How to Convert Your Digital Piano MIDI Files to MP3, WAV or CD

For years I have been asking the question: "How can I convert my digital keyboard MIDI files into a MP3 or WAV file so I can make a high quality music CD?" I received many shrugs and many suggestions for trying MIDI to WAV converters, but nothing achieved the quality I was looking for. Finally I asked the right person and found my answer. In this article I will show you how to convert your MIDI files to MP3 or WAV files.

To make a music CD of your digital piano playing, you will need a keyboard with MIDI capabilities and an Audio Out jack, an audio cable, and a computer with audio software, a CD burner and a microphone jack.

When shopping for an audio cable look for one that says, "3.5MM Stereo to Two 1/4 inch phone." These usually cost less than $15.00. My Hosa audio cable is ten feet long with the model number CMP-159.

The audio software program I use is Sony Sound Forge Audio Studio. Sound Forge Audio Studio seems a little intimidating at first, but once you get the basics down it is pretty simple to use. The cost of the program runs between fifty to sixty dollars.

Start out by connecting the two larger ends of the audio cable into the Audio Out on your MIDI keyboard. Then connect the smaller end of the audio cable into the microphone jack on your computer.

Open up Sound Forge Audio Studio and select File then New. A window will pop up asking you to select the sample rate, bit-depth, and channels. The default setting for recording a CD are: 44,100 sample rate, 16 bit depth and Stereo channels. Click OK to close that box.

You may need to adjust the recording levels of your computer's microphone settings. Open up your Windows Master Volume by clicking on Start, All Programs, Accessories, Entertainment, Volume Control. Click on Options then Properties and check the Recording Box. You may need to change your mixer device to get to recording options. Make sure your microphone box is checked and click on OK. In the Recording Control box click on Advanced to make sure the Mic Boost is not selected. Adjust the microphone slider so your recording levels are as high as possible without going into the red clipped zone.

You are now ready to convert your MIDI file. Click on the Sound Forge Audio Studio Record button, then hit play on your keyboard (or begin playing.) When you are done recording hit the Record button again to stop recording.

You can use the edit features of Sound Forge Audio Studio to take out extra space before or after the song, add a fade in or out, insert silence, or change the volume. Be sure to select both waveforms during an edit.

When you save your file you will need to select the type of file you want. If you are going to create a music CD then select Wave (Microsoft). For use online you may choose between mp3 Audio, wav (Microsoft), wma (Windows Media Audio), rm (Real Media) or aiff (Audio Interchange File Format.)

To burn a CD you can either use the Sound Forge Audio Studio's option of Burn Track-at-Once, or use your own CD burning software on your computer. Just open your CD burning software, select the Audio or Music CD option, browse to find the converted audio files you have saved to your computer, arrange the order of the tracks and click on Burn.

Sources:
Getting Started with Sony Sound Forge by Michelle Sisler, www.keystoimagination.com