What’s new.

Read about the new features, enhancements and improvements in recent versions of Sessions.

Sessions 7.0

April 2, 2026

Sessions 7.0 introduces support for Plug-in Side Chains.

Many Plug-ins, such as vocoders and compressors, feature a Side Chain input which allows them to ‘listen’ to an audio signal to control some aspect of their internal behaviour.

Sessions 7.0 adds a Side Chain picker to the Plug-in Widget menu. From here, you can select which Channel Strip output you want to connect to the Side Chain input of the Plug-in.

Sessions 6.2

March 13, 2026

Sessions 6.2 improves the timing accuracy when syncing to an external MIDI clock.

Sessions 6.1

March 06, 2026

Sessions 6.1 updates the Audio Engine Settings to account for the new CPU core types introduced with Apple’s M5 family of chips.

Sessions 6.0

February 27, 2026

Sessions 6.0 introduces automatic Plug-in Latency Compensation.

Some Plug-ins introduce small timing delays, known as latency, when processing audio. This causes audio from some Channel Strips to be slightly out of alignment with others. Plug-in Latency Compensation automatically corrects for this misalignment by delaying the output of low latency Channel Strips to match those with a higher latency. 

Plug-in Latency Compensation can be enabled and disabled in the Audio tab in Settings where the amount of correction currently being applied is also displayed. To help find Plug-ins that may be introducing latency, an info button is provided that displays the latency reported by all Plug-ins in the current Session.

It is widely accepted that for live performance it is desirable to reduce latency as much as possible. Although Plug-in Latency Compensation can increase latency on some Channel Strips, it only does so to match the latency already present in other Channel Strips that contain Plug-ins that report non-zero latency. A Session that contains only zero-latency Plug-ins will have the same overheads and latency irrespective of the Plug-in Latency Compensation setting.

Plug-in Latency Compensation is enabled by default and we recommend it remains enabled to ensure correct alignment of audio throughout the system.

Sessions 5.4

February 2, 2026

Sessions 5.4 includes the following improvements:

• Fixes an issue where some plug-ins would generate a continuous noise when switching Scenes.
• The metronome volume slider now works as expected.

Sessions 5.3

January 23, 2026

Sessions 5.3 includes the following improvements:

• Adds an external MIDI mapping for the master output volume.
• Fixes an issue that could result in incorrect audio data being written to a file when exported from the Always-On Recorder.

Sessions 5.2

December 17, 2025

Sessions 5.2 includes the following improvements:

• Adds error handling for plug-ins that become invalidated or cause the AUHostingService to crash.
• Improves Widget control interaction to reduce unintended drag operations.
• Fixes the Settings view toolbar layout on macOS 26.2.

Sessions 5.1

November 01, 2025

Sessions 5.1 works around an issue where some plug-ins were incorrectly obtaining the host sample rate from an inactive input bus format.

Sessions 5.0

October 30, 2025

Sessions 5.0 introduces two new features - Session Mix and Pinned Scenes - that work together to unlock a whole new way to perform live with Sessions.

Session Mix is a new view that provides a bird’s eye view of your entire session. Your 12 Scenes are arranged in a grid with colourful, easy-to-see and easy-to-reach buttons. Designed to be simple and intuitive to use while playing live, Session Mix lets you control all 12 Scene output levels and seamlessly switch Scenes without any other distractions.

Session Mix also includes Pinned Scenes that enables you to activate and deactivate additional Scenes alongside the currently selected Scene. This opens the door to new possibilities such as always-on Scenes and delivers the flexibility to treat Scenes as layers that can be seamlessly blended in and out during a live performance.

We’ve also added new external MIDI mappings so you can pin / unpin Scenes and adjust individual Scene output levels from your MIDI controller.

Sessions 5.0 also includes the following new features and improvements:

• Adds an optional Scene name that will be displayed instead of the Scene icon
• Improves interaction with gain controls for more accuracy - clicking (or tapping) either side of the knob position adjusts the gain in small steps. Double clicking (or tapping) the knob, resets the gain to 0dB
• When adjusting gain from the Macros or MIDI, the dB value is temporarily displayed
• The screen will no longer go to sleep when Sessions is the frontmost app [Mac]
• Improves error handling for plug-ins that are not compatible with the current audio settings
• Fixes an issue with hung notes from certain MIDI controllers when switching Scenes
• Fixes an issue that prevented renamed Widget parameters updating on macOS 26 and iPadOS 26
• Fixes an issue that could cause Sessions to quit unexpectedly when opening Settings with certain hardware combinations

Sessions 4.1

October 09, 2025

Sessions 4.1 includes the following improvements:

• Fixes an issue that prevented Scene icons from being selected on macOS 26 and iPadOS 26
• Fixes an issue that could prevent plug-ins producing audio
• Fixes an issue that could prevent plug-in views initializing correctly
• Fixes an issue that reloaded all plug-ins twice after the sample rate of an aggregate device was changed [Mac]

Sessions 4.0

September 24, 2025

Sessions 4.0 introduces a new multi-threaded audio engine that spreads the audio processing load over multiple CPU cores. The new engine delivers a huge increase in real-time audio performance so you can add even more Channel Strips and Plug-ins to your projects.

In addition to the new audio engine, Sessions 4.0 includes the following new features and improvements:

• Adds an optional CPU meter to the toolbar
• Adds a setting to control of the maximum number of threads available to the new audio engine
• Adds more flexibility when selecting and combining Output and Input Devices [Mac]
• Adds compatibility with Aggregate Devices created using Audio MIDI Setup [Mac]
• Adds compatibility with mono plug-ins
• Moved Metronome and Display options into a new General tab in Settings
• Fixes an issue where the mute button did not silence pre fader sends
• Fixes an issue where input channels that should have contained audio data were silent
• Fixes an issue where plug-ins could fail to load if the the app was backgrounded [iPad]
• Fixes an issue where restoration of the previous app state could fail after restarting [iPad]

Sessions 3.5

September 01, 2025

Sessions 3.5 includes the following improvements:

• Fixes an issue with logarithmically scaled plug-in parameters that could cause Sessions to quit unexpectedly in certain circumstances
• Improves the accuracy of displayed parameter values when adjusting Widget controls

Sessions 3.4

August 22, 2025

Sessions 3.4 includes the following improvements:

• Fixes an issue which could result in the output volume being louder than expected in certain circumstances

Sessions 3.3

August 19, 2025

Sessions 3.3 includes the following improvements:

• Fixes a very rare crash when starting playback in the Always-On Recorder

Sessions 3.2

August 2, 2025

Sessions 3.2 includes the following improvements:

• Sessions for iPad can now run in the background while using other apps. This behaviour can be selected using a new ‘Run in Background’ option in Audio Settings.
• Sessions for iPad will no longer interrupt audio from other apps when it becomes the foreground app.

Sessions 3.1

July 30, 2025

Sessions 3.1 includes the following improvements to Sessions for iPad:

• Support for Bluetooth headphones
• A menu for adding the current Scene to the Patch Library
• Several small changes to help clarify the difference between Projects and Patches
• Fixes a potential issue where the app state was not restored correctly

Sessions 3.0

July 21, 2025

Highlights of the Sessions 3.0 release include:

• Sessions is now available for iPad
• Project files have replaced Performances
• Improvements to Widgets 

Sessions is now available as a universal app for Mac and iPad. Existing Mac customers can download Sessions on their iPad with no additional purchase required.

In previous versions of Sessions read-only snapshots of all 12 Scenes could be saved as Performances. Performances were built-in to and managed by the app. In Sessions 3.0, the entire Performance system has been replaced with a more flexible Project file based workflow. The File menu has familiar New, Open, Open Recent, Save and Save As functions as well as Revert to Saved and Show in Finder options.

AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT YOUR EXISTING PERFORMANCES: Existing Performances must be migrated to the new Project file format before they can be used.  Sessions 3.0 includes a Performance Migrator in the File > Open Recent menu. When selected, this will show a list of all the Performances that have been saved. Pressing the Migrate button will begin the conversion which should only take a few seconds. On completion, converted Performances can be found in Finder in ~/Music/Sessions/Projects/Migrated Performances.

The Patch Library has also moved to the file system to make it easier to backup and share patches. Patches can be found ~/Music/Sessions/Patches.

Sessions 3.0 includes several improvements to Widgets. Each widget now has a header containing buttons for showing its contextual menu, opening a plug-in’s UI and  bypassing an effect. When an effect is bypassed it is now more clearly indicated. It is now possible to save an empty Widget Layout as the default for a Plug-in.

Sessions 3.0 also includes the following fixes and improvements:

• Bypass is now available for all effect plug-ins
• Fixes a potential performance problem with Sends that do not have a destination set
• Incompatible Plug-ins that support only mono connections will no longer cause Sessions to crash

Sessions 2.3

March 21, 2025

Sessions 2.3 includes the following improvements:

• Adds a greater selection of I/O buffer sizes
• Improves performance when using multiple Scenes
• Improves reliability when using AUv3 instruments and effects
• Fixes an issue that could prevent the Scene configuration popover from appearing

Sessions 2.2

March 12, 2025

Sessions 2.2 adds toggle behaviour for MIDI buttons, switches and pedals.

The behaviour of MIDI controller mappings for Macros can now be selected. Choose Direct for knobs, sliders and expression pedals where the entire MIDI range should map directly to the Macro value (matching the behaviour in previous app versions). Choose Toggle for buttons, switches and pedals that should behave as on / off switches. This will toggle between the Macro’s minimum and maximum values each time a MIDI value of 127 is received.

Sessions 2.1

February 14, 2025

Sessions 2.1 includes the following improvements:

• Improves reliability when using always-visible scroll bars
• Improves UI responsiveness when adjusting Macros
• Improves the dB label popup when adjusting levels
• Fixes a graphical artefact with level controls on macOS Ventura
• The instrument plug-in list in the New Channel view no longer includes hidden plug-ins

Sessions 2.0

February 6, 2025

Highlights of the Sessions 2.0 release include:

• Introduction of a streamlined, single-window plug-in workflow
• Added the Plug-In Manager
• New Widget themes
• Safe Start mode

Version 2.0 introduces a streamlined workflow so you can work with plug-ins in the main window right beside the Mixer - not floating on top of it. Flexible layout options let you set the split between the Mixer and plug-in view, enabling you to see exactly what you want. Of course, the traditional workflow where each plug-in opens in its own floating window is still available.

The Plug-In Manager shows details of all the Audio Units installed on your Mac and lets you decide which ones you want to use in Sessions.

We’ve added three new Widget themes that conjure up memories of old-school video displays from the early days of music technology - green, amber and paper-white screens.

To help troubleshoot problematic plug-ins, Safe Start allows Sessions to defer the loading of plug-ins at startup. Safe Start can be activated by holding the Option key when launching the app. Sessions will also automatically activate Safe Start on the next launch following an improper shutdown of the app.

Sessions 2.0 also includes the following fixes and improvements:

• Improvements to default channel names. The default name for an audio channel is now ‘Input Channel’, rather than ‘Untitled Channel’. For instrument channels, the default name is taken from the instrument plug-in used to create the channel. If the instrument plug-in is replaced and a custom name has not been set, the channel will be renamed to match the new instrument plug-in
• Session files are now called Performances to better reflect their purpose
• The bypassed state of an effect plug-in is now consistent between the Widget and plug-in
• Using a MIDI velocity filter no longer results in stuck notes
• Improves user interface when learning parameter mappings in Widgets and Macros
• Improves background colors in Light Mode
• Improves reliability and thread management throughout the audio engine
• Improves reliability when using Guitar Rig by Native Instruments

Sessions 1.3

December 10, 2024

• Improves beat and sample position reporting to plug-ins such as Cherry Audio’s CR-78
• Fixes an issue where Sessions could stop responding when starting the Beat Clock or Metronome

Sessions 1.2

November 8, 2024

• Fixes an issue where the initial plug-in scan could appear to stall

Sessions 1.1

September 16, 2024

Improves compatibility with macOS Sequoia and resolves the following issues:

• Messages from disabled MIDI inputs could trigger notes after changes to audio hardware settings
• The welcome message could be displayed more often than intended

Sessions 1.0

August 28, 2024

• Initial release