Designer Release Notes

8.2026.1 (8.D.4.2)

2026-Jun-29

NEW FEATURES

Updated Designer licensing to new QLM key based authentication
Made changes to support MATLAB r2025a and later, including updates to all matlab based GUIs to use App Designer instead of GUIDE
Designer now supports rendering non-Latin canvas and annotation text on Asian-locale PCs
Converted all Designer and Module documentation to markdown formatting
Added a Filter Noise Floor Analyzer tool in Designer. This calculates noise floors for biquad modules in a layout and compares to other biquad types
The Native target now supports AWE Core log and event messages using callbacks into files
Added a new 'Logging Options' designer menu under the Tools tab to control the log level and log type
Including a VectorLib_Public.h file in Designer installers so module writers can use common, portable, and optimized DSPC VectorLib functions

ENHANCEMENTS

Updated CRUS generation to allow more efficient processing and memory use
Improved positioning of matlab based menu GUIs, including for vertical monitors
Module help docs will now launch in a focused browser
Updated Wire Buffer Pools (beta feature) to improve efficiency and to allow multiple Buffer Pools to be used across heaps
Added ability to use MIT Licensing in custom module generated C code
Designer title bar now shows whether the input audio is from a File or Line Input for the Native target

BUG FIXES

Improved Designer startup behavior and robustness in both Pro and Standard
Removed matlab errors about progress bar on Designer launch on some systems
Fixed propagate changes button so it now will show updated module statuses on the canvas when clicked during runtime
Updated saving .awj's in Pro edition to avoid small differences with file saved from Standard
Added support in Peak Profiling for more than 14 threads
Removed tab chars from profiling results, and suppressed opening of all instance .csv's in multi-instance profiling
Fixed several issue with file search path, including one that required restarting AWE_Server for changes to take effect
Changed default setting for Enable Bundled Packets to off in Generate Target Files menu
Fixed issue where destroying a layout while tunnelled would continue to display a CPU load on Native target
Updated subcanvas tunneling to display a warning message when it fails. Previously it would fail silently
Fixed several typos in AWE Server Preferences dialog
Disabled changing target system types in Layout Properties menu
Fixed linker warning in generated custom module Visual Studio files
Fixed Process File tool hanging indefinitely for specific layouts and audio files
Fixed several fract32 modules that were interpreting fract32 variables as nan's
Fixed MixerV3 inspector so it now consistently shows all output channel names
FifoIn/OutV3 is not longer being left out of ModuleList.h in multi-instance systems
Prevented assignment of custom objectIds to matlab subsystem modules
Improved Preset robustness by only copying if className is the same
Improved robustness of renaming, deleting, undoing, etc. of Subsystem pins
Improved speed of Redraw time in Designer
Improved robustness of feedback wire handling in cases where feedback wire is not required
Fixed issue where Subcanvas worker threads weren't always honored on single instance targets
Prevented failed rename of interpreted modules from .mtemp to .m
Fixed various places where a failure during propagation or build would not pan to the offending module
Improved handling of errors thrown by default prebuild and postbuild matlab functions
Improved error messaging for matlab transmit errors
Fixed problem with CRUS generation for complex modules with assigned objectIDs
Removed warnings caused by using backslash in inspector controls
Improved error message when pin destination connection does not exist
Now correctly flagging build error when using block size > max allowable
Fixed potential issue where matlab warnings could be shown as unrelated error
Modules that were converted to interpreted could fail to load from .awj
Fixed some unnecessary warnings about datatype mismatches for sample rates
Fixed bug where failing postbuild function caused the system to stay marked as live
Long AWD or module names in dialog boxes are no longer cutoff

8.2025.3 (8.D.4.1)

2025-Dec-31

New Features

Added Subcanvas module feature, which enables the encapsulation of .awb's inside a module. See Designer documentation for more details
Created preset groups and preset fields for all module variables. Added a Preset Editor tool in Designer to create, apply, and save presets
Introduced System Clock Source section in Layout Properties menu to show the current systems I/O properties

Enhancements

Updated Generate Target Files menu to include AWC file generation
Increased the amount of logging printed in the Messages tab of AWE_Server
Updated profiling to display per thread CPU load when core affinity is set on the target
Created the ability to access matlab module arguments with M.argument. syntax. The original syntax using M.constructorArgs{i} is still supported
Added a field in AWE_Server Preferences menu to change the Native target's fundamental block size
Made alignment of arguments and arrays more consistent in the Module Properties view
Improved error and warning messages in matlab

Bug Fixes

Fixed some incorrect memory profiling issues, especially in multi-instance systems
Fixed an issue in peak profiling when number of layouts exceeded the number of samples being collected, or if profiling non-contiguous instances
Fixed an issue where an error occurring during a postbuild call could cause it to be skipped in subsequent builds
Removed call to postbuild from Attach to Running Target for classic builds. It could result in overwriting values on the target
Fixed issue where Attach to Running Target could show stale target information in profiling results
Fixed a problem with Navigate Up not always going to the direct parent subsystem
Updated Designer to ignore clock dividers on virtual modules to avoid erroneous 'too many threads' build errors
Fixed an issue with feedback wires when used in an matlab subsystem module and hierarchical builds
Fixed some issues with feedback wires not inheriting data type and clock divider properly for Hierarchical builds
Corrected the behavior of copy paste of feedback wire properties so connections point to valid modules
Improved robustness of loading a layout with a missing module. It could lead to the layout being uneditable
Fixed Revert to Subsystem action on RUS so that wires do not disappear
Fixed ability to open an AWD containing a RUS when that RUS has changed its I/O pin count
Destroy after Attach to Running Target no longer freezes the canvas when a subsystem output is directly connected to HW output pin
Fixed a number of corner cases when using objectAlias names that could lead to name conflicts or stale names
Fixed an issue with Native target where latency across multiple threads may not be consistent
Now allowing range information for module variables to be updated during load time
Improved the compatibility of matlab modules by allowing reordering of the module arguments
Corrected evaluation of a comma separated list of arguments when some of the arguments are layout variables
Propagate changes now updates layout variables if the hw input pin properties have changed
Allocation priority is now being persisted for CRUS modules
Added ChangeThreadV2 to the CRUS exclusion list
Fixed an issue with generating CRUS that have no input pin
Fixed an issue while creating a CRUS with a user inspector control that points to a Debug module. This control is now automatically removed during CRUS generation
Corrected the behavior of copy/cut pasting a module that was being controlled by a StatuSet type of module. It was previously causing an error
Changed the default behavior of 'isRangeEditable' for module variables and arrays to true. This will take effect after modules are regenerated
Added a matlab process function to the scaler_module_interpreted example module
Updated the FrameDll.lib used by custom module packs in installed editions to be up to date
Aligned AWJ saving from Designer and matlab scripts so that output AWJs will be identical
Fixed warning message thrown when a module pack's classid.csv is missing
Removed duplicate find_module matlab function and replaced all usage with equivalent get_module
Cleaned up usage and behavior of classid_lookup changed create_module_by_id function to create_module_by_mfile_name
Added support for 'uint' data types in generate_mfile.m script
Fixed a bug with resaving existing Inspector Groups after moving their positions
Updated search path in matlab framework to look in matlab path last instead of first
Made sure that AudioWeaver/matlab path is included in search path when using Custom Module Wizard
Added a error message if trying to open Global Preferences if AWE_Server is not running
Added a progress bar to AWD saving when the AWD version is being updated
Fixed fract32 filter checkbox in the module palette. It was not filtering fract32 modules correctly
Fixed issue where hierarchical builds could share the input wire buffer potentially causing wire memory corruption

AWE Designer 8.2025.2.A

2025-Aug

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with TypeConversion modules, where if they changed to/from different bit width sample types, the wire could be erroneously shared

AWE Designer 8.2025.2

2025-Jun

New Features

Designer Installers now include the BuildFlash executable, which can be used to generate .bins to store files in flash memory
Added new hotkeys for profiling in Designer, and improved documentation of existing hotkeys
Added support for fract16 wires and module variables

Enhancements

Reduced the time it takes to delete, cut, or rename modules in large systems
Added support for matlab subsystem modules to be interpreted
Made matlab startup code more robust, including no longer failing if TaskList is not available on the system
Added more logging and error checking in AWE_Server and Designer launching code
Improved consistency of display of floating point values in module properties, and no longer truncate array values will loading/storing from .csv
DateTime module now shows date and time in hexadecimal
Commas are now supported in module arguments

Bug Fixes

Fixed an issue with profiling being incorrect on multi-instance targets when tuning master instance is > 0
Added support for correctly profiling memory usage for modules that allocate memory in Set functions
Fixed error when doing manual profiling of a layout that contains an empty subsystem
Fixed a failure with freshly loaded layouts and Attach to Running target
Generating target files will now only delete the files exactly matching the names of the newly generated files
Hierarchical builds now generate custom objectID set commands in target files
Adding a new HW pin will now mark the system as modified
Fixed an issue in the search bar where certain search strings were causing the results to be incorrectly indexed
Cleaned up the formatting of certain warnings and errors for better readability
MHz column in profiling results no longer shows results in scientific notation
Fixed an issue with renaming subsystems if a similarly named subsystem is already opened
Improved error message for a missing layout variable to include the module using it
No longer redrawing the canvas between design and run mode
Corrected the CPU load calculation in AWE_Server by applying clockDivider factor
Removed opening of About dialog when Standard Designer is first launched
Removed the 'x' box on the progress bar while building a layout. This action cannot be canceled
Generating ModuleList.h for multi-instance targets will now only create .h file for instances that are used in the layout
No longer showing the assign objectID right-click option for virtual modules
Fixed saving array values to .csv for complex numbers
Fixed an issue with reverting a RUS to subsystem when the RUS was created with an old Designer version
Error is now properly generated if creating a RUS from a subsystem that already contains a RUS
Fixed issues with FeedbackSettings module that were causing spurious build errors
Usage of StatusSetV2 will now always correctly set the 'controlled by' field for target modules
Fixed issue with converting a subsystem with controlling modules (e.g. StatusSetV2) in the subsystem
Improved installers by allowing them to be run twice without corrupting DLL registration scripts
Updated AWJ JSON schema 3.3 for missing entries and inconsistent data types

Misc

Removed PyAweCore from Designer installers. To get access to this package, contact DSPC support

AWE Designer 8.2025.1

2025-MARCH

New Features

New Hierarchical build engine can lead to faster build times and more control over layout
Improved functionality of Designer search bar, and added support for keywords. See Designer documentation for more details
Added 'Go To' module option in right click menu for controlling modules (ParamSet, etc.) and the modules they are controlling
Added 'Copy Name' right click menu option for copying module names

Enhancements

Right-click menu will now have a submenu for opening each inspector panel in a subsystem if there are more than one
Improved a variety of inspector display issues
Added support for unicode text in annotations
Improved handling and searching of audio input files in Layout Properties
Sped up load/save time for AWJ by ignoring obsolete connection array

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue where layouts with missing CRUSs were failing to load
Fixed and added clarity to error message when creating a CRUS with inspectors that targeted matlab subsystem modules
Corrected the heap size reported for CRUSs in profiling results
Fixed bug where CRUS with more output pins than inputs would incorrectly share output wires
CRUS inspector panels now copy all control settings (colors, fonts, etc.) from original subsystem
Fixed potential crash issue in AWE_Server Native target when profiling was disabled
Fixed issues with handling binary port packages in AWE_Server for multi-instance Native target
Fixed drawing of CPU threads in AWE_Server to use the full width of the window
Improved robustness of Convert to Subsystem tool to prevent Designer freezing
Now only send a Set command for module vars of type 'parameter' when opening module inspector
Fixed problem with setting module parameters from the module properties tab during runtime when minimize target read/write option is set to true
Fixed issue with right-click Help option for interpreted modules in module browser
Checking for missing modules in subsystems is now done on the correct instance
Resolved a routing error that was incorrectly reusing wires for unterminated and terminated module output pins
Fixed loading layout by dragging and dropping from a folder when the layout name contains special characters
Removed checking for valid ranges on subsystem input pins, which was causing issues in corrupted layouts
Fixed some issues with preserving channel names when converting to subsystem or deleting/undoing
Fixed issues with loading and saving module states in AWJs
Fixed issue with loading and saving module const variables in AWJs
Preventing corruption of annotations in AWJs, and also more robustly loading AWJ if there is corruption
Doing a Save As on an AWJ file will now default to AWJ save file type
Fixed layout loading progress bar to say 'AWJ' when loading an AWJ
Canvas size is now persisted when it is changed due to copying
Added calls to the matlab module PrepareToSave function when saving layout
Fixed issue when modules in layout are not found on the system not fully deleting them from the layout
Fixed issue with loading layouts that had an empty inspector panel
Fixed hierarchical build using inspectors with non-zero instanceId
AWDs marked in windows as read-only files will now not be savable in Designer
Fixed issue with using layout variables in ChangeThread module
Scaler inspector will now properly show dB or linear based on module settings
Fixed error message for pins being on different threads to show entire message
Fixed Sink inspectors so scalar values are not truncated
Improved message for insufficient threads error to state which instance the problem is on
Improved error message for feedback wires that transcend instanceId
Fixed some comments in generated _ControlInterface.h files
Fixed help text for awe_version matlab function

AWE Designer 8.D.2.7

2024-DECEMBER

New Features

Added option in Generate Target Files to split multi-instance layouts into multiple AWBs to support Progressive Loading
Added support for 2M, 3M, and 6M baud rates for RS232 targets in AWE_Server
Added ability to copy/paste wire information like names and delays between wires in Designer

Enhancements

Increased the maximum binary message length from 1024 to 4096 to support larger tuning messages
Missing modules in subsystem modules are now checked at the beginning of builds
Improved application of layout variables at build time to avoid unnecessary updates for unchanged variables
Version overwrite save warning dialog now only pops up first time saving layout with new version
Improved handling of copying modules with objectIds defined

Bug Fixes

Updated uninstallers to no longer deregister AWETalkToGUI COM Server, and improved error messaging for this issue
Fixed Pro Designer launching with MATLAB 2024a and later
Fixed compatibility issue with loading complex numbers in AWDs
Fixed potential subsystem pin corruption in AWJ's when changing input pin data type
Corrected saving and loading of channel delays in AWJ
Fixed saving and loading measurements in AWJ files
Improved saved information in AWJs to better support range definitions
Corrected error message when opening a corrupted AWJ file
Fixed issue with AWJ files containing empty subsystems
Fixed problem creating CRUS from subsystems containing multiple inspector panels
Fixed loading layouts containing a RUS or CRUS that is not found on the module path
Fixed loading layouts containing non-English characters
Fixed issue with feedback wires being set on subsystem output pins
Fixed issue with intermediate files not being deleted when interpreted module execution fails
Fixed issue in error dialog where block size range was printing junk characters
Corrected heap allocation failure error message
Fixed issue with channel name propagation into Router inspectors
Custom channel names are now retained when changing number of input pins on downstream module
Fixed some alignment issues in module inspectors, and added labels for event button inspectors
Fixed crash issue when executing an AWS from AWE_Server while an inspector is open in Designer
Fixed potential CPU % load difference between Server and Designer profiling for some multi-instance layouts
Fixed wire memory profiling when using Bind First build option
Fixed potential hang in Tuning Interface test with slow connections
Clarified that biquads used in Tuning Interface test tool are stereo
Fixed dialog cutoff issue in About dialog in Designer
Updated ASIO device menu button to say 'Close' instead of 'Cancel'
Made it clear in AWE_Server preferences that heap sizes are defined per instance for native target
Fixed issue with .tsf file ignoring the override InstanceId field in Generate Target Files
Fixed rounding issue in displaying integer values in module documentation
Fixed Fader example module tests so they pass

AWE Designer 8.D.2.6

2024-AUGUST-15

New Features

Designer will now show error messages for invalid layouts when pressing Propagate Changes

Enhancements

Improved license authentication robustness for users who cannot access DSPC web license server
Updated AWD/AWJ formats to no longer require prebuilding layouts while loading
Made various internal improvements to improve layout build and load times
Updated JSON engine used internally for processing .json data for speed improvement
Added a warning for users when saving layout with newer AWD/AWJ version
Improved error reporting when attempting to generate a ModuleList.h file with an invalid layout name
Improved module I/O information included in profiling data

Bug Fixes

StatusSet execution order now behaves correctly for subsystem target module
Now preventing excessive get_module_state messages when using subsystem inspectors
No longer listing duplicate module classes in the missing module list dialog
Updated CRUS generation to throw error if using a ChangeThread module
Fixing build of some layouts using feedback wires across multiple subsystems
Deleting a module will no longer throw cryptic error messages if unrelated modules are not configured correctly
Corrected issue with stale clockDividers in Source modules when switching between single and multi-instance targets
Fixed issue in Native target where sample rate info from audio device was not being propagated to layouts
Improved robustness of renaming user inspector panels
Corrected handling of empty schema versions in CRUSs, and excluded pointer variable types from CRUS manifests
Fixed deleting CRUS/RUS from the module browser in the Standard edition

AWE Designer 8.D.2.5

2024-JUNE-29

New Features

Reduced load and save times for AWJ files, and updated AWJ version to 3.0
Added option in Layout Properties menu to force bind_wire commands to happen before other wire allocations
Added options in Generate Target Files menu to select target instanceID and to include a Lookup Table in the generated .awb/.aws
Added support for Multi-Instance in Module Tests tool
Added support for Multi-Instance and Multi-Canvas in the Tuning Interface Test tool
The minimum MATLAB version required for using Pro editions of Designer has been updated from R2017b to R2021b
Designer is no longer tested with MATLAB R2017b, so using this version may result in inconsistent or faulty behavior

Enhancements

Improved the validation of AWJ files against a custom JSON schemas
BuildFlash.exe tool now warns user when filenames are truncated due to length limitations

Bug Fixes

Fixed issue with building Multi-Canvas layouts when different instances have different block sizes
Improved error detection and message clarity for invalid subsystems with only a virtual module between input and output
Ensuring that correct target information is available in profiling after doing attach to running target
Fixed issue that was preventing layouts saved with invalid paths in ParamSet module from being loaded
Execution order for Param Set and Status Set style modules can now target modules in subsystems
Fixed issue where the 'controlled by' field for modules on the canvas was not always being updated
Removed support in Designer for module argument inputs beginning with '0b'
Fixed issue where module argument strings starting with '0x' were being improperly converted to decimal values
Fixed issue in Designer when running on Multi-Instance target with more than 16 instances
Updated AWE Server Flash Manager to be able to access different Flash File Systems on Multi-Instance or Multi-Canvas target
Loading and saving module arrays from file now maintains full precision
Fixing corruption in layout file after running process files
Fixing user inspector operability after running manual profiling
Fixed a number of issues that could cause Tuning Interface Test to hang, and improved flexibility of modules required to run the test
Fixed issue where copying an invalid subsystem to a new layout could corrupt the layout
Convert to Subsystem will now retain custom objectIDs for modules
Failed attempts of Convert to Subsystem now correctly restores original subsystem
Designer now throws a warning if the output HW pin is not fract32
Restored the right click Help option for RUS/CRUS on the canvas
Improved robustness of test_start_audio MATLAB function in the case of Multi-Instance targets
Fixed issue when loading layouts with out-of-sync module control information