The basic terms that have different names depending on the synthesizer manufacturer are unified below on this site. Basically, it follows General MIDI Standard, but please note that it has its own interpretation and extension.
sound
The individual sound installed in the synthesizer.
Corresponds to the program of midi messages.
Some manufacturers call it a patch or tone. The sound number and sound name of each sound are inherited from those of each synthesizer.
sound type
The type of sound. There are two main types of sound:
・ Melodic sound
It is a tone that can play a scale with one tone.
・ Drums & percussion sound
A tone in which separate percussion instruments are assigned to the individual keys of the piano.
sound set
A collection of several sounds.
It’s different for each synthesizer, but it’s almost a “bank” of midi messages.
Since it is organized based on the control panel and functional restrictions, one sound set often contains a number of sounds such as 32, 64, and 128.
The General MIDI sound set on this site is one sound set consisting of 128 melodic sounds and one drums & percussion sound.
general group/group type
A group name that classifies the type according to the instrument that each sound simulates. It has a two-layered structure, with “group” at the top and “type” at the bottom. The name is based on the General MIDI sound set in principle, but there are some exceptions.
local group
The sound group unique to each synthesizer is inherited as it is.