ShowRecorder
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Troubleshooting

Find your problem below. Each fix is a few steps, in the order to try them.

The iPhone doesn't see the mixer

The record screen says why the meters are empty and Record is dimmed. Start with its message:

  • "No audio interface. Plug in the Mixer's USB cable." Go to the steps below.
  • "Choose the audio interface in Settings." Open Settings and choose the mixer under Recording > Audio interface.
  • "Microphone access is off." Tap Open Settings and allow microphone access for ShowRecorder.
  • "Disarmed after 30 minutes idle." or "The input didn't start." Tap Arm.

If there is no audio interface:

  1. Check the cable. The mixer's USB port is a USB-B port, so use a USB-B to USB-C cable into your iPhone or iPad. Try a second cable: some cables only charge.
  2. Take out the hub. Plug the mixer straight into the iPhone or iPad. If the meters come alive, the hub is the problem: use a powered USB-C hub with power pass-through and a data port. See USB cable and setup.
  3. Check that the mixer is class-compliant. ShowRecorder records any class-compliant USB mixer or audio interface, one that needs no driver. If yours has a mode for a driver or for a computer, switch it to class-compliant mode (the maker's manual says how).
  4. Check the Audio interface. Open Settings and look under Recording > Audio interface. If more than one input is plugged in, choose the mixer.

Fewer USB Channels than expected

Settings > Recording shows the count under Sample rate. The mixer decides how many USB Channels it sends: an XR18 or MR18 sends 18, and an X32 or M32 (beta) sends 32. The XR12 and XR16 send no multichannel USB audio, so they can't be multitracked this way.

  1. Open Settings > Recording and read the count under Sample rate.
  2. If a banner says only some channels are coming in, choose the mixer under Audio interface.
  3. If the count is right but a channel is silent, check the mixer's USB routing. On an XR18 the default is USB 1 to 16 carrying input channels 1 to 16, and USB 17 and 18 carrying the aux return. A USB Channel carries whatever the mixer routes to it.

For the limits on each plan, see Free, 14-day Trial and Pro.

Mixer Link won't connect

The Mixer Link only gives your files their channel names and colors. Recording doesn't need it: without it, Stems are named by USB Channel number.

  1. Join the mixer's network. The XR18 and MR18 have their own Wi-Fi: join it. The X32 and M32 have no Wi-Fi of their own: plug a Wi-Fi router into the mixer's Ethernet port and join the router's network. Your iPhone or iPad must be on the same network as the mixer.
  2. Allow Local Network. In the iOS Settings app, open Privacy & Security > Local Network and turn it on for ShowRecorder. If iOS just asked, tap Find Mixers again.
  3. Type the address. Under Settings > Mixer Link, enter the mixer's IP address in Mixer IP address and tap Connect, for example 10.0.0.20.
  4. Check the network. The Mixer Link sends UDP to port 10024 on an XR18 or MR18, and to port 10023 on an X32 or M32. A firewall, or a network that keeps devices from talking to each other (a guest network, for one), stops the mixer from answering. Use the mixer's own Wi-Fi, or a router that lets devices reach each other.

What the messages mean:

  • "Not on a Wi-Fi or Ethernet network." Join the mixer's network.
  • "No Mixer answered." Steps 1, 2 and 4.
  • "No Mixer answered at…" after you typed an address. Check the address and that the mixer is on.

The Drive isn't seen or is too slow

If the Drive isn't seen:

  1. Plug it into a data port on your hub, or straight into the iPhone or iPad.
  2. Open Settings > Storage and tap Choose Drive Folder…. If the drive doesn't show in the list of places, ShowRecorder can't use it yet.
  3. Format the drive as exFAT or APFS. A drive formatted for Windows (NTFS) is read-only on an iPhone or iPad.
  4. If a message says "ShowRecorder can't write to…", the folder is read-only. Tap Change Drive Folder… and choose a folder on a drive that isn't read-only.
  5. If it says "The Drive folder … isn't available.", connect the drive or choose the folder again.

If the Drive is too slow:

The Drive has to keep up with the recording: about 2.6 MB/s for 18 channels at 48 kHz, and about 4.6 MB/s for 32. A drive that can't keep up loses some audio, but recording carries on to the Device. The lost stretch is a Gap in the Drive Copy, and after the Take Repair fills it from the Device Copy.

  1. Use an SSD: it works best.
  2. Run Settings > Run Soundcheck before the show. It tests every Copy.

TestFlight won't install

  1. Install TestFlight. If you don't have it, the link takes you to the App Store to install Apple's TestFlight app first.
  2. Tap Accept, then Install. Go back to the link if you left it. The beta needs iOS 26 on an iPhone 15 or later, or an iPad on iPadOS 26.
  3. Builds expire. A TestFlight build expires after 90 days. Install the newest build from TestFlight to carry on.

How much recording time is left

18 channels at 48 kHz use about 9.3 GB per hour. Settings > Storage and the chips on the record screen show the time left on the Device and the Drive.

ShowRecorder keeps 60 seconds of space free on each Copy. If one Copy runs short, it stops cleanly and the other keeps going. If the last Copy runs short, the Take ends and is saved.

Battery or heat warnings

  • "Battery at … and not charging." Plug in through a powered USB-C hub.
  • "The device is running hot" or "very hot". Move it into the shade, let air reach it and take it out of any case.

Audio input was interrupted

The banner names the cause when the system says what it is:

  • A call, Siri or another app, or no reason given. The general message: "Audio input was interrupted (a call, Siri or another app)."
  • "The built-in microphone was muted." Closing an iPad's Smart Folio mutes the built-in microphone. Open it, or record from an external interface.
  • "The audio input was disconnected." Check the connection.

The Take stays open, but nothing is recorded until input comes back. The missing stretch is kept as silence of the exact length with a Dropout, so every file stays in sync.

A setting is dimmed

The Audio interface, Pre-roll, Drive and Mixer Link can't be changed during a Take.

Where the files are, and into your DAW

  1. Find them. Tap Shows on the record screen, or open the Files app: On My iPhone > ShowRecorder > Shows (or On My iPad). Each Show has a folder for each Take, with one WAV file per channel.
  2. Send them. Tap Shows, then Share on a Show to AirDrop the whole folder. If you record to a Drive, plug it into your computer: the Drive Copy has the same layout.
  3. Open them. Open the Show's .RPP file in Reaper, or drag the Stems into any DAW and drop them in at the same point: they all start at the same sample, so they line up.

More about the folder, the Stems and the Reaper project: Opening a Show in Reaper or your DAW.

Still stuck? Contact Support.