SWAM Strings
Violin, Viola, Cello v1.3.x
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Installation Guide
Table Of Contents
Table Of Contents .............................................................................................. 1
Before You Start ................................................................................................ 1
System requirements ........................................................................................... 2
Windows .......................................................................................................... 2
macOS ............................................................................................................ 3
Online activation ................................................................................................ 4
Offline activation ............................................................................................... 5
License keys ..................................................................................................... 6
Updates ........................................................................................................... 6
License Key Recovery .......................................................................................... 7
Deactivation ..................................................................................................... 7
Before You Start
Please store all the downloaded files in a safe place for future use!
After extraction of the ZIP archive make sure that you have downloaded a version suitable for
your system and plugin host (32 or 64 bit). Copy the User Manual to a convenient, safe place
for future reference and read it before using the instrument.
The latest version of all SWAM manuals can be found at http://www.swamengine.com/manuals
System requirements
Required operating systems
PC:
Windows 7, 8, 10, Vista or XP, 32 or 64 bit
macOS:
Intel only, Mac OS X 10.7 – 10.12
Supported plugin formats
PC:
VST 32 or 64 bit, AAX 32 or 64 bit
macOS:
AU 32 or 64 bit, VST 32 or 64 bit, AAX 32 or 64 bit
CPU load
The realism and expressiveness of the SWAM instrument set can be very CPU intensive. It
therefore requires a modern computer with at least a 1.6 GHz Core 2 Duo CPU. Less powerful
systems may also prove satisfactory, but may require larger buffer sizes, involving higher
latencies.
Note: This may not necessarily result in an actual problem. Using the freeze feature
or bouncing the single MIDI tracks to audio provides a useful remedy.
Windows
VST Plugins Path
Before running the installer, make sure that you know the exact path to your VST Plugins. This
path must be entered during the installation procedure. It is usually in the VST folder of your
host application.
Path examples:
Cubase, 32 bit:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steinberg\VSTPlugins
Cubase, 64bit:
C:\Program Files\Steinberg\VSTPlugins
Make sure that you are installing the right version for your system and plugin host (32 or 64 bit).
Please note that the 64 bit plugin version cannot be used on a 32 bit system. If you use a 64 bit
computer, we strongly recommend to install the 64 bit version only.
For a 64 bit system, do not confuse the folder “Programs” (which contains 64 bit applications)
with “Programs (x86)”, which contains 32 bit applications only!
If you are not sure about the location of your VST plugin folder, please refer to the user manual
of your host application.
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If you're working with ProTools version 10 or higher, the installer will install the SWAM plugins in
the following folder:
<Program Files>/Common Files/Avid/Audio/Plug-Ins
Destination Location
At the installation step named “Select Destination Location” you must specify the location of
your VST Plugin Path as described before.
Resources Location
At the installation step named “Select Resources Location” you must specify the path where you
want to store the resources (less than 80 MB per instrument) needed for the product to work.
The resources folder is stored in the same folder as the instrument DLL by default; if you want
to store the resources folder in another place, select a different folder. If unsure, please leave
the default path.
The installer will also create the folder <Programs>\Samplemodeling\SWAM\<product name>
where the uninstaller, the End User License Agreement (EULA) and the instrument presets can
be found.
In case no host application is available, please refer to the section “Stand-alone mode” in the
User Manual.
macOS
Run the appropriate installer (32 or 64 bit) and follow the instructions. This will install both AU
and VST plugins in the “Components” and “VST” folders respectively. Per default, the installer
will install the plugins for all users, for example:
<HD>/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components/SWAM Violin 64bit.component
<HD>/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST/SWAM Cello 32bit.vst
For Pro Tools users:
If you're working with Pro Tools version 10 or higher, the installer will install the SWAM plugins in
the following folder:
<HD>/Library/Application Support/Avid/Audio/Plug-Ins
This folder is created during the installation of Pro Tools. If you install Pro Tools after the
installation of SWAM instruments and intend to use the SWAM instruments as AAX plugins, you will
need to run the SWAM installer once again, so they get copied in the Pro Tools plugins’ folder.
The End User License Agreement (EULA) and the instrument presets will be installed in
/Users/Shared/Samplemodeling/SWAM/<product name>.
NOTE: All the files belonging to the instruments (the engine application, samples, and other
files) are integrated within the single “component” file (usually on the system disk), so the
resources cannot be separated/copied to another drive. However, no direct disk streaming is
used; the resources (less than 10MB per instrument) are directly loaded into the RAM. Unless you
prefer keeping the instrument on an external drive, you need to copy the entire component file
to the new location and create an alias in the previous location (inside the Components folder).
It is not possible to perform the same trick with the aaxplugin components.
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Online activation
After installation of the SWAM product a software activation is necessary, otherwise the
instruments will not work, showing “not licensed” on the GUI. Only one activation is necessary,
i.e. the activation of any instrument will authorize all the instruments belonging to the product.
1. Launch your host application and load the instrument (please refer to the Manual of your
host application if it does not recognize the plugin). The instrument appears without
activation and asks for a License Key:
2. Enter one of the License Keys you received as an attachment of the email containing the
download links and click on the “Activate” button
After a few seconds the authorization procedure is completed. All the instruments belonging to
the product and installed on your system are permanently personalized and activated, and your
email address will appear on the instrument GUI.
Please note:
- The above procedure may take a while in case of a very slow Internet connection.
- If you are prompted to enter more data than just the License Key, then you are not
connected to the Internet and the offline activation has started. Either connect to the
Internet and repeat the above procedure (highly recommended) or proceed with the
Offline Activation as explained below.
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Offline activation
We strongly recommend online activation. It´s much more convenient and faster. It also makes
any future requests (license recovery, deactivations and re-activations etc.) much easier.
The online activation can be performed even if you connect your computer to the Internet for a
few minutes only.
If you cannot connect your system to the Internet even temporarily, follow the instructions
below to complete the offline activation:
1. Open the Plugin. The Offline Activation window appears:
2. Copy the System ID clicking on the “Copy” button
3. From a computer with an Internet connection go to
https://swamengine.com/activate
The Offline Activation Page appears:
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Enter the System ID, an unused License Key and your email address into the appropriate
fields. (The License Keys have been sent to you together with the download links and via
an email.) Please note that the entered email address must be identical to the address
used for the purchase. After clicking on “Submit” the Activation Code will be displayed,
and an email with all the above data will be sent to the given email address.
4. Go back to the previous, offline computer and enter (copy/paste) the License Key, the
Activation Code and your email address into the appropriate fields of the Offline
Activation window, using the convenient “Paste” buttons. Please note: your email
address must be written exactly like the email used for the purchase!
5. In a few seconds the plugin will be permanently personalized and activated, and your
email address will be displayed on the instrument GUI.
Note: Please safely store all the activation data! (License Keys, Activation Codes, as
well as the email address and the name belonging to them). They are necessary in
case of any new installations and for the deactivation procedure.
License keys
We provide two license keys. You can keep the second one for the future use, or activate the
instruments on two computers, if both belong to you. Note that you can deactivate a key from a
computer so that you can activate it on another system. See the “Deactivation” paragraph for
further details.
Updates
To check for software updates, please follow the link
https://swamengine.com/downloads
The latest version can be viewed in the Product field. Please follow the instructions if you need
to download a newer version.
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License Key Recovery
If, for whatever reasons, you have “lost” your SWAM license (received via email after the
purchase), follow the link
https://swamengine.com/licenserecovery
Please note that this should not be a substitute for a proper backup of the license code(s). We
cannot guarantee that this free service will always remain available.
Deactivation
Deactivation of the instrument might be necessary if you have used both license numbers (keys)
but need to move to a new computer. This is possible only if the new computer belongs to you.
In this case the instrument(s) on the “old” system will be deactivated (they cannot be used any
more) and their license keys will become free for the activation of the software on the new
computer. You can perform this “deauthorization” by yourself – for ONLINE-activated keys ONLY
– following the instructions at:
https://swamengine.com/deauthorize
For OFFLINE-activated keys, please contact us from your email address used for the software
activation, providing the System-ID and the License Key to be deactivated.
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