Comparison

Viking Synth vs SynthShred

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Viking Synth

This app emulates a classic monophonic analog synthesizer with advanced DSP technology. It features three variable wave oscillators, dual ladder filters, an LFO, and two modulation busses for versatile sound design. An intuitive interface and extensive preset library make it ideal for creating thick bass and rich lead sounds.

Highlights
  • Three continuously variable wave oscillators
  • Dual ladder filters (Lowpass/Highpass)
  • Multi-wave LFO
  • Two modulation busses
  • Intuitive user interface with expandable controls
  • 228 presets including Bass, Lead, and Synthwave
  • State-of-the-art DSP for authentic sound
Read full description

Viking Synth is an authentic emulation of a classic monophonic analog synthesizer. It has three continuously variable wave oscillators, two ladder filters with a Dual Lowpass or Highpass/Lowpass configuration, a multi-wave LFO, and two modulation busses. Viking Synth uses state of the art DSP technology to accurately reproduce the sound of the hardware. You get a desktop quality plug-in at an iOS friendly price. Viking Synth is an Audio Unit Extension Instrument (AUv3) that works as a plug-in inside host apps. Just open up your favorite host that supports Audio Unit Instruments and select it from the list of available Audio Units. Compatible with GarageBand, Cubasis, Auria, BeatMaker, AudioBus, AUM, Modstep, and more. The user interface of Viking Synth is designed for quick and intuitive control. Knobs and sliders expand during tweaking and are designed so the current value isn't hidden below your finger. The six pages divide the synth into logical sections that can be accessed quickly. The filter display acts as an XY pad for controlling cutoff and resonance. Simply double tap a knob or slider to reset it to its default value. Presets Viking Synth comes with 228 presets in the categories Bass, Bright Lead, Electro Bass, FX, Percussive Lead, Soft Lead, and Synthwave. The synth excels at thick bass and rich lead sounds. The 50 Electro Bass and 50 Synthwave presets were designed by renowned sound designer eXode. Presets work perfectly with GarageBand, Cubasis, and AUM. Oscillators At the heart of Viking are three adjustable wave oscillators. The continuously variable waveform knob gives the oscillators a unique sound that can’t be achieved with the fixed waveforms found in most synths. A noise oscillator provides three types of noise, one specifically modeled after the hardware. Modulation Two modulation busses and an LFO provide flexible modulation capabilities. All of the options hidden deep in menus on the hardware are immediately accessible with one tap. Filters The filters are classic transistor ladder filters modeled meticulously. Two DSP varieties are available allowing for either reduced CPU load or soft clipping plus three additional overdriven modes. The number of poles is adjustable for a wider range of filter sounds. Compare Viking to other synths: – Viking’s oscillators are free running, not sampled, wavetable based, or generated from a zero point – Viking’s oscillators use advanced techniques to avoid aliasing – Viking’s oscillators have instability, which is controllable through the tuning drift control – Viking’s nonlinear filter uses circuit modeling and provides soft clipping

About

SynthShred

This app is a virtual musical instrument offering a vast library of sound presets, including pianos, guitars, and synths. It provides customizable guitar tunings and a selection of musical scales with root key adjustments for easier playing. Enjoy expressive sound shaping with built-in effects and multiple playing modes.

Highlights
  • 139 sound presets
  • 29 guitar tuning presets
  • 14 musical scales
  • Diatonic surface option
  • Monophonic and Polyphonic Mode
  • Reverb and Echo effects
Read full description

SynthShred is musical instrument containing 139 sound presets including piano, guitars, ethnic instruments, chromatic percussions, strings, pipes, synth pads, reed instruments, brass, organs, ensemble, bass, synth leads and many more. SynthShred comes with 29 guitar tuning presets including standard guitar, all fourths, drop tunings, open tunings, major minor tunings and many more. SynthShred also contains 14 mostly used musical scales including Major, Minor, Harmonic Minor, Pentatonic and many more. SynthShred provides the ability to change the root key for the the selected scale to be in the key every time. The diatonic surface option will remove the notes from the surface that are not part of the scale. It's easier for the player to be in key. SynthShred features includes: - Expressive physical guitar surface - Monophonic and Polyphonic Mode - Diatonic surface - Adjustable string and fret counts - 139 sound presets - 29 unique guitar tuning presets - 14 commonly used scales - Modulation slider - On screen Reverb and Echo effects controls - Sustain button for acoustic instruments Available for iPhone, iPad and iPods for free. Minimum Requirements: iOS 9.0 or later.

Screenshots

Viking Synth4 screens
SynthShred4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SynthShred at Free against Viking Synth's $3.99. SynthShred also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 4 months) and ratings volume (200 vs 42). Viking Synth's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and rating (4.7 vs 4.4). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

SynthShred is free to download; Viking Synth costs $3.99 up front. SynthShred sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Viking Synth asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Viking Synth holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 42 and 200 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 70% of Viking Synth's written reviews are positive against 50% of SynthShred's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Viking Synth ships an update every 4 months, SynthShred every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Viking Synth versus SynthShred: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterViking SynthSynthShred
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (42 ratings) — better4.4 (200 ratings)
Positive reviews69.8% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings42200 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB141 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBlamsoft, Inc.Yugal Sharma

Customer experience

Viking Synth

All ratings42 ratings
Positive92.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.1%
Written reviews63 reviews
Positive69.8%
Neutral11.1%
Negative19.0%

SynthShred

All ratings200 ratings
Positive84.0%
Neutral7.0%
Negative9.0%
Written reviews46 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral8.7%
Negative41.3%

Bugs and requests

Viking Synth

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Presets not showing up
  • Presets disappear
  • App not showing in AUv3 menu
  • Settings not saving after iOS 14 update
  • Crashes when opening presets browser
Show 1 more
  • Saved presets not loading

Requested features

5 requests
  • More subtle drive mode
  • Categorized preset browser
  • Polyphony option
  • Dark mode
  • More apps from developer

SynthShred

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Viking Synth

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

SynthShred

One-time1
  • Full Upgrade to SynthShred Pro$3.99

Questions

Is Viking Synth free?
Viking Synth costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is SynthShred free?
SynthShred is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Viking Synth or SynthShred?
Viking Synth is rated higher. Viking Synth averages 4.7 out of 5 from 42 ratings, while SynthShred averages 4.4 from 200 ratings.
Do Viking Synth or SynthShred have ads?
Neither Viking Synth nor SynthShred shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Viking Synth or SynthShred?
Viking Synth ships an update every 4 months, and SynthShred every 4 days. Most recently, Viking Synth was updated on October 1, 2026 and SynthShred on September 24, 2026.

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