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Overview

Many elements have to come together and work correctly for any system to work. Our general approach to troubleshooting is to think about all of these elements and investigate them individually, eliminating each potential culprit one at a time.

For example, there are many reasons why a patch change pedal might not work correctly:

  • It’s plugged into the wrong pedal input on the keyboard
  • It’s not plugged in securely
  • The foot switch, cable, or input is physically damaged or dirty
  • The keyboard isn’t configured to send a MIDI signal when the pedal is pressed
  • The screen control isn’t correctly mapped or assigned in MainStage

Don’t forget to try restarting the computer. Oftentimes, something as simple as a reboot can solve a myriad of problems.

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Is the keyboard set up correctly?

Especially if you’re setting up this rig for the first time, you should check that your keyboard equipment is set up correctly.

  • Are all cables plugged into the correct ports?
  • Are all cables plugged in securely?

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Is it a hardware or software problem?

If you’re sure the keyboard is set up correctly, the most important question to answer is whether the problem is caused by hardware (external) or software (internal). This is often based on whether or not MainStage is receiving MIDI.

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If MainStage is receiving MIDI

If MainStage is receiving MIDI messages, the solution will likely be with the computer settings or MainStage’s configuration. Common issues are:

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If MainStage is not receiving MIDI

If MainStage isn’t receiving MIDI, nothing will work. There are many common reasons why MainStage might not receive MIDI input:

  • A cable is plugged into the wrong port (e.g., MIDI IN instead of OUT)
  • The cable isn’t securely plugged in
  • The cable is damaged
  • A defective USB hub
  • The audio interface requires additional drivers or software
  • A setting on the keyboard has disabled MIDI output

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Other common problems