Passion Audio Player

Project History

Over two decades of audio software development — from a first release in 2002 to the present day.

Passion Audio Player has been in continuous development since 2002 — longer than most commercial audio software products on the market today. This page chronicles every significant milestone, from the very first release to the latest updates. For individual release announcements, see the News Archive.

The Timeline

2026 — Ongoing Development

Development continues actively. Plugin API documentation is being updated for the 64-bit era, community activity remains healthy, and the project remains 100% freeware, as it always has been.

2020–2024 — Maturity & 64-bit Work

Focus shifts to stability, performance, and full 64-bit compatibility. Unsafe Cardinal pointer casts are replaced with NativeUInt throughout the Sonique visualisation plugin API files. Build tooling is refined using fpcmake and custom Makefiles.

9 April 2019 — v5.0

Passion Audio Player v5.0 is released — a major milestone after years of steady development, shipping with the new default Evolution skin.

20 April 2015 — v4.0 for Windows

Passion Audio Player v4.0 for Windows is released. The entire codebase is rewritten in Lazarus/FPC, replacing the previous toolchain. Windows 10 compatibility confirmed for both 32-bit and 64-bit editions.

21 June 2014 — v4.0 for Ubuntu

Passion Audio Player v4.0 for Ubuntu is released — the first Linux version of the player.

11 November 2012 — v3.0

Passion Audio Player v3.0 is released.

14 May 2011 — v2.7

Passion Audio Player v2.7 is released.

1 July 2009 — v2.6

Passion Audio Player v2.6 is released.

27 April 2009 — Site redesign

The Passion Audio Player site is redesigned by JM-DG.

30 May 2008 — v2.5

Passion Audio Player v2.5 is released.

4 March 2007 — v2.4

Passion Audio Player v2.4 is released.

10 December 2005 — v2.3

Passion Audio Player v2.3 is released.

13 May 2005 — v2.2

Passion Audio Player v2.2 is released.

7 May 2005 — New home

The project moves permanently to passionplayer.com, abandoning hobbysoft.gr. The site receives a new look.

25 March 2005 — v2.1

Passion Audio Player v2.1 is released.

21 January 2005 — Site upgrade

The site is upgraded to an ad-free version — only sponsors are advertised.

17 January 2004 — v2.0

Passion Audio Player v2.0 is released. A new era for the project begins.

5 April 2003 — v1.5

Passion Audio Player v1.5 is released — the first version to feature a logo.

23 December 2002 — v1.4

Passion Audio Player v1.4 is released. A FAQ is added for the first time.

4 November 2002 — v1.3

Passion Audio Player v1.3 is released.

1 September 2002 — v1.2

Passion Audio Player v1.2 is released.

21 June 2002 — v1.1

Passion Audio Player v1.1 is released. Graphic Equalizer v1.0 is also released alongside it.

29 March 2002 — v1.0

Passion Audio Player v1.0 is finally released — the very first version of the player.

Version Milestones

Version Date Headline
5.x 2020–24 64-bit hardening; WASAPI improvements; build tooling overhaul.
5.0 Apr 2019 New Evolution skin; installer & portable ZIP packages.
4.0 2014–15 Full rewrite in Lazarus/FPC; Ubuntu & Windows releases.
3.0 Nov 2012 Major UI overhaul; broader lossless format support.
2.7 May 2011 Final release of the 2.x series.
2.6 Jul 2009 Continued 2.x series development.
2.5 May 2008 Continued 2.x series development.
2.4 Mar 2007 Default Sliders reset button added.
2.3 Dec 2005 File association uninstall fix introduced.
2.2 May 2005 Continued 2.x series development.
2.1 Mar 2005 Released alongside move to passionplayer.com.
2.0 Jan 2004 Major new era for the project.
1.5 Apr 2003 First version with a logo.
1.4 Dec 2002 FAQ added for the first time.
1.3 Nov 2002 WMA support added.
1.2 Sep 2002 Continued early development.
1.1 Jun 2002 Graphic Equalizer v1.0 released alongside.
1.0 Mar 2002 First public release.
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