UAD Apollo Monitor

Automatically close Universal Audio apps when your Apollo interface is disconnected to save battery life on macOS.

The Problem

UAD Console and UAD Meter & Control Panel consume significant system resources even when your Apollo interface is disconnected:

• UAD Console can use up to 50% GPU on Apple Silicon
• UAD Meter uses ~14% CPU when idle
• Combined, they can drain 5-15% battery per hour

The Solution

UAD Apollo Monitor checks every 5 minutes if your Apollo interface is connected via Thunderbolt. When disconnected, it automatically closes UAD Console and UAD Meter & Control Panel, while keeping the UA Mixer Engine running for quick reconnection.

Requirements

• macOS (tested on macOS Sequoia 15.0+)
• Universal Audio Apollo interface (tested with Apollo Twin X)
• UAD software installed

Installation

1. Clone this repository to ~/.config/:

git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/apollo-monitor.git ~/.config/apollo-monitor
cd ~/.config/apollo-monitor

2. Run the install script:

./install.sh

That's it! UAD Apollo Monitor will now run automatically in the background.

Usage

The service runs automatically, but you can also:

Run manually

./apollo-monitor.sh

Check service status

launchctl list | grep apollo

Uninstall

./uninstall.sh

Configuration

By default, UAD Apollo Monitor checks every 5 minutes. To change this:

1. Edit com.apollo.monitor.plist
2. Change the StartInterval value (in seconds)
3. Reinstall using ./install.sh

How It Works

1. Uses system_profiler SPThunderboltDataType to detect Apollo connection
2. When Apollo is disconnected, runs:
   • killall "UAD Console"
   • killall "UAD Meter & Control Panel"
3. Preserves UA Mixer Engine for quick reconnection
4. Runs silently in the background

Battery Impact

• Checking every 5 minutes: ~0.02-0.04% battery per hour
• Savings from closing UAD apps: 5-15% battery per hour
• Net benefit: Significant battery life improvement

Supported Devices

Currently tested with:

• Apollo Twin X (Thunderbolt 3)

Should work with other Thunderbolt-connected Apollo interfaces. USB Apollo devices would require minor modifications to the detection method.

Contributing

Pull requests welcome! Please test with your specific Apollo model and report any issues.

License

MIT

Author

Created by Sean Keever with assistance from Claude Code