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Connect your instrument with your laptop PC / Mac
Connect your instrument with your laptop PC / Mac

Having trouble being heard by your device? Connect your instrument to your computer via cable for a nearly perfect recognition of notes.

Julian avatar
Written by Julian
Updated over a week ago

Does your laptop or PC/Mac have trouble hearing you play piano? You can connect your instrument to your computer with a cable for almost perfect note recognition.

Connecting your instrument to your laptop or computer will ensure better note recognition, since computers often process digital data more precisely than acoustic data.

You can run flowkey in its web app directly on your computer, no download required. We recommend using the Google Chrome browser, as it supports our MIDI software the best and automatically detects connected devices with ease.

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR WINDOWS 10

The MIDI connection works best when the latest Edge browser is used. On Windows devices only one MIDI application can be used.

To use MIDI with flowkey, please deactivate all other apps (like Logic, Ableton, Native Instruments etc.) that use MIDI.

If you have a MIDI controller that needs an additional software to create the piano sound, please use the MIDI sound that we offer in our browser app. You find it in the MIDI settings by clicking on the cogwheel icon in the upper right-hand corner in a song.

Instrument + PC / Mac

Most digital instruments have either a USB TO HOST or MIDI ports to connect to other devices.

If your instrument has a USB TO HOST (USB-B) port:

Step 1a)

You will need a USB TYPE A to USB TYPE B cable. You need a USB 2.0 cable for this.

Connect the USB B end to your instrument’s "TO HOST" port.

Proceed with Step 2.

If your instrument has MIDI ports:

Step 1b)

You will need a MIDI to USB cable/adapter.

Connect the splitting MIDI end of the cable to your instrument. Proceed with Step 2.

Step 2) Open any song or lesson within the web app to reach the flowkey player.

Step 3) Connect the cable that is already connected to your instrument (Step 1) to your computer by plugging in the USB A end of the cable into your device’s USB port.*

Step 4) If your instrument isn’t detected automatically, click on the cog wheel icon (⚙) in the top right corner to reach the settings.

Open "Microphone & MIDI Settings" to establish a connection manually.

  • If your computer does not have a USB port, you will need a compatible adapter.

NOTE: If your computer doesn't recognize the MIDI connection automatically, restart the Google Chrome browser while the instrument is connected to your device.

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