[Eeglablist] Version 2026 bug? Unable to rereference to the average reference and add back online ref

[Kelsey Frewin (PSY - Staff)]

Hi,

I’m wondering if anyone else is experiencing issues with re-referencing recently? I’ve recently upgraded my MATLAB version (although this issue occurs whether I’m using 2023b, 2024b or 2025b) and my EEGLAB version (2026 – I’m on a Mac.

I’ve been using this same pipeline with the same data for the past 2 years with no issues and since the upgrade I’m unable to re-reference to average reference and add back the online reference channel because I get the following error:

Error using pop_reref (line 393)
Missing reference channel information. Edit channels and add reference first.

This happens whether I use script or the GUI. But before running, I always confirm the reference channel info is present. Prior to this, I’ve appended the online ref, looked up channel locations, set the ref and checked the set:

% add channel for the online reference (FCz)
EEG=pop_chanedit(EEG, 'append',63,'changefield',{64,'labels','FCz'});

% find channel location
EEG = pop_chanedit(EEG, 'lookup', filechanloc);

% set FCz as reference (to be added as a channel when re referenced
EEG = pop_chanedit(EEG, 'setref',{'1:64','FCz'});

EEG = eeg_checkset(EEG);

My colleague in the same lab has been able to recreate the issue on a Windows device and I’ve now spoken to colleagues in other labs experiencing the same issue at the moment. Has something changed in the recent EEGLAB version that is preventing this?

Thanks,

Kelsey

Dr Kelsey Frewin (she/her)
Postdoctoral Researcher
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