Hi Oliver

> MAQ16/3. But first i need your advice,
> should i a better feel out of it

I am not that good in english, so the second half is not a
understandable sentence. What do you want to say

> can it work as master clock source on a recording envoirment with
> pro tools as slave

If you have troubles with MIDI clock timing, the cause is usually not(!)
the clock source, but that fact, that the clock is sent over the same
MIDI port as the other MIDI data. Each MIDI note-on takes one
millisecond. If there are ten MIDI notes on the first beat of a bar, the
first tick of the clock can be delayed to 10 ms in worst case (does not
have to be, but it is possible). It becomes much worse if you have
realtime CC's or even realtime SysEx data.


I usually give two recommendations for a rock solid MIDI clock:

1.) Use a programmable clock source as MIDI master clock which is not
loaded with other MIDI related tasks. Example a Friendchip SRC, or
Roland SBX10 or SBX80, or similar. The tempo MUST(!) be programmed. If
the tempo is derived in realtime from a tempo potentiometer, then it may
change due to resistor noise at the potentiometer or bit toggling at the
A/D.

2.) The MIDI port (vulgo the MIDI-cable) which transports MIDI clock
shouldn't transport anything else but the clock. This means: any
computer that is MIDI-clock slaved should use an interface with at least
two MIDI Ins.

This might exclude the MAQ, because the MAQ will always send its
sequenced note information to the same port as the MIDI clock. This
won't hurt usually, because the MAQ does not send too many MIDI data and
it can control the order of MIDI Events (at least I assume it does so).
This means: as long you do not merge other MIDI Information into the
datastream of the MAQ you won't have troubles.

Florian