Here is a list of different plugins and software for music production that currently works with the M1 Silicon processor. It also shows if it runs natively or through Rosetta (emulation).
Please add your own results in the comment section. I will add your results to these lists every day.
The M1 processor is a revolution in mobile sound processing, composed of a powerful quad-core CPU and high-performance quad-core GPU. It allows you to run plugins and software from the desktop industry that have been ported to the M1 chip.
With the M1 Music Production Platform, you can use a wide range of plug-ins and software to create a professional sound. It is for musicians, producers, and songwriters who want to have a seamless workflow from their computer or laptop to their M1.
The Apple M1 audio performance is crazy good.
If you’re a music enthusiast looking for the best music production experience, the M1 is your best bet! It can run on Mac and it’s compatible with a huge list of plugins and software. This list will show you the Apple M1 audio performance.
Audio Software:
| Software | Does it run? | Native? |
|---|---|---|
| Logic Pro 10.6.0 | YES | YES |
| FL Studio 20.7.3 | YES | NO |
| Ableton Live 10.1.30 | YES | NO |
| GarageBand | YES | YES |
| Studio One 5.1.1.61815 | YES | NO |
| Reaper v6.15/64 Catalina Version Only | YES | NO |
| Avid Pro Tools First V 2020.9.0 | YES | NO |
| Splice | YES | NO |
| Cubase 11 | NO | NO |
| Pro Tools 2020.1 | YES | N/A |
| Cubase Elements 10.5 | YES | N/A |
Plugins:
| Plugin Name | Running VST? | Running AU? | Native? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waves Complete 11.12.11.20 | YES | YES | NO |
| FabFilter Total Bundle | YES | YES | YES |
| Sylenth1 v.3.067 | YES | YES | NO |
| reFX Nexus 3 v. 3.3.8 | YES | YES | YES |
| Native Instruments Komplete 12 SELECT | NO | NO | NO |
| u-he Diva .9709 | YES | YES | NO |
| Xferrecords Serum 1.308 | YES | YES | NO |
| Spectrasonics Omnisphere | N/A | YES | NO |
| Spectrasonics Trilian | N/A | YES | NO |
| Spectrasonics Keyscape | N/A | YES | NO |
| Arturia Analog Lab 4 | N/A | YES | NO |
| Arturia vCollection (ver 7) | N/A | YES | NO |
| Arturia Pigments | N/A | YES | NO |
| Arturia OB-Xa | N/A | YES | NO |
| Toontrack Superior Drummer 3 | YES | YES | NO |
| UAD Plugins | YES | YES | NO |
| Plugin Alliance (Plugins Pack) | YES | YES | NO |
| IK-Multimedia T-Racks (Plugin Pack) | N/A | YES | NO |
| Valhalla Plugins (Plugin Pack) | N/A | YES | NO |
| Slate Digital (Plugin Pack) | N/A | YES | NO |
| Soundtoys (Plugin Pack) | N/A | YES | NO |
| Sonnox Oxford | N/A | YES | NO |
| Wavelab Elements 10 | YES | N/A | N/A |
| Amplitube 5 | YES | N/A | N/A |
| Izotope Elements Series | YES | N/A | N/A |
| Izotope RX6 | YES | N/A | N/A |
| Softube Time and Tone | YES | N/A | N/A |
| Celemony Melodyne Essential 5 | YES | N/A | N/A |
Sound Interfaces:
| Sound Interface | Does it work? |
|---|---|
| Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen | YES |
| UAD Arrow Thunderbolt 3 | YES |
| Presonus AR16C | YES |
| Roland Fantom 6 | YES |
| Uphoria umc 404hd | YES |
Great list!
What about spectrasonics and output stuff?
I’m currently testing other plugins out for this test and Spectrasonics stuff are planned to be tested as well but if someone’s got Spectrasonic Omniphere or Trilian, please comment on this post with results :)
Does this mean that also UAD Apollos are not working with the M1 yet?
Yes!
Toontrack Superior Drummer 3 works perfectly.
Focusrite Control current 3.6 version or latest beta 3.7 don’t detect my scarlet 4i4 3 gen but the scarlet gets recognized by the macbook pro immediately.
Spectrasonics (tested Omnisphere, Trillian and Keyscape – all latest releases) works in the R2 wrapper- tested with Logic Pro only (so, AU only). Did notice on occasion Logic Pro will scan the Spectrasonics plugins and place them in non-compatible, but they still work fine. If I rerun the plug-in scan again, Logic will state they are fully compatible/validated. Either way, the plug-ins do work. Also tested Arturia (Analog Lab 4, latest vCollection (ver 7), Pigments and OB-xa) – all are working / all show up as fully validated in Logic.
Do they run smooth / does the computer have to work extra?
Presonus AR16C works as a class compliant USB audio device (did not load any Presonus drivers). Mac Mini M1 is showing it as 18 in / 4 out and Logic sees all the available ins/outs for this interface. Also tested the Roland Fantom 6 – setting the USB driver to generic on the Fantom (do a write/reboot). Shows up in the midi settings and works fine with Logic as an external MIDI controller. Roland has not released any updated drivers for Big Sur yet, so not sure if their Fantom USB audio driver will work with the M1.
Got 8GB 512ssd Mac Mini M1 while I wait for my 16GB 1TB M1 to get here around Christmas and…… Holy shit I’m so happy.
VSTs working on Ableton Live 10 Suite in a 40-50 track EDM mix-master fun project (w/ reverbs, delays, heavy distortion, SC, etc…):
Thermal by Output (actually not destroying my cpu but still heavy handed with Rosetta 2)
RC-20 Retro Color by XLR Audio is a breeze (like always)
All heavy lifting Izotope plugins surprisingly running super well below 60% CPU in a project that has 50 tracks and 6-8 bussed Pro-L2’s with heavy sidechain on two Pro-C2’s… (Neutron & Ozone Advanced, RX-8, Tonal Balance 2, etc…) all smashing.
The whole Fab-Filter Bundle is on steroids. (Max 30% CPU usage with 4x oversampling on all Pro-L2s/Pro-C2’s)
General project opening and latency with a Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen is literally gone. Running 48k at 24depth and 128 samples… literally hasn’t dropped out once, not one crackle. AND I have safari, apple music, and RX-8 RUNNING AT THE SAME TIME.
Pretty stoked. Honestly if you can handle waiting up to a year possibly for UAD to get their shit together (aka you dont think you are Dr. Dre and rely fully on UAD plugins) then
zero latency is fully achievable with M1 on Ableton, and its not even native yet. Live 11 can’t possibly mess this up. I think M1 for Ableton producers is a god-send, especially after dealing with Windows horse-shit Asio Drivers for the last 2 years.
Happy huntin!
Interesting that you e been able to get RC-20 to run. Seems incompatible w Logic on my M1 Mac mini. Maybe b/c you’re running Ableton via Rosetta?
Yep I tested running first running Logic native and that doesn’t work, switching Logic to Rosetta mode and trying to rescan plugins did the trick for me.
hi!
if someone could test with the Zoom livetrack L-12 or 8 and 20!?
Great list, thanks for help us !
I got my M1 MacBook Air working with a new Zoom LiveTrak L-20 in class compliant mode with no issues at all. Record and playback fine with Protools.
It sort of works, but it’s battery power only! Any workaround? I can’t deal with 3 sets of batteries a day…
My 2012 MacBook pro crashed that i was using to record through a Focusrite saffire pro 40. Looking at buying an M1 but scared it wont work with the interface. Currently Focusrite says that it will work with the big sur update on early 2020 macs but cannot confirm it will work on the new M1. Any feedback is much appreciated and Happy Recording my friends.
I haven’t seen anyone testing the M1 on a live scenario using Mainstage with all the plug-ins running and changing patches while the before patch is still running on the background, etc.
Can confirm that Portal by Output works, so does vital (synth) by Matt Tytel.
Anyone knows if the audient id44 works with the new m1 Macbooks?
Yes it does.
ReFX Nexus 3.3.8 support Apple Silicon according to the change log: https://refx.com/nexus/version/
You are right! I’ll add this.
Roland ZEN-Core was a no go. Roland is working on a Big Sur compatible update, so hopefully that will fix the issue.
The following plugins work on M1 both in Logic and Pro Tools:
– Plugin Alliance (Brainworx, SPL, etc..)
– IK Multimedia T-Racks 5, Modo Bass
– Valhalla (all of them)
– Slate Digital (all of them)
– Soundtoys
– Sonnox Oxford
Altough at this point basically all useless for me since UAD doesn’t work…
I can’t get SoundToys to work in Logic, though I did get UAD all running. What version of SoundToys do you have installed?
My slate plugins all access pass are not coming up in protools on my mac book pro
Is there anything I need to download to achieve using the plug ins?
Can anyone recommend a midi controller (keyboard, not a launchpad) that works on the new m1 macs (I am new to apple and logic). Thanks
All MIDI Controllers works fine :)
Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 (2nd Gen) works great as far as audio in/out goes, but trying to send MIDI out through the Focusrite makes Ableton crash every time.
Valhalla reverb and delay work fine.
RC-20 works fine.
I plugged the Focusrite in via an Anker 7-in-2 hub using USB-A cable, and had a USB hub running off the other USB-A port on the Anker.
Happy to confirm that with the new UAD 9.1.3.1 software update, Apollo interfaces and all plugins work seamlessly. Altough officially it’s still not compatible with M1, it’s just an update for Big Sur compatibility, but with Rosetta it works fine now!
how are the izotope plug ins working?
They work! :)
Maybe you can add other section for midi controllers because i read on the apple community blog that some korg midi aren’t being read on the silicon devices, also if you’ve checked your midi and its working let us know! Thanks a lot!
Do meldaproductions and cable guys plugins work with M1 right now?
Can anyone confirm if Drip by Kyle beats work?
has anybody tried a Motu M2 interface? I just got a MacBook Pro with M1 and am thinking about buying a Motu.
Hello, do you know if the Behringer interfaces (especially the Uphoria UMC 404HD) work with the M1 MacBook? I suggest all the MIDI Keyboards in general should work if the interface works shouldn’t they?
hi, uphoria umc 404hd works on M1 mac mini /big sur very good.
FabFilter are M1 native now, which makes sense considering they had already ported their plugins to iPad OS. Valhalla’s Super Massive is their first M1 native release so far, with more on the way.
Hello, looks like Fabfilter is already M1 supported https://www.fabfilter.com/press/1607590800/fabfilter-updates-its-plugin-line-up-with-native-apple-silicon-support
. Is this list going to continue being updated? Thanks!
Hi! Yes, it’s still updated daily :)
Please have drum/drummer VST’s like Steven Slate digital optimized for native M1 coding. Xln Addictive Drums 2, Toontrack superior drummer 3, FXPansion BFD 3, and most of all, Rayzoon Jamstix 4.
Logic’s Drummer is amazing, but I would like to have at least Jamstix 4 for more options and programming ability/editing.
what works on m1 mac mini 16/512
Pro Tools 2020.1
Cubase Elements 10.5 /minor graphic issues Groove Agent SE
Wavelab Elements 10
Amplitube 5
Izotope Elements Series
Izotope RX6
Softube Time and Tone
Celemony Melodyne Essential 5
tbc 🙂
Pro Tools 2020.12 !
All work under Rosetta. More to come – when i‘m on my desk
Thank you :)
I have a 16gb ram 512 gb HD new Mac mini and the CLA signature collection loads but freezes up so bad it’s almost unusable. It runs in the background but I can’t make any adjustments.
Does anyone know if AKAI Midi keyboards work with M1?
My AKAI Keyboard works :)
Mac mini M1, currently using the Mac audio output as my audio interface is not supported yet.
Cubase Pro 11.0.10, Halion 6, Groove Agent 5 are all running fine (Rosetta 2) with surprisingly low cpu usage.
Anyone have success with the Steinberg UR22 on the M1? Or any insight as to when Steinberg will update for compatibility?
Sadly, the piano plugin Ivory (Synthogy) doesn’t work yet on M1. The company told me they’re working on it, no date published yet.
Does anyone know if a Yamaha TF1 mixer would work with the Mac mini M1? If I knew this would work I’d buy one tomorrow!
Currently working on an iMac with Catalina
Thanks
Antelope Audio Discrete 4 Synergy Core and Bitwig, both with their associated plug -ins, are currently working on my M1 Mac Mini. The only exception is the Antelope AFX2DAW software but for those that need to use the Antelope effects post-recording in the daw there is a workaround currently until / if AFX2DAW is updated to work with Apple Silicon. They say they are working on it but I know that the windows users who have been waiting will be rightfully skeptical…
You seem to mention a workaround for AFX2DAW until a permanent fix is in? Their ad literature, which does mention AFX2DAW is incompatible but being worked on, was vague enough that I bought it , it wouldn’t work and they refunded my money. I’ve got their Orion Studio Synergy Core interface.
Hi Guys.. Total newbee here about to pull the trigger on Minimac m1 8gb/256gb.
Does anyone know if Toontrack EZ Drummer2 works on it with logic pro x.
Thanks a mil
I don’t know about EZ drummer, but superior drummer works like a charm.
yes. it does work using logic pro, but not native yet
Really helpful!
I am currently using Valhalla Plugins VSTs and they all work perfectly. And NI also are starting to work as AU and VST.
what m1 Mac computer you’re ruining how much gb rams.
Thank you for this page. And please see this.
Purity updates to v1.3.8 with Apple Silicon M1 support.
https://www.kvraudio.com/news/sonic-cat-updates-purity-to-v1-3-8-with-apple-silicon-m1-support-51516
https://sonic-cat.com/purity/#tab-id-1
Hi, has anyone used a Roland Octacapture or a Boss SY1000 with a MacBook M1 ? I’d also like to know if IK Multimedia I rig HS2 works ? Thanks for your replies.
…I Rig HD 2…
Fxpansions Tremor works in Rosetta2 mode (So non-native) using the macOS 10.15 installer, that you’ll find In your Fxpansions account.
Cakewalk Z3TE+2 works in Rosetta2 mode (non-native in other words) using the latest Cakewalk-Command-Center app. AU and VST3 only.
Is anyone able to make Waves work with the M1?
Hi. Soundcraft ui24r seems to be working fine with the M1 and Reaper Native. – Maybe it’s because soundcraft ui24r controller is via browser wifi, so no software controller to be installed.
Cheers
Presonus Studio One 5.4.0 has just been updated to run natively on M1. Just thought I’d share the info. Cheers :)