Microkorg Multitimbral and channel questions.....

1) The Microkorg is mulit-timbral if I'm not mistaken, which means it can be played back through my computer into Cubase using a USB-MIDI Interface, correct? Doesn't that mean that I have 16 channels to play on, all from the Microkorg, hooked through a port on a USB-MIDI Interface?

2) If I have my Microkorg hooked up to a port on my USB-MIDI Interface, and I have the Interface installed on my computer, when I want to hear the Midi data that I'm sending to Cubase as Im playing it (for rythem purposes), couldn't I just plug my speakers into the headphone slot on my Microkorg? Would that interfere with the data being sent to my program?

3) Once I got the MIDI data sent from my MicroKorg and into Cubase, to have that MIDI turned into audio, what would I do? Like if I layed down my kick and snares and some hats, sequenced them and then lastly wanted to have my Microkorgs bassline sequenced into it to make a song, how would I do that? How would I turn the data into audio?

REALLY SORRY FOR THIS LONG POST, BUT I NEED TO BE SURE I UNDERSTAND THIS PARTICULAR PART ABOUT MIDI. I TYPED ALL THIS FROM MEMORY AND WHAT I HAVE LEARNED ABOUT MIDI.

1) MicroKorg has four note polyphony (notes able to be played at once) when using a single timbre. It also has the ability to play two timbres at once, but this will cut your polyphony in half to two voices. MIDI channels and timbres are not one-in-the-same. Often different timbres can be assigned to a MIDI channel, but this does not mean that you will have 16 to work with. MicroKorg can probably do this, but I'm not positive.

If it can, though, then you will have two channels to work (as there are only two timbres) with but you still only have the 4 voice polyphony to work with so you will only be able to play 2 notes with one timbre or two with the other (or you could do a 1-3 split)

This is not ideal at all, which is understandable because the MicroKorg isn't meant to be used in such a manner (as a sound module)

2) Yes you can

3) MIDI data does carry any audio signal. At all. Ever.

to record it you first sequence your midi then you press play and record the audio outputs of the MK while the MIDI data is playing. Simplified, you need two tracks -- one MIDI track and one audio track.

If the USB-to-MIDI interface is your only source of input then you will need some means of audio interface in order to record audio into cubase. These can be however cheap or however expensive you want them to be. Behringer makes one that is under 30 dollars, though I can't personally vouch for it's quality

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long story short -- forget about multi-timbrality with your MK

instead go one track at a time: set up your synth voices in pairs in Cubase -- one MIDI track for every audio track. First record your MIDI data, then record the playback to an audio track. Change patches and repeat.


(also for the record I don't own a MicroKorg - the polyphony and timbre information is easily found on the internet and the what I wrote is pretty general practice when it comes to synthesizers with limited polyphony and timbrality -- try and get a firm grasp on this stuff as it will help you a lot to know in the future

i believe the microkorg can only play 1 patch at a time through midi... if you want to layer more than one patch, you will have to record as audio.