Topic: WiFi dongle for the PSR-SX900

[tbaroghel]

Hi everyone,

A quick (?) question about using a wifi dongle for the PSR-SX900: what exactly can we achieve with this device ?

• Can we write/read direct to a shared drive instead of a USB stick (and load/save things)?
• Can we use chord tracker on the iPad to transmit loops wirelessly to the keyboard?
• Does it bring wireless midi to use in a DAW on a mac?
• Do we have to use the Yamaha brand?

Many thanks in advance,

Thierry

[tbaroghel]

Hi everyone,
As I travel my way into learning my new SX900 ( so far I couldn't be happier with the instrument) I would really appreciate experience feedback from a user of the wifi dongle to get answers to my questions. Having to shuttle the usb stick between the PSR and the Mac is a bit cumbersome.

Regards,

Thierry

[EileenL]

Most use this for transferring packs from YEM to keyboard wirelessly

[reya]

Most use this for transferring packs from YEM to keyboard wirelessly

... and to get the internal clock going ....

[tbaroghel]

Sorry, I must be more specific in my questions 

Question 1: If the WIFI dongle AND a USB stick are plugged on the SX900, can I access the contents of the USB stick from a computer on the same network ?

Question 2: If the WIFI dongle is plugged on the SX900, is the instrument able to access a 'shared' directory on a computer on the same network, as if it were a 'virtual' USB stick ?

If the answer is no to both questions, then what is the WIFI dongle for ? MIDI over WIFI ?

Many thanks in advance.

Thierry

[overover]

Hi Thierry,

the answer to both questions 1 and 2 is NO. You cannot access the SX900's User drive or a connected USB flash drive via WiFi.

To my knowledge, only the Yamaha USB WiFi adapter (UD-WL01) is compatible to the SX900. Other adapters don't work.

1) The main purpose of the WiFi adapter is installing Expansion content from the YEM to the instrument. When the instrument is connected to your local WiFi network using the "Infrastructure Mode", also the internal Date and Time of the SX are set correctly.

2) You can also establish a MIDI-over-WiFi connection between an iPad/iPhone or a Mac computer and the SX. (It works also with a Windows PC, but you have to install an additional (free) MIDI network driver.) Note: The SX900 has two internal MIDI Ports, but via WiFi you can only use Port 1.

Important: When using MIDI-over-WiFi, you can have a relatively high latency. This could be a problem when doing MIDI recordings in a DAW in real time.

My recommendation: To establish a wireless MIDI connection use a Bluetooth LE MIDI adapter, e.g. the Yamaha MD-BT01 or the CME WIDI Master. MIDI-over-Bluetooth LE has a relatively low latency and the connection is much more stable than a MIDI-over-Wi-Fi connection.

3) You can also use the Yamaha USB WiFi adapter to transmit Audio songs that are played back on an iPad/iPhone to the SX900 (instead of using the AUX IN socket).


Hope this helps!

Best regards,
Chris

[tbaroghel]

Overover,

Thank you so much for the complete explanation !

I know now that I do not need to buy this dongle, as it cannot help eliminate shuttling the USB stick.

As for wireless MIDI, I have a USB cord long enough between the SX and the Mac, should I venture into DAWs. And finally, to play audio files from Mac/iPad/iPhone on the SX speakers, Bluetooth is Okay.

Thanks again, nice to be able to rely on the community

Thierry

[Toril S]

Oh yes, the USB shuttle trafic! Really bothersome. Several members use an USB extension cable to minimize wear and tear on the USB socket on the keyboard. Some even have hubs with switches, so that you can turn on and off USBs as desired.

[PhotoDoc05]

Hello Thierry and Toril,
As you mentioned, a really easy way to cut down on shuttling USB, is a USB switch.
Had a Black Friday sales event here, $20 for a IOGEAR GUB212 2-Port USB 2.0 Peripheral Sharing Switch.
Using it between the SX-900 and my PC, and works very smoothly! It comes packaged with 2 cables for interconnection, but they are really short, so I purchased longer 3 foot cables, and it's just right. The USB stick plugs directly into a port on the back.

Pretty simple, there are just 2 push buttons that click very solidly, looks reliable.
Jerry

[tbaroghel]

Indeed it looks like a handy solution to avoid having to plug/unplug.

Many thanks for this useful suggestion.

Thierry