The Yamaha AN1x Synthesizer mailing list

VST/VSTi and DXi formats are primarily Audio plugin formats. Their
handling of MIDI is actually quite limited.

OPT is primarily designed to provide MIDI plugins to third party
sequencers. i.e. it is not competitive to VSTi/DXi, but complimentary.

From Yamahas viewpoint the overall aim is to simplify the integration of
external hardware into third party sequencer environments i.e. to make
external hardware as seamless to use as softsynths.

OPT provides access to client sequencer MIDI services (including direct
access to events stored within sequencer tracks, timing information,
MIDI ports and transport/status functions etc).

OPT is divided into 3 levels of support:

Level 1 - Panels: Basic control panels that can transmit data via client
sequencers MIDI ports. e.g. simple device editors/librarians etc

Level2 - Processors: Access to client real-time and offline event
queues. Allows automation of Level 1 panels plus real-time/offline MIDI
effect effects (arpeggiators, tempo delays, auto-accompaniments etc)

Level3 - Views: Direct access to client track, block event structures
(including master track and selections etc). This allows editors to be
written that can do almost anything a native sequencer editor can do
(e.g List views, Piano rolls etc). However it is intended that views be
supplied that augment the features of existing client editors (for
example Yamaha has a list view that utilises an OPT database component,
to interpret all Yamaha device sysex, NRPNs, RPNs etc into plain English
parameters. So instead of seeing F0 43 4C.... etc you see: Variation
Effect: Amp Simulation). In this way you can edit the parameters in a
more intuitive way, rather than attempting to perform rocket science on
meaningless bytes! Furthermore the view can perform search back, such
that it can interpret data contextually (e.g. come up with the correct
parameter name and values for a given effect program).

Similarly you can write complex device editors that can both extract and
insert MIDI setup data directly to client tracks etc. Essentially I
could write a version of XGedit/An1xEdit that runs within your sequencer
and stores all data directly to the sequencers tracks. No need for Hubi
pipes or import/export of MIDI files! 

In the limit, using OPT can you can produce a totally modular sequencer,
where you can pick and choose which views/editors you want and tailor
them to your setup!

The OPT SDK is available under a royalty free license from Yamaha. For a
copy contact: sibazaki@...

Regards

Gary Gregson

Email:gary@...
http://www.yme.co.uk/yme 
 

-----Original Message-----
From: jondl_2000 [mailto:jondl_2000@...] 
Sent: 03 April 2002 16:56
To: AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [AN1x] OT: Yamaha Debuts New Open Plug-in Technology

FYI - there's a Press Release on Harmony Central regarding 
Yamaha's OPT 
http://www.harmony-central.com/News/2002/Open-Plug-In-Tech
nology.html

I don't quite understand what benefit this offers that isn't already 
accounted for via MIDI, VST FX and VSTi's? Hmm...

Jon