Symptoms-first fixes for the problems beta users hit most. If none of these help, use Help → Check for Updates (fixes ship frequently during the beta) and report the issue — the version number at the top of the Help menu is the first thing to include.
Windows SmartScreen warning when installing
Beta builds are not yet code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen shows a blue “Windows protected your PC” warning on install. This is expected and safe: click More info, then Run anyway. On macOS, right-click the app and choose Open to bypass Gatekeeper the first time.
No sound
- Check Settings → Audio: is the right output device selected, and is the status dot green?
- Check the master fader and master mute in the mixer, and that the track itself is not muted (or another track soloed).
- Try a different driver type in Settings → Audio — a device claimed by another app can fail to start.
- If the device list looks stale (for example after plugging in headphones), reopen Settings → Audio to refresh it.
Crackling, pops or dropouts
Raise the buffer size in Settings → Audio — 512 samples or more. Crackling almost always means the buffer is too small for the current CPU load. Closing other heavy applications and plugging laptops into power also helps.
Nothing gets recorded
- Arm the track (Shift + its number, or the arm button) — only armed tracks record.
- Pick the right input in the track’s input dropdown, and confirm signal on the input meters in Settings → Audio. A “No input” pill on the track warns you before you capture silence.
- If the meters are dead, check the OS microphone permission (Windows: Settings → Privacy → Microphone; macOS: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone), then restart SmartGroove.
Sluggish response between playing and hearing
Switch the driver in Settings → Audio: ASIO (with an interface) or WASAPI are fast; the legacy MME driver adds around 100 ms on its own. Then lower the buffer size until just before crackling starts — 128–256 samples is a good target.
The AI assistant doesn’t answer
- Sign in via Settings → Account — the assistant needs your account.
- Check your credit balance there: with zero credits the AI features pause while the rest of the DAW keeps working.
- AI features need an internet connection; the DAW itself runs offline.
- If a message errors, wait a moment and try again — very rapid messaging can hit a temporary rate limit.
My plugins don’t show up
Open Settings → Plugins and check the scan paths include the folder your plugins are installed in, then rescan. SmartGroove hosts VST3 and CLAP plugins; other formats (VST2, AAX) will not appear. The Plugin Browser opens with B.
The window looks wrong or panels are missing
Panel sizes and collapsed zones are remembered between launches, so a collapsed layout comes back collapsed. View → Reset Layout restores the default arrangement of every zone.
Windows says I don’t have permission to save there
Windows is blocking SmartGroove from writing to that folder — usually Documents. The message offers to save somewhere else and mentions contacting an administrator, which is confusing on a personal machine where you already are one.
The usual cause is Controlled folder access, part of Windows Security’s ransomware protection. It stops apps it does not recognise from writing to Documents, Pictures and Desktop. Two ways forward:
- Save somewhere else. SmartGroove suggests a folder that works, and offers to keep using it for new projects.
- Or allow SmartGroove through: Windows Security → Virus & threat protection → Ransomware protection → Allow an app through Controlled folder access.
A OneDrive-redirected or company-managed Documents folder can behave the same way.
A project is missing from Open Recent
Entries marked (missing) point at a project that is no longer where it was — moved, renamed, deleted, or on a drive that is not connected. They stay listed but cannot be opened, so plugging the drive back in makes them work again.
If clicking a project reports that it was not found, it is removed from the list at that point. Use File → Open to browse to it if you moved it yourself.
The window went blank or grey
SmartGroove’s display process stopped. It offers to reload, which rebuilds the window without restarting the app — reopen your project from File → Open Recent afterwards. Anything changed since your last save is lost, which is worth knowing if you have been working for a while without saving.
If it happens more than once, use Help → Report a Problem. Describe what you were doing and press Send — SmartGroove attaches its own technical log of the session and gives you a short report ID to quote. Your account name, e-mail address and any saved credentials are removed before anything is sent.
SmartGroove crashed — is my project safe?
On the next launch SmartGroove offers to restore unsaved work from its crash recovery snapshot. Damaged or partially readable projects are never silently overwritten — SmartGroove loads what it can and offers to save under a new name so the original file stays intact. Projects live outside the app’s install folder, so updates and reinstalls never touch them.
Reporting a problem
Help → Report a Problem sends us what we need to investigate: your description of what happened, plus a technical log of the session. Your Windows account name, e-mail address and any saved credentials are stripped out before it leaves your machine, and nothing is sent until you press Send.
You get a short report ID — quote it if you follow up and we can find your report. If you are offline or signed out when you send, the report is kept and goes out automatically the next time SmartGroove starts while you are signed in.
Updates
SmartGroove checks for updates automatically and you can trigger a check any time with Help → Check for Updates. Your current version is shown at the top of the Help menu.