Official Connectors for MIDI 2.0 Data Streams

This article provides an overview of the physical connectors officially recognized and utilized for transmitting MIDI 2.0 data streams. Unlike legacy MIDI, which was originally tied to a specific hardware port, MIDI 2.0 is designed as a transport-agnostic protocol built on the Universal MIDI Packet (UMP) format. Below is an explanation of the standard physical interfaces adopted by the MIDI Association for modern MIDI 2.0 communication.

USB (Universal Serial Bus)

USB is the primary and most widely adopted physical transport for MIDI 2.0. The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), in collaboration with the MIDI Association, released the USB-MIDI 2.0 Device Class Specification to enable bidirectional high-speed MIDI communication.

The officially supported USB physical connector types include:

• USB Type-C: The current standard interface for modern computers, mobile devices, and audio hardware, offering high bandwidth, power delivery, and bidirectional data transmission.
• USB Type-A and Type-B: Standard connectors found on legacy hosts and peripheral devices, fully compatible with USB-MIDI 2.0 specifications over standard USB 2.0 High-Speed and Full-Speed physical layers.

Ethernet (802.3 / RJ45)

Network MIDI 2.0 establishes an official transport layer for passing Universal MIDI Packets over local area networks. The standard physical connector for wired implementations is the 802.3 RJ45 Ethernet connector.

Ethernet provides low latency, massive bandwidth, and the ability to route bidirectional MIDI 2.0 data streams over long distances in studio and stage environments without the cable-length limitations of USB.

Legacy Hardware: 5-Pin DIN and TRS (3.5mm / 2.5mm)

The MIDI Association maintains backward compatibility with traditional MIDI 1.0 hardware interfaces through MIDI Capability Inquiry (MIDI-CI). While these connectors were designed for the original 31.25 kbit/s unidirectional transport, they are officially recognized in hybrid environments:

• 5-Pin DIN: The traditional circular connector. Because MIDI 2.0 requires bidirectional communication for discovery and negotiation (MIDI-CI), hardware requires both an "In" and an "Out" port connected simultaneously to negotiate and exchange supported MIDI 2.0 features.
• TRS Connectors (3.5mm and 2.5mm Type-A): Standardized compact connectors used primarily on modern, portable hardware. Like 5-Pin DIN, these serial connections can support MIDI-CI negotiation when configured for bidirectional communication.

MIDI 2.0 does not introduce a new, proprietary physical connector. Instead, the protocol relies on existing industry-standard digital interfaces—primarily USB and RJ45 Ethernet—to deliver high-speed, bidirectional communication.