AIR Music has been actively testing all applicable hardware and software products with each beta release of macOS 12 Monterey. We understand how important it is for all our users to know exactly what works before they make the jump on any new updates.

Please refer to this article for all AIR Music hardware and software compatibility with macOS 12 Monterey. This page will be updated regularly to reflect any changes to product compatibility as testing is completed.

CONTENTS

• Supported Software
• Apple M1: Native vs. Rosetta
  • How to Open Your Software Using Rosetta/Rosetta 2
• How do I prevent my system from updating automatically?

Supported Software

All compatibility testing for macOS 12 Monterey is performed on Intel and base-level Apple Silicon processors. 

Any product not listed below is not considered to be supported with macOS 12 Monterey systems or Apple Silicon processors.

* -  Plugin available as AAX via Avid Link

Apple M1: Native vs. Rosetta

Apple M1 processors are a new processor design that incorporates the functions of many different processors into one. As such, it functions differently from established Intel processors. While some software will operate well on both M1 and Intel, this ultimately means that software originally designed for use with an Intel processor will need to be re-structured for use with an M1. There are two ways to run software on an M1-based system:

1. Native - Software that is designed and/or fully established for use with an M1 processor is considered "Native" or can be run "natively" on an M1-based system. This means you can open the software as you always would and it will work as expected. Not all software will run natively, and this may be different depending on the version. Before running your DAW or other software, please check with the software developer to find out what versions (if any) are supported natively.
   
   
2. Rosetta - Apple understands the jump from Intel to M1 could take some time, so they offer a built-in "application" called Rosetta that will act as a translator between your Intel-based software and the M1 processor. Rosetta is not an application you interact with, but rather a service that runs in the background when you need it. Although not guaranteed, software that cannot run natively on an M1 may run perfectly fine using Rosetta. 

Native M1 support for AIR plugins varies, but anything considered "natively" supported will be listed above as "Supported" in the M1 column. If your plugin is not listed as supported for M1, it may still run in your DAW if the DAW is opened using Rosetta. We're finding that some VST versions of the plugins work well in Rosetta, but AU/AAX plugins will not appear.

How to Open Your Software Using Rosetta/Rosetta 2

You can use Rosetta to launch your DAW or other music software if you're using an M1 processor and if any of your plugins are not yet compatible. This is perfectly safe to use and may give you better results if your software isn't running well (or crashing) when run natively.

Keep in mind, the "software" we are discussing here is software that can be launched on its own (i.e. a DAW or AIR plugins opened in standalone). If you are using your AIR plugins within a DAW or other music software, you will want to follow these steps for your DAW or music software. The plugins opened within that software will follow.

1. Go to your Applications folder and find your DAW or music software in the list. Right-click on the software and select Get Info.
   
   
   
   
2. Look under General > Kind and this will tell you if your software is compatible with Intel, Apple Silicon (M1), or Universal (both Intel and M1).
   
   
   
3. If your Application is listed as "Universal" this means you'll have the option to open it using Rosetta. To do this, simply place a checkmark in the box next to Open using Rosetta. If your application is not universally compatible, check with the software developer to see if there are updates or alternate versions that are compatible with your system.

And that's it! The next time you launch the software it will launch using Rosetta. If this is your first time opening software in Rosetta, you will be asked to first install Rosetta. Just follow the prompts to complete this quick process and your software will open.

How do I prevent my system from updating automatically?

If you do not want to update to macOS Monterey, please be sure to check that your operating system is not enabled to update itself automatically. While this can be a useful feature for some, anyone that relies on the stability of their software and hardware tools should prefer control over which base operating system is installed on their system. Automatic updates will not account for software compatibility before updating which could lead to problems with stability and other functionality if your gear is not ready for the changes in the operating system.

To avoid any delays or downtime, it's best to be deliberate with the decision to update and use the opportunity to check that all your software and hardware tools will be compatible before making the jump. To turn off automatic updates for macOS, please do the following:

1) Navigate to System Preferences > Software Update
2) Uncheck the box next to Automatically keep my Mac up to date.