[michielderhaeg]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but these days everyone usually sends MIDI over USB. It doesn't have any of the problems you described, every computer has USB ports in some form or another. Every operating system has default drivers for these devices, so they usually work out of the box. Yes, MIDI as a hardware standard is dying. But why should we care when we have something more universal that replaces it?

[damnfine]

Sure, but we need the physical layer. Somewhere between the 5 +1 pin DIN and the logic.

We need a standard to replace it becaue music should not nessitate the use of a seprate computer to communicate.

Beyond that I could dive in to the MIDI signaling standard itself, and why it is outdated for sending most types of relevant digital information using todays synthesis and controller technology.

[SeanLuke]

USB isn't optoisolated. This is its killer flaw as a replacement MIDI transport.

[photojosh]

It can be, see https://www.adafruit.com/product/2107

Surprised the high-end gear doesn't built it in!