Axion Desktop

Axion Desktop is the native build of the same rig you run in the browser — the same amps, pedals, cabs, NAM support, and presets — wrapped in a standalone app that talks straight to your audio hardware. It exists for one reason: latency. By owning the audio device through a native driver (ASIO on Windows, CoreAudio on macOS) it gets the round-trip down to a few milliseconds, well below what a browser can reach.

Axion Desktop is a Pro feature, available for Windows 10/11 (x64) and macOS (Apple Silicon).

Getting it

Downloads are gated to Pro accounts. Go to the download page, enter the email you bought Pro with, and verify the 6-digit code we send you — the Windows and macOS builds unlock immediately. (Your purchase is checked against Polar; nothing is stored.)

Installing on Windows

1. Download Axion-Desktop-…-win-x64.exe.
2. Run it. The build is not yet code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen shows "Windows protected your PC." Click More info → Run anyway. (Code signing is on the roadmap; until then this prompt is expected.)
3. It installs per-user — no admin prompt — and launches when done.

Installing on macOS

1. Download the .dmg and open it.
2. Drag Axion into your Applications folder.
3. Launch it. The macOS build is signed and notarized by Apple, so Gatekeeper lets it run without the "unidentified developer" warning.
4. On first launch macOS asks for microphone access — Axion needs it to capture your instrument input. Allow it, or the input stays silent.

Choosing your audio device

Open the Audio menu in the app and set three things:

• Driver — on Windows, choose ASIO for the lowest latency (around 2.7 ms round-trip on a good interface) or WASAPI if your interface has no ASIO driver. On macOS, CoreAudio is used (around 5.3 ms).
• Input / Output device — pick your interface. In ASIO mode one driver handles both directions, so the input and output lists show the installed ASIO drivers.
• Latency — Low / Balanced / Safe. Start at Low; if you hear crackle or dropouts, step up to Balanced.

NOTE ASIO gives the best latency on Windows, but it needs your interface's ASIO driver installed (most class-compliant interfaces ship one). If no ASIO driver is present, use WASAPI — still far better than the browser's shared-mode path.

Unlocking Pro

Open the gear / account section and either sign in with your email (we email a one-time code) or paste your license key. Once a machine is activated, Pro unlocks across everything Axion on that machine — the web app, Axion Desktop, and the Axion plugin — through a shared, on-device entitlement. You don't activate each one separately.

If you hit the activation limit (a new machine, an OS reinstall), email hi@axion.cab and we'll reset it.

What's the same, what's different

Everything about the rig is identical to the browser — the amps, the analytical voicings, NAM captures, the cab convolver, the pedalboard, presets. What changes is the shell around it: it runs natively, works fully offline once installed, and reaches latencies the browser can't. Presets you save in the desktop app live locally on that machine.

If you're on Windows and want low latency without installing the desktop app, Axion Bridge is a lighter free alternative — it keeps the rig in your browser and only moves audio natively.

When something's wrong

• No sound / no input — check the Audio menu device selection, and confirm you granted microphone permission (macOS) or that another app isn't holding the interface in exclusive mode.
• Crackle or dropouts — raise the Latency tier from Low to Balanced, and close other CPU-heavy apps. NAM captures are the most expensive thing in the rig; try a lighter capture if dropouts only happen under one.
• Interface missing from the list — in ASIO mode, only interfaces with an installed ASIO driver appear. Switch to WASAPI (Windows) to see shared-mode devices, or install the vendor ASIO driver.

See Audio troubleshooting for the full symptom-by-symptom guide.