
The MIDI
editor
If you want to see the
detailed content of a track's measures, place the cursor (1) in
front of the first measure which is of interest and press the
zoom button (2) or double click the measure in the workspace window.

The MIDI editor opens, showing the track's content beginning with
the first event in your targeted measure.

MIDI editor
The MIDI editor shows and allows changes to nearly all SMF MIDI
events, some events are clear and not explained here. But some
need a word ...
Statusbyte
- Note On
Databyte
2
The Databyte 2 value means the volume between 0 and 127, sometimes
called velocity. 0 is not allowed, because 0 means Note Off.
Note Off events are managed internaly by MIDI Locator,
you don't need to set them. Just set the notelength value.
In other words, the Databyte 2 in Note On events represents the
strength you have used to hit a single note on the MIDI keyboard,
a local volume belonging to this single MIDI Note On event. Please
distinguish between the two possibilities of setting volumes
: this local Note On volume and the global main volume controller
which can be set for defining the main volume of the whole MIDI
channel by a single controller event.
Notelength
You can enter direct tick values or a multiply expression for
example 12*480, if you leave the notelength field, the definitive
result in ticks is calculated and shown. In addition you can
enter whole measures as ticks by a trailing m. For example
4m with a ticks per quarter note resolution of 120 means 4*480
ticks = 1920 ticks. If you set a notelength which reaches over
another Note On of the same key and MIDI channel, the notelenth
will be cut to the position where the second Note On appears
when you save your MIDI file to disk.
- Control Change
Inside any MIDI standard (GM, GS, XG) these events define the
current state of one controller. Control Change events
are channel events, so there are 16 separate sets of controllers
adjustable in your MIDI device.
Controllers define main volume, panorama-, effect-adjustments
etc. of the specified MIDI channel. In the case of effect controllers
please note that you can only adjust the send level by Control
change events. If you want to set the type of effect itself
(e.g. reverb, flanger etc.) please use Sysex
events, not Control Change events.
Each MIDI standard (GM, GS and XG) offers different MIDI controllers,
so the content of the ComboBox alters in different MIDI modes.
The responsible MIDI mode is derived from the current content
of your MIDI file. As long as you don't have any GS specific
controller events included, your file is a GM mode file.
If your file's MIDI mode doesn't support a special controller,
it's name will be shown as "not supported..."

In the moment when you select an unsuported controller, your
file alters into the mode where this controller comes from. So
in the same moment this controller is supported and the ComboBox's
content will suddendly show these controllers with correct names.
- Text and Lyric
Any text you want. Lyric is normally used for song text (karaoke).
Because some MIDI files use text events instead of lyric events
for song text, there is an option Song text event is text
instead of lyric in the settings
(see page Karaoke
there).
Special text commands in text events can control general sampler
functions at MIDI file load time, like switch the sampler on/off
or mute or activate sampler channels and so on. See Sampler
automatics by MIDI text events
In addition the text LOC:MESSAGE:xxx in a text event
displays the message xxx if you reload your MIDI file. Use the
two characters \n for pretending a newline character.
- Sysex
Is explained in an
own chapter.
- Pitchbend
Pitch can be entered from -8192 to 8191, other values are not
allowed. This value is recalculated to the 2 real data bytes
of the MIDI event. You will never deal with those bytes. It is
correct that this event would normally must have a value under
Databyte 2, but for easier editing it is translated to the one
value expression.
- Marker
Any text you want,
but you should use them only in track 1 (Mastertrack), they are
used to be put there.
- Channel prefix
Pure information event, it has no audible relevance. You can
put this event with it's channel before an event which has no
channel (for example the lyric event). So you define : the lyric
events relate to MIDI channel x. It is mostely for information
to yourself.
- NRPN (Non Registered Parameter
Numbers)
NRPN
is internally a combination of different Control Change
events. For easier editing they have been put in the group NRPN
and dropped from the group of controllers.
- RPN (Registered
Parameter Numbers)
Like NRPN, the RPN
events are internally a combination of different control
change events. Two RPNs are possible here : pitchbend-maximum
and lock in. If you don't send a RPN pitchbend to your
MIDI output device it is the same as you would have sent a value
of 2 semitones (default). Some MIDI output devices need the RPN
lock in as an <enter> after you have send
the pitchbend maximum, otherwise a new value has no affect.
- Drum
NRPN
NRPN's which define
single drum instrument's settings; Sub class of NRPNs. Seperated
out, too, for easier editing.
Other objects
in the MIDI editor :
- The position field
The position field uses the format measure:beat:tick. Measures
and beats always begin at 1, whereas ticks begin at 0.
The maximum value of beat and ticks depends on your Settings
of 'ticks per quarter note' and the current meter entry. Both
are taken from your MIDI file, if you opened one.
If you start MIDI Locator or if you use the new
function, your MIDI workspace uses 120 tpq and 4/4 meter beging
at measure 1, beat 1 and tick 0. You can see and edit the current
tpq value in the main menu's settings function
.
If you'd choosen 120 tpq and 4/4 measure, the maximum beat value
is 4 and the maximum tick value is 119.
- INS / DEL buttons
They belong to the MIDI event row, where they stand in and can
be used to insert a MIDI event behind it, or delete the event
in the row. If you INS an event, the data of the MIDI event in
the button row is copied and used for the new event.