# Recording Level on the Stereo USB Drive **URL:** \ **Category:** Qu Troubleshooting\ **Created:** [26 September 2026 18:15 UTC](https://forums.allen-heath.com/t/recording-level-on-the-stereo-usb-drive/33006 "2026-09-26T18:15:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jojo\_har](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.allen-heath.com/jojo_har/32/9260_2.png) [@Jojo\_har](https://forums.allen-heath.com/u/Jojo_har)\ **Post date:** [26 September 2026 18:15 UTC](https://forums.allen-heath.com/t/recording-level-on-the-stereo-usb-drive/33006/1 "2026-09-26T18:15:17Z")
Hello Allen & Heath Community, we use an Allen & Heath QU5 mixer in the church. For the internet, we record the sermon in stereo onto a USB drive. The routing of the main channels (Main L/R) to USB L/R seems to be correct. I also get a recording that I can boost by about 20 dB using Audacity and then use. The recording still sounds surprisingly good despite the high gain. But my goal would be to record a signal with a higher level. However, I can’t find any errors. Do you have any tips on what might be causing this? For our purposes, a recording in MP3 format would also be desirable. Do you know if something like that is planned, for example, as a firmware update? Thanks. jojo ---
**Author:** ![SQuser](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.allen-heath.com/squser/32/1200_2.png) [@SQuser](https://forums.allen-heath.com/u/SQuser)\ **Post date:** [27 September 2026 08:54 UTC](https://forums.allen-heath.com/t/recording-level-on-the-stereo-usb-drive/33006/2 "2026-09-27T08:54:38Z")
> [@Jojo\_har](#): > > I can’t find any errors. That isn’t an error; it is simply your mix’s headroom. If you set your level to 0 dB, you still have 18 dB of reserve. To record a level independent of the main mix, you could set up a separate mix - including all your inputs and FX returns - post-delay and post-fader - which would give you several ways to boost the recording level. And the big advantage is that you could adjust the levels of individual channels independently of the main mix - for example, by mixing in an organ or ambient mics that wouldn’t be included in the main mix recording at all. Alternatively, you could route your main mix to a matrix for your recording and use the features available there to increase the level. ---
**Author:** ![Jojo\_har](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.allen-heath.com/jojo_har/32/9260_2.png) [@Jojo\_har](https://forums.allen-heath.com/u/Jojo_har)\ **Post date:** [27 September 2026 10:59 UTC](https://forums.allen-heath.com/t/recording-level-on-the-stereo-usb-drive/33006/3 "2026-09-27T10:59:01Z")
> [@SQuser](#): > > That isn’t an error; it is simply your mix’s headroom. > If you set your level to 0 dB, you still have 18 dB of reserve. > To record a level independent of the main mix, you could set up a separate mix - including all your inputs and FX returns - post-delay and post-fader - which would give you several ways to boost the recording level. > And the big advantage is that you could adjust the levels of individual channels independently of the main mix - for example, by mixing in an organ or ambient mics that wouldn’t be included in the main mix recording at all. > Alternatively, you could route your main mix to a matrix for your recording and use the features available there to increase the level. Thank you for the quick and helpful response. Unfortunately, I’m just getting started with digital mixing consoles (I’ve always used analog consoles up until now). Is there a tutorial or guide on how to use a mixing console for USB recording? ---
**Author:** ![SQuser](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/forums.allen-heath.com/squser/32/1200_2.png) [@SQuser](https://forums.allen-heath.com/u/SQuser)\ **Post date:** [27 September 2026 18:56 UTC](https://forums.allen-heath.com/t/recording-level-on-the-stereo-usb-drive/33006/4 "2026-09-27T18:56:38Z")
You can certainly find various videos of this kind on YouTube, for example. For topics like this, you might also want to look for videos regarding the SQ and SQ+ series, as they operate similarly to the QU2.0 in many respects. But for yours, A&H has actually released a dedicated short video series that also touches on the subject of recording. [![](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/uploads/allenheathdigitalcommunity/original/2X/1/188e4e9c3c6b7eaaba3366e46ad864a8c9a5b3e0.jpeg "Qu Tutorials - Introduction") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss_FUcbcUFc&list=PLq3_zC_Xz0PhN6f4tx8gJNEcACNXii5O6)