MIDI Express XT USB Problem - PANIC!!

[drd079]

Hello everyone,

I am a newbie when it comes to MIDI, and just purchased the above unit off ebay. I think its not exactly the latest model (got all LEDs arranged in a horizontal order - the later model got the program LEDs in a vertical manner), but I did manage to download and install the drivers successfully.

However it looks as though there is no MIDI connectivity even with its own Clockworks software, as it detects the device and then says it cannot communicate with it. Same happens with other software such as the Casio keyboard manager which should connect to my WK3700 keyboard through MIDI - it says MIDI timeout!

Can anyone give me a hint at what I am missing out, or if my unit needs some kind of upgrade to work with Windows?

Thanks a lot in advance.

Daniel

[eixb]

i'm assuming you have the usb version...

if your unit does NOT have removable rack ears, check to make sure there is a "M/W" sticker next to the serial number on the bottom. if not, you'll need a usb rom upgrade for your interface to work with windows. you'll need to contact motu tech support for this.

see the "note to tech" paragraph near the bottom of this page:
http://www.motu.com/techsupport/technot ... dows%20usb

[drd079]

Yeps, you're right... I need the upgrade... ordered it from MOTU's online shop, hope it will work and will not be too difficult to install... The device has 3 socketed chips, one of them is the MIDI processor, another looks like an EPROM chip and yet another looks like a PIC... So I guess it will be just a matter of taking the EPROM off and plugging in the new one when it arrives.

Thanks for your help.

[lanrosta]

I have to pay another $27 just so my MIDI Express XT USB will work on a Windows system? What a load of ••••!

[primortal]

yah, im throughly pissed rightnow myself.... I purchased based on the fact it said it was windows compatable on the unit itself...thus it affected how much I would pay to have something I could plug and go with...

I also got the drivers installed correctly and couldnt figure out why nothing was coming up on the routing page of clockworks...

*edit*

yah...had a nice little MX before the serial number without any removable rack ears....man i am pissed...

[Hard2Hear]

So you're pissed at MOTU because you didnt do your research and you bought an old secondhand unit from someone who lied about what it did. And this is MOTU's fault how?

[primortal]

um....

a) I did research it....
b) Only after quite a while of looking for a fix for my problem did I find out there were 2 models of that MIDI express unit manufactured...and it wasnt too well placed on motu's site. This is not an obvious or easy thing to find when doing research.
c) the product was not mis represented from seller.
d) on the front of the product it clearly is labled WINDOWS COMPATABLE!

So, yah your right it is my fault for no finding that one fact out. But now that my rage trigers have calmed down...lol I have givin it thought...I guess I can be thankful tha at time of design they had enough brains to think about upgrades for future compatabiliy, and at least there is a pretty cheap 20 buck fix for it.....so in short ill shuddup now

its all good...i was just havin a bad day....and this was the cat that pee'd on my new sheets lol

[sharpmusic1]

It seems i have been bitten by the same bug. I have a MIDI express xt and it appears to also be the older version the serial starts with MXXTU123456. I was wondering now that it is clear that I need the ROM upgrade, has anyone done it and are there any caveat's or tips available

[stu808]

Yeps, you're right... I need the upgrade... ordered it from MOTU's online shop, hope it will work and will not be too difficult to install... The device has 3 socketed chips, one of them is the MIDI processor, another looks like an EPROM chip and yet another looks like a PIC... So I guess it will be just a matter of taking the EPROM off and plugging in the new one when it arrives.

Thanks for your help.

I know this thread is real old now, but I also recently purchased a motu usb MIDI express XT without the removable rack ears, and serial beginning with mx ( no hw anywhere on or near serial 3 ) I am aware I may need a rom upgrade from motu and was about to buy it at their site had it in cart, and decided to open the 2 screws on the unit to see what the rom version said on it and what it looks like, mine says 2.0.0 from some other reading I've done people say you need this version or later for full compatibility with windows xp , I cant find anyone or anywhere that can say what was written on their new rom upgrade chip as far as version # hopefully 2.0.3 or something,I dont want to buy the exact same chip, it works in stand alone mode with merge all some and live etc, but I need it to work with protools and sonar, it is seen by these programs but does not route anything to it or from it, even tho MIDI light blinks on in 1, the new clockworks program from the 32 bit xp driver download works allt he tabs show everything they should EXCEPT for the ROUTING tab/ screen, which is blank, the most important screen that I need ! I have read others have had this problem too, but just would love if someone could confirm the version # of the rom chip that solves this problem, I hope I didnt buy a $200.00 paper weight, I would have purchased new but could not find a regular 8 in 8 out MIDI merger and was always convinced that motu was the leader and used one in studio years ago with no problems, if someone would be willing to remove the screws and look at the chip # info I would greatly appreciate it, also, which end do you pull up on to remove old chip, the end by the green resistor ? do you pry it off gently with a precision screwdriver or how is this best done ?, thanks in advance Stuart.

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

There are tools specifically for removing such chips and they're quite cheap. With a screwdriver you have a large chance of cracking the socket, happened to me on a couple motherboards. Sure, it won't crack bad enough to lose connectivity, but enough to make you feel bad about it.