Installation

New in v1.6

Update 01Platform

Mac

Native macOS

First-class macOS support on Apple Silicon and Intel. Code-signed VST3 and AU exports, AU validation passing, ships as a single signed .dmg.

Update 02Sound

Wavetable Osc Refresh

Built-in test waveforms (Saw, Sine, Square, Noise, and more), anti-alias mip at the top end, preserved phase for asymmetric shapes, sidebands dropped ~57 dB.

Update 03Plugins

⇲

Resizable Plugin Windows

VST3 and AU plugins now resize cleanly on macOS, with DPI-aware refresh when the host changes scale. WASAPI driver support on Windows.

Update 04Workflow

∿

Live Hoverscopes

Hover any pin or wire to see the signal as a mini live scope. Now works on GUI modules and IO modules, with improved hit-testing on pins and lines.

Update 05Skins

◧

Project-Specific Skins

Drop a sister folder next to your project (e.g. mysynth.skin/) and SynthEdit searches it first for skins and fonts. A _fallback skin holds your custom assets, plus a new “Browse to Project Skin” menu.

See the full changelog for every release in the v1.6 line.

Download

A free 60-day demo is available that lets you explore the full feature set, including exporting your work as VST or AU plugins. After 60 days you’ll need a license to keep using SynthEdit.

macOS

Download for Mac (.dmg)

Open the .dmg file
Drag SynthEdit to your Applications folder
Launch SynthEdit from Applications

Windows

Download for Windows (.exe)

Requires Windows 10 version 1809 (build 17763) or newer, 64-bit.

Download and run SynthEdit-Setup.exe.
The signed installer unpacks the MSIX payload, installs the required Windows framework dependencies, then installs SynthEdit. No administrator prompts; no certificate to trust.
SynthEdit launches automatically when the install finishes. Next time, launch it from the Start menu (search “Synth Edit”).

AI Assistant Support

To drive SynthEdit from Claude Code, Cursor, or any other MCP-compatible AI assistant, you need the headless SynthEditCL command-line tool. The setup differs slightly by platform:

macOS — already done. SynthEditCL ships inside SynthEdit.app. Skip ahead to the MCP connector guide to wire up your AI host.

Windows — install the standalone command-line tool. Works with or without the GUI.

Download SynthEditCL Installer (.exe)

Run the installer
Tick “Add to PATH” if you want SynthEditCL.exe available system-wide (recommended)
Continue to the MCP connector guide to configure your AI host

Common Issues

Module XML Problems

This happens when a third-party module has typos in its XML definition. The fix is to get the latest update for those modules from their original developer — newer versions correct these mistakes.

Scrolling or Zooming Past the Document Bounds

You can now scroll and zoom beyond the edges of the document. This is intentional — it lets you position the part of the document you’re working on comfortably within the view.

Slight Delay When Resizing the Module Browser

There is a slight delay when you adjust the size of the module browser. This is intentional — it reduces the load on your graphics card from recreating a fresh swapchain on every size change.

Recent Releases

Recent changes and fixes. View full changelog

v1.6.128 — 2026-06-12

rounded U-turns on doubled-back connector lines
middle-button drag to pan document views
middle-button drag to pan document views
hide the Ctrl+W key-tip that followed the mouse
ModWheel shadow fused to the wheel outline (real sheared-silhouette geometry, not a detached blob); squarer slot corners

Unreleased

ug_gmpi implements IElapsedTime extension (elapsed render time in samples)
three-way connector line style (Default / Curvey / Straight)
give ExportFormatType an explicit underlying type (enables forward declaration)
close tabs reliably via Ctrl+W and middle-click

v1.6.127 — 2026-06-11

suppress hover-scopes and connector highlights while dragging a module
forward-declare ExportFormatType with explicit underlying type (fixes macOS clang build)

v1.6.126 — 2026-06-11

selected module wins hit-test ties with unselected modules in front (figma-style)
prevent use-after-free crash when loading the SE SynthEdit SEM
mouse-wheel support for Vector Ring/Knob/Bar GUI controls
installer no longer launches the old Store SynthEdit 1.5 after install
iir1-based Butterworth filters (GMPI); deprecate DspFilters gen-2
fix ‘build code skeleton’ for GUI modules
Chebyshev I/II and RBJ filters (iir1/GMPI)
Bitmap holds a strong context ref for reliable device-loss detection
‘export plugin’ now ensures that controls have a parameter index assigned (to give consistent automation behaviour in DAW)

v1.6.125 — 2026-06-10

standardize the default/reset preset name on “Init”
scan user and global preset folders, both VST3 and AU formats
include xmlpreset in preset scan and cross-format load

v1.6.124 — 2026-06-09

save presets in both VST3 and AU formats
info notifications consistently show as toast, not intermittently as a dialog
frame the icon bar with a sunken 1px bevel
debug builds tolerate missing Windows vst3 template
Saving presets from VST3 plugins now saves the preset category also

v1.6.123 — 2026-06-09

tokenize GUI command line with CommandLineToArgvW
register .synthedit/.syntheditprefab file association so projects open in 1.6
make CPM.cmake bootstrap self-healing (hash-verify + retry)
keep CPM.cmake in build dir so reconfigure doesn’t trip its guard
in-place text-editor follows swap-chain panel margin
differentiate active tab and icon-bar shade per theme
add —container screenshot target; emit JSONL for load/screenshot
accept only hyphen-prefixed CLI flags, not Windows /slash

v1.6.122 — 2026-06-08

correct odd-order Butterworth high-pass polarity inversion
Impulse Response2 captures full symmetric (linear-phase) response

v1.6.121 — 2026-06-08

recover installer from stale msix package blocking registration
patch points on structure view draw the thick cables when connecting
make ‘load last file’ crash-guard reinstate timer actually fire
fix smears on moving patch-cables
fix hovering over patch-cable not fully redrawing
fix fresh patch cables drawing one end off screen
default IO Modules not so far apart
correct Sinc Filter passband gain + dedupe header guards

v1.6.120 — 2026-06-05

ok/cancel dialog crash in vst3, and restore the cancel button
more careful to avoid updating host-controls when loading a preset
memory overwrite in saveNativePreset
loading a preset with missing parameters sets those parameters to default value (in editor)
fix crash when closing editor in Reaper Windows
crash when closing main window with a tab torn out
cleaner module outlines
Save preset bank working
Panel Group - clip long heading text
Loading a bank now loads preset categories too

v1.6.119 — 2026-06-04

module browser fills full height after window resize
install skins and prefabs under All-Users documents, not per-user
crash-guard ‘load last file’ against startup doom loop
add getCommonDocumentFolder() for shared skins/prefabs location

v1.6.118 — 2026-06-03

wire tooltip path through HostedView (WinUI3)
dispatch getToolTip through ViewBase to hit-tested children
add stereo Low Pass (6dB), use multi-output FilterBase
add TPT one-pole low-pass and high-pass examples
add TPT equaliser filters (low shelf, high shelf, bell)
add TPT State Variable Filter example
add Low Pass (6dB) filter module
accept multiline text-edit on Enter, Shift+Enter inserts newline (WinUI3)

v1.6.117 — 2026-06-02

fix PatchMem BLOB pin values getting scrambled.
All prefabs now scanned into module browser, including .seprefab

v1.6.116 — 2026-06-01

vector Button - removed unused line-color pin
reset properties-browser scroll on module change

v1.6.114 — 2026-05-29

better alignment of text-edit on properties-browser fields
SynthEdit can now use SynthEdit 1.5 (build 669+) to automatically upgrade older prefab files.

Demo vs Full Version

Feature	Demo	Full Version
Build synths	Yes	Yes
All modules	Yes	Yes
Save projects	Yes	Yes
Export VST/AU plugins	Yes	Yes
Time limit	60 days	None

The demo is fully featured — you can build synths, save projects, and export commercial-quality VST or AU plugins for the full 60 days. After that, a license keeps everything working with no further restrictions.

Activation

Licenses are handled through Moonbase, our new licensing partner (the previous provider, ShareIt, has closed down).

To activate your copy:

In SynthEdit, open the registration settings and click the Activate button
This launches the Moonbase website in your browser
Create a Moonbase account using the email address associated with your SynthEdit license

Most existing customers’ email addresses have already been imported into Moonbase, so activation should work straight away. If you hit any trouble, email jef@synthedit.com and Jeff will sort it out.

Next Steps

Once installed, follow the Your First Synth guide to build something right away.