7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker vs Marimba
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker
This app offers a 7-channel sample sequencer with advanced synth and modulation features for intricate sound manipulation. Create beats, glitch effects, and complex loops with extensive editing and real-time parameter control. Export your creations or sync with other music applications.
- 7-channel sample sequencer
- Animatable modulation
- Sample mangling and glitch effects
- Real-time parameter recording
- Independent sequence lengths
- Built-in effects (distortion, reverb, delay)
- MIDI and Ableton Link sync
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7XWAVE - a 7 channel sample sequencer with synth features & animatable modulation features for sample mangling. So many sound manipulation possibilities can be had with this whether it's a funky electro backing track or crazy granular glitch effects. Choose a sample, tweak the sound using envelopes & filters then create your beats and bleeps. Add effects to each sound, pan, level, sample start, length pitch & filter. Mash up loops and sequences with trimming and shuffling. Each step can have a start stop or end stop , shuffle up your samples or turn them into wave cycles like a synth, then animate the start position. Lots of glitch or time stretch effects! Lock parameter dials to a step or record dial movements in real time. All sequences can be set up to 1-64 steps. Export recorded loops or route audio into Audiobus or AUM etc keeping in sync with other apps using MIDI or Ableton Link. Sequencer Specifications & synth features: Animate or manually set levels for every track dial. Each program has swing/groove, independent sequence lengths from 1-64 plus offsets, Randomiser with 0-100% chance of a step in realtime, Accent levels on tracks for how much the accent affects pitch, frequency & volume dynamics. Notes are easily created on current bar. Double tap = accented dynamics. Hold down for copy, paste & clear. Fill 64 steps expands current sequence to 64 steps repeating to fill. Random generations of notes.. Hi, low or band pass filters, resonance, filter env & decay like in most synthesisers. Also Hi split adds parallel hi pass. Sample start, length & loop point, loop on/off, ping ping & reverse. Edit samples small enough to waves to use as a synth "oscillator". Loop level allows you to play loop back to point in Sample or at the very end for for tight looping and glitch repeat effects, granular fx and sample mangling. Slice/divide the sample start point to the track sequence length. You can then re-shuffle steps for glitch effect,Adjust pitch, volume attack & release or gated volume. Adjust pitch or set it automatically to fit the sequence and BPM (good for importing loops to match). Distortion, Delay (snaps to nearest time sync), reverb and compression effects. Each sequence has one LFO with adjustable speed and can modulate sample start/length , filter and pitch. LFO can also gate triggered for an Envelope effect. Built in keyboard for playing your samples using keys or selecting the random notes for random generation in step edit. Mixer console view so you can adjust pan, bass and levels. Import samples from other apps documents folders, Audioshare or copy/paste. Export you trimmed sample to this app document folder and export your recorder loops. Record what you are playing to export to another app or computer for composing yous loops. Play in sync your sampled loop with your current program. Route the audio output into other apps like Garage band, Audiobus or AUM with other apps. Ableton Link / MIDI syncs to sequencer. This is not an external audio input sampler but it can resample and those samples can be used as sound sources for synthesising. Manual: http://beatsnbobs.com/manuals/7xwave-manual.html Included is a help function. Any problems or ideas please let me know. Cheers Rob
Marimba
This app offers a high-quality sampled marimba instrument for iOS devices. It functions as a standalone application or an AUv3 plugin, featuring adjustable keyboard settings and built-in effects like reverb and delay. It supports external MIDI input for enhanced musical expression.
- Standalone app and AUv3 plugin
- High-quality sample-based marimba
- Configurable keyboard
- Reverb and delay effects
- MIDI input support
- Mac support
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Marimba is a polyphonic sampled AUv3 instrument and standalone app for iPhone and iPad. It features a configurable keyboard, reverb and delay effects. It can be played using an external midi keyboard over Wifi or Bluetooth, or loaded in your favourite AUv3 compatible DAW, such as Garageband. Features • Standalone app and AUv3 • High quality sample based marimba instrument • Configurable keyboard key count • Reverb • Delay • Midi input support • Mac support System Requirements: iOS 15.0 or later
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Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Marimba at 5.0 against 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker's 4.2. 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker's advantage is update cadence (every 10 days vs every 10 months) and ratings volume (10 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker costs $2.99 and Marimba $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Marimba holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker has 10 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker ships an update every 10 days, Marimba every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on September 4, 2026 and August 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker | Marimba |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | $2.99 |
| Rating | 4.2 (10 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 57.1% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 10 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days — better | Every 10 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 49 MB | 92 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Rob Wilmot | Mellowmuse Ltd |
Customer experience
7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker
Marimba
In-app purchases
7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker
No in-app purchases
Marimba
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker free?
Is Marimba free?
Which has better reviews, 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker or Marimba?
Do 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker or Marimba have ads?
Which is updated more often, 7XWAVE Sample Synth Loop Maker or Marimba?
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