Troubleshooting

Common issues and their solutions.

Connection Issues

Connection Timeout

Symptoms: Claude reports timeout or cannot connect to Ableton.

Solutions:

1. Check Ableton is running - The MCP server needs Ableton Live open and running.

2. Verify AbletonOSC is enabled:

   • Open Preferences (Cmd+, / Ctrl+,)
   • Go to Link/Tempo/MIDI
   • Ensure AbletonOSC is selected under Control Surface

3. Check ports are free - Ports 11000 and 11001 must not be used by other apps:

   # macOS/Linux
   lsof -i :11000
   lsof -i :11001
    
   # Windows
   netstat -ano | findstr :11000

4. Restart both apps - Sometimes a clean restart of both Ableton and Claude fixes connection issues.

AbletonOSC Not in Control Surface List

Symptom: AbletonOSC doesn't appear in the dropdown.

Solutions:

1. Run the installer:

   remix-mcp install

2. Restart Ableton - Required after installing new Remote Scripts.

3. Check installation:

   remix-mcp status

4. Verify the path - Ensure the Remote Scripts folder exists:

   • macOS: ~/Music/Ableton/User Library/Remote Scripts/AbletonOSC/
   • Windows: %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Ableton\User Library\Remote Scripts\AbletonOSC\

Audio Issues

No Sound from MIDI Tracks

Symptom: MIDI notes are created but no audio plays.

Causes & Solutions:

1. Empty sampler loaded - Samplers need samples to make sound:

   # Use a synth instead
   load_default_instrument

2. Track not armed - The track may need to be armed for monitoring:

   arm_track(track_index)

3. Volume at zero - Check track and master volume:

   get_track_volume(track_index)
   set_track_volume(track_index, 0.85)

4. Track muted - Unmute the track:

   set_track_mute(track_index, false)

Synthesizers vs Samplers

Remember the difference:

Always prefer synthesizers for programmatic track creation.

Claude Configuration

Server Not Appearing in Claude

Claude Desktop:

1. Check config file location:

   • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
   • Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

2. Verify JSON syntax is valid

3. Restart Claude Desktop after config changes

Claude Code:

# List configured servers
claude mcp list
 
# Re-add if missing
claude mcp add ableton -- uvx remix-mcp

Tools Not Available

If Claude says it can't find Ableton tools:

1. Restart Claude completely
2. Check the server is properly configured
3. Verify remix-mcp is in your PATH or using full path

Still Having Issues?

1. Check remix-mcp status:

   remix-mcp status

2. Enable logging (for debugging):

   RUST_LOG=debug remix-mcp serve

3. Report an issue: GitHub Issues