ShowMIDI
By Uwyn
ShowMIDI is an open-source, multi-platform GUI application that visualizes MIDI activity for music producers and audio engineers.
The App DNA
What makes this app unique?
The app removes the cognitive friction of wading through raw MIDI logs by providing a real-time, glanceable snapshot of active ports, channels, and message types.
For Music producers, audio engineers, and developers who need to monitor and debug MIDI activity in real-time.
What does it look like?
Key features
Functions as an AUv3 plugin within DAWs to monitor MIDI data directly inside audio sessions.
Visualizes active MIDI ports, channels, and message types in a glanceable interface.
Pauses the flow of MIDI activity to inspect specific data states.
How much does it cost?
ShowMIDI is distributed as a free, open-source tool with no visible monetization or gated features.
Velocity
Dormant developmentUX improvementsShow more...
ShowMIDI has been inactive for 839 days, indicating a complete cessation of development. The latest release focused on technical refinements for RPN and NRPN handling, but no updates have followed. Given the lack of activity for well over a year, the app is classified as a zombie project.
Who built it?
Uwyn
4 apps tracked · Music
MIDI Tape Recorder
Glinster
MidiWrist UnleashedUser Sentiment
What do users think recently?
Review voice lately leans thrilled. Users appreciate visualizing midi events in real time provides essential diagnostic clarity for developers and musicians and human readable display for standardized rpns simplifies complex midi data interpretation for technical users.
How are ratings & reviews evolving?
What users say, by theme
- Visualizing MIDI events in real time provides essential diagnostic clarity for developers and musicians
- Human readable display for standardized RPNs simplifies complex MIDI data interpretation for technical users
- Incomplete event history registration for repeated key presses prevents accurate monitoring of rapid MIDI input
7 of 7 recent reviews analyzed · limited sample · Thrilled overall
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Access the full report for freeCompetition
Competitive landscape for ShowMIDI
How's the Music market?
ShowMIDI occupies a specialized diagnostic niche in the Music category, maintaining a 4.83 rating across 18 total ratings. The lack of updates for over 840 days signals a maintenance-mode posture that contrasts with the active, iterative nature of professional DAW-compatible tools.
Read the market outlookThe rivals identified
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Access the full report for freeThe Analyst's Read
Key takeaways for ShowMIDI
Where is it heading?
The MIDI diagnostic market is consolidating around tools that offer deep DAW integration, making ShowMIDI's AUv3 support a significant, albeit aging, advantage. Without a return to a regular update cadence, ShowMIDI risks being displaced by newer, actively maintained utilities that can keep pace with evolving OS and DAW standards.
- The 27-month development silence suggests the project is in maintenance mode, which increases the risk of incompatibility with future DAW updates.
- High user satisfaction with the core visualization engine indicates that the existing feature set remains highly relevant for MIDI diagnostic workflows.
The SWOT
- AUv3 plugin architecture enables direct MIDI monitoring within professional DAW workflows
- Optional logging panel would allow users to track MIDI messages without cluttering the main interface
Next best moves
Audit event registration logic because rapid key presses fail to log correctly → improve diagnostic reliability
The counter-intuitive read
The lack of updates is not just a maintenance failure…
Read the full takeBottom line
ShowMIDI provides essential diagnostic clarity for MIDI troubleshooting, but the lack of active development threatens its long-term viability as a professional tool. Addressing the logging limitations for rapid input would solidify its utility, provided the developer resumes a maintenance cadence.
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Access the full report for freeFAQ
Is ShowMIDI free to use?
Does ShowMIDI work inside my DAW?
Is ShowMIDI still being updated?
Sources
- [1] App Store
- [2] Developer website, source
Report last updated