Taper's Section vs DeadSpread
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Taper's Section
Access a vast library of live music recordings from archive.org. Stream, save, and organize your favorite shows, build playlists, and enjoy offline listening. Features background playback and powerful search capabilities.
- Stream live music from archive.org
- Save favorite bands and shows
- Background streaming
- Offline listening
- Powerful search and filtering
- Build and share playlists
- Manage play queue
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Taper's Section gives you access to the Live Music Archive from archive.org in the palm of your hand. * Stream your favorite shows from over 5,000 bands * Save your favorite bands and shows for quick access * Easily access your recently played shows * Background streaming with Bluetooth and AirPlay compatibility * Powerful search and filtering options * Build playlists and share them with your friends * Build a play queue, reorder your queue, and make it a new playlist * Offline listening - save your data plan while listening to your downloaded shows while away from WiFi.
DeadSpread
Access and stream a vast collection of live concert recordings from bands like the Grateful Dead and Widespread Panic. Download your favorite shows to enjoy offline. Discover music from various other jam bands.
- Stream live concert recordings
- Download shows for offline playback
- Access archive.org content
- Discover Widespread Panic shows
- Explore other jam band artists
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Stream & download archive.org Grateful Dead Shows and PanicStream.com Widespread Panic shows along with others like Bloodkin, Drivin N Cryin, Jupiter Coyote, Moonshine Still and more.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Taper's Section at none against DeadSpread's shown. Taper's Section also leads on monetization model (free vs ad-supported) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.1). DeadSpread's advantage is update cadence (every 6 days vs every 3 months) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume 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.
DeadSpread holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 39 and 101 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 90% and 90% positive.
Taper's Section ships an update every 3 months, DeadSpread every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on June 1, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Taper's Section | DeadSpread |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (39 ratings) | 4.8 (101 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 90.0% of reviews | 90.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 39 | 101 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 6 days — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15.1 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 55 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Franklin Kesler | Walter Sanders |
Customer experience
Taper's Section
DeadSpread
In-app purchases
Taper's Section
No in-app purchases
DeadSpread
No in-app purchases
