ForumsNews ← Aalto 1.5 now available

Hi all! This winter has seen a flurry of programming here at the labs. Aside from finishing up our new synthesizer, Kaivo, I have done some work fine tuning Aalto and making sure it plays nicely with recent operating systems and hosts.


Aalto 1.5 is out now. As always, you can get the release version by logging in and clicking “My Downloads,” and the demo at the Aalto product page. Version 1.5 has some major compatibility improvements for both Windows and Mac users. Performance should be dramatically improved on some Windows systems. I’ve improved the usability of the Patcher and dial UIs.


On Mac OS, if you have a Retina display, you are in for a treat. As always, you can smoothly scale Aalto to a wide range of sizes, or even zoom it to full screen. This new version has a new OpenGL-assisted renderer so graphics are amazingly sharp, at full Retina resolution, in compatible hosts. It may be “only a graphic thing” but I find this change means that using a tiny little Aalto window is now possible, which can really improve workflow on a laptop screen. (note: unfortunately Ableton Live does not yet support full-resolution rendering.)


Here’s the list of major changes in Aalto 1.5:

  • Fixed an issue that was slowing down Aalto dramatically on some Windows systems.
  • Fixed an issue requiring a runtime support pack on some Windows systems.
  • Improved latency through the patcher when running at large host buffer sizes.
  • Aalto now draws at full resolution on Macintosh Retina Display, in compatible hosts.
  • Aalto is now compatible with Soundplane version 1.0 and higher.
  • Fix mousewheel direction on Mac OS 10.7 and higher.
  • Accelerated drawing to the screen on Mac OS with OpenGL.
  • Optimized drawing scheduling to avoid glitches, especially in Logic.
  • User and factory presets now share the same location.
  • Improved ergonomics of patcher with larger handles and smoother graphics.
  • Fixed a drawing problem with bipolar dials.
  • Improved drag ergonomics for dials.

Aalto 1.6 yay! nice.. i like updates :)

wait for Aalto 'key trig' fix: 7 months and counting!

Hey, I am working a ton of bug fixes into this release and it is taking some time. I hear your frustration and I empathize but I can't just release Aalto 1.6 tomorrow, there are many changes I need to wind down and test. I'm working on automating my release process better so I can turn around updates more frequently in the future.

ok cheers. looking fwd to 1.6 then!

Hi Randy, i realized that midi program changes are not working anymore with version 1.5. I have created the MIDI Programes folder and copied some presets in it but it doedn't work in ableton live 9.1.7 or maschine 2.2 under mac os yosemite

This is fixed for 1.6, coming very soon.

Is it possible that the midi program changes also don't work anymore under Win7? The "MIDI Programs" folder does not show up in Aalto. (I just bought 1.5. so, I have no way of comparing with older versions, since I'm new to Aalto.

It's possible, but I thought it worked. I will be testing the Windows build as I finish up 1.6 over the next few days and I'll make sure to check this out.