A Snapshot is a Memory Forever

The ability to use VST and Audio Units plug-ins in your Max patches using the vst~ object (which now hosts both VST and Audio Units plug-ins in Max 7) is a great feature (and it’s easier and more fun than you think, too). Max 7 also introduces the ability to host Max for Live devices using the amxd~ object to further add to the fun and mayhem - there are quite a few Max for Live objects out there in addition to the ones you can make yourself.

One of the challenges that came with using these objects involves the hunt for ways to save the state of a plug-in so that it retains its settings when you close and reopen your patch. (You can find discussions of ways to approach that problem on the Max Forum here and here, and elsewhere. As with any discussion of a shared problem, reading through these is a great way to gain insight into how Max programmers think).

Max 7 introduces a new way to approach the problem: the snapshot. Simply put, a snapshot is a simple way to store the current state of a VST or Audio Units plug-in or a Max for Live device and save that information with your Max patch. We’ll show you how it works using this simple patch that contains A Max for Live device and a VST plug-in:

Choose Inspector Window from the View menu to display the Patcher Inspector in the Inspector window of your patcher. Scroll down to the Snapshot section and click the Embed Snapshot checkbox.

Information about the startup state of your plug-ins and Max for Live devices will now be stored as a part of your patch, similar to the way that you can embed the contents of a Max coll object as a part of your patch.

In order to take a snapshot of the current state of your device, simply click on the Save Snapshot (plus) icon in the title bar of the vst~ and amxd~ objects’ title bars.

That’s it. When the patch is saved and closed, the data will be stored with your patch and the plug-in or Max for Live device settings will be restored the next time you open the patch. Want to tweak the settings a bit? No problem – just click on the Save Snapshot icon for the vst~ or amxd~ device again.

There’s a lot more to come with the use of snapshots in future versions of Max 7. We’re not going to spoil the surprises, but rest assured that we’ll tell you all about them when they’re ready. Stay tuned!