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With Max 8, we discontinued 32-bit support. This means that Max 8+ is a 64-bit only application. Max 7 and Max 6 can run as either 32-bit or 64-bit.
Why is Max 8 64-bit only?
We feel that moving to a 64-bit only architecture is the best path forward for Max and its community for these reasons:
- Apple no longer supports 32-bit applications.
- The embedded Chrome web browser technology we rely upon for in-application web browsing (including Reference, File Browser, Package Manager, and Search features) has removed 32-bit support long ago.
- Maintenance issues across architectures has become increasingly burdensome for us to provide you with the best Max experience possible.
- Since 64-bit applications remove the memory restrictions of 32-bit applications, 64-bit Max is able to provide you with significantly improved math for integer operations.
What if I need to use Max 8 in 32-bit?
If you must use 32-bit due to the reliance on older third party externals, audio plugins, or operating systems, we suggest you use Max 7.3.5. We realize that this might be an obstacle for those of you that wish to integrate new Max 8 features into existing Max patches that do have 32-bit dependencies, and we encourage you to let us know the 32-bit only third party externals or other features that you rely upon for your patches. We'll do our best to offer recommendations for alternative solutions to make these patches work in Max 8, and are open to helping third party external developers port their objects to 64-bit as we've already been doing for the past several years.
Is Max 7 / Max 6 a 32- or 64-bit application?
As of Max 6.1, Max is available in both 32- and 64-bit versions. The MacOS download contains both versions as a FAT bundle; you can change whether it runs in 32- or 64-bit mode using “Get Info” on the Max application in the Finder. For Windows, there are separate 32- and 64-bit downloads. Third party objects will not work with 64-bit versions of Max 6.1 or later, as they will need to be recompiled for 64-bit compatibility. Max 6.0.8 is a 32-bit binary application. Max audio processing bit depth was updated to 64-bit as of Max 6.0.
Please note that the 64-bit version of Max 7 / Max 6 will have more features than the 32-bit version. To see what is supported by the version you have installed, open Max 7 / Max 6 and go to 'Help > Latest Support Information'.
What is the bit resolution of MSP signals and Max messages?
Max audio processing bit depth was updated to 64-bit as of Max 6.0. The bit resolution of Max messages is dependent on the version of software that you are using. Versions before Max 6.1, and the 32-bit versions of Max 6.1+, use 32-bit numeric data. The 64-bit version of Max 6.1+ uses 64-bit numeric data for all message contents.
Why won't my 3rd party externals run inside the 64-bit version of Max?
All Max externals need to be ported and recompiled. Please contact the 3rd party developer to see if they have recompiled their externals with a compatible SDK version. Get the latest Max SDK.