Band sync isn't working

The most common symptom: the leader advances to the next song, the followers don't move. Or someone's stuck on a song that nobody else is on. Or the leader pill shows the wrong member count.

Quick checks first

1. Is everyone on the same setlist? Single-song mode doesn't connect to band sync. If one bandmate launched stage from a song-detail page, they're flying solo. They need to back out and open the setlist from the setlists page.
2. Is the sync connection actually open? The Leader pill in the top strip shows a Wi-Fi icon when connected, no-signal icon when not. If a follower's no-signal icon is visible, their device isn't getting events. Refresh.
3. Who's the leader? Tap the Leader pill on the leader's device — solid accent color = they're it. Muted = nobody's claimed leader, in which case nothing broadcasts. Claim.
4. Was the change a drawer-jump? If broadcastSetlistJumps is off (Band settings → stage-view section), the leader's drawer-jumps don't broadcast. Sequential next/prev always does.

If the connection won't open

The leader pill stays no-signal on one device but works on another:

• Pull-to-refresh on the stuck device.
• Force-quit the browser/app and re-open.
• Check the network — the DO uses WebSockets, and some corporate / venue WiFi blocks them. Try cellular.
• The DO has limits — if you reload many times in a short window, you may hit the rate-limit briefly. Wait 30 seconds and retry.

If the leader's changes aren't reaching followers

• Leader confirms the Wi-Fi icon is open on their device.
• Leader confirms they're holding the Leader pill (solid color).
• Follower confirms the same Wi-Fi icon is open on their device.
• Reload on the follower.

Sometimes the DO sends but a follower's browser tab is backgrounded long enough that the event is dropped. The DO sends state-on-reconnect, so a fresh reload should pull the current state.

If two bandmates claim leader

The DO is leader-handoff aware: claiming makes you leader immediately, the previous leader gets demoted. If you see two people both showing solid-color Leader pills, one of them is stale — refresh both devices.

If sync is mostly fine but feels laggy

• Both devices on the same network? Bluetooth audio + WiFi can fight for radio time and slow event delivery. Try cellular on one device.
• Are you on the metronome broadcast feature flag? Broadcast click can saturate sync events with metronome updates. Turn broadcast click off and see if position sync improves.

When to give up and reload

If two refreshes don't fix it, close the stage view entirely on both devices and re-open. The DO maintains state, so reopening shouldn't lose anything — you'll snap to wherever the leader actually is.

What's next

• Band sync — what's supposed to work.
• Stage view overview — the bigger picture.