Why Isn’t PianoStream Working? Common Questions & Answers

I frequently recommend PianoStream for older Disklaviers and other player pianos. This page answers the most common “PianoStream isn’t working” questions, especially for Yamaha Disklaviers (Mark I, Mark II, MX‑series, Wagon Grand) and systems that use Nalbantov USB floppy emulators. We’ll cover floppy/USB requirements, Analog and Digital mode, MIDI‑Bluetooth issues, and how to use PianoStream’s Legacy Volume Control/Legacy Volume Scaling.

This is my article on troubleshooting PianoStream. If you’re looking to learn more about the service in general, see my article on PianoStream for Disklaviers and other player pianos. I also have articles specific to the Nalbantov, and the proper USB sticks to purchase for the Nalbantov, and how to format them in superfloppy format.

PianoStream also has a very active community on Facebook, where they can take song requests and troubleshoot issues. Many thanks to that community for providing so many questions and solutions!

Quick Fix: 60‑Second PianoStream Checklist

Before you dive into the details, run through this short list. It addresses the majority of “PianoStream isn’t working” cases I respond to:

Confirm the mode in the app

At the top of the screen, you can switch between Analog and Digital mode.

Using a MIDI‑Bluetooth device (Yamaha MD‑BT01, CME WIDI, etc.)? You must be on the Digital side of PianoStream.

Using a Bluetooth or Wi‑Fi audio receiver into the piano’s audio jacks? You must be on the Analog side.

Wake up the Disklavier control unit

On some earlier Disklaviers—notably the MX100A, MX100B, and wagon grand—there must be either a good floppy disk in the drive, or a working Nalbantov USB stick with valid virtual disks. The display will generally read “PLEASE WAIT.”

Check that MIDI is actually reaching the piano

For Digital operation, the MIDI‑Bluetooth dongle must be plugged into both MIDI IN and OUT and connected. It should be receiving power. Dongles such as the WIDI Master will light up. In PianoStream, click on the small Bluetooth symbol. Verify you see your device listed as connected.

You must connect to the Bluetooth dongle from within PianoStream, not from the regular system menu. New users often try to connect through the regular Bluetooth menu on their device, and this will not work. If it’s not visible, close all music apps, toggle Bluetooth off/on, and re‑open PianoStream.

For Analog operation, the RCA cables must be plugged into the Analog MIDI IN or OMNI IN. If you’re having trouble, start by reversing the red and white cables.

If you’ve worked through those steps and the keys still won’t move, the rest of this article walks through the model‑specific quirks that tend to trip people up.

Some links in this article are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Your click fuels hours of reviewing old service manuals—at zero added cost to you.

What are the most common reasons PianoStream doesn’t seem to work?

So you’ve installed your MIDI-Bluetooth adapter, opened the app, and your piano isn’t playing? These are the most common reasons PianoStream doesn’t seem to work:

PianoStream might be in the wrong mode

PianoStream has two sides—Analog and Digital: You can switch between the two at the top of the screen. If you’re on Analog mode in the app while using a MIDI‑Bluetooth device (MD‑BT01, WIDI Master, etc.), you’ll hear noise coming out of the iPad, but the piano never sees any MIDI. Simply switch over to Digital mode.

The Bluetooth-MIDI adapter isn’t connected to your device

You connect the Bluetooth-MIDI adapter from inside the PianoStream App. This is an important, and sometimes confusing, subtlety. Most people are used to connecting Bluetooth devices from the system menu. From inside the PianoStream App, click on the Bluetooth symbol, and connect to your Bluetooth-MIDI adapter from there.

You need to insert a floppy disk

Many earlier Disklaviers expect to have a floppy disk inserted. This is true of the Mark I and Mark II generations. If you don’t have a floppy disk inserted, the Disklavier never fully “wakes up” for MIDI. Sometimes you can bypass this—see “How do I bypass the floppy drive…” below.

You need to insert a USB stick (for Nalbantov users)

The Nalbantov will also report “No Disk” if you don’t have a USB stick in, just the same as a floppy disk drive. If you’re using a Nalbantov, make sure you have a USB disk inserted with “virtual disks” on it. The Nalbantov should work well with PianoStream, and I do recommend the Nalbantov emulator as a replacement for floppy disk drives.

Do Mark I and Mark II Disklaviers really need a floppy disk inserted for PianoStream to work?

Yes, in most cases they do. However, sometimes you can bypass this—see the question below, “How do I bypass the floppy drive so PianoStream can still work?”

On some early Disklaviers—notably the MX-100A, MX-100B, and wagon grands—the internal controller expects to see a floppy disk (or emulated floppy) present when it powers up.

If you have a Mark I/Mark II Disklavier, the screen continuously says “Please wait” (or similar), and PianoStream seems to be doing nothing, your first step should be to insert a floppy disk. If you’re using a Nalbantov USB emulator, insert a properly formatted USB stick.

Once you have something in the drive, the controller will usually start up normally and will then respond to PianoStream’s MIDI.

How do I bypass the floppy drive so PianoStream can still work?

Several models of Disklavier have a “MIDI” button—notably the MX-100A and MX-100B and wagon grand. On these models, you can start the piano directly in a MIDI mode that bypasses the floppy drive check. Users and technicians have reported that if the floppy drive is damaged, this trick allows the instrument to boot far enough to accept MIDI from PianoStream.

To try the MIDI+REC power‑on bypass on an MX-100A/MX-100B:

1. Turn the Disklavier completely off.
2. Press and hold both the MIDI and REC buttons on the front panel.
3. While still holding those buttons, turn the power on.
4. Keep holding the buttons for a moment until the display finishes booting.

Use PianoStream as usual once it’s up.

Does your Disklavier not have a MIDI button? In some cases, disconnecting the floppy disk drive altogether is also effective. This strategy works if your DKC-100R is stuck, for instance.

These solutions often work, but aren’t guaranteed. The MIDI+REC trick does not appear in Yamaha’s service or owner manuals, and so isn’t an “official” solution. It was first referenced by Carol RPT. Similarly, unplugging the floppy disk drive in the DKC-100R has been an effective strategy for me and other technicians on the DKC-100R, but this isn’t guaranteed for every model and configuration.

Does PianoStream work with the Nalbantov USB floppy emulator?

Yes. PianoStream works very well with Nalbantov drives—but only if a proper USB stick is inserted. The USB stick must have valid virtual floppy disks.

The Nalbantov N‑Drive is a USB floppy disk emulator. To your Disklavier, it behaves just like a normal floppy drive: Each “virtual disk” lives on a slot on the USB stick. If the USB stick is missing, the controller behaves exactly like it has no disk inserted, and you’ll see the same symptoms as a Mark I/Mark II with an empty or dead floppy drive.

Checklist for using PianoStream with a Nalbantov on a Disklavier:

1. Make sure a properly formatted USB stick is inserted into the Nalbantov.
2. Confirm the stick is formatted correctly for Nalbantov use (FAT32 “superfloppy”).
3. Make certain there are valid virtual disks available on your USB stick. Either contact me or Nalbantov for help with this.
4. Use the Nalbantov’s buttons to select a virtual disk (any is fine for PianoStream).
5. Wait until the Disklavier’s display settles and shows the “disk” as ready.
6. Only then start playback from PianoStream.

If you forget the USB stick, PianoStream will behave exactly like it does with a Mark I/Mark II that has no floppy inserted: The app looks fine, but the piano ignores everything.

I hear sound coming from my iPhone/iPad, but my keys don’t move. Why?

If you’re using a Bluetooth MIDI adapter—such as a Yamaha MD‑BT01 or CME WIDI Master—but you still hear music through the iPad speakers and not from the piano itself, you’re almost certainly in Analog mode instead of Digital mode.

Digital Mode

Sends MIDI over Bluetooth to your piano using a device like the MD‑BT01 or WIDI Master. This is what actually moves the keys.

If your keys aren’t moving, but you’re using an MD‑BT01/WIDI Master, try the following:

1. Open the PianoStream app.
2. Make sure you’ve selected the Digital interface, not Analog.
3. Verify that your Bluetooth MIDI device (MD‑BT01, WIDI, etc.) is shown as connected inside PianoStream’s connection screen. (Again, many BLE‑MIDI devices must be paired from within a music app’s “Bluetooth MIDI” dialog, not the iOS Bluetooth settings, which can be confusing for first time users.)
4. Try playing a song again and watch for movement.

Analog mode

Sends audio (piano + vocals) over Bluetooth or Wi‑Fi to a separate audio receiver (e.g., a KAIY Bluetooth receiver or WiiM) or to a piano system that has built‑in audio input. This is for audio playback, not raw MIDI control.

When a MIDI‑Bluetooth adapter is connected, but you leave PianoStream in Analog mode, all you’ve done is start a radio station on your iPad—your piano never receives any MIDI, so nothing plays.

What exactly is the difference between PianoStream’s Digital and Analog modes?

Digital mode and Analog mode do very different jobs. Picking the wrong one is a very easy way to make the system look “broken.”

Digital mode

This mode uses wireless MIDI over Bluetooth. It requires a MIDI‑Bluetooth adapter like the Yamaha MD‑BT01 or CME WIDI Master plugged into your piano’s MIDI IN/OUT ports.

Yes, this mode does move the keys, and it’s ideal for solo piano stations. There is no audio accompaniment coming out the speakers.

Analog mode

This mode uses audio streaming (Bluetooth or Wi‑Fi) instead of MIDI. It feeds stereo audio (piano + vocals, band tracks, etc.) into an audio input on your Disklavier or PianoDisc. You can set this up using a KAIY Bluetooth Receiver, a WiiM, or even an inexpensive Esinkin receiver.

On some Disklaviers and PianoDisc systems, combines piano and vocals into one experience: MIDI controls the keys, audio carries the backing tracks.

In Analog mode, the keys do move, and there’s audio accompaniment coming out of the speakers as well.

Why do I hear a fax machine or modem sound when I play a song?

These fax machine sounds contain the instructions to the Disklavier player piano mechanism. They’re also known as a frequency-shift keying (FSK) signal, a type of digital audio used to encode the instructions. When you can hear this sound coming from your iPhone, iPad, or other device, it means the signal isn’t making it to the piano at all.

If the sound is coming out of your control device

1. Verify that you intend to be in Analog mode. If you’re using a Bluetooth-MIDI adapter, switch to Digital mode.
2. Make sure you’re properly connected to your WiiM, KAIY, Esinkin, or other Bluetooth or Wi-Fi receiver.

If the sound is coming out of your piano

1. Make sure that your RCA cables (from your WiiM or similar device) are going into the proper RCA ports. In newer systems, these are the OMNI IN ports.
2. Try swapping the red and white RCA cables, and see if the behavior changes. Sometimes, for various reasons, the channels can end up reversed.
3. Verify that the signal is on only one of the channels—left or right—and that only the accompaniment is on the other. If the signal gets mixed (by a bad splitter cable, improper audio settings, etc.), it won’t be recognized by the piano.
4. Verify you have the proper piano selected in PianoStream settings.

What models of Disklavier can use Analog mode, and which use Digital mode?

The good news is that Digital mode is supported by nearly all player piano systems. However, Analog mode requires a newer system: It typically only works with Disklaviers made after the widespread adoption of CDs, such as the Mark III.

What is Volume Control for Older Systems in PianoStream?

Volume Control for Older Systems (also called Legacy Volume Control) is a special volume feature for older Disklavier and PianoDisc systems that were previously “stuck” at a fairly loud playback level.

PianoStream added this so you can finally control the piano’s effective volume from the app, even when the underlying player system doesn’t support modern volume commands.

You will need to use this setting with older Disklaviers, and also anytime you use PianoDisc systems by plugging the MIDI-Bluetooth adapter directly into the drive unit.

On older playback‑only Disklaviers and some early PianoDisc systems, users often complained that the piano was too loud and had almost no usable volume range. Volume Control for Older Systems changes the MIDI output curve inside PianoStream so that the keys play more softly overall and react more gracefully to the app’s piano‑volume slider.

How do I turn Volume Control for Older Systems on or off?

The exact labels can vary slightly between app versions, but the essential process follows below:

1. Open the PianoStream app.
2. Go to the main Digital/Analog playback screen or the settings/gear area.
3. Look for a toggle named “Volume Control for Older Systems.”
4. Turn it ON.
5. Once enabled, use PianoStream’s piano volume slider to adjust how hard the keys strike as you normally would.

Recent PianoStream updates remember your volume setting and re‑apply it automatically when you reopen the app.

When should I use Volume Control for Older Systems, and what symptoms does it fix?

Turn Volume Control for Older Systems ON if you notice any of the following on an older Disklavier or PianoDisc system:

The piano plays beautifully but is too loud, even with the hardware volume turned down.

Tiny changes to the Disklavier’s physical volume control make huge jumps in loudness.

You have no usable volume control from within PianoStream itself; moving the on‑screen slider doesn’t seem to do anything.

Once Volume Control for Older Systems is enabled, adjust volume this way:

1. Set the piano’s own volume or “overall level” to a comfortable middle range. However, in some pianos, the volume control may produce no change in volume.
2. Then use PianoStream’s piano volume slider to fine‑tune the loudness for background music vs. featured performances.

If you’re on a newer Disklavier model or a modern PianoDisc Prodigy system that already responds cleanly to standard volume messages, you can usually leave Legacy Volume off.