GS and XG Extensions
GS and XG extend GM with banks, drum kits and effects, each with its own reset.
Related
GM guarantees 128 sounds, thin for a large arrangement. GS and XG both attack the limit, each along its own road.
The problem
The same program can be strings on GS and something else on XG. Without bank numbers and a reset in the file, changing the sound source changes everything.
Protocol or message
Both select a bank with CC0 and CC32 before Program Change. GS is Roland's extension, adding parts, drum kits and effect parameters, reset by F0 41 10 42 12 40 00 7F 00 41 F7. XG is Yamaha's, managing voices, kits and effects through system blocks, reset by F0 43 10 4C 00 00 7E 00 F7. The GM reset is F0 7E 7F 09 01 F7, and the three do not interchange.
Settings and practice
Send GM System On at the top of a file, then the reset of the target extension. Write the bank before the program number. Check which extension a device supports before exchange. Never assume a GS bank means the same on XG.
What to listen for
The same string passage has a different default reverb and attack under GS and XG. A wrong reset drops the drum kit onto a melodic program, turning cymbals into piano keys.
Common misunderstandings
GS is not a synonym for GM. XG is not an upgrade of GS. A reset changes settings, not the notes in the file.
Listen in the library
All tracks from midicn-lib — inline badge is the license tier (C1 commercial / C2 non-commercial / C3 study only).
Sources
- Roland GS 复位与 Yamaha XG System On 的字节序列，依公开规范核查，未抄文本
- GM System On 与库选择控制器的约定，依通用 MIDI 规范核查，未抄文本
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.