Comparison

Line Hum vs spectwhirl

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

Head to head
About

Line Hum

This audio unit plugin adds authentic analog noise and distorted wave forms to your music productions. It can drone on any frequency and ring modulate input for added distortion, offering a unique sound for electronic music creators.

Highlights
  • Authentic analog noise
  • Synthesized analog instruments
  • Noisy wave forms
  • Drones on any frequency
  • Ring modulation
  • Distortion effects
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Your mix is full of synthesized analog instruments - but something is missing! YES! THE SOUND OF A CABLE LYING ON THE FLOOR SOMEWHERE NEAR AN ELECTRIC LINE. Line Hum gives you this missing piece of Analog authenticity, As well as a variety of noisy wave forms, this Audio Unit is also able to just sit there and drone on any frequency and ring modulate its input for added distortion. It's actually pretty useful, especially when you run a bunch of them serially or in parallel. Because this is an Audio Unit, you need to run the (non functioning) Line Hum app to install it.

About

spectwhirl

This audio effect app transforms input sound into new textures and bell-like tones by extracting and manipulating sinewave components. It offers advanced control over delay lines, frequency shifting, and filtering, with gesture recording for parameter automation.

Highlights
  • Sinewave component extraction and grouping
  • Delay lines with feedback
  • Frequency shifter and sample-and-hold effects
  • Configurable filtering
  • Gesture recording for automation
  • Scene saving and management
Features
Read full description

"bells and whistles, literally" spectwhirl is a hybrid spectral audio effect. It can extract and rearrange sinewave components from input signal to make new sound textures and bell-like sounds. * input sound is converted to sinewave components that are divided into 4 groups: harmonic, inharmonic, 12-edo and other * each component is fed into a delay line with feedback * there is a group of frequency shifter and sample-and-hold effects before and after delay lines * each set of sinewave components can be filtered * all the parameters can be instantly automated with gesture recording !!! Please note that this effect consumes much CPU and requires a modern device. ====================== Quick Start: Top row of controls enables different parts of user interface: scenes editor ("scene"), controls switch ("edit") and "zoom" controls When "edit" is switch on, you can show or hide various controls (marked as "ctrl") and switch gesture recording automation for some of them (marked with ">") Main control surface displays sonogram with tracked elements. Colors are set accordingly to the group they are assigned (red-orange-green-blue are for harmonic, inharmonic, 12-edo and others). Each "lane" contains delay time controls. * Triangle facing left is for the start locator, it determines initial delay time * Square moves both start and end locators together * When left locator is first moved you can see the right locator with the same triangle. It shows the end of the selected region, the secondary delay time is determined by the difference between left and right locators * if you drag over the area of the region in a lane, the four-dotted/one circle indicator will change its appearance; this changes the arpeggio mode of the region. If set to leftmost position (one circle) the components go in-sync; if set to maximum value (shown as diagonal line with circles) - components are played sequentially * all settings can be stored as "scene" and multiple scenes can be switched sequentially; there is a set of button to move, add and delete scenes. All scenes will be stored as machine state; it can be exported / imported as a single file or as separate file with current scene in the "setup" view The standalone version always starts with output level set to -70 dB to avoid feedback

Screenshots

Line Hum3 screens
spectwhirl4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Line Hum at 100% against spectwhirl's 33%. Line Hum also leads on rating (4.8 vs 4.0) and price ($0.99 vs $4.99). spectwhirl's advantage is update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 4 months). On ratings volume, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Line Hum costs $0.99 and spectwhirl $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Line Hum holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 6 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of Line Hum's written reviews are positive against 33% of spectwhirl's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Line Hum ships an update every 4 months, spectwhirl every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 9, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Line Hum versus spectwhirl: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLine Humspectwhirl
Price$0.99 — better$4.99
Rating4.8 (6 ratings) — better4.0 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better33.3% of reviews
Number of ratings6 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 5 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#195 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.412.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size13 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHenry LowengardAlexey Nadzharov

Customer experience

Line Hum

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

spectwhirl

All ratings5 ratings
Positive60.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral33.3%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

None

Line Hum

No in-app purchases

None

spectwhirl

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Line Hum free?
Line Hum costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is spectwhirl free?
spectwhirl costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Line Hum or spectwhirl?
Line Hum is rated higher. Line Hum averages 4.8 out of 5 from 6 ratings, while spectwhirl averages 4.0 from 5 ratings.
Do Line Hum or spectwhirl have ads?
Neither Line Hum nor spectwhirl shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Line Hum or spectwhirl?
Line Hum ships an update every 4 months, and spectwhirl every 5 weeks. Most recently, Line Hum was updated on September 9, 2026 and spectwhirl on September 24, 2026.

Other comparisons