Connect KnobKraft and your synth

Core 2.9-era workflow · Written guide reviewed 2026-09-04

Goal: establish a MIDI connection in both directions and hear your instrument through its audio output.

Before you begin

Install KnobKraft, check the supported-synth list, and power on one instrument. Read its setup help in KnobKraft's Settings tab and the instrument's own MIDI instructions. SysEx reception, device ID, USB/DIN selection and memory protection differ between models.

Make the connections

Connect the computer's MIDI output to the synth's MIDI input. Connect the synth's MIDI output back to the computer's MIDI input. A USB synth may provide both ports through one cable.
Connect the synth's audio output to headphones, a mixer or an audio interface. MIDI carries messages, not the sound you hear.
Open Setup, activate the matching synth and click Auto-Detect.
Check Sent to device, Receive from device and MIDI channel. If detection cannot fill them in, follow manual connection setup.
Check a small supported retrieval. For a synth with edit-buffer retrieval, use MIDI → Import edit buffer from synth (F8) and inspect the returned patch. If your synth requires a manual dump, use its manual receive procedure.

Check your result

You should have the intended MIDI ports and a recognised patch returned by the instrument. Play the synth and confirm that you hear its audio. Successful detection alone does not prove that every transfer function works.

If notes work but patches do not, check SysEx reception and the device-specific settings. If nothing returns, check the cable directions and MIDI Log before trying again. See connection troubleshooting.

Before selecting library patches, learn where your sounds live. The edit buffer send-mode label does not guarantee temporary storage on every synth.