings,
d.1319