Comparison

Nova Tuner vs Cantoria

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

Head to head
About

Nova Tuner

A professional chromatic tuner designed for musicians, especially those in Early Music. It offers extensive temperament support, custom profile creation, and a clean interface for precise instrument tuning. No internet connection or data collection required.

Highlights
  • Extensive built-in temperaments
  • Add and create custom temperaments
  • User profiles for quick settings
  • Sound and Auto detection modes
  • Adjustable A4 pitch detector
  • Multiple waveform options
  • Light and dark mode support
Features
Read full description

Written for professionals, especially those in the field of Early Music, Nova Tuner is a fully featured, accurate, chromatic tuner with extensive temperament support. A full demonstration of the app is on YouTube: https://youtu.be/egkAFaICdXY?si=peIM6QvGHLqXMqtD Nova Tuner was written by professional fortepianist and harpsichordist, Thomas Foster. MAIN FEATURES - Sound Mode (reference pitch) and Auto Mode (detect pitch) - Clean and simple interface - About 30 built-in temperaments (see www.thomasfoster.org/novatuner for full list) - Add/Create new temperaments. - Duplicate and edit built-in temperaments - Create profiles to quickly set pitch and temperament for frequently used settings. - A4 pitch detector to quickly determine an instrument's pitch level. - Quick selection of common pitch levels: 392, 415, 430, and 440 Hz (these are customizable). - Four waveforms for audible note: Sawtooth, Square, Triangle, Sine. - No data is collected, no internet connection is required. INTERFACE - All tuner information (pitch level, temperament, etc) clearly visible on main screen. - Standard, simple iOS appearance and controls. - Large and intuitive adjustment buttons (no fussy scroll wheels). - Light and dark mode. - Supports portrait and landscape orientations. - Note names in English, German, and Neo-Latin (do, re, mi) TEMPERAMENTS - Temperaments can be transposed - Add, duplicate and edit temperaments - Favorite frequently used temperaments - Filter by favorited and custom - Search entire list of temperaments by name or information (creator, type, year, etc.) - Hide unwanted temperaments so they don't appear in the list or search SPECIFICATIONS Transposition range: -11 to +11 semitones Detection range: A0 to C8 Reference tone: C2 to B7 Tuning modes: Sound, Auto, Auto with Sound Back Calibration range: A4=300-500 Hz, 0.1 Hz increments

About

Cantoria

This app is a virtual pipe organ that uses physical modeling and additive synthesis to emulate a Baroque-style instrument. It offers a dynamic sound range, expression pedal control, and built-in effects, functioning as both a standalone application and an audio plugin.

Highlights
  • Physical modeling engine (no samples)
  • Full polyphony (61 notes, 776 pipes)
  • 9 organ stops
  • 3 couplers
  • Tremulant motor
  • Swell pedal
  • Built-in stereo reverb
Features
Read full description

GSi Cantoria is a physical modeling emulation of a Baroque-style Pipe Organ. INSTRUMENT BACKGROUND A pipe organ is not something you see every day, there are thousands of different pipe organs that differ by the number of stops, the number of manuals, the number and the type of pipes, their size, their position, etc. Cantoria is a Baroque-style organ based on a single manual and 9 stops plus 3 couplers and the classic "tremulant" effect. This type of organ has "only" 776 pipes, which Cantoria simulates one by one. It doesn't sound "massive" like bigger organs, but is very dynamic and can vary from a soft delicate flute sound to a loud and majestic. vibrant full organ. This synth engine works as an hybrid synthesizer, uses additive synthesis and physical modeling together, there are no samples involved. The expression pedal responds naturally and varies the amount of air that passes through the pipes. About the name: the name we chose for this plugin "CANTORIA" is the italian name of the place, inside a Church, where the organ and the choir are located. Main features: - Physical Modeling engine (no samples) - Full Polyphony (61 notes, 776 pipes) - 9 Organ Stops - 3 Couplers - Tremulant Motor - Swell Pedal - Built-in Stereo Reverb effect - Built-in programmer with unlimited Programs - Embedded user's manual - Available as Stand-alone application and audio plugin - Very low CPU and RAM usage Works as AUv3 plugin.

Screenshots

Nova Tuner4 screens
Cantoria1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Cantoria at Free against Nova Tuner's $7.99. Cantoria also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 5 months) and iOS requirement (11 vs 16.1). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume 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

Cantoria is free to download; Nova Tuner costs $7.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Nova Tuner against 4.8 for Cantoria. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 32 and 23 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 100% of Nova Tuner's written reviews are positive against 94% of Cantoria's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Nova Tuner ships an update every 5 months, Cantoria every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and August 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Nova Tuner versus Cantoria: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNova TunerCantoria
Price$7.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (32 ratings)4.8 (23 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better93.8% of reviews
Number of ratings32 — better23
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.111 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperThomas J FosterGenuine Soundware

Customer experience

Nova Tuner

All ratings32 ratings
Positive90.6%
Neutral3.1%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Cantoria

All ratings23 ratings
Positive95.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative4.3%
Written reviews16 reviews
Positive93.8%
Neutral0.0%
Negative6.3%

In-app purchases

None

Nova Tuner

No in-app purchases

None

Cantoria

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Nova Tuner free?
Nova Tuner costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Cantoria free?
Cantoria is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Nova Tuner or Cantoria?
Cantoria is rated higher. Nova Tuner averages 4.7 out of 5 from 32 ratings, while Cantoria averages 4.8 from 23 ratings.
Do Nova Tuner or Cantoria have ads?
Neither Nova Tuner nor Cantoria shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Nova Tuner or Cantoria?
Nova Tuner ships an update every 5 months, and Cantoria every 4 days. Most recently, Nova Tuner was updated on September 22, 2026 and Cantoria on August 26, 2026.

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