{"article":{"id":5172379808276,"url":"https://universalaudioinc.zendesk.com/api/v2/help_center/en-us/articles/5172379808276.json","html_url":"https://help.uaudio.com/hc/en-us/articles/5172379808276-UAD-Native-Plug-ins-UADx-and-UAD-Spark-Studio-System-Requirements","author_id":417088229451,"comments_disabled":true,"draft":false,"promoted":true,"position":0,"vote_sum":-5,"vote_count":17,"section_id":5167224480148,"created_at":"2022-03-29T20:02:52Z","updated_at":"2026-09-15T18:56:35Z","name":"UAD Native Plug-ins (UADx) and UAD Spark Studio System Requirements","title":"UAD Native Plug-ins (UADx) and UAD Spark Studio System Requirements","source_locale":"en-us","locale":"en-us","outdated":false,"outdated_locales":[],"edited_at":"2026-09-15T18:56:35Z","user_segment_id":null,"permission_group_id":345106,"content_tag_ids":["01H8MCV7648TZ2139NZGVP1KB1","01HAD6K8XAHN6SZ0F0Y081GMTG","01HAQDPT1BF612Y7RSFSV81RJD","01HAZ80NRABYYHA4JJZ58Y80W4","01HAZ80SVPVJESVV7JQXXBW0PA","01HBY4C7A3966ZGV1ZTS6NV9WH","01HBY4G3X1NFKNMJZE8WKMR84D","01HC156479R4XC9BN15ASEG240","01HEXKYXJHBB8NWJMAM1B21E77","01K34CX1BTCA30K71JN4D2QKTG"],"label_names":["Native","Windows","specifications","macOS","operating system","UA Connect","requirements","system","specs","Spark","System requirements","UAD Spark","os","Native UAD","UAD Instruments","operating","requirement"],"body":"<p>This article lists all of the current system requirements for <strong>UAD Native plug-ins (UADx)</strong> – both available in <strong>UAD Spark Studio</strong> and as perpetual licenses.</p><ul><li data-renderer-start-pos=\"4560\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">macOS Big Sur 11, Monterey 12, Ventura 13, Sonoma 14, Sequoia 15 and Tahoe 26</span></li></ul><ul>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e48e7458b3fff397458435e28b50b9b0f\">Windows 10 or Windows 11 (64-bit editions)</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"ead4b9965330f267e0f77bef488a76053\">Intel, AMD, or Apple silicon processor</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"ea7fb1232ac4d532c36f72cd282bb69dc\">Internet connection to download software and authorize UAD Native plug-ins (UADx)</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"edb21353db7efc0c50b12aac85ec87ef5\">Free iLok account</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"ee093c948dca59011a67d4cc680b58fe8\">Compatible with iLok USB (2nd generation or higher) but not required</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e273481450fe40566489b69f8b3fe6309\">Free UA Connect application for managing UAD Native plug-ins (UADx)</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"eeabc3802dac82bd20fb37894dd0d164b\">A supported DAW compatible with VST3, AU, or AAX plug-in file formats. Supported DAWs are listed <a href=\"https://help.uaudio.com/hc/en-us/articles/5172457309716\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>in this article</strong></a>.</li>\n</ul><h4 id=\"h_01HEKN7ND44F6P73TM5PEHFVHG\">UAD Native Instruments Requirements</h4><ul>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e329fa73f60e64c5f4044ed40e5cc69c8\">Sample-based UAD instruments require SSD storage with:<ul>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e76ec2c52a8b2d61cdffec19b8e94721a\">APFS formatting for macOS</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e4eeb5b393b502cce88808fef6de0bd19\">NTFS formatting for Windows</li>\n</ul>\n</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e035e956be44061f7b2b219b9dc67bf58\">1 GB to 10 GB of available SSD storage per plug-in (space requirements vary per UAD Instrument). <strong>A minimum of 100 GB of available storage is highly recommended</strong>.</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e2d3e3aee68e30c2284409996131a5005\">Individual UAD Instrument storage requirements are listed on <strong>UA Connect’s UAD Plug-Ins</strong> tab.</li>\n</ul><h4 id=\"h_01HEKN7ND4SMN7JEVKNE4X0442\">Notes</h4><ul>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"ee427661da99de9388381c46b2759779c\">Operating systems not listed above are untested. Although untested operating systems may work, they are not supported by Universal Audio.</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e8b108ecc6250652163615829cb1e1e53\">Pre-release and beta versions of operating systems are not supported.</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"eb3812483bc77060d05f08e73a8e135a8\">UAD Native plug-ins (UADx) on Apple silicon machines automatically run natively on Apple silicon in DAWs that support native Apple silicon.</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e0365d062d39c7e5ab11d88c6cd6e3069\">Windows running via Bootcamp on Mac systems is not supported.</li>\n<li data-list-item-id=\"e5ec524e833817d4f6e68b4d07df51093\">'Hackintosh' and 'Mac computers' not made by Apple are not supported.</li>\n</ul>","user_segment_ids":[]}}