source file: m1569.txt
Date: Sat, 31 Oct 1998 12:55:18 +0530

Subject: Yamaha XG pitch bend specs

From: Drew Skyfyre <steele@bom2.vsnl.net.in>

Sometime ago, I reported the following :

"Pitch bend, I checked with the range at 1-semitone and 
found no clear pattern in the data values that caused each successive
pitch change.
etc"

Well, I just came upon this in Yamha's XG Guidebook (available on their
web site) :
"XG-compatible instruments follow all GM guidelines as described above,
 and are also capable of receiving Polyphonic Key Pressure.
The shift curve used for pitch bend is defined as linear by cents, 
ensuring pitch bend compatibility between XG instruments. 
The XG Specification also states that Pitch bend can be used to affect
rhythm 
channels as well as melody voices."

So, I'm somewhat annoyed/confused, since the anomaly means it is 
not possible to enter precise pitch bend values into a sequencer without 
using ye old frequency meter.

Then again, I suppose this to be a problem with just about any 
commercial sample-playback device. Can anyone confirm my suspicion
that a synth that is actually a synth, synthesizing it's own waveforms
(i.e., FM, PM, Additive, etc.) is much more reliable at delivering 
more stable/precise pitches.

Later,
Drew

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