How to Install and Use VSX SystemWide on MacOS

VSX SystemWide is an application that allows VSX owners to run VSX as a standalone program, without the need of a DAW. 

NOTE: Unlike the plugin version of VSX, which is compatible with OS 10.11 and above, VSX SystemWide is ONLY compatible with OS 11 (Big Sur) and higher. 

      For VSX users on OS 10.15 (Catalina) and lower who wish to use VSX without a DAW, please make        use of one of the many third-party VST hosts.

How to Install and Use VSX SystemWide on MacOS

1. Launch the Slate Audio Center application and log in. The login password will be the same password you use to log in to https://my.stevenslateaudio.com.

2. Under where it says "VSX SYSTEMWIDE" hit install. Please note that the installation for VSX Systemwide is separate than for the VSX plugin. 

Then on the next page, hit the "Install" button that appears there. Wait until installation finishes and you got the "Successfully Installed" notification, then close the Slate Audio Center.

3. To open VSX SystemWide, go to your Applications folder and double-click on the "VSX Systemwide". An Icon for VSX SystemWide will now appear in the menu bar at the top of your screen. Click on this icon to reveal the drop down menu for the application. 

"Select Output Device" lets you decide which device you wish to monitor from. From the dropdown menu, the device that you currently have your VSX headphones plugged in to. 

      PLEASE NOTE: If you can't find the VSX SW icon, then you may have your menu bar set to "Auto Hide", in which case you will need to move your cursor to the top of your screen, for the menu bar to appear. 

       NOTE: If the VSX SX icon doesn't appear in the menu bar, then the menu bar may be at capacity for apps. To free up space in the menu bar, hold "Command" and drag the desired icon you wish to remove downwards, until you see the "X". If that doesn't work, try one of these fixes. 

Also, make sure that your Mac Sound Output (In your System Preferences) is set to "VSX Systemwide", regardless of what you have selected for the Output Device in the VSX SW menu. 

4. Allow VSX SystemWide application to access the microphone input in System Preferences / Security & Privacy / Microphone.

5. From the menu, hit "Open VSX Plug-in" to open the VSX SystemWide plug-in window. Here, you can switch between the VSX emulations and adjust the VSX settings as you normally would on the DAW plug-in version. 

VSX SystemWide requires the system to be at 48Khz. If users are getting an error message when trying to open SystemWide, open up your audio midi app (Applications / Utilities) and make sure the sample rate of your system is 48Khz. 

NOTE FOR SONAMA users: Sonoma (Mac OS 14.0+) introduces a "Voice Isolation" mode for the mic input. This can cause issues with playback for VSX Systemwide. Users on Sonoma will want to make sure to turn this feature off by first launching VSX Systemwide. Then click on the orange microphone icon in the mac menu bar, and click the "VSX Systemwide" tab. Then under mic mode, make sure "Standard" is selected.