AAX

AAX (Avid Audio eXtension) is the only plugin format Pro Tools loads. Shipping into pro-audio studios means shipping AAX. The format is proprietary to Avid, requires a licensed SDK, and — for retail distribution — PACE/iLok signing via wraptool.

#Status

Opt-in. macOS and Windows; no Linux support (Avid doesn't ship an AAX SDK for Linux). Truce's AAX support has been tested in Pro Tools Developer Build; retail Pro Tools requires PACE signing.

#Enable

[features]
aax = ["dep:truce-aax"]
cargo truce install --aax

#Requirements

#1. Avid AAX SDK

Obtain the AAX SDK from developer.avid.com. Requires a free developer account. Unpack to a path of your choice — common conventions are ~/sdk/aax-sdk-2-9-0/ on macOS / Linux or C:\sdk\aax-sdk-2-9-0\ on Windows.

You don't need to pre-build the SDK's libAAXLibrary.a yourself. cargo truce invokes the SDK's own cmake on first use into a sibling {sdk}/build-truce/ directory, with the right CMAKE_OSX_ARCHITECTURES for whatever you're building (host-only for install, universal for package --universal). The build is cached — subsequent runs are a no-op.

Tell cargo truce where the SDK lives via the AAX_SDK_PATH env var (preferred — gitignored):

# .cargo/config.toml  (gitignored)
[env]
AAX_SDK_PATH = "/Users/you/sdk/aax-sdk-2-9-0"

Or export it:

export AAX_SDK_PATH=/Users/you/sdk/aax-sdk-2-9-0

Or — least preferred, because it's repo-committed — under [macos] / [windows] in truce.toml:

[macos]
aax_sdk_path = "/Users/you/sdk/aax-sdk-2-9-0"

The env var takes precedence over the toml field if both are set.

#2. A compiler

  • macOS: Xcode CLI tools.
  • Windows: Visual Studio 2019+ with the "Desktop development with C++" workload. CMake and Ninja for the AAX SDK's own build.

#3. (Retail only) PACE wraptool + iLok signing account

Pro Tools retail refuses to load AAX plugins that aren't signed by PACE. For developer testing you can use Pro Tools Developer (free from Avid with a developer license on your iLok) and skip PACE signing entirely.

For retail signing:

  • wraptool.exe on $PATH / %PATH%.
  • Environment variables for your PACE account (read at cargo truce package time):
# macOS / Linux
export PACE_ACCOUNT=your-account
export PACE_SIGN_ID=your-sign-id
REM Windows
set PACE_ACCOUNT=your-account
set PACE_SIGN_ID=your-sign-id

If any of these are missing, cargo truce package prints a warning, skips PACE signing, and includes the unsigned AAX in the installer. Pro Tools Developer still loads it; retail Pro Tools doesn't.

#Install paths

AAX is always system-only — Pro Tools' loader scans only the system root on every platform. cargo truce install --user --aax falls back to system silently with a one-line note.

Platform Path (system-wide, sudo / admin required)
macOS /Library/Application Support/Avid/Audio/Plug-Ins/{Name}.aaxplugin/
Windows %COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Avid\Audio\Plug-Ins\{Name}.aaxplugin\

Like VST3, .aaxplugin is a bundle directory (Contents/MacOS/... on macOS; Contents/x64/... on Windows).

#Signing

Three layers, in order:

  1. Codesign / Authenticode. cargo truce install codesigns the macOS bundle with $TRUCE_SIGNING_IDENTITY. Windows binaries are Authenticode-signed at cargo truce package time via signtool.
  2. PACE wrap. Runs before Authenticode on the .aaxplugin binary when PACE_ACCOUNT / PACE_SIGN_ID are set and wraptool is on PATH. PACE wraps the binary; Authenticode signs the wrapped result.
  3. Installer signing. On macOS the .pkg is Developer ID Installer-signed and optionally notarized; on Windows the .exe is Authenticode-signed.

#Build / install / package

cargo truce install --aax          # build + install (requires sudo/admin)
cargo truce build --aax            # bundle into target/bundles/ without
                                    # installing — useful for CI / artifact
                                    # pipelines
cargo truce package --formats aax  # signed installer (adds PACE if
                                    # PACE_ACCOUNT/SIGN_ID set, else warns)

Note: AAX is not in the scaffold default feature set. You must either add it to [features].default or pass --aax explicitly every time.

#Validate

No first-party AAX validator is wired into cargo truce validate. Verify manually by opening Pro Tools Developer and loading the plugin.

#Pro Tools error -7054

The retail Pro Tools equivalent of "plugin unsigned" is error code -7054. If you hit this, the plugin isn't PACE-signed. Either:

  • Use Pro Tools Developer with a developer iLok license (free for testing); or
  • Set up a paid PACE signing account and re-package with PACE_ACCOUNT / PACE_SIGN_ID set.

#truce.toml fields

[[plugin]]
name = "My Effect"
bundle_id = "effect"
fourcc = "MyFx"
aax_category = "Dynamics"        # Avid's category string — shows in the
                                  # Pro Tools plug-in menu grouping

Valid aax_category values: None, EQ, Dynamics, PitchShift, Reverb, Delay, Modulation, Harmonic, NoiseReduction, Dither, SoundField, HardwareGenerators, SWGenerators, WrappedPlugin, Effect.

#Hosts

Host Platform Status
Pro Tools Developer macOS / Windows working — loads unsigned AAX
Pro Tools (retail) macOS / Windows requires PACE signing
Pro Tools First — no longer supported by Avid
Any non-Avid host — AAX is Pro Tools only

#Gotchas

  • Linux is unsupported. Avid doesn't ship an AAX SDK for Linux. cargo truce install --aax on Linux fails with a clear error before building.
  • AAX_SDK_PATH must point to the SDK root, the directory that contains Interfaces/, Libs/, Utilities/. Pointing at a subdirectory fails with an unhelpful build error from the AAX SDK's own CMake.
  • Windows AAX is host-arch only. The AAX SDK doesn't support cross-compiled universal binaries on Windows — cargo truce install --aax builds for the host architecture only. macOS produces universal (arm64 + x86_64) bundles normally.
  • PACE signing is not optional for retail. Pro Tools "real" (the paid user-facing product) refuses unsigned plug-ins. Budget the time/cost of a PACE account before committing to a retail release.
  • System-wide install requires elevation. macOS: sudo. Windows: Administrator command prompt. cargo truce package avoids that for end users by producing an installer that handles elevation at run time.
  • Four-char codes must be stable. fourcc (+ au_manufacturer from [vendor]) is how Pro Tools identifies the plugin in saved sessions. Don't change it after release.