MIDI 2.0 (and enhanced MIDI 1.0!) involves Home windows 11
Non-musicians generally affiliate MIDI solely with .mid music information, or with the late 80’s Basic MIDI sound units. However it’s so rather more than that. For musicians, MIDI is crucial to the whole lot from instrument synchronization to stage lighting and results management, to sequencing, beat making and extra. MIDI is the glue that helps make digital music potential.
MIDI 1.0
On the 1983 NAMM Present, Roland and Sequential Circuits showcased a brand new open cross-company digital commonplace for connecting two or extra musical devices collectively, ushering in an period of digital music manufacturing utilizing MIDI as we’ve now recognized and beloved it for many years.
The preliminary MIDI specification was fairly easy: brief 1-3 byte messages over a DIN serial cable, working at a pace of about one millisecond per message, chained collectively so {that a} 5 be aware chord would take roughly 5ms to ship – a superbly acceptable pace given the low-cost expertise obtainable on the time.
Over time, MIDI has been prolonged to incorporate options just like the Basic MIDI commonplace for deterministic devices in music playback, SMF (the Customary MIDI File, or “.mid” music file), richer expression utilizing the MPE (MIDI Polyphonic Expression) commonplace, fundamental system identification over SysEx, new transports like USB, Bluetooth LE, RTP and even TRS (Tip-ring-sleeve audio cables).
Regardless of the ubiquity of MIDI 1.0, MIDI might be even higher given the whole lot we’ve realized since 1983. MIDI 1.0 lacks good standardized bidirectional discovery mechanisms for useful features like discovering the capabilities and patches obtainable in a MIDI system. Be aware velocity and lots of different management parameters are restricted to a variety of 0-127 with out using RPN/NRPN or SysEx. MIDI 1.0 doesn’t totally assist wealthy be aware expression with out utilizing most or the entire obtainable channels for MPE. It doesn’t include good provisions for orchestral articulation. And MIDI 1.0 lacks good requirements for figuring out a MIDI controller or sound supply as, for instance, a piano or organ, and offering commonplace controller mappings and velocity curves that simply work. And, after all, it generally has real-world pace caps largely inherited from the unique DIN cable 31,250 bits per second commonplace.
Any musician who has used a MIDI controller or MIDI-aware software program is well-aware of those options and limitations in MIDI 1.0.
Enter MIDI 2.0
In 2020, the MIDI Affiliation printed the primary model of the UMP (Common MIDI Packet) and MIDI 2.0 Protocol specification. The specification had some key updates made in 2022/2023 to raised assist discovery and fallback approaches, and in addition to incorporate suggestions from Microsoft and different member firms.
MIDI 2.0 natively presents bidirectional communication, computerized system discovery and protocol setup, uncapped speeds, intentional high-resolution controllers (no 0-127 limitation or multi-message workarounds for bigger values), per-note articulation, self-describing units, and a decoupling of the protocol from the transports enabling simpler adoption of recent transports like Community MIDI 2.0 as they emerge.
Regardless of the constraints in MIDI 1.0, and all of the plugin and different workarounds in digital audio workstations (DAWs) to get round them, MIDI 1.0 has turn into the one most necessary commonplace in music manufacturing, and isn’t going away. In a MIDI 2.0 future, it’s nonetheless extremely necessary for every working system to have sturdy and secure MIDI 1.0 assist.
Saying Basic Availability of Home windows MIDI Companies, with assist for MIDI 1.0 and a couple of.0
We’re excited to announce that Home windows 11 now helps each MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 by Home windows MIDI Companies!
We’ve been engaged on MIDI over the previous a number of years, utterly rewriting a long time of MIDI 1.0 code on Home windows to each assist MIDI 2.0 and make MIDI 1.0 superb. This new mixed stack is named “Home windows MIDI Companies.”
The Home windows MIDI Companies core parts are constructed into Home windows 11, rolling out by a phased enablement course of now to in-support retail releases of Home windows 11. This contains all of the infrastructure wanted to convey extra options to current MIDI 1.0 apps, and in addition assist apps utilizing MIDI 2.0 by our new Home windows MIDI Companies App SDK.
Your whole current MIDI 1.0-aware software program simply bought even higher, without having any app updates!
New Home windows MIDI Companies core options
Home windows MIDI Companies supplies plenty of requested options, and importantly, units us as much as present much more of what you need sooner or later. This launch is targeted on making certain MIDI 1.0 runs easily on Home windows, whereas baking within the infrastructure for MIDI 2.0.
Use a MIDI system from a number of apps
The No. 1 request for MIDI in Home windows has been to permit a number of apps to make use of the identical MIDI port/system on the identical time. We name that “multi-client.” Till now, this was solely potential with customized vendor drivers.
Now, each MIDI 1.0 port and MIDI 2.0 endpoint is multi-client, whatever the driver or API used. Typically, vendor-specific MIDI drivers are not wanted or really helpful, though they’ll nonetheless work if they’re kernel streaming drivers.
Multi-client is out there for all MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 apps and units.
Customise your MIDI endpoints
The second greatest request for MIDI was to offer higher MIDI 1.0 port names. With this launch, you will have management over the names:
- Use traditional API names, offering backwards compatibility with port names saved in DAWs and music information. That is the default, and avoids you from having to reconnect ports in apps and DAWs.
- Use new-style names, typically offered by units which allow renaming MIDI ports on-board or with settings software program. (These names use the USB iJack strings when offered.)
- Present utterly customized names for MIDI 1.0 ports and MIDI 2.0 endpoints.
We’ve taken the customization even additional, by including extra metadata for endpoints, together with customized pictures and descriptions, all set by the MIDI Settings app, obtainable quickly as a part of an optionally available obtain.
Lastly, for apps utilizing WinRT MIDI 1.0, the MIDI 1.0 API launched with Home windows 10, the names returned for units by that API now replicate the names chosen for the traditional “WinMM” (or “MME”) MIDI API — a prime request for the reason that introduction of this API.
Join apps with built-in loopback and app-to-app MIDI
One other piece of suggestions we’ve heard is that app-to-app MIDI ought to simply be built-in, and needs to be supported on x64 in addition to Arm64 PCs.
Home windows MIDI Companies now contains built-in loopback assist, in order that apps can talk with one another, no matter which API or SDK they use. Even WebMIDI pages within the browser can work along with your loopback endpoints, all with none extra drivers or installs. Once you first run the MIDI and Musician Settings app, you’ll be prompted to finish your MIDI setup, together with optionally including a set of ordinary loopback endpoints.
Taking it past easy loopbacks, we additionally natively embody the flexibility for an software to be a full MIDI 2.0 “system,” full with assist for MIDI 2.0 ideas, protocol negotiation and discovery. Like different MIDI 2.0 endpoints, these are mechanically translated and made obtainable to traditional MIDI 1.0 APIs at a MIDI 1.0 degree.
You may create your individual loopback endpoints utilizing the MIDI Settings app within the upcoming Home windows MIDI Companies Instruments obtain. The loopbacks can be found to all MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 functions, with none extra drivers.
Use any system with any app with computerized MIDI 2.0 translation and scaling
Excessive-resolution MIDI 2.0 UMP units just like the Yamaha Montage M and MODX, Roland A88 mk2, Waldorf Quantum and Iridium, Studiologic SL mk2, and extra in MIDI 2.0 mode can be utilized by any MIDI 1.0 or MIDI 2.0-aware app on Home windows, with apps utilizing the brand new SDK accessing excessive decision knowledge, new message sorts, incoming and outgoing timestamps/scheduling, and different MIDI 2.0 options, and MIDI 1.0-aware apps seeing the downscaled values. We deal with all of the required protocol translation and worth scaling contained in the MIDI Service so that you don’t want to consider the kind of system you connect with, or what its capabilities or protocols are.
Translation and scaling is an computerized course of within the service, and is out there to all MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 functions.
Get tighter message timing with timestamps and scheduled messages
Tight timing of MIDI messages has at all times been a precedence for MIDI customers. To allow apps to offer higher timing when sending messages, we now assist timestamps for each incoming and outgoing messages, correct to below a microsecond (1/1,000,000 of a second). As well as, outgoing messages could also be scheduled for sending to the driving force at a particular time dictated by the timestamp.
We are going to proceed to tune the algorithm for this function by subsequent updates, with the purpose of creating the timing as tight and deterministic as potential, throughout all MIDI units.
Timestamps and message scheduling are each obtainable to apps utilizing the brand new Home windows MIDI Companies app SDK.
Use new units with the brand new MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 USB class driver
We’ve saved the older usbaudio.sys driver and stuck some small bugs in it to make it even higher. On the identical time, we’ve pulled within the AmeNote-developed and AMEI-provided USB MIDI 2.0 class driver usbmidi2.sys. This new driver, developed with Microsoft steerage, follows greatest practices for energy administration, has a sooner communication channel to the brand new MIDI service, and helps each MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 units.
By default, most MIDI 1.0 units will proceed to make use of the older driver, to make sure compatibility, however might be manually assigned to the brand new driver if/when desired.
All of those new options mixed give Home windows 11 a unbelievable unified MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 stack that’s nice for musicians as we speak, and for the following 40+ years.
Instruments and MIDI scripting
Within the coming months, we’ll launch the up to date MIDI App SDK Runtime and Instruments package deal, which incorporates the MIDI Console, MIDI Settings app, PowerShell projections for scripting MIDI and rather more.
These instruments make it simple so that you can create loopback endpoints, customise your MIDI endpoint and port names, and rather more.
In case you are adventurous and wish preview variations of those instruments as we speak, they’re obtainable on our GitHub repo and in addition by WinGet.
`winget set up Microsoft.WindowsMIDIServicesSDK`
As soon as Home windows MIDI Companies is enabled in your PC, you solely want to put in the SDK Runtime and Instruments package deal on your CPU.
For everybody else, search for an announcement at https://aka.ms/midi.
Developed within the open, with companions and the group
With Home windows MIDI Companies, we took an open strategy to improvement, with work taking place on GitHub, with a permissive open supply license. This enabled the group of builders and musicians to observe alongside and contribute, and ensured your complete course of has been clear.
We couldn’t have accomplished this with out the direct enter and involvement of our companions and prospects, particularly on GitHub and Discord. Associate {hardware} and software program firms, and members of the group, all contributed to the system and software program testing, prototyping, bug fixing and have enhancements.
In-particular, we’d prefer to name out AMEI (Affiliation of Musical Electronics Business Japan) for his or her unimaginable work in testing, and for his or her donation of the AmeNote-developed USB MIDI 2.0 driver.
We’d additionally prefer to thank all the opposite companions concerned in improvement and testing, together with Yamaha, Roland, Steinberg, Bremmers Audio, PACE/JUCE and lots of extra.
How you can present suggestions
We’d like to proceed to listen to from you.
What’s subsequent?
We’re excited to level-up music creation on Home windows in 2026 and past, and to assist additional the adoption of MIDI 2.0.
Extra MIDI
We’ve extra we plan to do for musicians and professional audio customers, beginning with the in-box low-latency USB Audio driver with ASIO assist in preview later this 12 months (and in addition totally open supply), new transports for MIDI 1.0 and MIDI 2.0 like BLE MIDI 1.0, BLE MIDI 2.0, Community MIDI 2.0, a digital patch bay for enhanced MIDI routing, and extra. These are all on our backlog. Test GitHub and Discord to observe alongside and be alerted when these roll out.
Community MIDI 2.0
At Music China final 12 months, the MIDI Affiliation talked about one of many new transports we’re furthest together with: Community MIDI 2.0. Home windows 11 PCs with preview Community MIDI 2.0 assist had been on the demo tables there, at SuperBooth in Berlin and on the NAMM Present 2026.
Comply with alongside
You may observe together with the progress on our Discord server and the general public GitHub repo, the place these options are all developed.
Thanks for coming alongside this journey with us, and for serving to make Home windows superb for musicians!
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Pete Brown is Chair of the Govt Board of the MIDI Affiliation (the MIDI Requirements Physique), and co-developed Home windows MIDI Companies with Gary.
Gary Daniels is lead architect and developer of Home windows MIDI Companies, and works on the Core OS Audio Staff.
