Pro Tools HDX Now With Hybrid Engine

Avid announces that its latest patented innovation, the Hybrid Engine, is now available for HDX Systems. Part of Pro Tools | Ultimate 2021.6, the HDX Hybrid Engine unlocks increased power for HDX Systems, giving engineers, producers, and audio post-production professionals the ability to run the most demanding sessions with even greater ease—even with single-card systems—as well as providing industry-leading performance with on-demand access to near-zero recording latency.

The Hybrid Engine maximises Pro Tools performance by intelligently splitting processing between native and HDX DSP mix engines. It lets users take advantage of their host computer’s robust mixing and processing power while also giving them immediate access to HDX’s onboard DSP for supplementing computing power and recording through AAX DSP plugins with virtually no latency. As a result, users can run massive sessions more smoothly, with low CPU load, optimised voice usage and reduced system delay.

This innovation addresses a crucial need for many audio professionals who work with massive, DSP-hungry sessions. With the Hybrid Engine, even a single HDX card can now handle 2,048 voices at all sample rates—plenty of headroom for all the plugins, virtual instruments, surround mixes and other elements audio professionals must juggle to achieve the perfect mix.

On top of maximising performance, the Hybrid Engine lets users nullify the distracting effects of latency with the simple click of a button. When users put tracks in DSP Mode, the entire signal chain and AAX DSP-compatible plugins are processed directly on the HDX card while the host computer plays back the rest of their mix. When users toggle it off, the track reverts to Native Mode. With this intelligent integration built into Pro Tools, users can move effortlessly between tracking and mixing, without the hassle of latency.

“With the expanded Hybrid Engine capabilities in the latest Pro Tools | Ultimate software release, HDX Systems are immediately transformed into the most powerful Pro Tools systems we’ve ever made. It unlocks new, maximised performance for HDX, which delivers the power our users need to run demanding sessions with ease—from the plugin and instrument-heavy music sessions to complex theatrical Dolby Atmos mixes,” said Rob D’Amico, Senior Director of Product Marketing for Audio Solutions at Avid. “Because of the unique way that it works—leveraging native and DSP mix engines simultaneously—the Hybrid Engine enables our users to get the most out of their systems so they can deliver their best work as smoothly as possible.”

Pro Tools | Ultimate users with a current subscription or software maintenance plan receive the Hybrid Engine automatically with the June 2021 release of Pro Tools.