MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is an industry-standard electronic communications protocol that enables electronic musical instruments, computers and other equipment to communicate, control and synchronize with each other in real time. MIDI does not transmit audio—it simply transmits digital data such as the pitch and intensity of musical notes to play, control signals for parameters such as volume, vibrato and panning, and clock signals to set the tempo.

MIDI allows computers, synthesizers, MIDI controllers, sound cards, samplers and drum machines to control one another, and to exchange system data. Though modern computer sound cards are MIDI-compatible and capable of creating realistic instrument sounds, the fact that sound cards' MIDI synthesizers have historically produced sounds of dubious quality has tarnished the image of a computer as a MIDI instrument. In fact, the MIDI specification itself has nothing to do with the quality of sound produced - this varies depending on the quality of sound card and/or samples used.

MIDI is almost directly responsible for bringing an end to the "wall of synthesizers" phenomenon in 1970s-80s rock music concerts, when keyboard instrument performers were sometimes hidden behind banks of various instruments. Following the advent of MIDI, many synthesizers were released in rack-mount versions, enabling performers to control multiple instruments from a single keyboard. Another important effect of MIDI has been the development of hardware and computer-based sequencers, which can be used to record, edit and play back performances.

Synchronization of MIDI sequences is made possible by the use of MIDI timecode, an implementation of the SMPTE time code standard using MIDI messages, and MIDI timecode has become the standard for digital music synchronization.



MIDI files are very powerful when compared to simple audio recordings, such as MP3 files or WMA files. Because MIDI files contain the information required to generate a song – you have far more flexibility with MIDI files. You can change the tempo, key, repeat sections, remove sections, change instruments, etc… Try doing that with an MP3 file!

For backing tracks or instrumental content – MIDI files are FAR more useful than simply trying to perform against MP3 s or audio recordings. For the pro audio enthusiast or professional, this flexibility is invaluable, and we believe our pricing provides for all the benefits you need at a very competitive price.



Absolutely! We’re pleased to offer a sliding pricing scale based on volume of purchase. Specifically:

Total Cart Price			Discount
$50 - $99			10%
$100 - $199			20%
$200 - $399			30%
$400 - $999			40%
Over $1000			50%

The demo files were recorded using a variety of equipment in Dave’s home studio. Specifically we used Cubase 4, with a Roland Fantom XR, Yamaha Motif-ES Rack, Korg Triton and his Pentium IV computer system. Note that due to the many thousands of demos HoofJaw.com has, the demo files were run through the system and recorded en masse. The demos give a good idea of the quality of the file, but the actual final performance quality will significantly improve with your own tweaking to tailor the file to the specific gear you have. If you want to know specifics, email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here.



We’re launching with an extensive library of thousands of professionally programmed MIDI files, and gradually converting the library over to include very high quality MP3 recordings of these files. These recordings will be made using professional quality gear and will sound AWESOME. The conversion to MP3 format will be based on demand (ie: top selling songs will be converted first) unless we hear from you! So, if you’re dying to hear/buy a song in MP3 format as a backing track email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here. and we’ll make sure that’s the next song that is rendered into MP3 format.

How do they work? Well, a MIDI file is fully flexible, but an MP3 file doesn’t require any MIDI hardware to playback – most computers and portable media players (Zunes, iPods, other MP3 players) can play them back natively. So, if you’d prefer not to invest in all the MIDI gear, you can just buy the MP3 version of the song and run with that.



For the time being we’re only acting as a distributor for professional MIDI file programmers – so if you’re one of those, email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here. However, we are working to introduce a “Marketplace” concept where anyone can upload their own MIDI file creations and offer them for sale on the site. More details to come – watch the HoofJaw Forums for news as it comes to hand!



Quality baby, quality! There are PLENTY of amateur MIDI file programmers out there, and lots of free stuff floating around the Internet. However – how can you guarantee that your downloads are virus free? How do you guarantee that you’re buying the best quality MIDI files online? How do you guarantee that you’re downloading legal MIDI files, and that the appropriate royalties and licenses are being paid? Simple – you buy from a professional. HoofJaw.com distributes content from professional MIDI file programmers such as Tran Whitley and pays the music licensing organizations for EVERY file sold.

When you purchase from HoofJaw.com you know you’re buying legal, top notch MIDI content programmed by the best in the business.



Not yet. We hope to move in that direction however, since many mobile phones play back MIDI files PLUS we’re gradually converting our entire library over to MP3 as well. Check the HoofJaw.com Forums for news as we roll out new features such as ringtones.



Sure – purchase them online and burn them to CD in your CD-R burner :) We don’t sell CD-ROM’s of MIDI files, however if you have a large purchase and downloading them individually is going to cause problems, we can always help. email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here to get assistance – we’ll do all we can to help.



You get three downloads of the songs you’ve bought – and then you’ll be unable to download them any further from the site. This is to allow you to re-download tracks that you’ve bought but lost. However, after three times losing tracks – you’re gonna need to figure out a way to keep better track of your purchases. But seriously – if you need access to them after already downloading them three times – email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here and we’ll figure something out for you.



We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and Paypal.



Absolutely! Our credit card system will allow you to purchase from any region provided you have a Visa card, a Mastercard, a Discover card, a American Express card, or a Paypal account. Since there is no shipping or handling, our purchase experience is very quick and very easy.



You sure can. On the Music page, you’ll see a link to request a song not found. When you make such a request, we’ll pass it on to our content providers and encourage them to consider developing it. Should you specifically wish to hire one of our content providers to develop a MIDI file for you – email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here.



Absolutely – although much of the content on our Resources page is user generated. email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here with your requests, or if you have utilities, scripts, patches or tools you’d like added to the page.



We’re located in Seattle, Washington, USA. Our offices are in Kirkland, WA – a suburb of Seattle, while the two servers running the HoofJaw site are located downtown in Seattle, WA. If you’re staying in the Westin Hotel in Seattle, you’ll be within a block of our servers.



You bet. Go to the “Site Suggestions” section of the Forums (http://www.hoofjaw.com/forums/Forum144-1.aspx) and put your suggestion there. Both Jeff and Dave read the Forums daily, and will be happy to respond to your suggestion.



Easy – when you’re purchasing MIDI files from our site, you’ll be asked to click a checkbox to be added to our mailing list. You can also go to “About Us” and there’ll be a link to add yourself there too. Don’t worry – we won’t spam you or sell our mailing list to ANYONE – so the only mail you’ll get from us will be the newsletter. Also, you’re able to unsubscribe at any time.



Jon (owner of MIDI.com): Yeah, it's a real good thing. MIDI.com needed a fresh injection of energy, talent, design, and content. And when the guys from HoofJaw.com approached me to look at a collaboration and partnership, it became clear that Dave & Jeff had exactly what MIDI.COM needed.

As you'll soon see for yourself, HoofJaw.com is committed to creating a fun, interactive, and valuable MIDI experience for you and all of your musical friends and colleagues.



For well over a decade now, MIDI.com has been the Internet’s premiere destination for MIDI files, information, and related resources. At the very height of the MIDI phenomenon, MIDI.com was one of the web’s most popular destinations.

We started HoofJaw.com with the goal of becoming the web’s top resource for MIDI and pro audio enthusiasts (and professionals). By providing an interactive forum, professionally programmed and competitively priced MIDI files, high quality MP3 backing tracks, and a growing library of pro audio resources, we aim to be THE go-to web destination for discerning computer audio and MIDI enthusiasts.

Jon at MIDI.com has long had a similar goal, and so it was only natural with the alignment that we obviously shared, that we should meet. We’re thrilled that Jon has elected to power his MIDI.com site with the HoofJaw.com backend technology – enabling the tens of thousands of MIDI.com customers who visit that site weekly to share in the HoofJaw experience.



Actually the name is kinda made up. It is super hard to get a good domain name these days, so often you just need to make your own. We wanted the name to be able to be used as a verb, to be two syllables, to have two consecutive o's - following in the success of other websites such as Yahoo, Google, Woot, etc... Also the name was conceived at a time (over a year ago) when we were looking at doing something with Weedshare - the music sharing mechanism. HoofJaw is a type of Australian weed and so it was appropriate for that effort. When that potential deal fell through, we kept the name and toyed with a bunch of ideas before launching the HoofJaw.com that you know and love today!


Any other questions that we didn’t answer here? Post a message in the HoofJaw Forums (which Dave and Jeff read on a daily basis), or email the HoofJaw Staff from our contact page Here and we’ll be sure to respond as quickly as we can.

Thanks for stopping by!

(HoofJaw Founders)