Does the XR18 need a driver on a Mac?

No. Behringer says it is CoreAudio compatible on a Mac, and Midas says the same of the MR18. On Windows, install the maker's ASIO driver.

How do I choose what goes to each USB channel on an XR18?

Open Routing (the up and down arrow icon at the top of the Main View) and use the Inputs/USB grid: tap a box to move the orange dots, or pick the USB sends from the menu under the folder icon. Each USB send has its own source.

Can I choose pre or post fader for each USB channel on an XR18?

Yes. On the USB Sends page of Routing, each USB Send has its own Signal Source and Signal Tap: Analog, Input, Pre EQ, Post EQ, Pre Fader and Post Fader, most with a +M version that goes silent when the channel is muted. For a recording you will remix, pick Input. We saw this on a real XR18; Behringer's V1.0 manual doesn't describe it.

Can the XR12 or XR16 multitrack record?

Not over USB. They have no USB audio interface. They record stereo to a USB stick.

Why does my recorder see only 2 channels from the XR18?

The USB interface can be set to 18 x 18 or 2 x 2 in Setup, on the Audio/MIDI tab. At 2 x 2 it sends only 2 channels. Set it to 18 x 18 for a multitrack.

What sample rate does the XR18 record at?

48 kHz by default, or 44.1 kHz, set in Setup on the Audio/MIDI tab. Mute the main LR fader before you change it, because pops can occur.

How to multitrack record a Behringer XR18 or Midas MR18

Q: Can an XR18 multitrack record without a computer?

Not by itself. The XR18 has no USB port for a stick or drive, only the type-B audio port. Plug it into something that records over USB, such as a computer or an iPad, and it sends up to 18 channels, once the USB interface is set to 18 x 18.

Last checked 2026-11-07

Short answer. Set the USB interface to 18 x 18 in Setup > Audio/MIDI, set each USB send's tap to Input, and plug the XR18's USB port into a computer, an iPad or an iPhone. It sends all 18 channels at 44.1 or 48 kHz. It can't record by itself.

Quick start

Connect the cable. The XR18 has a USB type-B port: a USB-C iPhone or iPad needs a USB-C to USB-B cable. (Mac, iPad and iPhone)
For a long service or show on a phone, add a powered USB-C hub so the phone keeps charging. (Mac, iPad and iPhone)
Set Setup > Audio/MIDI to 18 x 18. (Recording settings)
Set the tap to Input (or Analog) on each send in Routing > USB Sends. (Tap points)
Open your recording app and check that it sees 18 channels.
Record a 30 s test and play it back before the show.
Seeing only 2 tracks? Set Setup > Audio/MIDI to 18 x 18. (Only 2 channels?)

The Behringer XR18 and X18 share one manual and one spec table, so this guide covers both. The Midas MR18 is Midas's version of the XR18, the same hardware. Midas's own MR18 manual confirms 18 x 18 USB, type B, and 44.1 or 48 kHz, and lists the same supported systems as Behringer's.

The smaller Behringer XR12 and XR16 and the Midas MR12 look similar but have no USB audio interface, so they can't multitrack over USB. They are in the mixer recording guides with every other mixer, and the words used here are in its glossary. Facts come from Behringer's documents unless a line says otherwise. The sources are at the end.

Ways to record an XR18

To a computer over USB

Plug the mixer's USB port into the computer and record in any DAW.

Channels: 18 in and 18 out (Behringer manual). "Up to 18 audio channels can be simultaneously recorded, and 18 channels are available for playback." A 2 x 2 mode sends only 2 (see Recording settings).
Sample rate: 44.1 or 48 kHz, 48 kHz by default (Behringer manual).
Bit depth: Behringer doesn't state the USB bit depth. The converters are 24-bit.
Connector: USB 2.0, type B. The same cable also carries 16 x 16 MIDI.
Mac: no driver needed (Behringer manual: CoreAudio; Mac OS X 10.6.8 or higher). Linux works through ALSA or Jack.
Windows: install Behringer's ASIO driver from behringer.com.

With no computer

The XR18 can't record by itself. It has no USB Type-A port for a stick or drive; its only USB port is the type-B audio port. To multitrack with no laptop, plug it into something that records over USB, such as an iPad or an iPhone.

To an iPhone, iPad or Mac with an app

A Mac works like any computer above. Behringer lists the iPad, and ShowRecorder has recorded all 18 channels on an iPhone too; see Mac, iPad and iPhone below.

XR18 recording settings

Sample rate: 44.1 or 48 kHz, in Setup, on the Audio/MIDI tab of the X AIR Edit or X AIR app. It is 48 kHz by default (Behringer manual). Mute the main LR fader before you change it, because pops can occur.
Clock: the spec table lists no word clock input, so the clock is internal (our reading).
Channel count: 18 x 18 or 2 x 2, on the same Audio/MIDI tab. Behringer offers 2 x 2 for overdubs and simple tracking.
Bit depth: not selectable, and not stated for USB.
File format: set by the app that records. The mixer is only the interface.

Only 2 channels? Set USB to 18 x 18

A mixer left at 2 x 2 sends only 2 channels to the recorder. Set the USB interface to 18 x 18 on Setup > Audio/MIDI for a multitrack, then check the recorder again.

XR18 USB routing

Recording every channel? You rarely need to change much here, but Behringer doesn't document what each USB send carries out of the box. Check once that each send has the channel you want at the Input tap, then record a short test.

The XR18 lets you choose the source and the tap point of each USB send, one slot at a time.

Open Routing: the up and down arrow icon at the top of the Main View screen.
Go to the Inputs/USB grid. Tap an empty box to move the orange dots and change the source for input channels, USB channels and P16 (Behringer's personal monitor system) outputs.
Or pick the USB sends from the menu under the folder icon.
To undo your changes, press the revert button.

The Routing – Outputs page sets the sources for the Main LR, Phones, Aux and P16 outputs.

On the USB Sends page of Routing, each USB Send 1-18 has its own Signal Source (for example Ch 1) and its own Signal Tap (see Tap points). You can, for example, record one channel at two taps.

Out of the box, the analog inputs and USB returns go 1:1 to the channel with the same number. Behringer doesn't spell out the default USB send map, so check the grid before a show and listen to a short test.

Main mix and buses to USB: Behringer's block diagram feeds the six mix buses (MIX 1-6 OUT), the main mix (MAIN LR OUT) and a pre-EQ main mix (MAIN LR PRE EQ OUT) into the routing patch, so they can be patched like the channels. The manual doesn't list exactly which sources each USB send offers, so check what your app shows.

XR18 playback for virtual soundcheck

In X AIR Edit, click a channel's USB button to feed it from the USB return instead of its analog input.
In the app, use the channel's Mic/USB switch.
The analog Mic Gain and the digital USB Trim are set separately, but a channel uses only one source at a time.
The monitor source defaults to the main LR (post fader). You can also pick a bus, an aux or USB 17/18.

XR18 tap points

Which tap to record, and why, is in Pre or post fader. On the XR18:

Which to pick: For a service or gig recording you'll remix: Input. Avoid +M and Post Fader. A tap marked "+M" goes silent when the channel is muted; the same tap without "+M" keeps recording through a mute. Post Fader follows every fader move, and a fader that is down records silence. The tap-point guide has the pros and cons of each.
A tap per USB send. Each USB Send has its own Signal Tap. Seen on a real XR18 on 2026-11-06 (the firmware version wasn't noted), the choices, in the order the app shows them, are: Analog, Analog +M, Input, Input +M, Pre EQ, Pre EQ +M, Post EQ, Post EQ +M, Pre Fader, Pre Fader +M, Post Fader.
What Behringer's manual shows: the V1.0 manual doesn't describe the per-send tap. Its block diagram shows each input channel feeding the routing patch at pre low cut and post fader only, so the longer list probably came with later firmware. Behringer doesn't say what each tap name covers, and the factory tap for each send isn't documented, so check every send before a show.
Not USB taps: the diagram's "Input, Pre INS, Pre EQ, Pre Fader, Post Fader" list belongs to the aux buses and the main mix, and its "Pre HP" to "Post Pan" list to the channel's aux and effects sends.
Gain: the analog preamp gain (-12 to +60 dB) and the +48 V phantom power, switchable per input, come before every tap. The digital USB Trim affects only the USB return into a channel, not what you record.
Who can change your level: the XR18 has no shared stage box, but anyone in the app who changes a channel's gain changes the recorded level.

XR18 on Mac, iPad and iPhone

Mac: works with no driver (Behringer manual: CoreAudio).
iPad: yes. Behringer lists "iOS 7 or higher (iPad)" among the supported systems for the XR18, and Midas lists the same for the MR18. The XR18 manual's hookup drawing shows an "iPad with camera connection kit for multi-track recording up to 18 tracks".
iPhone: Behringer doesn't name the iPhone, but it works: ShowRecorder (the app this site makes) has recorded all 18 XR18 channels on an iPhone over USB. A full-length show on an iPhone through a powered hub is not tested yet.
Cable: the mixer has a USB type-B port, so a USB-C iPhone or iPad needs a USB-C to USB-B cable.
Power: the XR18 has its own mains power supply and needs no power from the phone. The phone doesn't charge from the mixer either. For a long show, a powered USB-C hub keeps it charged; we haven't tested particular hubs with the XR18.

ShowRecorder records every USB Channel from any class-compliant mixer, and has recorded all 18 XR18 channels on an iPhone and on a Mac. Over Mixer Link it also reads the channel names and colors, which works only on the XR18/MR18 and X32/M32. The setup is on the XR18 and MR18 page.

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 XR18/X18/XR16/XR12 User Manual: USB channels, supported systems, routing, playback, the block diagram.
XR18 product page: the spec table.

Midas:

M AIR MR18/MR12 User Manual: 18 x 18 USB, type B, 44.1 or 48 kHz, and the supported systems, iPad included.

Seen on a real mixer:

The Routing > USB Sends page of an XR18, checked by ShowRecorder's developer on 2026-11-06: the Signal Source and Signal Tap per USB Send.
An iPhone Take of all 18 XR18 channels, recorded with ShowRecorder by its developer.