MOTU micro express USB MIDI Interface, MIDI Computer
Last Update 05-31-2025
Starting in 1989, my MIDI computer had been an IBM PS/2 model
30. I bought the Music Quest MQX32M MIDI ISA card. By
1994 I had upgraded to a homebuilt tower computer running Windows
For Workgroups 3.11 and had retained the MQX32M card. The
MQX32M was a rock solid MIDI interface with two independent MIDI
ports, doubling the MIDI channels from 16 to 32. It also
supports SMPTE for syncing to my four track multitrack
recorder. As my studio grew, the 2nd MIDI port came in
handy. My MIDI sequencer was Cakewalk Pro Audio 3, and it was
also rock solid. I stayed with WFW311 because there were many
complaints of latency with MIDI software running on W95 and newer
Windows systems - my old WFW311 computer had zero latency. I
couldn't use "plugins" that were available on newer systems, but I
didn't care because I was already 100% OTB (Out of The Box, all
hardware synths). With this MIDI computer system, I was very
productive and it was rock solid...
...until the computer failed 100% in 2018. The power supply
was bad; I replaced the supply but the computer still wouldn't boot
up, BIOS would not run. That meant there was a problem with
the motherboard. I really wanted to resurrect the
computer. I confirmed that the hard drive still worked.
There was no way I could repair the motherboard, but there was no
way I could replace the motherboard because the ISA buss for the
MQX32M was long obsolete and newer motherboards would not run
WFW311. My only option was buying a new computer and replacing
all the peripherals, MIDI software and the MQX32M.
By then, I had abandoned Microsoft products. My office
computer running WIN2K was slowly degrading (peripherals would stop
working for no reason). Windows XP was the current version but
my firewall software BlackIce would not run on any version newer
than WIN2K. I bought a WINXP Netbook, but Microsoft Firewall
was a piece of junk and I had to take the netbook off the internet
because of one too many malware downloads covertly installing
themselves, and I didn't even have a browser open!! Then
Microsoft came out with Windows Vista, which mandated replacing
EVERYTHING - computer, monitor, printer, peripherals,
EVERYTHING! By then I had too much frustration with Microsoft
and their software products were just plain JUNK. As long as I
had to pay that much money, I abandoned Microsoft and switched to
Apple products. So in 2013 I purchased a Mac Pro mid-2012
computer with 12 cores, a very good investment as these computers
command serious bucks on the used market (old Windows computers are
worthless on the used market). Today I read of frustrations
with Windows 11 and have no regret jumping ship to Apple.
But I really didn't want to move the Mac Pro to the studio as I
always preferred to keep office and studio computers separate.
I refrained from surfing the internet on the studio computer so I
wouldn't be distracted. So my replacement MIDI computer was an
iMac 2017 with four cores and 21 inch monitor.
Next step is to select a MIDI interface to replace my now obsolete
MQX32M. I had read a lot of good feedback from MOTU owners so
after exploring their product line I settled on the micro
express. It met my needs for MIDI ports and SMPTE support, and
it interfaced with macOS painlessly (something Windows was never
capable of). The compact tabletop micro express is USB buss
powered and I detect zero latency with MIDI I/O. MOTU has
drivers for Windows but the feedback was not very positive from
Windows owners; MOTU drivers are far more robust on macOS.
Microsoft tends to "break" drivers with every new release, an
aggravation that is not absent with Apple computers but far less
often. Once I have a computer system configured, I stay with
it as long as I can.
The micro express expands on my needs with six MIDI outputs and four
MIDI inputs, a set of input/output ports conveniently placed on the
front of the device. It can act as a MIDI matrix with 8
factory and 16 user presets but my JLCooper MSB are better
devices and easier to configure. I configured I/O ports #2 and
#3 to match the configuration used with my MQX32M. I assigned
I/O port #4 as the MIDI Machine Control for my Alesis HD24. Since I have several
MIDI devices with no MIDI outputs (input only, usually MIDI
retrofits for pre-MIDI devices), I assigned port #5 - output only,
no input - to these devices which are connected using a MIDI
Solutions T8 eight output MIDI THRU box. Port #6 is currently
vacant - my studio is getting full and I am running out of room so I
don't foresee any future use for this port. Maybe for the
stage system while configuring patches for songs. I reserve
the front panel port #1 for non-fixed MIDI devices for
troubleshooting.
The micro express display has handy indicators for MIDI activity,
SMPTE sync type and frame rate, and interface mode. It comes
with the ClockWorks app for configuring the interface, port routing,
filters, synchronization, mappings, pedal control; this is all
"under the hood" which is not my favorite mode of manipulating
configurations so I minimize the use of the app. Since my
needs are using it with Logic Pro, I could pretty much use the
interface "out of the box". The app does have displays for
SMPTE status which is handy for confirming operation. It has
factory presets for merging, splits, etc but I don't use them.
The only thing missing is a display of MIDI traffic, showing any and
all MIDI messages. I had an app on my Windows machine that did
that and it was handy for monitoring MIDI signals for
troubleshooting.
Once you configure the macOS Settings for the interface, it is ready
to use with the DAW of your choice. Easy!
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