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Spike Recorder Bring your signals to life

Free software for viewing, recording, playing back and analyzing the electrical signals from your SpikerBox.

Muscles, the heart, the brain, eyes, neurons and plants all make small electrical signals. Connect a SpikerBox and Spike Recorder draws them as a moving waveform you can watch, record, mark and measure.

Launch the web app All downloads

Use the web app in Chrome or Edge, or choose a download for your device below.

Spike Recorder playing back a two-channel recording from a Human SpikerBox. The green channel shows a burst of activity.

It is free Get the app

Start right in your browser

Nothing to install. The web app runs in Chrome or Edge on Windows, Mac and Chromebook, so it also works on school computers that do not allow installing software.

Launch the web app

Connect your SpikerBox with a USB cable, turn it on, and press the SpikerBox button in the app.

  • Your device

    Windows

    Windows computers

    Microsoft Store: coming soon

    Windows download
  • Your device

    Mac

    Mac computers

    Mac App Store: coming soon

    Mac download
  • Your device

    iPhone and iPad

    App Store: coming soon

  • Your device

    Android

    Android phones and tablets

    Google Play: coming soon

    Android APK
  • Your device

    Chromebook

    Use the web app in Chrome, or Google Play once it is live.

    Web app

    Google Play: coming soon

  • Your device

    Linux

    Ubuntu 24.04 · x86_64

    Linux download

One signal four views

The four tabs at the bottom of the app show the same signal in different ways. Switch between them at any time.

  • Signal

    Watch the signal move across the screen as it comes in. Pause it, scroll back to what you just saw, and press a number key or the event button to mark an event.

  • Detect

    Set a threshold and see every spike that crosses it, laid over each other and averaged. Use one or two thresholds to make a spike train.

  • Events

    Compare the signal around events you marked in your recording.

  • Spectrum

    See which frequencies make up the signal, as a spectrum or as a spectrogram that changes over time.

  • The Signal tab playing back a saved recording with a row of tall spikes.
    Spikes in a saved recording, on the Signal tab.
  • The Spectrum tab: the same recording above, and its spectrogram in blue and green below.
    The same recording on the Spectrum tab.
Open the app and try it

Teaching with SpikerBoxes?

Spike Recorder is free, and the web app needs no installation, so a whole class can open it on school computers and Chromebooks. Find an experiment for your next lesson, or get SpikerBoxes for your class.

Experiments Visit the store

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a SpikerBox?

To record, yes: Spike Recorder shows the signals from a Backyard Brains SpikerBox. Without one, you can still open a saved recording and look at it on every tab.

Which browsers does the web app work in?

Chrome or Edge, on Windows, Mac and Chromebook.

How do I connect my SpikerBox?

Plug it into your computer with a USB cable and turn it on, then press the SpikerBox button at the top left of the app. The connection guide explains each way to connect.

What files does it use?

Spike Recorder saves recordings as .nwb files. You can also open older .wav recordings.

When is the new version in the app stores?

Each store button appears when that version is published. Use the web app or choose an available direct download on this page.

Where do I get help?

Read the Spike Recorder guide and its troubleshooting page, or contact Backyard Brains.