Hi all,
I think it depends on what board you have whether or not the midi files need to be converted.

I had a KN5000 which would only display lyrics if the file (be it .mid or .kar) was converted to SMF 0

The Korg i40m module will play any file without conversion, recognising .mid or .kar files individually

Have just got the Roland EM2000 and that seems to recognise .kar files without the need for conversion.

Also (Ilija) I did come across a prog once that enabled you to put lyrics into midi files. It was shareware and from what I can remember worked quite effectively and was very easy to use. I will have a trawl round the net and see if I can find it if you are interested.

Tony