Kenton Plugstation ver.2.01 - Manual (Page 65)

KENTON PLUGSTATION USERS MANUAL
65
Notes on MSB, LSB and SYSEX
The mysteries surrounding MIDI in general normally put people off getting into the heart of what their synth
is capable of. In these days of simple to use computer software, we sometimes forget that under the hood so
to speak there is a lot going on, and this section aims to show you that it is not all techno “mumbo jumbo”,
and that once you get used to it, MIDI programming and understanding the data can be very rewarding.
So what are MSB and LSB? MSB or “most significant byte” in the context we are discussing here relates
primarily to bank selection messages. Yamaha PLG series devices don’t just have the standard 128
programs; they can have literally thousands of programs stored in each card. The problem is “how to get at
them?” The way that became standardised for many MIDI manufacturers was to use a combination of two
standard controller numbers, they being controller 0 for the BANK SELECT MSB and controller 32 for the
BANK SELECT LSB. These two controllers followed by the program change information and the actual bank
numbers will access any of the several thousand voices, which could be available on any Yamaha PLG 100
or 150 cards. This is how they work.
Say you wanted to call up a sound on the PLG150DX such as PufOrgn1. This sound is not in the basic 128
first program locations, it is in a much higher bank. The way to select it from the PLUGSTATION or via
software would be as follows
BANK SELECT MSB – 99
BANK SELECT LAB – 0
PROGRAM CHANGE – 21
Or if you are using a sequencer to enter data
CONTROLLER 0 (MSB) – VALUE 99
CONTROLLER 32 (LSB) – VALUE 0
PROGRAM CHANGE – 21
It really is that simple. Now how do you extract this information from the Yamaha PLG series owner’s
manuals, which can at times appear a little cryptic? Well this is how you do it
On page 67 we see a typical page from the Yamaha PLG150DX owner’s manual MIDI section. We can see
the voice list information, and the BANK MESSAGE information at the top.