MIDEX-3

MIDI Interface

Operation Manual
Declaration of Conformity
We, Steinberg Media Technologies AG
Neuer Hoeltigbaum 22 - 32,
D-22143 Hamburg
herewith confirm that the product: The CE symbol is awarded to high-quality ap-
Type: USB/MIDI interface pliances which comply with the European Di-
Model: MIDEX-3 rective 89/336/EEC or the EMVG (law relating
meets the requirements of the council of to electromagnetic compatibility of appli-
the European communities as specified ances) and which offer the following signifi-
by the following norms (or normative cant benefits:
documents) • Simultaneous and interference-free operation
CENLEC EN 55 024 of adjoining appliances
CENLEC EN 55 022 • No unpermitted interference signals
DIN EN 60 950 • High resistance to electro-smog
relating to electromagnetic compatibility
(Council Directives 73/23/EEC and 89/
336/EEC)
Table of Contents 2 Declaration of Conformity
3 Table of Contents
4 Introduction
5 Contents of the Package
6 System Requirements – PC
6 System Requirements – Apple Computer
7 The MIDEX-3 Features
8 MIDEX-3 – Controls and Sockets
9 Connecting and Setting Up
11 Software Installation – PC
12 Software Installation – Macintosh
22 The Linear Time Base Method
23 The Buttons
24 Windows Problems with the USB Reset
25 Practical Hints
28 Questions and Answers
Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of Two important factors make sure that
MIDEX-3! MIDEX-3 offers an extremely reliable and
accurately timed MIDI data transfer:
MIDEX-3 is a multi port MIDI interface. It
can be used to transfer MIDI data be- • The communication takes place via the Uni-
tween your computer and external MIDI versal Serial Bus (USB).
equipment. Each MIDEX-3 has one MIDI • The MIDEX-3 uses Steinberg´s LTB- technol-
input and three independent MIDI out- ogy. LTB is the abbreviation for Linear Time
puts (MIDI ports). Base, a MIDI Time Stamping method, which
transfers MIDI data to your sound modules
Each of the three MIDI outputs lets you
with utmost timing accuracy.
use 16 MIDI channels. Therefore, one
MIDEX-3 interface can simultaneously re- MIDEX-3 and LTB have been developed in
ceive MIDI data on 16 separate MIDI close co-operation with Access Music, the
channels and send MIDI data on up to 48 company that has acquired an excellent
independent MIDI channels. name with its Virus synthesizer products.
To connect your computer and the This operation manual contains impor-
MIDEX-3, you must use the USB ports on tant information on how to install and
both devices. USB is a powerful technol- use the MIDEX-3. Please read it so that
ogy, that simultaneously lets you connect you can quickly and successfully use your
up to 127 peripheral devices to your com- new interface.
puter, if it is USB-compatible. With USB,
Have fun using the MIDEX-3!
there is no need to configurate jumpers,
The Steinberg Team
i/o addresses, DMA channels etc.
Contents of the Package
The MIDEX-3 package should contain • CD-ROM with driver software for all sup-
these items: ported computer operating systems. As
newer driver software might be available
• MIDEX-3 interface.
when you read this, we recommend that you
• This operation manual.
visit the Steinberg web site ( http://
• A Registration card. Please take the time to fill
www.steinberg.net) and download the latest
it in and send it back to us.
versions.
• A USB A/B standard cable for connection to a
Macintosh or PC. ➢ Please take the time to read any ReadMe
files that you might get with this product
or when downloading driver software!
These files contain important late-break-
ing information.
System Requirements – PC System Requirements –
To be able to use MIDEX-3, you need:
Apple Computer
• A PC with a main board (motherboard) that is To be able to use MIDEX-3, you need:
equipped with USB connectors or a PC that is
• An Apple Computer that is equipped with
equipped with a PCI USB host adapter.
USB connectors, e.g. the iMacs, G3/G4 Power
➢ Some older main boards support USB, but Books or G3/G4 desktop computers. Further-
don’t offer the physical USB ports on the more you need Mac OS 8.6 (or higher).
rear of the computer. You can easily • When this was written, Mac OS X compatible
change this by buying a port extension and drivers were not yet available. If you use Mac
installing it in your PC. Please find all corre- OS X, please check out www.steinberg.net,
sponding information in the manual of from where you can download the driver soft-
your computer. If necessary, consult an ex- ware as soon as it becomes available.
perienced technician. • OMS version 2.3.8 or a newer version.
• If you use a PCI card that provides the USB
• To use MIDEX-3 in connection with a PC, ports, you will also need a Mac OS, that sup-
please make sure that your computer runs a ports your USB PCI card.
Windows 98SE, Windows Me, Windows 2000
or Windows XP operating system. ➢ Not all USB cards available for retrofitting
do function well in all Macintosh comput-
➢ Windows 98 Gold or earlier Windows ver- ers. We have experienced no problems
sions are not supported. with cards manufactured by Sonnet.
The MIDEX-3 Features
The MIDEX-3 USB MIDI interface has the • MIDEX-3 provides an automatic “MIDI Thru”
following features: function for MIDI In/Out 1. This is automati-
cally enabled, when no application (like e.g.
• Full speed connector for USB-compatible PCs
your sequencer) accesses the MIDEX-3 or
or Apple Computers. (12Mbit/sec)
when USB is disconnected. You can then di-
• MIDI interface with one input and three sepa-
rectly address the instrument connected to
rate outputs (each connected MIDEX-3 inter-
output 1 from an instrument connected to the
face can address up to 48 MIDI output
MIDEX-3 input, without the need to change
channels).
the MIDI cable connection.
• MIDI activity indicators for the input and the
• Compatible with Mac OS 8.6 (or higher) (OMS
outputs.
2.3.8 or higher required) and all known soft-
• The MIDEX-3 doesn’t need any external power
ware products for Macintosh that support
supply. As an external device, it is connected
OMS.
to the USB bus of your computer and there-
• Compatible with Windows 98 SE (Second Edi-
fore receives the necessary power from here.
tion), Windows Me (Millenium Edition), Win-
Opening the computer is not necessary.
dows 2000 and Windows XP and MME
compatible software. Plug & Play installation
without the need to set IRQs, I/O addresses or
DMA Channels.
MIDEX-3 – Controls and Sockets
Front Rear

➀ ➁ ➂ ➃ ➄ ➀ ➁

➀ MIDI In socket – Using a MIDI cable, connect this e.g. ➀ USB socket – This MIDEX-3 socket and the host
to your MIDI Master keyboard. computer’s USB port must be connected to each
➁ MIDI In Activity LED – This LED indicates MIDI activity other using a USB cable.
on the MIDI input. ➁ MIDI Out sockets 1 to 3 – Using MIDI cables, you can
e.g. connect these three independent outputs to
➂ Power LED – This LED indicates that the MIDEX-3 is
different sound modules, samplers, drum machines
ready for use. It lights up shortly after the MIDEX-3
has been connected to the USB bus of your etc.
computer.
➃ MIDI Out Activity LEDs – These LEDs indicate MIDI
activity on the MIDI outputs.

➄ Panic/Cablecheck button – pressing this button

briefly starts a MIDI cable check, pressing it longer
(for ca. 3 seconds) sends a MIDI Reset (All Notes Off
and Controller Reset on all channels) and thus
removes “hanging notes”.
Connecting and Setting Up Connecting MIDEX-3 and Computer
When you have installed all necessary
➢ Please install all necessary drivers and software, proceed as follows to connect
other software, before you connect the the MIDEX-3 to the computer:
MIDEX-3 to your computer! Especially if
you install it on a Macintosh computer, it is 1. Switch off the computer.
important to maintain a certain installa- 2. Use the USB standard cable that came with
tion order to prevent installation errors. your MIDEX-3 to connect the USB port on
Please do carefully read the corresponding the rear of your computer to MIDEX-3’s
sections in this manual. USB.
Your computer’s USB port is a small (1/8 inch x
Positioning the MIDEX-3 3/8 inch) rectangular socket. Desktop com-
puters often have two, Laptop computers
• Position the MIDEX-3 interface in a conven- mostly have one such socket. The USB socket
ient spot near your computer. on your MIDEX-3 can easily be identified by its
lable.
If the distance between the MIDEX-3 and
the computer is too big, you might need
3. If you are sure that all necessary software
to buy a USB extension cable. This is avail-
has been installed, you can now switch on
your computer.
able in computer shops. The cable should
support the “USB Full Speed Mode”. ➢ We assume that you have properly con-
nected the MIDEX-3 to your computer’s USB
bus, so that it gets the necessary power, and
that the computer is switched On.
Making the MIDI Connections • The MIDI output on your Master keyboard is
connected to the MIDI input on the MIDEX-3.
Use standard MIDI cables to connect the • The first MIDI output (Out 1) on your MIDEX-3
MIDEX-3 to other external devices instru- interface is connected to the MIDI input of a
ments and sound modules. sound module (this can also be your Master
keyboard, if it can generate sound).
A typical MIDI system would e.g. include • The second MIDI output (Out-2) on the MIDEX-
your MIDEX-3 interface, a computer, MIDI 3 is connected to another sound module.
Sequencer software, a MIDI Master key- • You can connect an additional sound module/
board and a few MIDI compatible sound MIDI instrument to the remaining MIDI output.
modules. Such a system could be con-
nected as follows: In the MIDI system setup illustration
shown below, the MIDEX-3 interface is
• MIDEX-3 interface and computer are con- used to transfer MIDI data between Mas-
nected using the USB standard cable that came ter keyboard, computer with application
with the MIDEX-3. software and sound modules.

In

USB Out 2 Out 3 In

In 1 Out 1

USB
Out In
Software Installation – PC
When you have connected the MIDEX-3
to your computer, Windows recognizes,
that a new USB device has been con-
nected and automatically starts the “Add
New Hardware Wizard”.

4. Click the “Next” button to install the drivers.

When that has successfully happened, Win-
dows displays a corresponding message.
The firmware driver is now automatically
transferred into the MIDEX-3 and Windows
might ask you to insert the Windows CD, if it
needs any additional Windows drivers, that
were previously not installed.
1. Click on the “Next” button. 5. If necessary, insert the Windows CD and
You can now determine the method that the click “Browse”.
Wizard should use to find the drivers. Windows will then find and install the needed
2. Activate “Find the best driver for the de- drivers.
vice” and click on the “Next” button 6. Restart your computer when the installa-
You can now determine, where the Wizard tion has successfully been completed.
should search for the drivers.
3. Click on “CD-ROM drive” so that it is ticked.
➢ Under certain conditions, several versions
If your computer has more than one CD- of the Windows operating system do not
ROM drive, please specify the path of the properly recognize USB devices. You
drive that you use. Now insert the MIDEX-3 should therefore avoid to plug in your
CD-ROM into the corresponding drive and MIDEX-3 or remove it during operation.
click the “Next” button. Please find more information about this is-
sue in the section “Windows Problems with
Windows indicates when it has found the drivers.
the USB Reset” on page 24.
Software Installation – ➢ Your Macintosh computer must be equipped
with the necessary USB port(s). It must run
Macintosh Mac OS version 8.6 or higher and provide suf-
ficient empty space on its hard disk (min.10
MegaBytes).
Installing on the Mac – Important
Information ➢ Your Cubase or Nuendo version must be com-
patible with the LTB technology. When this
Please definitely do read the following in- was written, this was true for the Cubase VST
formation before you start to install the Mac version 5.0.2. and Nuendo Mac version
MIDEX-3 drvers on your Macintosh: 1.5.2. If necessary, please turn to the support
department of the Steinberg distribution in
your country.
➢ Do not connect the MIDEX-3 itself before
OMS and the MIDEX-3 drivers have com-
pletely been installed! The system would oth-
erwise not recognize it correctly.
➢ OMS 2.3.8 or a newer version must correctly
be installed on your computer, before you ac-
tivate the MIDEX-3 Installer program, other-
wise certain drivers will not automatically be
copied to the correct destinations in the Sys-
tem or OMS folders. An OMS Installation pro-
gramcan be found on the MIDEX-3 Driver CD.
➢ If you are not familiar with OMS, please do
definitely read the following sections.
➢ If OMS 2.3.8 or higher is installed on your
computer and if you are familiar with OMS,
then you can immediately start to install the
MIDEX-3 drivers, as described in the section
“Installing the MIDEX-3 Driver Software” on
page 14.
What is OMS ? 2. To find out which version it is, click once on
the »OMS« System Extension so that the icon
The Open MIDI System (OMS) has been is inverted. Then select »Information« on the
co-developed by Opcode Systems Inc. Apple Desktop File menu. A dialog appears. It
and Steinberg. This System Extension contains the desired information.
closes the gap between MIDI applications
and MIDI hardware on the Mac. In addi- ➢ If the current OMS version is installed on
tion, OMS lets several MIDI applications your computer, then you can skip the sec-
communicate with each other and share tion »Installing or Updating OMS« and pro-
resources (like Patch names and Timing ceed with installing the driver software as
information). described in the section »Installing the
MIDEX-3 drivers«.

OMS Version
Installing or Updating OMS
➢ To be able to use MIDEX-3, you must have
1. Open the folder “OMS 2.3.8” on the MIDEX-
installed and activated OMS version 2.3.8 3 CD-ROM and start the program “Install
or higher on your computer. Older OMS OMS 2.3.8”.
versions do not sufficiently support USB This loads the OMS Installer program. In the
interfaces. first dialog that appears, click “Continue”. This
Please proceed as follows to find out will open the Installer dialog.
whether OMS has been installed on your 2. Use the »Install Location« pop-up menu to
computer: define where on your hard disk the In-
1. Open the System Extensions folder in your staller should install the “Opcode” folder.
System folder. If OMS has been installed on Among other things, this will later contain the
your computer, then the »OMS« System Ex- OMS Setup program.
tension must be present in this folder. 3. Click on the “Install” switch.
OMS 2.3.8 will now be installed on your com-
puter.

➢ If an older OMS version was installed on

The OMS System Extension icon your computer, it will automatically be up-
dated.
4. Please do now restart your computer! Installing the MIDEX-3 Driver
Same as all other System Extensions, OMS will
only be started upon system start, i.e. when
Software
you restart your computer. If you do not re-
1. Insert the MIDEX-3 Driver CD into the cor-
start, OMS will not be available and therefore
responding drive on your computer.
errors might occur during driver installation.
If you have access to the Internet, then you
• The OMS Installer program has created an can find out prior to installation whether a
“Opcode” folder on your hard disk. This con- newer version of the driver software is availa-
tains the “OMS Setup” program, that you can ble. To do this, proceed as described in the
later use to make the necessary settings. section “Downloading a new driver” below.
• The OMS Installer program has also created an
2. Start the driver software installation by
“OMS Folder” folder in your System folder.
double clicking the Installer icon “MIDEX-3
Please do not move or delete this folder.
Install V 1.xx”.

If you double click this icon…

…this dialog will appear:
3. Use the “Install Location” pop-up menu to Downloading a new MIDEX-3 Driver
tell the Installer on which hard disk your
System folder resides. The click the “Install”
from the Internet
switch to start the installation process.
If you have access to the Internet, you can
The Installer program will now install a
surf to the Steinberg web site to find out
number of files in your System folder and in
whether a newer version of the MIDEX-3
the “OMS Folder”.
driver software is available. This must
4. When the installation has been completed, have a higher version number than the
close the dialog by clicking “Quit”. driver on the MIDEX-3 CD-ROM. If a newer
You do not have to restart the computer at driver software is available, then you
this point. should download it and install it as described
above.
5. You can now finally connect your MIDEX-3
Please point your Internet Browser to:
to the USB socket on your computer, as de-
scribed on page 9 and using the USB cable • http://www.steinberg.net/support/hard-
that came with the unit. waredriver
6. If your MIDEX-3 has already been con-
nected, then momentarily remove the USB
cable and connect it again to force a device
reset.
The MIDEX-3 should now automatically be
recognized and receive its drivers in the back-
ground. The blue operation LED should now
light up.
Setting up OMS 2. In the File menu, select “New Studio Setup”
to let OMS search for all connected MIDI in-
You must now make the necessary set- terfaces.
tings in the “OMS Setup” program to This dialog appears.
make sure that OMS properly recognizes
MIDEX-3 and that its MIDI ports can be
made available to the system.
The “OMS Setup” program is located in
the “OMS Applications” folder which can
be found in the “Opcode” folder on your
hard disk.
1. Start the “OMS Setup” program by double
clicking its icon.
If AppleTalk is active, you will now be asked
whether you wish to turn it off. If your compu-
ter is not connected to a local area network
anyway, then you should definitely click the 3. Confirm by clicking “OK” in this and
»Turn it off« switch. But even if you are con- “Search” in the following dialog.
nected to a network, you should still discon- The program will now automatically search
nect it, as a running network connection will for usable MIDI drivers and the corresponding
always consume computer power which you devices that are connected to your computer.
could better use for your sequencer, espe- One of these – maybe the only one currently –
cially if you work with many audio tracks. is the MIDEX-3 interface. If the search result re-
sembles the one depicted below and if the
MIDEX-3 has been recognized, then you can
confirm the successful search by clicking “OK”.
4. If your MIDEX-3 has not been recognized,
do again check whether the MIDEX-3 has
really been properly connected to the com-
puter and that it is operational.
• When you click “OK”, OMS will initialize all
available inputs and outputs of your
MIDEX-3. The corresponding MIDEX-3 out-
put ports should now light up in succession
and OMS should now display a message
that resembles the one displayed below.
The installed MIDEX-3 ports are listed below
the MIDEX-3 symbol and therefore possibily
not immediately visible. Use the scrollbar to 5. Now you can activate the individual MIDI
see the hidden part of the dialog. ports.
There is a check box to the left of each listed
port. If you click on it, a cross will appear in it
to indicate that the corresponding MIDEX-3
port is activated.
 We recommend that you you activate all
MIDEX-3 ports, even if you do not wish to
use all at first.
6. Confirm your settings by clicking “OK”.
OMS will now ask you to save the results of
your search as well as your settings as a file
named “My Studio Setup”. You can of course
also use another name.
If you intend to work with different set-
tings, then you should of course save the
different setups under different names.

• Upon each (new) selection of “New Studio

Hints on using OMS Setup” in the OMS File menu, OMS creates in-
ternal MIDI ports for the IAC bus as well as for
If you´re not yet familiar with OMS, we the Quicktime Musical instruments. If you do
recommend that you read its manuals. not intend to use these, then you should de-
These can be found in the “OMS Tech lete them from your OMS setup. They would
Pubs” folder. This is located in the “OMS otherwise unnecessarily consume processor
Applications” folder on your hard disk. power.
The manuals are available in Adobe Acro-
bat format and can be read and printed
out by using the Adobe Acrobat Reader
utility. You can download the Adobe Ac-
robat Reader free of charge from the
Adobe web site (http://www.adobe.com).
• OMS also offers possibilities to exactly define “Receive Channels” section. This is done by
your MIDI instruments or other MIDi devices clicking on the corresponding channel. The
and include them into the OMS setup. Using “MIDI Device Info” dialog can be opened by
Cubase or Nuendo becomes especially com- double clicking the keyboard symbol with the
fortable this way. question mark in the OMS Setup window.
• By cleverly limiting the MIDI input channels of
your MIDI instruments, you can connect many
more than just 3 sound devices to the MIDEX-
3.
• it would e.g. be possible to connect an old
DX7 exclusively to – say – MIDI channel 9
while the MIDI channels 1 to 8 of the same
MIDi output port are used for a multi-timbral
instrument like the ROLAND JV2080. To do
this, you would have to deactivate the option
“Is multitimbral” in the “MIDI Device Info” dia-
• You can name all MIDI devices that you assign log and select the corresponding channels
like this or – if available – select them from a li- (do not forget to activate the receiving chan-
brary. This will later facilitate your work as you nel in each synthesizer!).
can stop memorizing the MIDI port or even • You can improve the graphics and transpar-
channel numbers of the devices that are con- ency by double clicking the Keyboard icon
nected. Instead, you can select the devices by next to the corresponding entry in the “OMS
name (e.g. "JV 1080-3"). Setup” window and by clicking the same sym-
• Please note the small arrows that are visible in bol once in the “MIDI Device Info” dialog that
the OMS setup next to the listed ports. These appears. A dialog opens where you can select
indicate the available transfer directions for an icon which represents the actually con-
MIDI data to and from the MIDEX-3. By simply nected device. Your Studio Setup will become
clicking on an arrow, you can activate or deac- very clear this way.
tivate the corresponding MIDI transfer direc- • You can also directly change your Studio
tion, if that is available on the interface. setup from Cubase VST. Open the Studio
• If you intend to use the physical Thru function setup window by selecting Option->MIDI
on some devices to connect several devices to Setup->OMS->OMS Studio Setup and make
the same MIDEX-3 MIDI port, then the corre- the necessary changes. You can immediately
sponding MIDI channels must be assigned to activate the changes by selecting “Save and
each device in the “MIDI Device Info” dialog’s make current”.
Using OMS and Cubase VST 3. You should now check whether the pro-
gram receives MIDI data from the con-
or Nuendo nected Recording Keyboard or MIDI
Controller. To do this, simply press a few
➢ If you have previously used OMS and Cu- keys on the MIDI keyboard or move a few
base or if you already are Nuendo user, controls. While you do this, the corre-
then you can skip this section. sponding Input LED on your MIDEX-3
should light up. The same goes for the MIDI
1. If OMS was not installed before, start Cu-
Input indicator in your program on the
base VST and set “OMS compatibility” in
screen.
Cubase VST’s “MIDI Setup/System” dialog
from “No OMS” to “IN & OUT”. Wait until • If it doesn’t, please re-check all MIDI cable
the program has finished loading and quit connections. Furthermore, look up the
it when you have changed the setting, as “MIDI System Setup” dialog) in Cubase VST
the MIDEX-3 can only recognize the change or the ”Device Setup” dialog in Nuendo to
when you start the program next time. make sure, that the corresponding devices
This is not necessarry if you work with Nu- are selected and activated for the MIDI in-
endo, as here OMS is always active if it has puts of your system.
been installed.
2. If you then (re)start Cubase VST or Nuendo,
the MIDEX-3 interface is available as a MIDI
input and output device. From now on, you
can select your MIDEX-3 outputs directly in
the output column of your program.

More information about setting up the

➢ If you use another sequencer program, you MIDI inputs and outputs of your program
will probably have to configurate its OMS can be found in the corresponding sec-
support. Please read the documentation tions of its documentation.
provided by its manufacturer.
Setting up your MIDI Program • The input and the outputs correspond to the
physical input and outputs 1 to 3 of the
MIDEX-3 interface.
When you have installed the MIDEX-3 in-
terface driver, you must configurate your • Make sure, that these items are actually ac-
MIDI application program, so that it actu- tivated (ticked or highlighted) in the corre-
ally uses the MIDEX-3 interface. sponding dialog of your MIDI application
program. Some programs do limit the
What you actually must do to select the
number of simultaneously usable input
MIDEX-3 within the program, depends on
and output ports.
the program you use. We will therefore
only describe the basics here. Please find
more details in the manual of your MIDI
application program.
• Most MIDI application programs on the PC
and on the Macintosh offer possibilities to set
up the MIDI ports, often via a dialog called
“MIDI Devices” or “MIDI Setup”.
• This where you select your MIDI input and
output devices or activate them.
• The output port that you select for a MIDI
track in your sequencer, sends the MIDI data
to the keyboard or sound module that is con-
nected to this port.
If the MIDEX-3 interface driver has cor-
rectly been installed, then you can e.g. se-
lect the MIDEX-3 input in the Cubase
“Inputs” column and select the outputs
Out 1 to 3 in the “Outputs” column.
In Nuendo’s Track List, you can select the
input in the “Input” pop-up and an out-
put in the pop-up above it.
The Linear Time Base Method The Solution
The solution is called LTB – Linear Time
To achieve the best possible Timing, the Base. This method adds an additional
MIDEX-3 uses the Linear Time Base time information to each MIDI Event and
method. This new approach to optimize sends the event to the MIDEX-3 early.
time-critical MIDI data transfer is the re-
sult of a close co-operation between • For this reason, the MIDEX-3 “knows” very
Steinberg and Access Music. early, which MIDI information/note it should
soon output.
• Monitoring the current time position, the
The Problem MIDEX-3 assigns the individual MIDI Events to
The generally used new multitasking op- the current position of your Song and exactly
erating systems are often not capable to sends the MIDI Event at the musically correct
really accurately transfer MIDI data, even time.
on very fast computers. The problem is
caused by the sequential method that
these systems use to share the system re-
sources between all running applications.
The intention of the method is to allow
for a virtually simultaneous processing of
different tasks. But when time-critical
processes are involved, this method often
results in slight timing problems. This
might not be of great importance for
many other applications, but a timing dif-
ference of 5 milliseconds during a MIDI
data transfer is clearly recognizable.
The Buttons • Press the “Panic/Cablecheck” button for
more than 2 to 3 seconds.
The MIDEX-3 now sends out a series of “All
Cablecheck/Panic Notes Off” and “Controller Reset” messages
via all MIDI outputs. This lets the output LEDs
Depending on how long you press this flash up momentarily.
button, you can activate one of the two
functions. ➢ The “Panic” and “Cablecheck” functions
are only supported, if the MIDEX-3 is con-
If this button is pressed for less than ca. 2 nected to a computer via a USB cable and if
to 3 seconds, a MIDI cable test is exe- the operating system and the drivers have
cuted. Please proceed as follows: already been booted.
1. Connect the cable to be tested to the MIDI
input and any of the MIDI outputs 1 to 3 on MIDI Thru Mode
your MIDEX-3.
2. Press the “Panic/Cablecheck” button for The MIDEX-3 provides a built-in auto-
less than ca. 2 seconds. matic MIDI Thru mode for its Port 1. This
lets you play the Master keyboard, even
3. If your MIDI cable is okay, the LEDs of the
when no software program is active. The
input and output that the cable is con-
MIDEX-3 output ports 2 and 3 are not ad-
nected to will light up for a ca. three sec-
dressed in this mode.
onds. If the cable is defective, the input
LED and the blue Power LED will momen- ➢ This mode can also be used if the MIDEX-3
tarily go out. is not connected to the computer via the
If this button is pressed for more than ca. USB cable. MIDI Thru is automatically
2 to 3 seconds, all connected MIDI de- switched off, if an application program
vices are reset. This is e.g. helpful if hang- starts to use one the MIDI input or any of
ing notes have occurred. Please proceed the outputs.
as follows:
Windows Problems with the
USB Reset
Contrary to the capabilities originally in-
tended for the USB bus, none of the USB
supporting Windows versions, available
at the time of release of this manual, tol-
erates unplugging the USB cable while
the application program is still running. In
the worst case, the corresponding Win-
dows version simply crashes.

➢ Until these problems are fixed by a newer

operating system version, you should thus
definitely avoid to interrupt the USB con-
nection during operation by unplugging
the USB cable.
• Always first terminate the running applica-
tion, before you reset the USB bus.
• If you use Windows 2000, then you first
need to run the “Unplug or Eject
Hardware” function on the right side of the
Task Bar, before you terminate the USB
connection.
Practical Hints • For sending, receiving and forwarding MIDI
data, separate sockets are available on a MIDi
device:
MIDI – Brief Introduction for the MIDI data is being received via the MIDI In
socket, sent out via the MIDI Out socket and
Novice forwarded to another device unchanged via
the MIDI Thru socket.
The MIDEX-3 is used to transfer MIDI data.
• For a bi-directional connection between any
The term “MIDI” is the abbreviation for two MIDI devices you thus need two MIDI ca-
“Musical Instrument Digital Interface”. bles and each device must have one MIDI in-
This is a procedure used to exchange data put and one MIDI output.
between musical instruments, sound • To enable you to address many different de-
modules and other MIDI compatible de- vices separately on 16 channels each and to
vices or programs. All devices must be also receive data from a device, the MIDEX-3
equipped with a MIDI port. provides one MIDI input and three separate
MIDI outputs.
The data that is transferred does not con-
tain the sounds themselves. Instead, it is a More detailed information about MIDI for
series of different control commands. the novice and the advanced user can e.g.
These do e.g. tell a receiving device to be found on the Steinberg product
play a certain note, modulate a sound in a “MIDI Xplained”, a Multimedia CD-ROM.
certain manner or switch to another
sound of its sound library (e.g. from violin
to piano). But MIDI can also be used to What can I do if my Multi Mode
control other devices, e.g. stage lighting Instruments cause Timing Problems?
systems, tape recorders, effect devices
etc. Many MIDI sound modules – especially
Multi Mode instruments (i.e. instruments
Using the MIDEX-3, you can connect your
that simultaneously receive data on up to
computer – and therefore a sequencer
16 MIDI channels) do have problems with
program that runs on it – with external
their processing speed when they receive
MIDI capable devices.
large amounts of data. As a result, delays
• Data on up to 16 separate channels can be occur between the arrival of a MIDI com-
transferred into one direction via one single mand and its execution, which can cause
MIDI socket. noticeable timing problems.
 In spite of its LTB processing, the MIDEX-3 Using USB Hubs
can of course not compensate for this
kind of delay, which is caused by the tech- USB devices sometimes offer facilities to
nical shortcomings of the corresponding pass on the USB signal. Because of its real
sound module. time tasks, the MIDEX-3 has been de-
So, what solutions are available, if you en- signed as a USB end device. If you wish to
counter this problem? simultaneously operate several MIDEX-3
on one USB port, then you do therefore
• If possible, route MIDI tracks, that should play need a USB Hub.
back simultaneously, onto many different
sound modules. A USB Hub is an additional device, which
• Create a thinner stream of data. Besides note at least offers one USB input and two USB
commands, MIDI data also contains a lot of outputs. A Hub “distributes” the incom-
“continuous” data, which is created and sent ing data onto the connected devices.
by controllers like the modulation wheel, the Two different types of device are availa-
pitch controller etc. This type of data puts a ble on the market: “Self-powered USB
heavy burden on the receiving device, but Hubs” (i.e. Hubs with their own power
much of it can be filtered out without a nega- supply) and “Bus-powered USB Hubs” (i.e.
tive impact on the sound. Cubase does e.g. of- Hubs that get their power from the USB
fer the “Reduce Controller Data” function for Bus of the computer).
this purpose.
• Avoid the transfer of system-exclusive data. ➢ If you wish to connect one or several
• If you use a sequencer that can also record au- MIDEX-3 to a Hub, then this must be self-
dio, then you can separately play back individ- powered.
ual MIDI Tracks and record each as an audio file.
Using several MIDEX-3
simultaneously
If the MIDI input and the three MIDI out-
puts of one MIDEX-3 are not enough, you
can combine several MIDEX-3 and thus
adapt the number of inputs and outputs
to your needs.
Theoretically (i.e. according to the specifi-
cation) each USB port lets you address up
to 127 USB devices. In practise, this can
not be reached with devices, that have
such a high data output like the MIDEX-3,
as the USB bus reaches its limits much
earlier.
Generally and with the necessary Hubs, it
should be possible to operate up to seven
MIDEX-3 devices on one USB controller
bus.
The maximum number of simultaneously
usable MIDEX-3 can additionally vary de-
pending on the operating system/driver
version that is used.
You can obtain information about the lat-
est driver versions in the world wide web
under http://www.steinberg.net or from
your national Steinberg distributor.
Questions and Answers
This section can be used to find solutions and answers to problems and questions that can origi-
nate in the combination of system components that you might use.

Problem/Question Solution/Answer

Windows 95 and the first Windows 98 version (Windows Windows versions older than Windows 98 SE can not
98 Gold) do not recognize the MIDEX-3 driver. recognize the driver. To be able to use MIDEX-3, please
install Windows 98 SE or a newer system on your
computer.

If you disconnect the MIDEX-3 from the USB-bus while This problems originated in a faulty implementation of
Windows 98 SE is active, the error message “The USB within Windows 98 SE. It can be solved by activating
specified MIDI device is already in use. Wait until it is a Windows 98 SE repair program (USB-Fix). The repair
free, and then try again.” might appear. It depends on program is called 242937usa8.exe. You can find it on the
the host application that you use, if this happens or not. MIDEX-3 driver CD-ROM and you can start and
If you do e.g. use Cubase VST, the problem occurs in a automatically run it, by double clicking on it.
different form, i.e., the MIDEX-3 MIDI ports can not be
selected within Cubase.

You wish to use more than one MIDEX-3. The devices must be installed separately and one after
another. We recommend, that you restart Windows after
each installation.

Note: The MIDEX-3 driver has been developed based upon Microsoft’s latest driver model. This has the advantage
that the MIDEX-3 driver can both be used under Windows 9x and under Windows 2000. Normally, Windows 98 SE
and Windows 2000 do not support more than 10 MIDI ports, which are provided by WDM- drivers (Windows Driver
Model). The Steinberg programmers have found ways to prevent these limitations for Cubase VST 5.0 or later and
Nuendo. Other applications, however, are limited to the number of MIDI ports supplied by the operating system.
In the successor to Win98 SE, called Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft have solved this problem. A future
Service Pack for Windows 2000 might solve the problem on this system. Service-Pack 1 for Windows 2000 from
Microsoft though, did not yet contain a solution. Windows XP, the Windows 2000 successor, will provide 32 MIDI
ports.
Problem/Question Solution/Answer

How many MIDEX-3 can be connected to the USB-bus, if If the devices receive their power only from the USB bus,
the devices receive their power from the USB bus itself then you should not connect more than four MIDEX-3.
(are thus “Bus powered”? Reason: The MIDEX-3 registers on the bus with a power
consumption of 250 mA and the USB-host (i.e., the USB
bus of your computer) does not supply more than 1 A.

Resetting the MIDEX-3 software and hardware. If you restart Windows, then this only causes a software
reset within the MIDEX-3. To reset the hardware, you
must disconnect the MIDEX-3 from the USB bus. This is
done by disconnecting the USB cable.

Note: The MIDEX-3 should never be separated from the USB bus if you still use it in an application, as this would
cause a Windows system crash.

How is MIDEX-3 supported by Cubase VST? Starting with version 5.0, Cubase VST supports all
MIDEX-3 capabilities.
Earlier versions use the MIDEX-3 as a »normal« MIDI
interface (i.e., they don’t use the advantages of the
Linear Time Base technology).

You have installed the MIDEX-3 drivers before you Insert the MIDEX-3 driver CD-ROM into your CD-ROM
installed Cubase VST Version 5, and now the MIDI drive and double click on the program UPDMROS.EXE.
outputs do not work. Reason: The Cubase VST 5.0 Cubase VST versions from 5.0 release 2 as well as the
releases 0 and 1 contain several components that are demo version that you can find on the driver CD-ROM do
replaced when you install MIDEX-3. not have this problem anymore.

You have set small audio latency values (smaller than 12 Open the MIDI Preferences dialog via the Edit menu item
ms) and when you stop the sequencer, drop outs occur. “Preferences” and its sub-menu item “MIDI…”. Select the
“Reset” tab and deactivate the function “Reset on Stop”.
To do this, please click on the corresponding tick in the
status/value- column. If no tick is visible for “Reset on
Stop”, then this functions has already been deactivated.

Note: To ensure a stable MIDI output even in times of a very high system load (many audio tracks are played back),
you should set Cubase VST’s “System Preroll” parameter to at least 100 ms. To find this parameter, select
“Synchronization” in the Options menu. In the lower right corner of the dialog that opens you can find the “System
Preroll” option.
Warranty Terms 5. The device may only be opened or repaired
by an authorized Steinberg representa-
Based on the following terms, Steinberg tion, otherwise the warranty becomes
grants a warranty for the technical com- void.
ponents used in this device: 6. This warranty does not restrict your other
1. The warranty period is a one year, begin- legal rights.
ning with the date of purchase from an au-
thorized dealer. If local law demands a Please read this before you send in a
mandatory warranty period exceeding one device for repair
year, then this period is valid.
• Please find the address of the Steinberg dis-
2. The warranty includes the removal of de-
tributor responsible for product service on
fects of production and material as well as
your Product Registration Pass.
the exchange of parts by Steinberg. It does
• You must obtain an RMA number from the re-
not include damage caused by poor means
sponsible Steinberg distributor prior to send-
of transport, external force or damage
ing in a faulty device.
caused by non-observance of the instruc-
• For logistical reasons, we can not accept de-
tions in the operation manual.
vices that you send in without an RMA
3. The warranty includes the removal of dis- number. These are returned to you at your ex-
covered production or material defects by pense.
repair or exchange of the defective parts. • When sending in a device, please make sure
Claims beyond those described here, espe- that you also send in its Warranty Card, fully
cially compensation claims, can not be as- filled in, a description of the malfunction and
serted within the framework of this a copy of the invoice.
warranty. • Devices that arrive without a description of
the malfunction need more extensive testing.
4. A warranty claim can only be accepted, if
This results in additional costs for which must
the warranty card and a proof for the pur-
charge you.
chase of the device are in your possession
• We are sorry, but if you send in a device for re-
and if the device bears the original model
pair and it turns out that it is fault-free, then
identification plate and the correct serial
we do still have to charge you with a service
number.
flat rate.