Comparison

tardigrain vs Virtual ANS 3

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

Head to head
About

tardigrain

Create unique sounds by breaking down samples into small fragments and playing them back non-linearly. Explore granular synthesis with adjustable grain size, direction, and step size. Enhance your audio with built-in effects, filters, and modulation options.

Highlights
  • Granular synthesis engine
  • Adjustable grain parameters
  • Built-in effects (reverb, wave shaper, crush)
  • Resonant filter
  • MIDI and MPE modulation
  • Sequencer/arpeggiator
  • LFO modulation
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Tardigrain is a granular synthesiser for iOS that runs standalone or as an AU plugin. Sounds are created by taking smaller fragments of a sample and playing them back in a non linear fashion, with settings for grain size, direction, step size and more. Process the sound further through effects like reverb, wave shaper and sample crush. Tardigrain supports connections with AudioCopy, AudioBus, Inter App Audio and AUv3. Plus all audio parameters can be modulated by MIDI, as AU parameters and by aftertouch on the build in keyboard. Now also a selected set of parameters can be modulated by LFOs och notes triggered by a new sequencer/arpeggiator. +++ Record your own samples or import using AudioCopy/drag'n drop +++ Chromatic granualar playpack +++ Effects (Wave shaper, Reverb, Sample crusher, Pitch and stereo spread) +++ Resonant filter (low, band and high pass) +++ Keyboard and MPE modulation of any audio parameters +++ Note trigger sequencer/arpeggiator +++ 4 LFO sources for modulating a selected set of parameters +++ Multiple factory presets to get you started +++ Save and load your own settings and samples +++ Inter App Audio, AudioBus and AUv3 +++ Core MIDI, Inter App Audio MIDI and AUv3 MIDI

About

Virtual ANS 3

This app simulates a unique photoelectronic musical instrument, allowing users to draw music as spectrograms. It functions as a graphics editor to convert sound to images and vice versa, enabling the creation of atmospheric sounds and microtonal music.

Highlights
  • Unlimited pure tone generators
  • Sonogram editor for drawing and playing spectra
  • Convert sound to image and vice versa
  • MIDI device support
  • Polyphonic synth mode with MIDI mapping
  • Audio Unit Extension (AUv3) and Audiobus support
Features
Read full description

Virtual ANS is a software simulator of the unique Russian synthesizer ANS - photoelectronic musical instrument created by Evgeny Murzin from 1938 to 1958. The ANS made it possible to draw music in the form of a spectrogram (sonogram), without live instruments and performers. It was used by Stanislav Kreichi, Alfred Schnittke, Edward Artemiev and other Soviet composers in their experimental works. You can also hear the sound of the ANS in Andrei Tarkovsky's movies Solaris, The Mirror, Stalker. The simulator extends the capabilities of the original instrument. Now it's a full-featured graphics editor where you can convert sound into an image, load and play pictures, draw microtonal/spectral music and create some unusual deep atmospheric sounds. This app is for everyone who loves experiments and is looking for something new. Key features: * unlimited number of pure tone generators; * powerful sonogram editor - you can draw the spectrum and play it at the same time; * any sound (from a WAV file or a Microphone/Line-in) can be converted to image (sonogram) and vice versa; * support for MIDI devices; * polyphonic synth mode with MIDI mapping; * supported file formats: WAV (only uncompressed PCM), PNG, JPEG, GIF; * Audio Unit Extension (AUv3), Audiobus; * many new features compared to version 2.3; see the full list: https://warmplace.ru/soft/ans/changelog.txt Homepage, user manual and versions for other systems: https://warmplace.ru/soft/ans

Screenshots

tardigrain4 screens
Virtual ANS 33 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Virtual ANS 3 at 4.8 against tardigrain's 4.6. Virtual ANS 3 also leads on review sentiment (88% vs 76%). tardigrain's advantage is chart position (#178 vs unranked). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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

tardigrain costs $5.99 and Virtual ANS 3 $5.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Virtual ANS 3 holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 98 and 59 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of tardigrain's written reviews are positive against 88% of Virtual ANS 3's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

tardigrain ships an update every 2 months, Virtual ANS 3 every 3 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
tardigrain versus Virtual ANS 3: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParametertardigrainVirtual ANS 3
Price$5.99$5.99
Rating4.6 (98 ratings)4.8 (59 ratings) — better
Positive reviews75.9% of reviews87.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings98 — better59
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#178 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size60 MB31 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperErik SigthAlexander Zolotov

Customer experience

tardigrain

All ratings96 ratings
Positive88.5%
Neutral4.2%
Negative7.3%
Written reviews87 reviews
Positive75.9%
Neutral9.2%
Negative14.9%

Virtual ANS 3

All ratings57 ratings
Positive93.0%
Neutral5.3%
Negative1.8%
Written reviews32 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral6.3%
Negative6.3%

In-app purchases

None

tardigrain

No in-app purchases

None

Virtual ANS 3

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is tardigrain free?
tardigrain costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Virtual ANS 3 free?
Virtual ANS 3 costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, tardigrain or Virtual ANS 3?
Virtual ANS 3 is rated higher. tardigrain averages 4.6 out of 5 from 98 ratings, while Virtual ANS 3 averages 4.8 from 59 ratings.
Do tardigrain or Virtual ANS 3 have ads?
Neither tardigrain nor Virtual ANS 3 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, tardigrain or Virtual ANS 3?
tardigrain ships an update every 2 months, and Virtual ANS 3 every 3 months. Most recently, tardigrain was updated on October 24, 2026 and Virtual ANS 3 on October 24, 2026.

Other comparisons