Can I multitrack record a Behringer XR12, XR16 or Midas MR12?

No. These mixers have no USB audio interface, so they can't send each channel to a computer, iPhone or iPad. They record only a stereo mix (2 tracks) to a USB flash drive. To record every channel on its own track, use an XR18 or MR18.

Can I record an XR12, XR16 or MR12 on an iPhone or iPad?

Not the channels: there is no USB audio to send. The X AIR and M AIR apps (tablet, phone and computer) only control the mixer, over Wi-Fi or a network cable. To keep a recording, plug a USB flash drive into the mixer and record the stereo mix.

What file does the XR12, XR16 or MR12 record to the USB stick?

A stereo WAV file. Behringer gives the XR12 as 16-bit at 44.1 or 48 kHz. Midas gives the MR12 as 16-bit at 44.1 or 48 kHz, matching the mixer's sample rate. For the XR16, Behringer says only "stereo files".

How do I change the sample rate on an XR12, XR16 or MR12?

In the app, open the Setup page and the Audio/MIDI tab. The mixer runs at 48 kHz unless you change it to 44.1 kHz. Pull down or mute the main fader (Main LR) first, or the speakers may pop.

Can I do a virtual soundcheck with an XR12, XR16 or MR12?

Not with separate tracks. The mixer plays a stereo file from the USB stick back into one stereo channel, so you hear the whole mix, not each instrument on its own fader.

How to record a Behringer XR12, XR16 or Midas MR12

Last checked 2026-11-07

Short answer. You can't multitrack them. Multitrack means every channel on its own track, and these three mixers can't do it.

What they can do is record a stereo mix (left and right, 2 tracks) to a USB flash drive plugged into the mixer. They have no USB audio interface, the part that sends each channel to a computer, iPhone or iPad. If you need every channel, you need an XR18 (or X18) or an MR18: see the XR18 and MR18 guide.

Quick start

Need every channel on its own track? Use an XR18 (or X18) or an MR18 instead. (Ways to record)
Plug a USB flash drive into the mixer's USB port. (With no computer)
Leave the sample rate at 48 kHz (the factory setting); it's fine for video. (Recording settings)
Press record on the USB recorder in the app.
Record a 30-second test and play it back before the show (our advice).
Wait for the red light next to the USB port to go out before you pull the drive out.

Every other mixer is in the mixer recording guides, and the words used here are in its glossary. Facts come from the Behringer and Midas manuals and product pages. The sources are at the end.

Ways to record an XR12, XR16 or MR12

To a computer over USB

Not possible. These mixers have no USB audio interface, so a computer doesn't see them as a sound card.

The Behringer manual: the XR18 has "an 18x18 USB audio/MIDI interface", while "the XR12 and XR16 allow 2-track stereo recording".
The Midas manual says the same of the MR12: it "allows 2-track stereo recording".
Their only USB port is Type A, the flat kind a flash drive plugs into. It is not for a cable to a computer.

With no computer: to a USB flash drive

This is the one way to record on these mixers. You get a stereo recording (WAV on the XR12 and MR12).

Plug a USB flash drive into the Type A USB port.
Open the USB recorder in the app (X AIR Edit for the XR12 and XR16, M AIR Edit for the MR12 (our reading: it mirrors X AIR Edit)).
Pick what to record and press record. The manuals don't list the steps. Behringer's XR12 and XR16 product pages link a video, "X AIR How To: USB Recorder (X AIR EDIT) XR12 / XR16".
Wait for the red light to go out before you remove the drive. It lights while the mixer is reading or writing the drive.

What you get:

Tracks: 2, the left and right of a stereo mix.
Quality: "16-bit, 44.1 or 48 kHz" below means standard CD-style quality, fine for listening back.
XR12 file: stereo WAV, 16-bit, at 44.1 or 48 kHz (Behringer).
MR12 file: WAV, 16-bit, at 44.1 or 48 kHz, matching the mixer's sample rate (Midas).
XR16 file: Behringer says only "stereo files". It is most likely the same as the XR12, since they share a manual and an app (our reading).
Drive size and format: neither maker says.

To an iPhone, iPad or Mac with an app

You can't record the separate channels this way. No audio goes out over USB, so no app can record them. The X AIR and M AIR apps (tablet, phone and computer) only control the mixer. See Mac, iPad and iPhone below.

XR12, XR16 or MR12 recording settings

Sample rate: 48 kHz unless you change it. To use 44.1 kHz, open the Setup page in the app, then the Audio/MIDI tab.
Pull down or mute the main fader (Main LR) first, or the speakers may pop when you change the sample rate.
Bit depth: 16-bit on the XR12 and MR12. The XR16's isn't stated.
What gets recorded: you can choose what the recorder captures, but the manuals don't say where or list the choices. Behringer's USB Recorder video (above) is the best place to look (our advice).

Only a stereo file on the stick? That is all these mixers record

These mixers record one stereo mix, never separate channels.
To mix the show later, with each instrument on its own track, you need a mixer with a multitrack USB interface, such as the XR18 (or X18) or MR18 (XR18 and MR18 guide).
They look alike. The XR12, XR16 and MR12 share the look, the app and the family name with the XR18 and MR18. The difference is the USB audio interface, which only the 18-input models have.

XR12, XR16 or MR12 USB routing

There is nothing to route: with no USB audio interface, there are no USB channels to send. To choose what the flash drive records, see Recording settings.

XR12, XR16 or MR12 playback for virtual soundcheck

A virtual soundcheck plays each recorded channel back through its own fader. These mixers can't do that, because they never recorded separate channels.

What they can do: play a stereo file from the USB flash drive. It comes back on its own stereo "USB" input channel (Behringer's manual), so you hear the whole mix at once.

XR12, XR16 or MR12 tap points

A tap point is where in a channel the signal is picked up for recording: before or after the EQ, the fader and so on. The full story is in Pre or post fader.

On these mixers it doesn't apply: there are no per-channel recordings to tap.
The stereo recorder: neither maker says where its mix is taken, for example before or after the main fader.

XR12, XR16 or MR12 on Mac, iPad and iPhone

iPhone and iPad: can't record the channels. The apps only control the mixer, over Wi-Fi or a network cable. They can't record its channels. Record the stereo mix to a flash drive in the mixer instead.
Mac: the same. The mixer doesn't appear as a sound input, so a Mac can't record it over USB.
Want every channel on an iPhone? The XR18 sends all 18 channels over a USB cable, and ShowRecorder has recorded them on an iPhone. See the XR18 and MR18 guide.

ShowRecorder (our app) records each channel from mixers that send their channels over USB. These three send none, so it can't record their channels.

Runs on a USB-C iPhone (iPhone 15 or later) on iOS 26, or a USB-C iPad on iPadOS 26. Mac: join the TestFlight beta.

Your mixer not listed, or not tested? Ask us

Sources

Behringer:

X AIR User Manual (covers the XR18, X18, XR16 and XR12): "the XR12 and XR16 allow 2-track stereo recording", the Type A USB port and its red light, the sample rate setting, control over the Ethernet port (LAN) or wireless, the block diagram's USB recorder and stereo playback channel.
XR12 product page: "stereo WAV recording at 16-bit, 44.1 or 48.0 kHz", the Ethernet port, and the USB Recorder video.
XR16 product page: "record and play back stereo files on a USB flash drive", control over Ethernet or Wi-Fi, and the USB Recorder video.

Midas:

M AIR MR18/MR12 User Manual: "the MR12 allows 2-track stereo recording", "USB port (type A) accepts a flash drive for stereo recordings and playback", the sample rate setting.
MR12 product page (read 2026-11-07): "Files are WAV at 16-bit, 44.1 or 48 kHz, depending on the mixer sample rate."

On this site:

XR18 and MR18 guide: ShowRecorder recording all 18 XR18 channels on an iPhone.