MIDI and USB Keyboard!

Lost User

Hi..where can i learn to play MIDI sounds through an USB MIDI controller?! I have a MIDI instruments example where i can play sounds with the PC´s keyboard...but i would like to play them from my MIDI controller..although i am totally blind on that part! I googled but i did not found something realy clear about it..specialy for VB! Thanks for any Support! Duarte

Lost User

Google will find you lots of samples of MIDI players and simple code: midi vb.net - Google Search[^].

Lost User

Hi....i found this simple plugin called Jazz Plugin that seems to have a very simple code..although i am not figuring out why it is returning me these errors! this is the thing:

Public Class Form1

Dim chan As Integer = 0

Private Sub Form1\_Load(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Me.Load
    Dim list As String() = Jazz.MidiOutList()
    For Each s In list
        Out.Items.Add(s)
    Next s
    Out.SelectedIndex = 0
    tone.SelectedIndex = 0
    Channel.SelectedIndex = 0
End Sub

Private Sub Out\_SelectedIndexChanged(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Out.SelectedIndexChanged
    Jazz.MidiOutOpen(Out.SelectedItem)
End Sub

Private Sub Channel\_SelectedIndexChanged(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Channel.SelectedIndexChanged
    chan = Channel.SelectedIndex
End Sub

Private Function Note(ByVal obj As System.Object)
    If ReferenceEquals(obj, Button1) Then
        Return 53
    ElseIf ReferenceEquals(obj, Button2) Then
        Return 55
    End If
    Return 0
End Function

Private Sub ToneChanged(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles tone.SelectedIndexChanged
    Jazz.MidiOut(&HC0 + chan, tone.SelectedIndex, 0)
End Sub

Private Sub Down(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.Windows.Forms.MouseEventArgs) Handles Button1.MouseDown, Button2.MouseDown
    Jazz.MidiOut(&H90 + chan, Note(sender), 100)
End Sub

Private Sub Up(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.Windows.Forms.MouseEventArgs) Handles Button1.MouseUp, Button2.MouseUp
    Jazz.MidiOut(&H80 + chan, Note(sender), 0)
End Sub

End Class

and its returnning the errors on these lines:

Private Sub ToneChanged(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles tone.SelectedIndexChanged
    Jazz.MidiOut(&HC0 + chan, tone.SelectedIndex, 0)
End Sub

Private Sub Down(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.Windows.Forms.MouseEventArgs) Handles Button1.MouseDown, Button2.MouseDown
    Jazz.MidiOut(&H90 + chan, Note(sender), 100)
End Sub

Private Sub Up(ByVal sender As System.Object, ByVal e As System.Windows.Forms.MouseEventArgs) Handles Button1.MouseUp, Button2.MouseUp
    Jazz.MidiOut(&H80 + chan, Note(sender), 0)
End Sub

Any help...?!

Lost User

I copied the code from : [^] ..to see if it works/ed ....

Sascha Lefevre

Alienoiz wrote:

and its returnning the errors on these lines:

Which errors?

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson

Lost User

the code underlined is being treated as an error!

Sascha Lefevre

Yes.. but what's the description of the error

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson

Lost User

Severity Code Description Project File Line Suppression State
Error BC30311 Value of type 'Integer' cannot be converted to 'Object()'. WindowsApplication1 C:\Users\beata\Documents\Visual Studio 2015\Projects\WindowsApplication1\WindowsApplication1\Form1.vb 35 Active
Error BC30057 Too many arguments to 'Public Overridable Overloads Sub MidiOut([in] As Object())'. WindowsApplication1 C:\Users\beata\Documents\Visual Studio 2015\Projects\WindowsApplication1\WindowsApplication1\Form1.vb 35 Active

Sascha Lefevre

The method Jazz.MidiOut that's intended to being called there isn't part of the project you downloaded. I assume it's in that "Jazz-Plugin" which is advertised on the website and it doesn't look like the source code of that is being offered. You should ask for help on that website.

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson

Lost User

OK..i will try..Thank You!

Lost User

Well... i did not had an answer..even because my registration in their forums was a mess..and i could not even register there! I searched for more help and i came accross with some examples..i kinda mixed 2 codes and i am now able to open my midi devices an play the sounds through my MIDI controller. I am only having 2 issues that i am not being able to solve! 1 - the sound is playing twice..one for "note on" another for "note off"...when i press my MIDI controller key it plays..and when i release it ..it plays again!!!! 2 - the notes seem to be infinite..i do not know where to put the

STOPAllMIDINotes()

function! I have all this code:

Public Declare Function midiInGetNumDevs Lib "winmm.dll" () As Integer
Public Declare Function midiInGetDevCaps Lib "winmm.dll" Alias "midiInGetDevCapsA" (ByVal uDeviceID As Integer, ByRef lpCaps As MIDIINCAPS, ByVal uSize As Integer) As Integer
Public Declare Function midiInOpen Lib "winmm.dll" (ByRef hMidiIn As Integer, ByVal uDeviceID As Integer, ByVal dwCallback As MidiInCallback, ByVal dwInstance As Integer, ByVal dwFlags As Integer) As Integer
Public Declare Function midiInStart Lib "winmm.dll" (ByVal hMidiIn As Integer) As Integer
Public Declare Function midiInStop Lib "winmm.dll" (ByVal hMidiIn As Integer) As Integer
Public Declare Function midiInReset Lib "winmm.dll" (ByVal hMidiIn As Integer) As Integer
Public Declare Function midiInClose Lib "winmm.dll" (ByVal hMidiIn As Integer) As Integer

Public Delegate Function MidiInCallback(ByVal hMidiIn As Integer, ByVal wMsg As UInteger, ByVal dwInstance As Integer, ByVal dwParam1 As Integer, ByVal dwParam2 As Integer) As Integer
Public ptrCallback As New MidiInCallback(AddressOf MidiInProc)
Public Const CALLBACK\_FUNCTION As Integer = &H30000
Public Const MIDI\_IO\_STATUS = &H20

Public Delegate Sub DisplayDataDelegate(dwParam1)

Public Structure MIDIINCAPS
    Dim wMid As Int16 ' Manufacturer ID
    Dim wPid As Int16 ' Product ID
    Dim vDriverVersion As Integer ' Driver version
     Dim szPname As String ' Product Name
    Dim dwSupport As Integer ' Reserved
End Structure

Dim hMidiIn As Integer
Dim DataByte1 As Byte

Dim m As New clsMIDI

Private Sub Form1\_Load(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As System.EventArgs) Handles Me.Load
    FillInstrumentCombo()
    If midiInGetNumDevs() = 0 Then
        MsgBo

Lost User

HI..some help please.. I have changed my code and i am now able to select a MIDI Device and play notes from it! I am now facing a problem that is - note duration When i insert the code for note duration it returns me an error that says something like this: "the code is using a thread for what was not created" Heres the code i am using...and i am also using a module called clsMIDI

Public Class Form1
Dim m As New clsMIDI
Dim hMidiIn As Integer

Private Sub Form1\_Load(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Load

    FillInstrumentCombo()

    If midiInGetNumDevs() = 0 Then
        MsgBox("No MIDI devices connected")
    End If

    Dim InCaps As New MIDIINCAPS
    Dim DevCnt As Integer

    For DevCnt = 0 To (midiInGetNumDevs - 1)
        midiInGetDevCaps(DevCnt, InCaps, Len(InCaps))
        ComboBox1.Items.Add(InCaps.szPname)
    Next DevCnt

    midiInStart(hMidiIn)
End Sub

Private Sub Form1\_Closed(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Me.Closed
    midiInStop(hMidiIn)
    midiInReset(hMidiIn)
    midiInClose(hMidiIn)
End Sub

Private Sub ComboBox1\_SelectedIndexChanged(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles ComboBox1.SelectedIndexChanged
    Dim DeviceID As Integer = ComboBox1.SelectedIndex
    midiInOpen(hMidiIn, DeviceID, AddressOf MidiInProc, 0, CALLBACK\_FUNCTION)
    midiInStart(hMidiIn)
End Sub

Private Sub FillInstrumentCombo()
    For i = 0 To 128
        cboInstruments.Items.Add(Instrument.GMInstrumentNames(i))
    Next
    cboInstruments.SelectedIndex = 0
End Sub

Private Sub cboInstruments\_SelectedIndexChanged(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles cboInstruments.SelectedIndexChanged
    m.CurrentInstrument = cboInstruments.Text
End Sub

Private Sub hsbVolume\_ValueChanged(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles hsbVolume.ValueChanged
    m.Volume = hsbVolume.Value
End Sub

Function MidiInProc(ByVal hMidiIn As Integer, ByVal wMsg As UInteger, ByVal dwInstance As Integer, ByVal dwParam1 As Integer, ByVal dwParam2 As Integer) As Integer
    Dim DataByte1 = (dwParam1) >> 8
    m.PlayMIDINote(DataByte1, 127)
    m.NoteDuration = CInt(cboduration.Text)
    m.Pan = 50
End Function

End Class

TIA

Sascha Lefevre

Controls (a Form, ComboBox, TextBox..) can only be accessed by the UI-thread. That's the thread that created them and the thread that executes all your code unless you either explicitly create additional threads or use some kind of event/callback mechanism - the latter you apparently do here:

midiInOpen(hMidiIn, DeviceID, AddressOf MidiInProc, 0, CALLBACK_FUNCTION)

So that midi-library you're using seems to call your function MidiInProc(..) on a different thread than your UI-thread and then tries to access cboduration.Text which is one of your controls which may only be accessed by your UI thread. That's the problem. The easiest solution for you here is this: Read the value of cboduration.Text into a class variable (let's call it duration) the moment that it is changed by the user. Also initialize that variable with the same value as the control. Then replace this:

m.NoteDuration = CInt(cboduration.Text)

..by this:

m.NoteDuration = duration

Now the UI thread does the reading from the control and the thread that executes MidiInProc doesn't "touch" any controls any more.

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson

Lost User

"The easiest solution for you here is this: Read the value of cboduration.Text into a class variable (let's call it duration) the moment that it is changed by the user. Also initialize that variable with the same value as the control." May you show me the code for this...??? Thank you!

Lost User

Well? .. i realy would like to have this working?! Thanks, Duarte

Sascha Lefevre

Alienoiz wrote:

Well? .. i realy would like to have this working?!

Please note that we're all volunteers here, answering questions in our free time, not getting paid for it. And there are also other things I enjoy doing in my free time. You're already doing what would be required for NoteDuration for other settings, like CurrentInstrument. You just need to do the same for the duration.

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson

Lost User

sorry..i am too lame for that..and ..i am not understanding... and btw..i respect you all..i am not making funny of you or anything like that...i ask..if you want to reply the better, if not, i must live with it without complaints...i aprecciate your efforts and etc... I am not a "sucking" guy.. Thanks, Duarte

Sascha Lefevre

Alienoiz wrote:

sorry..i am too lame for that..and ..i am not understanding... and btw..i respect you all..i am not making funny of you or anything like that...i ask..if you want to reply the better, if not, i must live with it without complaints...i aprecciate your efforts and etc... I am not a "sucking" guy..

Let me clarify. Yes, of course I want to be respected. But not by being sucked up to. Eew. No - my idea here of helping people is to teach. So they learn and can do it themselves next time. So the way I want to be respected is by people taking the advice and at least making an effort to implement it by themselves. One more attempt:

Function MidiInProc(ByVal hMidiIn As Integer, ByVal wMsg As UInteger, ByVal dwInstance As Integer, ByVal dwParam1 As Integer, ByVal dwParam2 As Integer) As Integer
    Dim DataByte1 = (dwParam1) >> 8
    m.PlayMIDINote(DataByte1, 127)
    m.NoteDuration = CInt(cboduration.Text)
    m.Pan = 50
End Function

The underlined line is the problem. You can't access cboduration inside that function because it's being executed by a different thread that originates from that MIDI-component. But only the UI-thread may access controls. You already modify other settings (than NoteDuration) on the UI-thread. Example:

Private Sub cboInstruments\_SelectedIndexChanged(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles cboInstruments.SelectedIndexChanged
    m.CurrentInstrument = cboInstruments.Text
End Sub

You need to do the same for m.NoteDuration.

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson

Lost User

well..thanks..but i still do not understand.. i am not a coder..i just make these small gadgets to keep my head busy... I know the very basics of VB but normaly i interpret snippets and get them together to create my code on more advanced stuff... So i may be able to do what you say, but i am not understanding how..if i see the code, i understand it, but creating it is not my strongest point! I hope i am making myself clear!

Sascha Lefevre

Alienoiz wrote:

i am not a coder..i just make these small gadgets to keep my head busy...

Why don't you start to learn it properly? Open the form designer. Right-click the CombBox for the note-duration and select Properties. In the properties pane click on the events-icon (small and easy to miss). Search for the SelectedIndexChanged-event in the list and make a double-click into the empty column to the right of it. Visual Studio switches to the source code and you will see a stub for the event-handler-function where you will only have to insert that one line from my previous message. Remove that line I underlined in the other function in my previous message. That should be it.

If the brain were so simple we could understand it, we would be so simple we couldn't. — Lyall Watson