Latecomer to Apple Silicon - Avid plugin compatibility/installers

[Righty27]

Apologies - I'm pretty sure my questions are addressed in various other chronological threads, however I've had my head in the (Intel) sand up to now and I'm hoping for the TLDR on Apple Silicon versions of the Avid/Digidesign plugins.

I'm already using the compatibility resources provided on Pro Tools Expert and Sweetwater to decide which 3rd-party are ready to be installed on my new Mac Studio (Sonoma - not a big deal as non-professional work). However, I 'own' several Avid/Digidesign plugins that are evidently also included in my PT Studio support plan (not previously utilised), so my iLok shows doubles of some.

My Avid account shows Legacy Download Links (presumably old 32-bit/Intel versions?) + Complete Plug-In Bundle. This includes a 2023.2 '304 Bundle' (is that everything?), as well as mostly 2022.12 versions of familiar plugins. There are also later versions of the AIR Effects and Instruments Bundles, etc.

(i) Are these (i.e. everything not classified as 'legacy') all Apple Silicon native versions?

(ii) If I install a plugin that I 'own' on my iLok and which is also included in a subscription as part of my support plan, will the latest version continue to work if/when my support plan lapses?

(iii) Regarding AIR, should I use these Avid links ... or try to navigate the AIR licensing system, as I purchased/upgraded everything back in the day?

Thanks! :)

[Darryl Ramm]

Start by using Pete Gates' PT Prefs 2 to scan plugins and see if the plugins you have installed are Intel only aka "x64" or support Apple Silicon native "Universal".

This DUC thread may be more authoritative/useful that the resources you are using: https://duc.avid.com/showthread.php?t=415770

Use Google search to search DUC with site:duc.avid.com qualifier. Many questions about Apple silicon plugins have been already discussed.

Originally Posted by Righty27

(i) Are these (i.e. everything not classified as 'legacy') all Apple Silicon native versions?

Assuming you have a current active support/update plan you should be seeing all available installer packages, make sure you are looking under "My Products" > (whatever flavor of Pro Tools you have) > And click "VIEW Software Download Links & Product Details" and make sure you scroll all the way done in that list. Most of what you will want is likely under "Avid Complete Plug-In Bundle" there may be older installers esp. if you purchased other products in the past. And confusingly the most useful/up to data installers (i.e. the Avid Complete Plugin Bundle section) may be towards the bottom of the list you see. But the file names/dates should make that clear. Be careful not to install older versions over newer releases. Nothing stops you doing that and you will find old intel only plugins installed. Again you use PT Prefs to know for sure what you have installed.

Here is a spreadsheet of basic info on what plugins are in what installers and use what licenses. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...it?usp=sharing Might be slightly out of date but will get you going.

(ii) If I install a plugin that I 'own' on my iLok and which is also included in a subscription as part of my support plan, will the latest version continue to work if/when my support plan lapses?

That depends on the license versions and what exactly your perpetual licenses activates. We have no way of guessing how old some of your perpetual plugin licenses are, they may not active the latest versions of plugins. And nobody wants to wade though your list of license details working stuff out, just try it, move the ACPB subscription license off the iLok, move all the perpetual license there and see what works.

(iii) Regarding AIR, should I use these Avid links ... or try to navigate the AIR licensing system, as I purchased/upgraded everything back in the day?

AIR effects and AIR instruments plugins included with Pro Tools now and in the Avid Complete Plugin bundle come from Avid, not AIR. Anything else not included that you purchased in the past is unclear, hopefully if the license was purchased from Avid it will still work, but some AIR plugins has been significantly updated and you might not work on older Avid licenses, you should just check as noted above, and you may need to buy updates from AIR.

[CygnusX-1Bk2]

The folks at Production Expert have an updating database that covers most developers' status that is quite thorough and has links to each developer's status page. Most are compatible with several stragglers lagging behind.

Lexicon is the only developer I can think of that isn't included on that list. They will allegedly have an update in the first quarter of this year, bumped from November and December last year.

Also +1 for the Pete Gates' PT Prefs 2 app. That is very handy.

[Eric Lambert]

In addition to what has already been mentioned, I find the MacUpdater app to be indispensable. I start my day by sitting down, double-clicking that icon, letting it search my computer, then finding out via strange internet magic precisely which plugins and apps have available updates. I don't know how it works, exactly, but it often knows about updates that the developers themselves hadn't intended to release. I'd write to them asking for the latest/greatest updates and they'd reply, "hey, how did you even know about that?!" I consider it an essential app at this point.

https://www.corecode.io/macupdater/