Need help To understand MIDI

[ShoutingMantis]

Talk MIDI to me!
I understand only a few things about MIDI.
That's what I know so Far: Synthesizer can "talk " via MIDI . Every synth gets a Number from 1-16. Over MIDI Synthesizer can share Note and Modulation Information. But here are my Questions:
1. If 2 Instruments should play the same, did they need the same MIDI channel? For example UNO synth is Master playing a Sequence and 2 other slave instruments should play the same. Do they than all have MIDI channel 1?
2. Did the Synthesizer only share the clock if every instrument is set on different MIDI Channels?
For example UNO synth is Master and MIDI out is channel 1 , synth 2 is on MIDI channel 2 and so on.
3. Can I share only automation information instead of Notes? And if yes how does it work? I know that both synthesizer must understand the Information. I know that on MIDI CC 35 or 37 can control the cut off from the Filter in the UNO synth. So let's say I have a gear that understand this Message from UNO synth. Did I set MIDI out channel 35? (I think it was 35) or do they only need different Channels? But did I than control the other instruments, too? Is it possible to say: UNO synth is Master and send Notes to synth 1 but Automation to synth 2 ?
Hope you can help.

[playinmyblues]

1. Yes if you want it simple.
2. Not sure, but if I use my drum machine and I want it to sync all my other synths, I set the MIDI transmit channel to all or maybe omni.
3. There are only 16 MIDI channels. CC stands for Continuous Control, if I remember reading that correctly. MIDI CC 35 would control a particular aspect, one parameter and is in the MIDI Implementation.
Here is a good tutorial on MIDI:
https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/mi ... 1536012406

The short of it is there are up to three bytes transmitted by a MIDI message. Each byte will contain different information. MIDI channel and MIDI CC are different so would be contained in different parts of the MIDI message.

[ShoutingMantis]

@playinmyblues thanks! I hope I get it ^^ .I just will start trying what is happening ^^

[albertpauw]

People may correct me if I'm wrong:

i) Note on/off, Controllers etc are channel specific. If you want another synth using the controllers but not play notes, then you need something like a MIDI filter, where all note on/off is filtered out. Some software can do this.

ii) MIDI clock is one byte and does not contain a channel, same as sequencer start/stop. So all devices will respond if it is in its MIDI implementation (every device has an implementation chart). Many devices have an option to listen to external MIDI clock, or internal, in which case it does not follow the MIDI clock. E.g. the UNO synth has internal/external/USB, where the latter option tells it to listen to the MIDI clock on USB. If you choose external or USB and there is no MIDI clock send, then your sequencer (obviously) does not run. This sometimes confuses people where they think the device is broken -> Put setting to internal to fix this.

iii) Many devices can select the MIDI in and out channel 1-16, plus ALL. In the latter case, it will ignore the channel information and interpret all incoming MIDI (e.g. note on/off, controller, etc).

Hope this helps.

Albert