Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer (original version) sysex problems

[James Steele]

Hmmm… a fool and his money are easily parted. I still use an iPhone 4 and haven't updated past iOS 6.1. So, thought it was a good thing that I scored an old Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer for only $10 on eBay. I figured it would be a convenient way to store sysex dumps of all the various devices in my guitar rig. I downloaded Line 6's MIDI Memo Recorder app and eagerly and got started. Turns out my iPhone 4 doesn't even see it. However both the iPad and iPad 2 can see it and record the bulk dump from my Rocktron MIDI Raider (which takes 5 minutes) but can't send more than 6 messages back to the MIDI Raider during the sysex load process before the MIDI Raider just inexplicably stops responding. Furthermore, I can load the Standard MIDI File exported from the MIDI Memo Recorder app and then use Digital Performer on my MacBook to play back the sysex to the MIDI Raider and it causes a buffer overflow on the MIDI Raider. I can of course record the bulk dump directly into DP on my MacBook, but that sort of defeats the convenience factor of knowing all the settings for all my gear are backed up in a device that I'm carrying around with me at all times. I'm leery now as to whether I want to even TRY the MIDI Mobilizer II or the iRig from IK Multimedia. Do any devices work with large sysex bulk dumps?

[James Steele]

UPDATE:

Well, looks like I solved it myself for now. Turns out the culprit must be Line 6's MIDI Memo Recorder app. Something just isn't right about how it either records or plays back the Standard MIDI File containing the series of sysex messages sent from the Rocktron MIDI Raider. The MIDI Raider sends a bulk dump as a series of about 149 separate sysex messages over the period of 5 minutes. Line 6's MIDI Memo Recorder seemingly records it without a problem, but when dumping back into the MIDI Raider, it stops playing after message 6 or 7. Then nothing.

So I gambled and purchased MIDI Tool Box for $9.99 on the App Store.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/MIDI-to ... 15330?mt=8

MIDI Tool Box has a number of "tools" as you'd expect from its name. One of them, a very basic Standard MIDI File recorder is able to record and then play back the bulk dumps all day long... no problem. MIDI Raider receives it fine. So I'm going around backing up various devices now on my iPad. For some reason my iPhone 4 is not seeing the Line 6 MIDI Mobilizer. I think it may be a bad connector or corrosion actually. The phone was once dropped in water and I left it in a jar of rice over night and it actually saved it, but I think the connector might be squirrelly since then.