Hi all. I’m a recent convert from GP on Windows to a shiny new Mac Mini M1. I forklifted my entire setup over and because of some plugins that don’t support Apple Silicon (Mainly NI stuff and a few random others), I am running GP in Rosetta until I get around to migrating all of my sounds to supported synths. Anyway, onto my question. As someone who is relatively new to OSX, I now see there is a new plugin type, AU, which I understand was originally geared towards using Logic. Is there a good rule of thumb on what I should be choosing when building new setups, AU or VST? Assuming functionality is identical, I’m really looking for what is overall the least taxing on the CPU.
AU has been around for years and Apple products like Logic/MainStage/Garage Band only work with AU.
There’s no particular good reason to use them and certainly there’s nothing about them that make them less/more taxing. In fact most plugin developers use cross-platform libraries to develop plugins and the underlying code is identical in all formats.
I use VST myself, not even VST3 unless I have to.
If you don’t use AU, your gig file will be compatible with Mac an Windows.
Also be aware of this (hopefully temporary) issue on Apple Silicon
https://gigperformer.com/gig-performer-4-cant-find-or-use-plugiåns-on-the-new-mac-m1-processor/
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As a Mac user, I tend to use VST or VST3. But it’s usually a process of elimination of which one I use, as it’s unfortunately the case that not all plugin types will work the same (bugs/crashes).
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