Troubleshooting

Something not working? Find it below. If it isn't here, write to support@newtco.app with your device and what happened.

No sound

• Nothing plays until you tap a song, station or track. Opening Music only shows a source.
• Check the device volume and where the sound goes (speaker, headphones, AirPlay). Nebula plays even when the iPhone's silent switch is on, like other music apps.
• On iPhone and iPad, unplugging headphones or losing a Bluetooth speaker pauses the music. Tap play to go on.
• With the Microphone or This Mac Nebula only listens; the sound comes from the room or the Mac, not from Nebula.
• A radio station can be off the air. See Radio won't play.

The picture doesn't move with the music

• With the microphone, check that Nebula has microphone access (below). The sections, builds and drops stay at 0 with the microphone and This Mac, so cables from Song structure do nothing there. See How Nebula hears a song.
• Open Layers and check that the layers aren't hidden (a dark, gray picture with a slashed eye) and that no other layer is set to Solo.
• If a layer's Opacity is low, or an upper layer covers it (Normal blend), the layers below can't be seen. Try Screen or Add.
• In Settings › Display, a high Calmer flashes setting slows sudden changes on purpose.
• If your device asks for reduced motion, the default scene is calmer.

Radio won't play

• Radio needs the internet. If you are offline the list may be empty.
• When a station fails, Nebula says why in a short note: the station didn't answer, the station is offline, the station is gone or no internet connection. Stations come and go; try another one, or tap the star on the ones that work for you.
• Radio starts a few seconds late on purpose. A bar shows the wait and Play now skips it. Pick the wait in Settings › Playback › Radio buffer.
• The parental lock limits Radio and Indie to saved stations and tracks. If the lists look short, a bar at the top says the lock is on.
• Talk, news and sport stations are left out on purpose.

Stutter, heat and battery

Try these in order. All are in Settings › Performance.

1. Resolution. Lower it to 75% or 50%. This helps most on big screens.
2. Max FPS. 30 uses far less power than 60 or 120.
3. 30 FPS on battery and Auto frame rate: both draw fewer frames when it won't be noticed.
4. Use fewer layers. Each layer is drawn every frame.
5. Turn on the Performance overlay to see frames a second and processor and graphics use in the corner.

With 30 FPS on battery on, Nebula draws 30 frames a second when unplugged or in Low Power Mode. Auto sleep stops the visuals after a while on battery (never while charging, or on a desktop Mac). Music keeps playing; touch to wake.

The first minutes of a new song are the busiest, because Nebula analyzes it on your device. After that the result is remembered.

Microphone and This Mac

Microphone. The first time you tap Start listening, the device asks for access. If you said no, turn it on later: on iPhone and iPad in Settings › Privacy & Security › Microphone, on Mac in System Settings › Privacy & Security › Microphone. Nothing is recorded.

This Mac (Mac only). The first time, macOS asks for permission to record system audio. If you refused, the picture gets silence and does not move. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security and allow Nebula in the system audio recording list (macOS may word it "Screen & System Audio Recording"). Then tap Listen to your Mac again. Nothing is recorded or kept. See Nebula on a Mac.

A song won't import or won't play

• Tap Add songs and pick files from Files. Songs from streaming apps are protected and can't be added; only music files you own can be picked.
• Songs up to 20 minutes get the full analysis. A longer song still plays and moves with live sound, but without the sections, builds and drops map.
• If a song in a playlist can't be played it is skipped after a moment.
• A song you deleted from Songs stays in a playlist grayed out and is skipped.

To bring in a scene, use Scenes › Import with a .nebula file. A file over 512 KB, or one that isn't a Nebula scene, is refused with a short message.

Which file formats

Nebula plays the audio files your device can play. That includes common formats such as MP3, AAC and M4A, WAV, AIFF and Apple Lossless (ALAC). Files with copy protection can't be added. Scenes are .nebula files (plain text).

Nebula Pro and Restore purchases

• Nebula Pro is a one-time purchase, not a subscription. Buy it from Settings › Nebula Pro, or from any locked control (a dimmed knob group with a gold PRO mark, for example).
• Bought it before, or on another device with the same Apple Account? Open Settings › Nebula Pro and tap Restore purchases. You need to be signed in to the App Store with the Apple Account that bought it.
• If it says Pro isn't available from the App Store, try again a little later.
• If a purchase is refunded, Nebula goes back to the free limits. Everything you made stays and still plays; you just can't add past the limits.
• For a charge you don't recognize, or a refund, contact Apple through reportaproblem.apple.com. Apple handles all payments.

"This scene uses Pro features; showing the free part."

You opened a scene that goes past the free limits (more than 2 layers, more than 3 cables, a cable from a Pro source, or a Pro blend) and it was not made by the app. Scenes made by hand or by an AI assistant play trimmed in the free app. Scenes that came with Nebula, and anything exported from Nebula, play in full. Unlock Pro to see a trimmed scene whole.

Free also keeps 3 scenes of your own. A fourth shows PRO on Save a copy; deleting one makes room. See Free and Nebula Pro.

The screen went dark, or the buttons vanished

• The controls fade while music plays. Double tap (or double click) the picture to bring them back. See Showing and hiding the controls.
• On battery the visuals sleep after a while with no touch. Touch the screen once to wake them.
• Forgot how the parental lock opens? It uses the device's own check (Face ID, Touch ID or the passcode). There is no separate Nebula PIN.