10.5. Assign Programs to Channels with Qsynth
The best way to do this is through your MIDI sequencer, like Qtractor or Rosegarden. If you are using an application which doesn't allow you to send program-change messages, or if you need to configure programs for another reason, you can follow these instructions.
In the main Qsynth window, click "Channels" to open the "Channels" window.
In the Channels window, each channel will, by default, look like
1 - - -
To assign a program to a channel, click on the row of the channel that you want to assign.
Select the bank and program number that you want, using the name, SFID, and Soundfont columns to guide you.
Repeat this process for all of the channels that you wish to assign.
If you are not going to use a channel, there is no harm in assigning it a program anyway. However, assigning a program to a channel that you will not use can lead to confusion, especially if you later forget that you intended to not use that channel.
Remember that channel 10 is reserved for percussion instruments, and should not be changed from a General MIDI percussion program.
10.5.1. Change the Number of MIDI Input Channels
You can increase the number of MIDI input channels offered by FluidSynth. Although QSynth will let you set any number between 1 and 256, channels will be added and removed only in sets of 16. Qsynth will automatically create the lowest number of channels that will allow as many channels as you need. Each set of 16 channels will be indicated in JACK with an additional MIDI input device. The name of the device indicates which channels are listening: channels 1 through 16 listen to the device ending in 0; channels 17 through 32 listen to the device ending in 1; channels 33 through 58 listen to the device ending in 2; and so on.
To change the number of MIDI input channels, follow these instructions.
Open the Qsynth "Setup" window.
The "Enable MIDI Input" setting must be enabled.
Input the number of channels that you wish to use, between 1 and 256.
