[Reprinted by permission]

Knowledge Base
Title: When Media Player Won't Play MIDI Files 
Document Number: Q84752           Publ Date: 17-JUL-1992 
Product Name: Microsoft Windows 3 Retail Product 
Product Version:  3.10 
Operating System: WINDOWS 

 Summary: 
 When the Media Player won't play MIDI files, it is commonly due to one 
 or more of the following conditions: 
 1. The sound card is not installed properly. 
 2. A MIDI driver is not installed. 
 3. The MIDI Mapper is set incorrectly. 
 Note: Before attempting any complicated troubleshooting, restart 
 Windows and see if your system functions correctly. 
 More Information: 
 Making Sure the Sound Card Is Properly Installed 
 ------------------------------------------------ 
 1. Check if the sound card is able to make sounds from MS-DOS. Most 
    sound cards come with MS-DOS programs for playing sounds or 
    testing card configurations. If these do not work, then the Windows 
    sound support will not work either. 
 2. Make sure the sound card does not conflict with other hardware. 
 3. Verify Port and IRQ settings. 
 Note: If the sound card also supports digitized sound and wave files, 
 then the card is properly installed if .WAV files can be played. 
 Making Sure the MIDI Driver Is Installed 
 ---------------------------------------- 
 1. The Device.Midi Sequencer command should be available in the Media 
    Player. If not, then the MIDI driver should be reinstalled because 
    it is not loaded. 
 2. Check to see if the MIDI driver is installed under Drivers in the 
    Control Panel. If the sound card is Ad Lib compatible, try using 
    the Ad Lib driver that shipped with Windows 3.1. 
    To install the Ad Lib driver: 
    a. Run Control Panel. 
    b. Choose the Drivers icon. 
    c. Choose the Add button. 
    d. Select the Ad Lib driver from the list, or select the Unlisted 
       or Updated driver if the driver is on an OEM disk. 
    e. Choose Restart Windows to activate the driver. 
 Note that the PC Speaker driver does not support playing MIDI files. 
 Setting MIDI Mapper Correctly 
 ----------------------------- 
 After loading CANYON.MID with Media Player and pressing the Play 
 button, the following message may occur: 
    The current MIDI Mapper setup refers to a MIDI device that is not 
    installed on the system. Use MIDI Mapper to edit the setup. 
 If this message appears, run Control Panel and check the default setup 
 in the MIDI Mapper. It should be set to the correct device that is 
 installed. 
 If the Ad Lib driver is installed, the MIDI Mapper should be set to 
 the Ad Lib setup. If a different MIDI device is installed, choose an 
 appropriate setup for the device. 
 To set the MIDI Mapper to use the Ad Lib setup: 
 1. Run Control Panel. 
 2. Run MIDI Mapper. 
 3. Press ALT+S to show setups. 
 4. Press ALT+A to move to the name field for setups. 
 5. Use the UP ARROW and DOWN ARROW keys to set the name field to Ad 
    Lib, and the description below the name field to "Base-level 
    setup." 
 6. Close the MIDI Mapper to accept this setup. 
 SYSTEM.INI Settings for Systems Using the Sound Blaster 1.5 Driver 
 ------------------------------------------------------------------ 
 [boot| 
 sound.drv=mmsound.drv 
 drivers=mmsystem.dll 
 [386Enh| 
 device=vsbd.386 
 device=vadlibd.386 
 [mci| 
 WaveAudio=mciwave.drv 
 Sequencer=mciseq.drv 
 CDAudio=mcicda.drv 
 [drivers| 
 timer=timer.drv 
 midimapper=midimap.drv 
 Wave=sndblst2.drv 
 midi=sndblst2.drv 
 midi1=msadlib.drv 
 [sndblst.drv| 
 port=240 
 int=7 
 Other Problems Preventing MIDI Playing 
 -------------------------------------- 
 The following are other situations that prevent MIDI playing: 
 1. Norton Desktop for Windows 1.0 is installed. 
 2. You have upgraded from Multimedia Extensions version 1.0 (see 
    README.WRI section 7.0). Windows 3.1 SETUP.EXE renames existing 
    MIDI Mapper configuration files to MIDIMAP.OLD in the SYSTEM 
    directory. 
 Additional reference words: 3.10 Adlib pc-speaker 

COPYRIGHT Microsoft Corporation, 1992.