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Topic starter
Korg x3 Workstation
I have a floppy disk with my .SNG files but my X3 floppy disk drive isn’t working.
I have songs on the floppy disk that I want to recover.
Is there any software that I could use to convert the .sng to Standard MIDI (*.mid) so I can load them into my sequencer (Cubase).
I would be grateful if someone could help me out with this,
Best regards,
Mike
Posted : 10/06/2025 10:10 am
Hey Mike, classic vintage gear woes! If your X3 floppy drive is dead, try using a USB floppy drive on your PC to copy the .SNG files. Once you have them on your computer, you’ll need a special tool to convert Korg’s .SNG to standard MIDI. There’s no official universal converter, but searching for Korg X3 editor software or community tools like sng-to-midi converters might help. You can also try importing SysEx data into Cubase if you can extract it. If nothing works, recording the MIDI output live from your X3 (if it powers up) is the last resort. Retro gear can be tricky, but the tunes are worth it!
Posted : 30/06/2025 5:09 am
Topic starter
Hi, thank you for replying. As you say there isn’t an official converter for the .sng to midi. I’ve tried every app I can find on the internet but none of them will do the conversion. It seems that the only way to do the conversion is with another X3. I have the .sng files on a floppy and backed up on my computer, but I cannot load them into the X3 because of the faulty floppy. I’ve had some quotes to replace the floppy with the usb floppy in the region of £500 which I cannot afford. I’m still hoping for a friendly X3 owner to do the conversion for me, I would be happy to pay for their time.
Best regards,
Mike.
Posted : 10/07/2025 2:37 am
Found an X3 for cheap with floppy drive problem. I figured I could just use sysex and bypass the floppy drive but the seller neglected to mention the faulty ...he guy told me that the floppy drives are no longer available for replacement. He was able to REPAIR the floppy drive, but said a new one wasn' ...
Diagnosis: The most common cause of this problem <a href=" removed link " target="_blank" rel="noopener">monkey type is simply trying to use the drive with no disk in it. It can also be caused by a problem with the drive itself or a bad disk. Recommendation: Make sure that there is a disk in the drive and that for a 5.25" drive, the drive door is closed. Ensure the internal mixer levels for each part are properly adjusted. Verify that the output routing isn't set exclusively to external outputs. Resetting the unit to factory settings can resolve configuration errors.
Posted : 17/07/2025 11:26 pm
Topic starter
Hi, thank you for replying. As you say there isn’t an official converter for the .sng to midi. I’ve tried every app I can find on the internet but none of them will do the conversion. It seems that the only way to do the conversion is with another X3. I have the .sng files on a floppy and backed up on my computer, but I cannot load them into the X3 because of the faulty floppy. I’ve had some quotes to replace the floppy with the usb floppy in the region of £500 which I cannot afford. I’m still hoping for a friendly X3 owner to do the conversion for me, I would be happy to pay for their time.
Best regards,
Mike.
Posted : 21/07/2025 2:49 am
Topic starter
Hi Nora, thank you for replying. I will follow your diagnosis advice and see if it resolves things.
Best regards
Mike
Posted : 02/08/2025 6:13 am
Mike, pretty sure Nora is a bot/spam.
But, I and a few other forum members have various old software that MIGHT be able to convert your SNG files to standard MIDI. Can you please place them all in a zip file and load them here as an attachment? We can test them and see if we can convert them for you.
The forums aren't what they used to be, so it may take a while to get a response. In the meantime, check out the older posts about SNG files and what we were/were not able to help with.
https://midi.org/community/midi-specifications/sng-files-from-voyetra-spg
Posted : 06/08/2025 9:56 am
Sema reacted
Topic starter
Hi Jason,
Thank you for replying !
I have attached the zipped .sng files. My former band members and I will be eternally grateful if its possible to convert them!
Thanks for the heads up about 'Nora' the bot!
Best regards,
Mike
Posted : 08/08/2025 10:41 am
Unfortunately, I am unable to open them with my software 😑 Hopefully someone else will be able to help out. (Congratulations, though, on providing the first batch of SNGs I can't help with 😋 )
Posted : 08/08/2025 12:40 pm
I'm doing some investigation, and did come across this adapter that lets you use a standard floppy drive as a replacement.
Posted : 08/08/2025 1:00 pm
Topic starter
Hi Jason,
Thank you for trying!
I did see this adapter and a usb version I asked a synth repair workshop and I was quoted approx £500 to do the repair which unfortunately I cannot afford. If I try myself I would probably wreck the whole synth!
Perhaps a Korg X3 owner would be kind enough to help me?
All the best,
Mike.
Posted : 08/08/2025 1:11 pm
Give these a shot. I'm not sure how accurate they are. I found a utility on another forum, it only runs on older versions of Windows. It appears to have converted your files, though I have no way to compare them to the originals. I've also included the utility, just in case. It is command line, and has additional options to convert by song number as well, since apparently the Korg SNG file can contain multiple songs. I just ran the basic conversion on each.
Found on this forum:
Posted : 08/08/2025 1:24 pm
Topic starter
Hi Jason,
Thank you so much for doing this! I will try them tomorrow first thing.
I’ll down the utility and see if I can do it.
Unfortunately I’m a computer dummy when it comes to command lines etc, so if you don’t mind I may need to ask you for further help?
Best regards,
Mike
Posted : 08/08/2025 1:35 pm
Topic starter
Hi Jason,
I have imported the midi files into Cubase and they have loaded perfectly!
Just trying out the different tracks.
Thank you so much for doing this!
Best regards,
Mike
Posted : 09/08/2025 4:28 am
