Dear All,

Has anyone been able to use the KN2600/7000 as an input device or master keyboard for some music sequencing and/or notation programs (such as Cakewalk Pro Audio, Sibelius, Finale, Sonar, and other similar software programs) via the USB port (as opposed to the MIDI port)?

I can get these programs to send MIDI data to a Technics keyboard via the USB port in order to listen to what I have done in those programs.

However, when I try to record in real time, these programs receive no data from the Technics keyboard via the same USB port. When I play something on the Technics keyboard, nothing gets to these programs. It seems that the USB connection between a Technics keyboard and a computer is only a one-way communication, even though

(1) I have correctly installed the Panasonic USB driver that comes with the Technics keyboard.

(2) I have tried different settings under the Computer Connection page in the Technics keyboard, including NORMAL, PC as master, KN as master, KN as slave and INTERFACE.

(3) I have also tried different settings with these music sequencing and/or notation programs.

Have I missed something? The evidence indicates that when a key or note is played on a technics keyboard, no data is transmitted to these programs via the USB port.

Is this the result of some shortcoming(s) of the Panasonic USB driver?

Has the Technics keyboard been designed to transmit its data via the MIDI port only, and not via the USB port?


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Khai

I have not used external sequencer programs much, but I recall I got it to work using the USB cable. I could record and play back.

I can also record wav files using the USB cable, and have made lots of mp3's too. Some of them are avaiable from www.KN7000.net

So my guess is that your USB driver isn't correct installed. Have a look in this thread: http://www.kn7000.net/fusion_forum/viewthread.php?forum_id=2&thread_id=11 - and read the manual (available for download from same page) carefully. Especially it's very important from point 10 in the manual.

I've used the USB connection to send midi data from the KN7000 to a PC without problems. You can capture a live performance on the PC in this way.

I don't recall having to make any special settings on the KN7000. You just have to make sure that your PC software has the panasonic USB MIDI driver selected as the input device.

Mark.

Dear Kenneth & Mark,

Hello there! I am delighted to hear from you. Thank you for your help. Sorry for the late reply. I have not surfed the Internet for several days as other things have been consuming my time more than usual.

I took a look at the manual at http://www.kn7000.net/fusion_forum/viewthread.php?forum_id=2&thread_id=11, which is virtually identical to mine that came with the keyboard. Therefore, we can already be fairly certain that in my case the solution to the difficulty that I encountered in using softwares to record MIDI data via USB does not lie somewhere in the process of (re)installing the driver, given that I followed those procedures in the process very carefully months ago.

The good news is that I have found the source of my problem with USB MIDI ---- several of my software programs have been assigned to access the same Panasonic MIDI device driver. I suspect that this has/could caused some conflict or instability in the system. For example, Winamp will not even play a MIDI file if another program using Panasonic MIDI device driver is already loaded, whether or not that other program is actively playing back a MIDI file or just sitting idle.

I now install more than one instance of the Panasonic MIDI device driver and make sure that only one application is using one at a time. The problem seems to have disappeared until Murphy's Law is back in order.

The only lingering inconvenience is that I cannot get Windows Media Player version 10 to work with the Panasonic MIDI device driver, to the extent that Windows Media Player will load and play a MIDI file but no sound/music will be heard. Does anyone have a solution for this?



[This message has been edited by Khai (edited 02-24-2005).]

Dear All,

More good news! Windows Media Player has finally co-operated with me with the provision that absolutely no other music program(s) using the Panasonic MIDI USB driver is/are open.

I wonder if anyone has had similar problems that I have described in this thread, especially if one tends to use or open many programs in one session of computer use.

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Khai