When I open MIDI files I am not getting separate tracks for the instruments

[rrodg84]

Hi. I just got Mixcraft. I have a bunch of MIDI files I made in a freeware crap DAW, when I open these in Mixcraft (or add them as an instrument track) it doesn't separate them into the different tracks. But if I open the same MIDI file in LMMS it does. As an example I have a MIDI file that has drums, square lead, saw lead, trumpet. If I load this MIDI in LMMS I get a track for each of those instruments, but if I load it in Mixcraft the drums are on one track and the square lead, saw lead and trumpet are all together on one track. If I play it plays the different instruments, but I can't change them to what I want. For instance, change the square lead to a vst instrument for chiptune sound, saw lead to different instrument, etc. I just wanna be able to edit these songs and use virtual instruments on my old midi songs. What am I doing wrong?

[Acoustica Greg]

Hi,

Click on Mixcraft's File menu and select Open Project to open the MIDI file.

Greg

[rrodg84]

Yeah, I did that. I attached an image showing what I am talking about. These MIDI files were composed in Bosca Ceoil, a crappy freeware program. The workaround I have found is that I can open each MIDI in LMMS and export each track a separate MIDI file and then add these to Mixcraft individually. It just seems weird to me that LMMS opens the MIDI file as 5 separate tracks and Mixcraft seems to see them as only 2 tracks. And one of the tracks that LMMS makes is a blank one! This could be some funny business from the original composer program, I'm just trying to see if there is a way around this so I don't have to use two different programs. But that might be my only way forward for remixing these old songs.

[Acoustica Greg]

Hi,

See if the other program has an option to choose MIDI type when you save. MIDI type 0 puts everything into one track, and MIDI type 1 has separate tracks.

Greg

[cactus-head]

quick correction: Type 1 for separate tracks. dont use type 2

[Acoustica Greg]

Typo! I fixed it.

[Acoustica Greg]

Also, see this previous thread: https://forums.acoustica.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=27661

[rrodg84]

Ok it seems like the original program I exported these in is the problem, and it doesn't allow for exporting as a different type of midi file. So for these old songs I'll have to manually export each track as a separate midi file. It's all good, gives me something to do.

[cactus-head]

Hi,

There's an easier way. If the files are just straight forward Type 0 midi files with all the channels on 1 track, you can use the following MIDI editor (free) to break the channels out into separate tracks just by loading in the type 0 file.

https://openmidiproject.osdn.jp/Sekaiju_en.html

I use this edior all the time for MIDI files. For your purposes, it should be pretty simple. Just open the MIDI file in Sekaiju, it will ask you "Are you sure to convert to Format1?", you click on Yes. It may ask to adjust the timing resolution - click on OK.

Then once that's done, you should see a piano roll of your MIDI file with separated tracks per MIDI channel. Then

File > Save As > Standard MIDI Files (*.mid) and give the new file a name. Then try loading into Mixcraft. If there's nothing weird about the original file, this should all work fine.

[rrodg84]

Thanks for the tip. I already converted all my files the hard way though! There were only 18 songs so it wasn't that big of a job.