What does the ‘Thru’ setting in the XF Editor software do?

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Michael Trigoboff - 24 August 2015 08:11 PM

What does the ‘Thru’ setting in the XF Editor software do?

It’s similar to what hardware MIDI Thru does. If the Editor is run stand-alone, data at Port 1 MIDI-In is passed to Port 1 MIDI-Out when Thru is activated.

Whether Thru needs to be activated or not should be determined by your particular MIDI data routing requirements.

I guess that means that in my simple setup (XF connected via USB to Surface3 tablet), using XF Editor standalone to make settings on my XF using the editor (because it’s more convenient vs. the XF controls), it probably doesn’t matter whether ‘Thru’ is set or not.

If my guess is wrong, please let me know.

Assuming the tablet behaves as any computer interfaced to the XF via USB would…

If in the Editor’s Setup screen “Detail” is “Off”, or if it’s “On” and Port 1 MIDI-In and MIDI-Out are both set to “MOTIF XF6-1”, playing the XF’s keys will result in the note data being echoed if Thru is active/"on" and Local Control on the XF is also “on”. Such note doubling will sound strange, and make a poor basis for doing editing.

Try playing a piano Voice, repeatedly striking the same note. Turn Thru on and off, and listen for any difference in the sound. If you hear a difference, then it’s due to note doubling.

In general, unless there’s a particular need to pass incoming MIDI data through the Editor, Thru should usually be off. If there is such a need, the XF’s Local Control can be turned off to prevent doubling.