Troubleshooting & FAQ
This guide covers what actually goes wrong with The Ultimate Piano: no sound, a MIDI keyboard that is not recognised, notes arriving late, a display that looks off. Most of it comes down to the browser rather than the app, and nearly every case here has a short fix. If yours is not listed, reloading the page or clearing the cache settles a good share of the rest.
Many issues relate to browser support for the Web MIDI API, which connects your MIDI keyboard to the app. Chrome, Edge and Opera support it directly. Safari does not; on iPad and Mac, the free MIDIWeb Browser passes your keyboard through to the web instead.
On this page
Troubleshooting Audio Issues
No sound when playing keys
1. Click into the page first – Browsers keep a page silent until you have clicked or pressed a key on it. Click anywhere in the app, then play again.
2. Check the Audio Mixer – The speaker icon in the header opens the Audio Mixer with Master, Piano and Player. A crossed-out speaker means the master volume is muted or at zero; a small dot on the icon means one of the rows is muted. See Piano Audio.
3. Check your system volume – Make sure your computer is not muted and the right audio output device is selected.
4. Give the sound a moment to load – The piano sound is loaded when the app starts; on a slow connection the first notes can take a few seconds.
Audio has noticeable delay (latency)
Measure first: Settings → MIDI → Run Audio & MIDI Check measures every stage from your keyboard to the sound and rates the result — below 20 ms as excellent, below 30 ms as good. To shorten the delay:
- Use your keyboard's built-in sound – mute the Piano row in the Audio Mixer and listen to your keyboard's own speakers
- Use a DAW with ASIO – route MIDI through a virtual cable to professional audio software
See Optimizing Audio Latency for detailed setup instructions.
Piano sound fails to load
- Check your internet connection – the sound is loaded from our server
- Reload the page – an interrupted download starts again
- Clear the browser cache – a damaged cached file is fetched fresh
- Try Chrome or Edge – if another browser keeps failing
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MIDI Issues
MIDI keyboard not detected
Browser support:
Step by step:
1. Switch MIDI on – In Settings → MIDI, turn on MIDI on/off. It is off until you switch it on.
2. Allow MIDI access – When your browser asks whether the site may use MIDI devices, allow it.
3. Check the connection – Make sure the cable or MIDI interface is securely connected and the keyboard is switched on.
4. Look at the device list – MIDI devices in Settings → MIDI lists every keyboard the browser sees; tick the one you want to use. A keyboard you plug in later is detected automatically.
5. Click Refresh – If your keyboard does not appear, click Refresh below the list.
6. Try a different USB port – Some ports or hubs cause connection problems.
MIDI device shows "Disconnected"
A yellow dot and the label Disconnected next to a ticked device mean the keyboard was unplugged or switched off. Plug it back in or switch it on — the app reconnects on its own and the dot turns green.
MIDI keyboard plays but no sound
1. Check the Audio Mixer – Master and Piano must not be muted
2. Play a little harder – the app follows your keyboard's velocity, so very soft key presses sound very quiet
3. MIDI channel – The Ultimate Piano listens on all channels, so the channel setting of your keyboard does not matter
MIDI access blocked
If Settings → MIDI shows MIDI access is blocked in your browser, your browser is set to block MIDI for this site. To fix:
1. Click the icon to the left of the web address in your browser
2. Find MIDI in the permissions list and change it to Allow
3. Reload the page
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Account & Sign-In Issues
Cannot sign in
- Check your email and password – make sure both are typed correctly
- Forgot your password? – Click the person icon in the header, then Forgot password?. The app sends you a login code by email; enter it and choose a new password. See Account.
Login code or password email not arriving
- Check your spam folder
- Make sure you entered the email address you used at checkout
- Click Send a new code — the button works again one minute after the last code was sent
- If it still doesn't arrive, contact support (see Still Need Help? below)
Settings not syncing across devices
- Make sure you are signed in with the same account on all devices
- Reload the page
- Check your internet connection
- Sign out and sign in again — your settings are loaded fresh when you sign in
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Display & Layout Issues
Keys appear too small or too large
- Resize your browser window – the keyboard adapts to the available space
- Check the browser zoom – press Ctrl+0 (Cmd+0 on Mac) to reset it to 100%
- Change the visible range – Settings → General → Start octave and Octaves (1–8): fewer octaves make the keys larger
Score notation not showing
- Switch the score on – Settings → Display → Score & Chords → Show score (see Score for all options)
- Play some notes – the score shows the notes you are playing
Layout looks off after resizing
Reload the page after a large change of the window size.
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Tablet & Touch Issues
Screen shows "Please Rotate Your Device"
The Ultimate Piano needs landscape orientation on tablets to show the keyboard at full width — rotate your tablet. Phones are too small: on a phone the app shows a notice asking you to switch to a tablet or computer.
Touch response feels delayed
- Touch screens usually respond more slowly than a MIDI keyboard
- For serious practice, a MIDI keyboard on a computer — or on an iPad with the MIDIWeb Browser — gives the most direct response
- Close other apps running in the background
Keyboard doesn't fit on screen
- Rotate to landscape mode
- Reduce the visible range in Settings → General → Octaves
- Use the browser's fullscreen mode so the address bar doesn't take up space
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Player Issues
MIDI file won't load
- Check the file type – the MIDI Player opens
.midand.midifiles - The file may be damaged – try a different MIDI file
Video not loading
The Video Player tells you what went wrong:
- Invalid YouTube URL – check that you pasted a complete YouTube link
- This video is unavailable – it may have been removed or set to private
- The owner of this video does not allow it to be played outside YouTube – choose a different video
- YouTube could not be loaded – an ad blocker or network filter may be blocking it; pause it for this site and reload
Audio file won't play
- Supported formats – MP3, WAV, OGG, FLAC, M4A, AAC, AIFF and MP4
- Unusual encoding – if a file in one of these formats still won't play, convert it to MP3 or WAV and try again
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Performance Issues
App is slow or laggy
1. Close other browser tabs – frees memory and processor time
2. Disable browser extensions – some extensions slow pages down
3. Turn on hardware acceleration – in your browser's settings
4. Try Chrome or Edge
5. Check your device – other programs running at the same time compete for memory and processor
Falling notes stutter
- Make the browser window smaller
- Close other applications
- Switch off the score if you don't need it (Settings → Display → Score & Chords → Show score)
- On laptops, check that the device isn't overheating
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which browser avoids most MIDI issues?
Chrome, Edge and Opera work best — they connect MIDI keyboards directly and offer every feature. Safari plays sound but has no MIDI support; on iPad and Mac, the MIDIWeb Browser adds it. Firefox asks you to allow a site permission add-on before it connects a MIDI keyboard.
Can I use The Ultimate Piano offline?
No. The Ultimate Piano runs in your browser and needs an internet connection — to load the app and the piano sound and to keep your settings and cloud library in sync. There is no offline mode.
Does it work on iPad/iPhone?
On iPad yes, on iPhone no. The app needs a tablet-sized screen or larger, so it runs on iPad and Android tablets:
- Landscape required – Portrait mode shows a rotate hint
- Touch play – Use the virtual keys on screen
- MIDI keyboards need a special browser – Safari, Chrome and Firefox on iPadOS all run on WebKit, which has no Web MIDI API, so switching between them doesn't help. The free MIDIWeb Browser passes your MIDI keyboard through to the web: install it, open The Ultimate Piano in it, and your keyboard is detected — signing in works there too. Our thanks to 5of12 for building it.
Phones are too small — on a phone the app shows a notice asking you to switch to a tablet or computer. On a desktop or laptop, Chrome, Edge and Opera support MIDI keyboards directly.
I bought a license but cannot sign in. What now?
Click the person icon in the header, then Forgot password?, and enter the email address you used at checkout. You receive a login code by email; enter it and choose a password. See Account for details.
How do I cancel my subscription?
Open Settings → License and click Manage License — the Paddle customer portal opens, where you can cancel. See License & Pricing.
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New to The Ultimate Piano? Start with the Getting Started guide.
Still Need Help?
If your issue isn't covered here:
1. Reload the page – many issues are gone after a reload
2. Clear the browser cache – removes damaged cached files
3. Try a private window – rules out problems caused by extensions
4. Update your browser – make sure you are on the latest version
For anything else, open Settings and click Support at the top of the window — it opens a message form that reaches us directly. For sound or MIDI problems, run Settings → MIDI → Run Audio & MIDI Check first: Copy Report gives you a report you can add to your message.
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