Open Platform

Axion is an open platform. Rather than a sealed appliance, it is a system you are meant to be able to open up, extend, and make your own, from the sounds it produces to the interface you touch. There is no proprietary lock-in: Axion is built on open, standard formats throughout.

In practice, “open platform” means three things.

An open, modifiable interface

The Axion touchscreen interface is a standard Javascript application, built with Vue, and it ships with an SDK for talking to the audio engine, setting parameters, LED colors, and interacting with Axion’s hardware. Because it is ordinary Javascript code, anyone can modify it with industry standard tools such as a code editor or IDE, an AI coding tool such as Claude Code, or even emacs if, like us, you’ve got a point to make. ;)

That opens the door to a wide range of customization:

• Add functionality to the interface, such as new controls, views, or workflows.
• Change how existing things work to suit how you play.
• Make Axion your own by restyling, rearranging, or simplifying it.
• Build entirely new modules and apps that run on the unit alongside the built-in experience.

The SDK exposes the same control plane the built-in UI uses (reading and setting parameters, loading presets, streaming meters), so anything the stock interface can do, your own code can do too.

Standard audio plugin formats

For audio processing, Axion supports two open, widely used plugin specifications: LV2 and VST3. If you can write (or obtain) a signal processing plugin in either format, built for Axion’s platform, it can run in a rig alongside the devices supplied with Axion. This is the same technology used by desktop recording software, so a large world of existing plugins and plugin-development tooling applies directly.

Today the two formats cover two different kinds of plugin. VST3 support is for Windows VST3 plugins, the same builds you would install in a Windows DAW, which Axion runs through a built-in compatibility layer. LV2 support is for native Linux LV2 plugins built for Axion’s processor. In both cases the plugin runs isolated in its own sandbox, kept separate from the main audio engine, so a poorly written or crashing plugin cannot bring Axion down with it.

Bundle custom UIs and presets with a plugin

Custom user interfaces for many audio plugins are designed for a desktop computer with a keyboard and mouse, not necessarily a touch screen on a stage-ready appliance meant for real-time processing.

To bridge this gap, Axion automatically generates a screen for modifying plugin parameters on stage. The Axion desktop software can be used to load the plugin’s user interface to make detailed changes and create presets ahead of time.

However, a plugin does not have to appear as a generic list of sliders. Any plugin can be wrapped in a “device bundle” (a folder) to include its own custom interface and its own presets, exactly the way the first-party devices do:

• Presets are plain JSON files, the same format described in Rigs and Set Lists. Each file lists a device’s parameter values plus metadata such as a name, author, tags, and a description. You can find working examples on the unit under /opt/axion/Factory/Presets, organized by device ID.
• Custom interfaces are Vue single-file components (.vue files) bundled with the device. Instead of controls derived automatically from the plugin’s metadata, you can design a purpose-built panel (knobs, graphics, meters, whatever fits the device) that loads on the unit when the device is opened. The factory devices are laid out this way, with their UI components and presets packaged alongside the plugin; you can use the same structure for your own.

This means an LV2 or VST3 plugin can be delivered as a complete, polished device, with a bespoke interface and sensible presets, not just a raw processor.

Add your own plugins

Drag a Linux LV2 bundle or a Windows VST3 plugin into the Devices folder on the Content network share. Both formats install the same way. Axion discovers supported plugins and creates their controls and a Default preset.

The first folder inside Devices becomes the browser category. You can use names such as Delay, Favorites, or a plugin vendor’s name. Plugins directly inside Devices appear under Plugins.

See Third-Party Plugins for connection instructions, folder examples, deletion behavior, and restoring missing plugins.

Compatibility and performance

A Linux plugin build must match Axion’s processor and use host features that Axion supports. Working in a desktop recording application does not by itself guarantee that a plugin will load or meet Axion’s audio deadline. Severed is working on a cloud service for browsing, downloading, and compiling LV2s for Axion, currently scheduled for release in Q1 2027. Until then, devices can be easily compiled using Docker on any desktop PC.

Devices supplied with Axion are tested on its hardware and designed for its controls. External plugins use controls derived from their metadata and can have different processing costs, latency, and resource requirements.

Use the supplied devices as a foundation, then add external plugins for sounds or features you want to explore. If a rig develops dropouts after adding a plugin, Axion will temporarily disable the offending plugin to allow your performance to continue. See Troubleshooting.

When sharing a rig that uses external plugins, the receiving Axion also needs compatible copies of those plugins. Check the vendor’s license before sharing plugin files.