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[yungjoon]

Hi,

I installed successfully mac os 9 on my ibook G4 ( https://everymac.com/systems/apple/ibook/specs/ibook_g4_1.0_12.html ) with the one found at https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/mac-os-922-boot-file-ibook-g4 .

I would like to plug a keyspan USA-28x to use my old serial midi interfaces. After driver installation I noticed that only USB Printer Port is available for emulation. The checkbox "emulate modem port" is greyed, I can't have a USB Modem Port emulation.

I checked the system information and at the network section the modem section is blank.
There is also no modem configuration panel.

I have an usupported imac G4 I successfully downgraded to mac os 9, it has a buit in modem, and keyspan can emulate printer/modem port prefectly.

What can I do to force the keyspan to emulate modem port on my ibook G4?

Thanks.

[GaryN]

Congrats. You're in uncharted territory. The fact that you can't "see" the modem in the OS9 panel is concerning. That could indicate either a hardware fault or just something the unsupported OS can't access properly. That would account for the Keyspan not seeing it as well. I can't think of an easy way to determine for certain what's up other than booting OSX to see if it works then.

* Note that the Keyspan doesn't so much "emulate" a port or ports as "imitate" them. The Keyspan ports are nominally "Serial#1" and "Serial#2". Setting the USA-28x to "emulate" the original Mac ports simply attaches the traditional "printer" and "modem" names to them. That's because there are other computers in the world besides Macs.

So, another likely issue is that the Keyspan may or may not work at all on your 480 Mb/s USB2 port. For that matter, the USB port itself might not work under OS9. This is that "uncharted territory" again. Very few later-model Macs with USB2 ports will boot OS9 at all… your is an exception. You should immediately test the port to verify it actually works. Your ideal hoped-for result would be that it operates at USB1 speed which will make the Keyspan happy. Try a USB mouse or something to verify it works at all. If it does, say "Thank you God", load up an OS9 DAW and OMS, then see if you can pass MIDI through the "printer" port that you can see. If it works, tell us all because that will be a new revelation to the community.

Good luck. I'm crossing my fingers for you. 

[yungjoon]

Hi,

I installed freemidi and OMSdrivers, created a new setup in OMS.

2 MidiTimePieces are connected to printer/modem (serial 1&2) port of the keyspan.

OMS detects correctly the MTP connected to the printer port, but not the MTP connected to modem port.

I used midi test mode in OMS setup and the MTP connected to printer port fully works and is usable under cubase VST5.

I don't understand why modem port emulation is unavailable with the keyspan on my ibook G4.

Months ago, i installed mac os 9 (for unsupported G4) on my imac G4 (sunflower), unsupported 800 MHz version, and both modem and printer port are emulated and usable under OMS/Cubase VST5. It drives perfectly 2 X 2 opcode studio 4 networked, 32 midi ports! ...

[GaryN]

I think I addressed this in the very first paragraph of my previous response.
It is very possible for the UN-supported modified versions of OS9 to see the modem in an iMac but not in an iBook. They are not the same hardware. Even getting the sound driver to work properly in the iBook is a known problem.

If the modem module in the iBook is damaged or not connected properly, it's possible the OS9 installer didn't "see" a modem during the installation and so never installed the modem drivers / extensions. You should check if those Extensions are installed and compare it all with the iMac. Also, remember that the hardware for a printer and/or modem was very different in older Macs –that had built-in serial ports for them – which your iBook doesn't.

* This is ALL guesswork. I am not a former Apple employee with detailed knowledge of the hardware and firmware designs of old Macs and even if I was, I would probably be constrained by a non-disclosure agreement anyway. So…

My best suggestion is: If you can't find an obvious reason for all this like what I've suggested above, you be satisfied that at least you have one working serial port to use. Do you really need two Timepieces running on a 12" laptop? Personally, that sounds pretty crowded to me - driving that large of a network and many tracks on a tiny screen although… You CAN get 32 individual MIDI ports by stacking the Timepieces on the single Keyspan port that does work. You are unlikely to actually get into trouble unless / until you try to run a LOT of busy tracks at the same time.

Anyway, I'm a little puzzled by what information you've provided so far. You have an iMac with two Studio 4's and now you ALSO want two MTP's on an iBook? Do you own two sets of 20-odd MIDI devices? Since that seems unlikely, what are you actually doing to need two large setups? Possibly the iBook simply isn't the best choice to begin with.