# Soft Drummer vs Tape Loop Machine

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Tape Loop Machine at none against Soft Drummer's 7. Tape Loop Machine also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). Soft Drummer's advantage is ratings volume (509 vs 4). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Soft Drummer sells 7 one-off in-app purchases. Tape Loop Machine asks for nothing beyond the download.

Tape Loop Machine holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Soft Drummer has 509 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of Soft Drummer's written reviews are positive against 100% of Tape Loop Machine's.

Soft Drummer ships an update every 2 months, Tape Loop Machine fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 13, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Soft Drummer | Tape Loop Machine |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (509 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/soft-drummer-brush-sessions/id1120957633/reviews) | **[5.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tape-loop-machine/id6777705492/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **509** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 91.3% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 1.3 GB | 8 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Lumbeat](https://appshunter.io/developer/590278231) | [Baturay Koc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1623415331) |

## What reviewers say

### Soft Drummer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/soft-drummer-brush-sessions/id1120957633)

This app provides natural acoustic drum sounds and improvises musically with warm grooves for various genres. It offers multi-track MIDI export, live pad performance, and synchronization with other apps. Create rhythmic structures for songs quickly and control parameters via MIDI.

**Highlights:** Natural acoustic drum sounds, Improvise musically, Multi-track MIDI export, Live performance pads, Ableton Link synchronization, MIDI control and output, Song mode for rhythmic structures

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Big & Low | $3.99 | one-time |
| Presence | $3.99 | one-time |
| Raw Brush | $3.99 | one-time |
| Tight Control | $3.99 | one-time |
| Clayton | $4.99 | one-time |
| Joe | $4.99 | one-time |
| Soft Drummer Full Access | $22.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎨 Excellent sound quality
- 🎢 Realistic and natural-sounding rhythms
- 🎛️ Flexible and customizable features
- 🎶 Great for practicing, jamming, and composing
- 🎧 Authentic brush and mallet sounds

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤔 Unintuitive user interface
- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
- 💰 Expensive for an iOS app
- 📚 Lack of documentation and tutorials

**Reported bugs**

- Song mode issues, including crashes and missing features
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions and devices

**Requested features**

- Add support for time signatures beyond 4/4
- Improve MIDI integration and control
- Implement audio/MIDI export options
- Provide preset management and organization


### Tape Loop Machine

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/tape-loop-machine/id6777705492)

Create warm, evolving ambient soundscapes with tape-style looping and sound-on-sound layering. This audio effect plugin offers long delay times and analog degradation simulations for experimental music creation. Explore presets or use it within your favorite AUv3-compatible host.

**Highlights:** Tape-style loop and delay, Sound-on-sound overdubbing, Long delay times, Analog degradation and tone coloring, Wow, flutter, and tape degradation simulation, Preset library, AUv3 plugin support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Soft Drummer free?

Soft Drummer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Tape Loop Machine free?

Tape Loop Machine is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Soft Drummer or Tape Loop Machine?

Tape Loop Machine is rated higher. Soft Drummer averages 4.7 out of 5 from 509 ratings, while Tape Loop Machine averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.

### Do Soft Drummer or Tape Loop Machine have ads?

Neither Soft Drummer nor Tape Loop Machine shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Soft Drummer or Tape Loop Machine?

Soft Drummer ships an update every 2 months, and Tape Loop Machine fortnightly. Most recently, Soft Drummer was updated on September 22, 2026 and Tape Loop Machine on September 13, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*