FM Essential vs DTX Touch
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
FM Essential
This app is an FM tone generator and synthesizer for iPhone and iPad, offering real-time performance capabilities and voice editing. It includes a variety of presets, arpeggiator patterns, chord pads, and scales, along with drum functionalities. The app also supports external hardware integration and advanced sound manipulation through effects, EQ, and a ball controller.
- FM tone generator
- Real-time synth performance
- Voice editing
- Arpeggiator and chord pads
- Effects and EQ edit
- Ball controller for sound modulation
- Step sequencer
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Featuring an FM tone generator, FM Essential is a synthesizer app for the iPhone and iPad that provides for real-time synth performances and also lets you edit voices. [Spec] -FM sound ・Tone Generator: FM ・Part: 1 ・Polyphony: 16 ・Preset Voice: 271 ・Arpeggiator patterns: 64 ・Chord pads: 20 ・Scales: 25 -Drum Part Tone Generator: Audio Part: 1 Drum Pad: 16 Drum Pad Set: 3 Functions Plug into MX! -You can play full 271 voices and voice store function if you connect your iOS with Yamaha music synthesizer MX BK/BU series. Effects/EQ edit -You can adjust parameters to edit effects and equalization. Ball controller -Touch and drag in ball controller to modulate the sound by simultaneously changing multiple parameters based on the ball position. Step sequencer -We can store the ball position in the currently selected scene box. Arpeggiator and chord pads -You can play Arpeggiator and Chord pads in addition to keyboard with various scales. What's MX BK/BU/WH series? Find more here: http://jp.yamaha.com/products/music-production/synthesizers/mx_bk_bu/?mode=series [Support] -Compatible with Audio Unit Extentions -Compatible devices: iPhone 5S, 6/6 plus, 6s/6s plus and SE, iPod touch 6th Generation or later, iPad Air 1st Generation or later, iPad mini 2nd Generation or later,iPad Pro
DTX Touch
This app provides intuitive control for tuning, muting, EQ, and effects on compatible electronic drum kits. It allows users to create custom drum kits with extensive mixing and layering options, offering a PA engineer-like experience.
- Intuitive tap and swipe tuning
- Graph-based sound adjustment
- Seamless kit selection and editing
- Extensive mixing and effect functions
- Layering up to 10 tones simultaneously
- Flexible routing options
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*To use the application, you will need to connect your smart device to DTX using a USB cable and adapter. Please refer to our connection manual for details. *DTX Touch is compatible with firmware version 2 of DTX-PRO / DTX-PROX or later. 1. Tune it up like an acoustic kit Tap and swipe operations allow intuitive tuning, mute, EQ and effect adjustments. The graph allows customization to adjust the sound output in relation to the strength of the pad hit. 2. Simple and clear operation The UI features a flat design and ample use of photos and graphs, allowing users to edit items without hesitation. The normal flow of kit adjustment tasks, such as selecting a kit, editing the kit, adding effects, and mixing, can be performed seamlessly. 3. Let's create your own special kit! The DTX-PRO/PROX, comes enabled with a wide variety of mixing and effect functions, that allow the user to operate like a PA engineer. The DTX-PRO/PROX also offer a wealth of customizable materials, such as a layer function that allows up to 10 different tones to be pronounced simultaneously with highly flexible routing. Please try these functions with the DTX Touch.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: DTX Touch at 100% against FM Essential's 40%. DTX Touch also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.0). FM Essential's advantage is ratings volume (70 vs 2). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
DTX Touch holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: FM Essential has 70 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of FM Essential's written reviews are positive against 100% of DTX Touch's.
FM Essential ships an update every 15 months, DTX Touch every 12 months. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | FM Essential | DTX Touch |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.0 (70 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 70 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 15 months | Every 12 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 88 MB | 150 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | +4 |
| Developer | Yamaha Corporation of America | Yamaha Corporation |
Customer experience
FM Essential
DTX Touch
Bugs and requests
FM Essential
Reported bugs
6 issues- Does not unlock with USB-C adapter
- App crashes when loading combinations
- Preset menus crash the app
- Combined Sounds no longer read from keyboard after iPad update
- Instruments stop working if effect filters are turned off
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- Incompatible USB Device on MX displays
Requested features
9 requests- Unlock without hardware purchase
- Allow in-app purchase to unlock
- Bring back Tenori On apps
- Fix LFO delay parameter
- Add separate volume control for drums
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- Allow app to be used as a plugin
- Fix AU host preset recall
- Make app compatible with more devices
- Fix instruments disabling when effects are off
DTX Touch
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
FM Essential
No in-app purchases
DTX Touch
No in-app purchases









