MIDI-related software, hints & tips
A driver for low-latency output. These are free software drivers that allow professional audio performance out of a standard PC sound card. They practically eliminate latency and allow quick response from VST software.
This driver is named "ASIO4ALL v2" when selecting an audio device in a DAW.
Aggregate audio devices
Apparently, these drivers also allow aggregation of multiple sources into one! This is similar to MacOS "aggregate devices" option.
This option might be extremely useful when using multiple e-drum modules to trigger VSTs.
Drivers for each individual device must be installed first, before using them in aggregate mode through ASIO4ALL.
Links
Using this option may result in MIDI timing issues, which may or may not be significant.
As the name implies this is a virtual MIDI cable and can be used to combine and route MIDI signal between applications.
Programs used to monitor an incoming MIDI signal. Useful for diagnostics.
The default MS Wavetable synth has ~100ms latency when playing MIDI (link). This can be overcome by using a different synth.
Sound fonts