Shruti Laya vs Carnatic Metronome
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Shruti Laya
This app provides a practice companion for Carnatic music, offering a tanpura drone, Mrudanga, and Manjira instruments. Users can customize pitch, tempo, and select from various talas and jaatis for an immersive practice experience.
- Customizable tanpura drone
- Realistic Mrudanga and Manjira rhythms
- Support for multiple talas and jaatis
- Adjustable tempo and pitch
- On-screen performance display
- Integrated tuner
- Lock screen controls
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Shruti Laya is a practice companion for Carnatic music. It gives you a tanpura drone, a Mrudanga and a Manjira that play together, locked to one beat, in the tala you choose. Turn on any of them, set your shruti and tempo, and practise. TANPURA • Set the shruti (Sa) to any standard pitch, or to a custom pitch. • Choose the first string: Pa, Ma, Ni or upper Sa. • Slow, Normal or Fast plucking. • Keeps playing when the screen locks. MRUDANGA • Plays a theka in Adi tala, built from real recorded strokes and traditional nadai patterns. • Tuned to your shruti automatically, so it always sits with the tanpura. • Accents on sam and on each anga, with a natural, human feel. • Other talas are kept with the Manjira and the tanpura. • Optional variation: the Mrudanga brings in variations of the theka across cycles instead of repeating one fixed phrase. MANJIRA • Strikes on every beat, on claps only, or on sam only. • In Misra Chapu and Khanda Chapu, a soft tick marks the beats between the claps. Switch it off in Settings to hear only the claps. TALA • All seven Suladi Sapta talas: Dhruva, Matya, Rupaka, Jhampa, Triputa (Adi), Ata and Eka. • Misra Chapu and Khanda Chapu. • Jaati: Tisra, Chatusra, Khanda, Misra, Sankeerna. • Gati (nadai): Tisra, Chatusra, Khanda, Misra, Sankeerna. • Kalai: 1x or 2x. • Tempo from 40 to 150 BPM. Set it with the slider, or tap the beat with Tap Tempo. • Each tala remembers its own tempo. • A four-click count-in before the rhythm starts, always at sam, with a big 4, 3, 2, 1 on screen. ON STAGE A full-screen performance display shows the beat count, tala and tempo in large type, readable from across the room. It opens on its own a few seconds after the rhythm starts. MUKTHAYA • In Adi tala, tap Mukthaya on the performance display and the Mrudanga plays a mukthaya that fills the rest of the cycle and lands on sam, then goes back to the theka. • Tap End to finish the same way: the mukthaya lands on sam with Dhin and Thom, and the rhythm stops. • The mukthaya fits whatever is left of the cycle, from 2 to 8 beats, drawn from traditional lesson patterns. TUNER Check your voice or instrument against your shruti. The tuner shows the swara you're on and how many cents sharp or flat you are. ALSO • Five colour themes. • Play and pause from the Lock Screen and Control Center. It never starts on its own when you connect to a car or headset. • Works on iPhone and iPad, with a layout made for the larger iPad screen. PRIVATE The microphone is used only by the Tuner, and only while it's on. Sound is analysed on your device. Nothing is recorded, stored or sent anywhere. No accounts, no ads, no tracking.
Carnatic Metronome
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Carnatic Metronome is a professional Shruthi and Talam accompaniment app designed specifically for Carnatic music practice and performance. KEY FEATURES: Multiple Tala Patterns Practice with traditional Carnatic talas including: • Adi Tala (8 beats) • Rupaka Tala (3 beats) • Misra Chapu (7 beats) • Khanda Chapu (5 beats) • Eka Tala (4 beats) • Kanda Triputa (9 beats) • Ata Tala (14 beats) • Sankeerna Chapu (9 beats) • Jhampa Tala (6 beats) Flexible Nadai Options Choose from different nadais (subdivisions): • Chatusra (4) • Tisra (3) • Khanda (5) • Misra (7) • Sankeerna (9) Shruthi (Pitch) Generator • Generate accurate shruthi tones for practice • Multiple pitch options (C, C#, D, E, F, G, G#, A, B) • Adjustable volume control Mridangam Accompaniment • High-quality mridangam audio samples • Multiple pattern variations • Real-time pattern mixing • Tempo variations from 20-200 BPM Advanced Controls • Adjustable tempo (BPM) • Volume controls for mridangam and shruthi • Visual beat indicators • Cycle counting • Pattern selection (single, random, custom) Perfect for: • Carnatic music students • Professional musicians • Music teachers • Practice sessions • Performance preparation Whether you're learning the basics or preparing for a concert, Carnatic Metronome provides the tools you need for a great Shruthi and Talam accompaniment. App developed by Advait Krishnan, a long-time Mridangam student, teacher and performer.
Screenshots
Verdict
Shruti Laya and Carnatic Metronome are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
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.
Shruti Laya ships an update every 3 days, Carnatic Metronome every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Shruti Laya | Carnatic Metronome |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 16.7% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 94 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Ramachandra Mallappa | Sriram Krishnan |
In-app purchases
Shruti Laya
No in-app purchases
Carnatic Metronome
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Shruti Laya free?
Is Carnatic Metronome free?
Do Shruti Laya or Carnatic Metronome have ads?
Which is updated more often, Shruti Laya or Carnatic Metronome?
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