There are no issues with using MIDI in a DAW because of jitter: jitter is a problem of device drivers, hardware and badly implemented MIDI handling inside the DAW. It works remarkably well.
AFAIK it's only capable of 14 bit resolutions for things like modwheel. CC can only have 128 values, right?
Also, isn't it safe to say that by the nature of USB MIDI interfaces, they are not well suited for MIDI operation? As in: Since USB drivers buffer messages, it causes jitter. Is that correct? Are there USB MIDI interfaces / drivers that don't have these issues otherwise?
Added to that: MIDI is mostly used for interfacing with external hardware, and as such you're dependent on the external hardware's MIDI implementation, which isn't always superb to say the least unfortunately.
No, there are many parameters with 14 bit resolution. Precisely how many depends on exactly how you interpret the MIDI specification.On the order of 64, plus or minus depending.
Sure, USB interfaces might be problematic but it's very dependent on the precise hardware. My MOTU Ultralite AVB is basically unusable because of jitter; my MidiSport 2x2 (also USB) is extremely usable and has extremely low jitter. So you cannot make blanket statements about it being caused by using USB for MIDI.
I've been fantasizing a little about a new modular format, or at least a new category of synth controllers, taking advantage of the higher resolution of MIDI 2.0 for some modulation signals. I could be wrong, but I thought MIDI 2.0 was supposed to potentially be faster/more timing accurate too.
I'm not overtly familiar with MIDI 2.0, but from what I've heard it does fix most of the issues of the old MIDI. However, if you transport your messages over DIN ports, all bets are off.
You can also look at Open Sound Control, as it was once intended as a replacement for MIDI.
OSC has never, ever been even remotely close to being a replacement for MIDI.
Every MIDI message (well, almost every MIDI message) has a defined semantic associated with it. The receiver of the message might choose to reinterpret that, but the default semantic is still defined by the standard.
There is not a single standard OSC message. The only thing that is standardized in OSC is the format of a message. Both the receiver and sender have to agree to a specific set of messages, with a specific set of semantics.
Trivial example: you want a MIDI-driven synth to start playing middle C. You send it a MIDI NoteOn event with the note number 60. There is no equivalent for this with OSC, not even close. You must know precisely what messages the synth will accept and which ones will mean "start playing middle C".
OSC is cool but it isn't and almost certainly will never be a replacement for MIDI.
There are no issues with using MIDI in a DAW because of jitter: jitter is a problem of device drivers, hardware and badly implemented MIDI handling inside the DAW. It works remarkably well.