GarageBand, Logic: Where loops get installed

GarageBand 2 and Logic Pro/Express 7.1 store loop content in a different default location than earlier versions. If you have one or more Jam Packs installed, each package stores its loop content in a different location as well.

GarageBand 1 installs its loop content in:

/Library/Application Support/GarageBand/Apple Loops/

Apple Loops for GarageBand Jam Packs 1, 2, and 3 install loops in their own named folders in:

/Library/Application Support/GarageBand/Apple Loops/

GarageBand 2 and later and Logic Pro/Express 7.1 install their loops in:

/Library/Audio/Apple Loops/Apple/

Apple Loops for GarageBand Jam Pack 4 installs its loops in its own named folder in:

/Library/Audio/Apple Loops/Apple/

Depending on what version of GarageBand or Logic you're using, and if you've had different versions installed on your computer, loop locations may differ as follows:

Scenario 1

If GarageBand 2 or Logic 7.1 is the first version ever installed on your computer, all GarageBand loop content will be at the GarageBand 2 default location, as described above.

Scenario 2

If GarageBand 1 or Logic 7.0 is the only version ever installed on your computer (you haven't upgraded to 2.0 or 7.1 respectively), all loop content will be at the GarageBand 1 default location, as described above.

Scenario 3

If you upgraded to Garageband 2 or Logic 7.1 from an earlier version, all new loops introduced in the later version will be installed in the GarageBand 2 default location. All other loops common to both versions will remain at the default loop location for GarageBand 1. In other words, the software installer will detect the earlier installation and will only install the new content to the new location, leaving the old content where it has always been.

All Jam Pack loop content is always installed at each package's default location, as described above. It doesn't matter which software version you're using; Jam Pack loops will always remain at their original location.

If you install any third-party loops, the content should install in its own folder within the default location for the current version of GarageBand or Logic that you're using. In other words, if you installed third-party loops while using GarageBand 1 and then upgrade to version 2, these loops should still reside within their own named folders in:

/Library/Application Support/GarageBand/Apple Loops/

However, if the content was installed after upgrading to GarageBand 2 or Logic 7.1, the loops should be in their own named folders in:

/Library/Audio/Apple Loops/Apple/

All user-created loops in GarageBand 2 or Logic 7.1 will be placed at either:

/Library/Audio/Apple Loops/User Loops

Or

~/Library/Audio/Apple Loops/User Loops

The tilde (~) represents your home folder. Whether they go into the home folder path or the system path depends on the "My Apple Loops" preference you have set in the Export pane of GarageBand preferences.