Manual contents

Troubleshooting

Work through the check that matches what you see. If none of them resolves it, collect the diagnostic log described at the end of this page and email hello@jelly.audio.

PhaseLock does not appear in the DAW

  1. Confirm that the installed format matches the host: AAX for Pro Tools, AU for Logic Pro or GarageBand, VST3 for a VST3 host.
  2. Quit and reopen the DAW.
  3. Run a full plugin rescan.
  4. Confirm that the plugin exists in the standard folder listed under Installation.

For Pro Tools on macOS, quit Pro Tools, remove its installed-plugin cache at ~/Library/Preferences/Avid/Pro Tools/InstalledAAXPlugIns, and reopen Pro Tools to force a rescan.

A plugin update didn’t take effect

On Windows, an open DAW keeps the previous version of PhaseLock loaded until it is restarted. After installing an update, quit your DAW completely and reopen it so the new version loads.

Analyze says Waiting for Play

PhaseLock is armed and waiting for the DAW transport. Press Play. If you do not want to analyze, click ANALYZE again to disarm.

Analysis stopped too soon

PhaseLock received less than one second of usable playback. Move the playhead earlier, click Analyze, and let the transport run longer.

Transport jumped or looped during analysis

A loop that wraps mid-analysis seals at the loop point and analyzes what played before it, as long as at least a second played. Forward jumps and seeks abort the run.

If a run aborts, place the playhead before the section and run Analyze again without seeking forward. If a loop was too short to play a second, lengthen it or disable looping.

A track was not analyzed

Check that:

  • PhaseLock is inserted and enabled on the track.
  • The track is active and the DAW is sending audio to its insert.
  • The track belongs to the intended group.
  • The instance uses the same sample rate as the others.
  • The instance was connected before Analyze began.

Run Analyze again after correcting the setup. One failed group does not prevent independent groups from completing.

Analysis was invalidated by a sample-rate change

Run Analyze again. Offsets, filters, and display data measured at the old sample rate are not reused at the new rate.

Analyze says it needs at least two channels

Analyze counts lanes in unlocked groups only. If the tracks you want measured sit in a locked group, click its padlock to unlock it and run Analyze again. See Locking a group.

A group is over the lane limit

group _n_: 66/64 lanes - use MONO or move lanes [PL-C26] means that one group has more than 64 effective analysis lanes. A stereo instance counts as two lanes; an instance in MONO mode counts as one, even when the DAW track is stereo. Set suitable mono sources to MONO, or move some tracks to another group and analyze again. Each group has its own 64-lane limit.

The result sounds worse

  1. Compare at the same monitor level.
  2. Bypass Time Alignment and listen with Phase Coherence only.
  3. Check that the chosen Phase Reference represents the sound you want to preserve.
  4. Confirm that unrelated microphones are in separate groups.
  5. Set the MODE to LINKED on true stereo pairs.
  6. Check manual polarity overrides and return them to Use Auto if uncertain.
  7. Reset manual offsets.
  8. Analyze a section with clearer, more representative material.

Phase alignment changes how microphones combine. A numerically higher coherence value does not guarantee the preferred creative result.

Offset is over budget

The plugin corrects offsets within a 50 ms range in either direction. An Over Budget lane requires more movement than the real-time plugin can apply.

Check for an incorrect reference, unrelated tracks, an uncompensated edit, or mismatched routing. If the large difference is real, correct the edit or timing in the DAW before analyzing again.

Activation failed

Check the full message in the activation window. Retype or paste an unrecognized key, deactivate an old machine when the activation limit is reached, or reconnect before retrying a network error. See Activation and license management.

If PhaseLock worked offline and later requests activation, its offline window may have elapsed. Connect the computer to the internet and reopen PhaseLock.

Collecting the diagnostic log

PhaseLock writes a small rotating log containing capture start, completion, and failure details:

  • macOS: ~/Library/Logs/PhaseLock/plugin.log
  • Windows: %APPDATA%\PhaseLock\plugin.log

The previous log may appear as plugin.log.1.

Sending a useful support report

Open the ? menu in the header and choose Copy Diagnostics to put a summary of the items below on the clipboard, then paste it into your email.

Include:

  • Operating system version
  • DAW name and version
  • PhaseLock version and plugin format
  • Session sample rate
  • Number of PhaseLock instances and groups
  • The complete status line, including any [PL-Cxx] code
  • Steps that reproduce the problem
  • plugin.log and plugin.log.1, when available

Do not send the DAW session or audio files unless support asks for them. Do not include your full license key in the report.