How to Play MIDI Files on VLC [Easily & Quickly]

For those unfamiliar with MIDI files, I’d like to give a brief introduction first. Please read on.

Brief Introduction to MIDI Files

The MIDI file is an Instrument Digital Interface file with a .mid or .midi extension. MIDI doesn’t transmit sounds but only transmits control signals for characteristics like volume, vibrato, and phase, data like pitch and melodic intensity, and a master frequency signal to define the tempo. It’s far smaller than other popular audio formats like MP3, WAV, and OGG since it simply contains instructions for playing music.

How to Play MIDI Files on VLC?

There is no audio waveform in a MIDI file and it only has the notes and instruments that are shown in a sound performance. So, VLC can’t play it. In that case, you need to download a SoundFont, let’s see how to configure it in VLC and how do I play MIDI files on VLC. Just read th0e below:

Step 1: Head into S. Christian Collins’s official website to download and extract the SoundFont file.

Step 2: Run VLC, click Tools on the top line, and then click Preferences.

Step 3: In the new window, click All at the bottom, then you will see the Advanced Preferences window. On the left side, find Input / Codecs – Audio codecs – FluidSynth. Next, click Browse… on the right side to choose the SoundFont file you extracted before. Lastly, click Save to finish.

Step 4: Restart VLC, and now you can play MIDI files on VLC.

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Bonus: How to Convert MIDI Files?

If you’re not satisfied with playing MIDI files on VLC, you can consider converting them to other compatible and popular formats, such as MP3, WAV, AAC, OGG, M4B, WMA, etc. Therefore, you will need a MIDI converter to help you.

You can choose the online converter – Zamzar. It supports various popular video or audio formats, allowing you to convert MIDI files to other preferred formats without installation. With this tool, you can convert MIDI files effortlessly. After conversion, you can easily play your MIDI files on other devices.

Let’s see how to convert MIDI files to other formats, taking MP3 for example.

1: Navigate to Zamzar’s official website in the browser.

2: Click the Choose Files button to add your MIDI file(s).

3: Next, click the Convert To button to open the format list. Scroll to choose mp3 as the output format.

Step 4: Click the Convert Now button to start converting MIDI files to MP3.

Step 5: When the conversion is done, click the Download button to download it on your PC.

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Conclusion

This article gives you a short introduction to MIDI files and shows you the specific ways to play MIDI files on VLC. Besides, it offers you a reliable converter to convert MIDI files to other formats for convenient playback. Hope this post can help you a lot.