Professional MIDI Guide← Table of Contents | Next: MIDI Matrices → Part 7:MIDI MergersMerging is the action of joining one or more streams of MIDI data into one. Although conceptually simple this is a non-trivial task. A good analogy is a set of points on a railway line changing to allow trains from different lines onto one. The points have to be changed quickly to prevent trains waiting or getting another crash into it and if left in the wrong state a derailment occurs. Mergers are required wherever two sets of MIDI sources are required simultaneously at one input. Some specialised equipment may incorporate merging of MIDI data with its own data, e.g. timecode to clock synchronisers or MIDI controller panels.
Mergers are often placed in a position within a MIDI system where all data passes through and so have to work reliably under all conditions. If more than two sources are required to be merged it is better to use a merger that can handle that number of inputs. Cascading two input mergers will produce accumulative processing delays which may be undesirable. See our MIDIY Mergers. ← Table of Contents | Next: MIDI Matrices → |