Audio · exFAT multitrack recorder card
RF64 long recording: find after an import failure
Where are RF64 files beyond the classic WAV limit after a failed import?
Short answer
First check the destination drive's file system: a FAT32 drive cannot hold files over 4 GB, and long RF64 takes are larger than that. Copy to an exFAT, NTFS or APFS drive instead, search the trash and project folders, and scan the card read-only only if the originals are missing there too.
The situation
RF64 files beyond the classic WAV limit is incomplete at the destination and no longer appears reliably on the source.
Two places disagree: the copy at the destination stops early or refuses to open, and the card no longer shows the original where it used to be. An import that copies, catalogs and deletes in separate steps can fail between them and leave both sides incomplete.
01 / Diagnose
Work out what actually disappeared
Import routines copy, verify, catalog and then delete. When the destination is FAT32, the transfer stops at the 4 GB file limit, and a long RF64 take is larger than that, so the copy fails while the delete step may already have run. Multi-gigabyte files also hide the failure well, because a truncated copy still opens and plays.
Move, rename, catalog and delete-after-import steps can fail at different moments and leave source and destination in different states. For RF64 long recording, this matters because ds64 fields describe very large data lengths and can make an intact take appear short when damaged
Check the last known path, trash and backups without writing to the original device.
02 / Protect the source
Preserve the best recovery chance
- 1
Check the destination file system before anything else: a FAT32 volume cannot store a file above 4 GB, so copy to exFAT, NTFS or APFS instead.
- 2
Search the destination, the trash and the project folder of the recording software for files created on the day of the session.
- 3
Compare the size of each imported file with the size the recorder reported; a copy that stops near 4 GB is truncated.
- 4
Only if the take is missing from the card as well, scan the card read-only and export the found file to a drive that is not the destination.
Do not repeat the import onto the same FAT32 volume and do not let software delete the card after a transfer it did not verify. Every retry writes over the partial copy, and an automatic delete removes the complete version while the truncated one stays behind.
03 / Choose the method
Match the tool to the source
For stable, readable exFAT, NTFS and FAT16/FAT32 or uncompressed IMG, DD, RAW and BIN images.
Unconfirmed exports are marked .UNVERIFIED.
File Recovery Hero reads exFAT, NTFS and FAT16/FAT32 sources and uncompressed images on macOS and Windows; an APFS system drive falls outside that range, so a file lost on a Mac destination is a case for the trash, a backup or a snapshot.
04 / Verify
Check the recovered content, not just its name
A complete import matches the card in both size and duration, opens with the same channel count, and plays through to the final second. Where the recorder logged file sizes, compare them byte for byte; a difference of a few megabytes means the copy ended before the take did.
Keep the source until two verified copies exist. One working preview is not enough.
Sources and technical references
FAQ
Questions about this recovery case
Can exFAT multitrack recorder card be recovered in this situation?+
Two places disagree: the copy at the destination stops early or refuses to open, and the card no longer shows the original where it used to be. An import that copies, catalogs and deletes in separate steps can fail between them and leave both sides incomplete. The result still depends on what remains readable on the source.
What should I avoid before scanning?+
Do not repeat the import onto the same FAT32 volume and do not let software delete the card after a transfer it did not verify.
Does scanning write to my memory card?+
Your memory card is only read. Nothing is saved to it.
How do I know whether the result is complete?+
A complete import matches the card in both size and duration, opens with the same channel count, and plays through to the final second.