# Polychord: Chord Instrument — user reviews > 125 indexed App Store user reviews of Polychord by Apposite, rated 4.40/5 from 39 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/polychord-chord-instrument/id402625491/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/polychord-chord-instrument/id402625491.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 31 · 4★ 2 · 3★ 0 · 2★ 1 · 1★ 5 ## What do users think of Polychord? Overall sentiment: mixed **Pros** - 🎵 Intuitive chord progression interface - 🎹 Excellent MIDI controller functionality - 🎸 Digital Omnichord replacement - 📱 Audiobus integration support - 🎼 Great for music theory learning - ✨ Beautiful and elegant UI design - 🔊 Warm, vintage synth sounds - 🎯 Easy to use for beginners and professionals - ⚡ Low latency MIDI over WiFi - 🎨 Customizable sound parameters (ADSR, filters) **Cons** - ⚠️ App no longer actively developed - 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues - 📦 Limited built-in sound variety - 🔄 Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions - 🎚️ Limited chord selection at once (3x3 grid) - 🔊 Low maximum volume output - ⏱️ Occasional latency and lag issues - 🎛️ Minimal customization options - 🚫 MIDI implementation has bugs - 💰 Expensive for feature set ($9.99-$10) **Commonly reported bugs** - App crashes during recording - Incompatible with iOS 8+ on older devices - MIDI off messages not sent properly - Sporadic glitches with Logic Pro and GarageBand - Sound occasionally disappears until app restart - Strum keys disappear or become unresponsive - Record button resets project - Chord release affects all sustained chords - Visual glitches on Retina display - App not receiving updates for compatibility **Most requested features** - Custom chord creation and palette selection - Copy and paste functionality - Save and load configurations/presets - Additional instrument sounds and drum kits - Retina display support - Metronome and click track - Recording improvements (overdub, undo) - Visual chord progression tracker - Velocity control via accelerometer - Chord builder for custom chords - Master tune control - Extended chord types (M9, m9, M13, etc.) - Slash chords support - More scales (bebop, mixolydian, etc.) - Strum keys with note labels - Full iPad width strum section - AUv3 plugin support - Inverted chord options - MIDI channel routing - Audio copy/paste support ## Newest reviews (13 of 125) ### 4/5 — Please Update!!! *2022-11-15* Loved this app for a minute until it stopped getting updated. Really wish the Devs would make it work again; and if that ever happens I’m crossing my fingers that it’s with AUv3. ### 2/5 — Pretty cool but not in active development *2021-01-17, version 2.9.3* Virtual MIDI was not quite ever updated. ### 3/5 — Was My fave Music App *2017-11-23, version 2.9.2* Well worth the price and now with Audiobus!!! For all Stereolab fans Update: not sure why new update makes it incompatible with my iPad? It's not that old! ### 2/5 — Doesn't work with garage band *2015-04-14* Cool app, but doesn't send midi to garage band. Or Thor. Thor works for about one second, then poly chord bombs. Works with Magellan. ### 5/5 — Worth the Price *2014-10-16* Fantastic for producers and musicians. Like a digital Omnichord. ### 5/5 — Great music app! *2014-09-29* Playing a piano keyboard on the iPad screen is far from ideal, and Polychord is one of the best alternatives to actually plugging an external MIDI keyboard. You can use it not only with its own internal sounds, but more importantly, as a MIDI controller for playing a multitude of other music apps. Great app, both as a playing device and for learning about notes, chords and scales. Frequently updated by a very responsive developer. Highly recommended! ### 5/5 — Amazing! *2014-08-27, version 2.9.2* Astoundingly simple to use. It makes music making fun.This app not only has great sounds to play, it is also a great midi controller. The final bonus is that the layout is great for teaching music theory. Love it! ### 5/5 — Essential music app *2014-08-21* This app made me buy an iPad, having first tried its mini iPhone version. The possibilities for getting basic rhythms down for someone untrained on a keyboard, are kinda like jumping up a few steps in a creative surge. The app itself sounds lush (think smooth Rhodes), and has enough going on within (tremelo, filter etc) to make it addictive. But if you WIFI over to your DAW and use your fav synths, you'll be seeing things differently. Highly recommend for bedroom musicians and above. ### 5/5 — My favorite MIDI controller *2014-08-21* The internal sounds are great as well. Thank you to the devs for a brilliant app and for adding Audiobus 2 support. ### 4/5 — Buy It *2014-08-18, version 2.9.1* I resisted buying this for about a year. I finally decided to give it a try. I'm very happy I did. It crashed several times in the 2 days I've been using it (seems like it crashes when I record something and don't save it). Hope the devs look into the crashing problem. ### 4/5 — Awesome *2014-08-04, version 2.9.1* Some of the tools aren’t that useful, but the way the author lays out the chords in a key helped me work out how related chords work together, and helped me to start building progressions. Worth jt for the educational aspect and the theory lesson. ### 2/5 — It's ok. *2014-06-05, version 2.9.1* For the price it would be nice if it had more voice options and audiobus support. ### 5/5 — Christ *2014-01-02, version 2.9.1* Fun fun fun and amazing, I wanted an omnichord and am happy with this, it could use a little more sharing options as well as saving options, and layering but for now for what it is I'm happy, looking forward to using it with GarageBand. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Not compatible *2018-08-17, version 2.9.2* I have above os 8. Will not update saying not compatible. Paid good money for this app :-( ### 1/5 — Still can't update *2018-08-03, version 2.9.2* When this app introduced 64bit support I was unable to update it on my iphone 5 or my iPad 4th gene, I was gutted at the thought that 64bit support = no more 32bit updates. Then it did indeed update at a later date on my iphone 5. But its still nagging me to update on the 4th gen iPad but tells me it's not compatible and offers me the version I already have.. Please fix it :( after all these months no reply from the dev.. Why don't devs read reviews from 4 stars to one. :( ### 1/5 — Not worth $$$ *2018-07-25* Unless I'm missing something pretty major, there's no way this app is worth ten bucks. Lowering to one star... Midi out for arp and bass don’t send midi off’s... could be so cool. As it is now, it’s broken and seems to be abandoned... **Developer response:** Hello, we have a new version out — more MIDI options including the ability to split a chord into many channels! Hope you'll check it out! ### 1/5 — No longer compatible... *2018-04-13, version 2.9.2* Really disappointing that the first version with 64 bit support is no longer compatible with my 3rd gen iPad. The OS on my iPad is newer the required version so there's really no excuse. ### 1/5 — Disappointing Upgrade *2017-09-19, version 2.9.2* Unable to upgrade. '"polycord" is not compatible with this iPad' Wasted purchase!!! ### 1/5 — Abandoned app *2017-02-21* This app gives ios a bad name. ### 1/5 — If your an actual musician, don't waste your money like I did *2015-03-08* I was intrigued... I spent the $9.99... I got a drum section that sounds right out of a cheap arcade game... I got chords that sound like a child's toy... there's absolutely nothing here a real musician would find useful in helping your music (unless your creating music for arcade games or children's toys). Dang it... What a waste of $10 bucks! There should be a way to sample apps like this before you waste your hard earned money.... ### 1/5 — Some Help would be useful *2013-01-23, version 2.69* I bought this App specifically for use with Logic Pro. Yep it makes some noises when its synced up, but it's sporadic and glitchy. I'm sure its something I'm doing wrong. But with just a one minute video, last few seconds of any importance, to help with syncing to Logic, support is minimal at best. No troubleshooting or forum to help with the lesser geniuses. I quick email to their tech support doesn't even get an automatic reply. I'd like to rate it higher, because this is exactly the kind of chord tool I've been looking for. Unfortunately, because I can't get it to work, with no future of doing so, a complete waste of money. Sorry ### 1/5 — UPDATE!-UPDATE!-UPDATE! *2013-01-17, version 2.69* I have been waiting for an update now since December 5th, 2011 I had many high hopes for this app. I remember reading once..a long time ago..that you were going to update this app with the ability to create your own, and or modify chords. Whatever happened??? Is this just another app that could've been?!? ### 1/5 — Disappointed *2012-04-18, version 2.69* Ok, the app is ok, but the fact that is has just one built in sound and no presets is, I feel, poor value for money. A premium app like this should have been supplied with a library of preset sounds. The one that comes with it gets pretty irritating very quickly. There should be an easy way of getting a refund. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Run it in Guided Access *2023-12-01* love the app & use it with Riff Station, which give me the chords from any song & transpose it to what Polychord can handle. While strumming Polychord, you can accidentally shrink & close it, … so I lock the app down by running it with IPad Guided Access. Thanks sooo much for a great running app. My wish is to be able to select the individual chords to place on the palette. ### 5/5 — UPDATE PRETTY PLEASE! *2022-12-28* Really dope app! Sooooooooo wish they would update it. I’d pay for an update!!! ### 5/5 — Wonderful! *2020-01-28, version 2.9.3* Very nice chord and styles machine....I really love it! ### 5/5 — Updated! Thank you! *2018-02-16, version 2.9.3* Beautifully thought out interface and expressive to play. I adore this app! ### 5/5 — Update plz!!! *2017-06-10* Fansastic. I have an Omnichord 300 and this app is so much like it. It's going to be a lot of fun. But when it was downloaded off the app store and opened, my iPad gave a message saying the app needed an update to play. Well the app does play but I'm wouldn't know which parts of the app aren't supported. My iPad is updated to the lasted version, 10.3.2. thanks pjay ### 5/5 — Great app, but please update *2016-11-24* This app deserves more praise, but I also wish it were updated to guarantee compatibility with the OS. ### 5/5 — Most used app *2016-04-29* I never learned to play entirely, so chords have always been a challenge. I get all the pads and chord progressions I could ever want out of this... I can even play back chords I hear that I like with a little scale digging. I really wish I had this app all these years of struggling to make music. It really is a breeze now with minimal understanding of how to carry over my polycord scales to melody and further harmony. ### 5/5 — Inspiring harmonic tool *2015-07-11* I love how easy it is to experiment with chord progressions here. The MIDI feature means i can hook it up to any of my synths or samplers, and the arpeggiator is easy to use and fun to customize. I hope the devs keep this app current, because it's a great part of my arsenal (you know, for doing "real musician" stuff). ### 5/5 — Polychord is a jewel (even for "real" musicians) *2015-06-02* I love Polychord. Love it. I have less than no no use for "musical toy" apps, but this one is deceptively clever, and deceptively useful. IF you bother to figure it out. I love it. OK? — Polychord can be used to create decent accompaniments and loose improvisations by anyone, at any level, who might be willing to think a bit. — And if you love sound, harmonic texture and melody in a more "freeform" way, it can be a lot of fun without much thought at all... though even a little thought is advised, just because you have it to spare, and it's worth it. You might even internalize a little harmonic understanding, and maybe gain some additional melodic sense (or "feel"), with the right approach. — At least one previous review states that the app is useless for "real musicians." That is simply and flatly wrong, at least as a general, sweeping statement. — Though I'm sure the reviewer is at least as intelligent as I am, the statement could not be more ignorant. — The app is very likely less useful for some particular styles, it may be problematic for a subset of those styles, and it certainly isn't meant to be a primary studio instrument, but there's plenty here for working out progressions, accompanying initial melodic work, building a scratch texture as a backdrop for recording, and more. That its uses and usefulness vary by style and user should not be a surprise to anyone. But... — A little off topic, and just my 0.02... but if an object makes noise, and if that noise is variable, it is best to approach any comment regarding uselessness of with extreme skepticism, initially. Plenty of of "proofs of concept" in the wild regarding the musicality of any number of unfamiliar doodads, if you're awake, and if you're "musical" ... and we can leave the term "real" elsewhere. — And in response to the complaint regarding limited voices (sounds), I would like to propose a licensing requirement for the submission of written reviews. The testing process: 1) Read a short description of a widget (any kind). 2) Fiddle with the widget a bit. 3) Write some random comments about that widget. You pass and are issued a license ONLY IF your comments DO NOT get playground whiny when the widget DOES NOT do things THE DESCRIPTION SAID THE WIDGET WOULD NOT DO. (And if you can't parse that sentence, wait; you still need the training wheels, for now.) — Y'all can figure it from there. ### 5/5 — Great app *2014-11-29, version 2.9.2* The best audiobus app so far, love the way it tunes a novice like me into a pro. A must for anyone that loves gliding scales of notes,works a dream on my iPad Air. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-14.*