At the 2020 NAMM Show, we talked with Bome Software CEO Florian Bömers about their plans for supporting MIDI 2.0 with the Bome Box.
The Bome Box, below, is a MIDI Hub and Router for connecting musical instruments via MIDI DIN, USB, Ethernet, and WiFi.
The Bome Box makes it possible to route MIDI signals between USB & DIN MIDI devices and across Ethernet & WiFi, with or without a computer:
Bömers told us that his company is actively participating in creating the MIDI 2.0 specifications, as part of the MIDI Manufacturers Association. The MIDI 2.0 specification was adopted at the 2020 NAMM Show, and should start appearing in products, along with firmware updates to existing products, in the next few months.
Bömers said that Bome products be getting updates to support MIDI 2.0 features. The main focus will be on bridging MIDI 1.0 gear with the MIDI 2.0 world: proxying and translation. Existing BomeBox owners will benefit from the new features by way of free firmware upgrades.
See the Bome Software site for details.
“…with or without a computer…”
Ouch! Uh, the BomeBox _is_ a computer. Most likely it is running a flavor of Linux. This is another one of those things on the Internet, and who knows what security it has. Nice of them to daisy-chain their POE, though.
Really, what was once on a desktop is now in an 8-pin DIP. A complete synthesizer has been packed inside a MIDI plug.
What this needs is way more MIDI ports. A single set of in and out is not worth it.
Old fashioned 5-pin MIDI ports don’t benefit from MIDI 2.0 at all. The new 32-bit Universal MIDI packet isn’t used for 5-pin MIDI transfer.
MIDI has only ever used 2 pins & shield. The other two pins have always been latent. It’s always been a serial interface. Whether 8 bit, 16, 32, or more, that will remain….
“What this needs is way more MIDI ports. A single set of in and out is not worth it.”
https://www.bome.com/products/bomebox#faq
…just use a USB to MIDI adapter. Use multi-port adapters or a USB hub to get even more MIDI DIN ports…
Okay Böömer
No but in all seriousness this looks like a sweet box and is definitely on my radar to scoop up once it’s available
It’s interesting that the official adoption of MIDI 2.0 by the MMA is pretty much a footnote in NAMM2020 coverage. The MIDI Association did announce it in its newsletter, earlier this week. Yet they don’t make this announcement that prominent:
https://www.midi.org/articles-old/details-about-midi-2-0-midi-ci-profiles-and-property-exchange
As has been discussed by Brett Porter, it might be difficult to predict what people will do with MIDI2. Other people will have to do things with these “LEGO Bricks”.
https://www.musicradar.com/news/what-is-midi-20-and-what-does-it-mean-for-musicians-and-producers
Still, it’s a key moment when industry official adopts a new standard, especially one which supersedes one which has had a huge impact for 37 years.
We just need flashy demos of what can be done.
Agree with Brian, above. I LOVE all the functionality this has that surpasses the iConnectmidi 4+ but the iCM4+ still wins because I still need to route discrete signals to many synths. This thing would be an instant buy if it had 4 in 4 out midi.
So I’m interested but unsure what does midi2 mean, and do how will it be different what amazing things will it produce? I’m a little confused about the Benifits?