Comparison

Additive Drum Machine vs TEMPO

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

Head to head
About

Additive Drum Machine

Create unique drum beats with additive rhythm and traditional drum machine functionality. Design sequences of any length and structure, easily switching steps on and off to craft complex patterns. Ideal for practicing odd meters and exploring diverse rhythmic structures.

Highlights
  • Additive rhythm concept
  • Traditional drum machine interface
  • Customizable sequence length
  • Step sequencing
  • Odd meter support
  • Symmetrical and asymmetrical rhythms
Features
Read full description

With Additive Drum Machine you can create drum beats using the concept of “additive rhythm” in combination with the sounds and ease of use of a traditional drum machine. Construct step sequences of any length and structure by the chaining of "long" and "short" beats. Then switch on and off individual steps to create a drum pattern. Whether used as a practice tool or composition sketchpad, its intuitive interface allows you to easily make drum patterns that use odd meters, symmetrical and asymmetrical rhythmic structures, and various subdivisions of the pulse. With Additive Drum Machine your musical imagination is the limit.

About

TEMPO

Create beats and build songs with this pocket-sized sampler groovebox and mini DAW. It allows you to play, sample, and sequence music, then arrange your patterns into full songs.

Highlights
  • Sampler groovebox and mini DAW
  • 12 voices with modeled drums and samples
  • 64-step patterns with advanced shaping
  • Standalone Song Mode for arrangement
  • Audio track recording and import
  • AUv3 instrument compatibility
  • Stereo WAV and stem export
Features
Read full description

Make a beat. Build a song. TEMPO-1 is a sampler groovebox and a mini DAW in your pocket. Play, sample and sequence on iPhone and iPad, then turn your patterns into an arrangement with the new standalone Song Mode. BUILD THE GROOVE Play 12 voices with modeled drums and samples. Create patterns up to 64 steps and shape each hit with velocity, probability, microtiming, ratchets, conditions and pitch. Record pads or MIDI, add swing, and bring movement to your patterns with effects and automation. TURN PATTERNS INTO SONGS Bring saved Patterns straight into a timeline with up to eight Pattern/MIDI, Audio and Instrument tracks. Build sections, add markers and tempo changes, and use FILL to repeat whole clips into empty gaps. Keep reusable ideas in the Pattern Library and saved clip banks. RECORD, LAYER AND PLAY Record an Audio track from your microphone or a compatible connected interface. Trim takes, adjust gain and fades, and reuse phrases. Import compatible audio through the bottom Bank pattern chooser bar, then place it on a Song Audio track. Add separately installed compatible AUv3 instruments. SHAPE YOUR SOUND Record, import, edit and resample WAVs for the pads. Balance Song tracks with level, pan, mute and solo, then shape the mix with EQ, effects and track automation. TAKE THE IDEA FURTHER Export a stereo Song WAV or a mix with Song-track stems. Choose the entire Song, a loop or a selected time span, or share a Song project package. Pattern workflows retain loop WAV export, MIDI export and live WAV capture. CONNECT YOUR SETUP Use MIDI learn and external MIDI output, or run TEMPO-1's Pattern groovebox as an AUv3 in a compatible host. Gillespie Audio Built by a musician, for musicians.

Screenshots

Additive Drum Machine4 screens
TEMPO4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Additive Drum Machine at 5.0 against TEMPO's 4.3. Additive Drum Machine also leads on price ($2.99 vs $9.99) and iOS requirement (14.5 vs 17.0). TEMPO's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 15 months). On review sentiment, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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

Additive Drum Machine costs $2.99 and TEMPO $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Additive Drum Machine holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 3 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Additive Drum Machine ships an update every 15 months, TEMPO every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Additive Drum Machine versus TEMPO: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAdditive Drum MachineTEMPO
Price$2.99 — better$9.99
Rating5.0 (3 ratings) — better4.3 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings33
Update frequencyEvery 15 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS14.5 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB354 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGiovanny BermudezRichard Gillespie

Customer experience

Additive Drum Machine

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

TEMPO

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral33.3%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Additive Drum Machine

No in-app purchases

None

TEMPO

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Additive Drum Machine free?
Additive Drum Machine costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is TEMPO free?
TEMPO costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Additive Drum Machine or TEMPO?
Additive Drum Machine is rated higher. Additive Drum Machine averages 5.0 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while TEMPO averages 4.3 from 3 ratings.
Do Additive Drum Machine or TEMPO have ads?
Neither Additive Drum Machine nor TEMPO shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Additive Drum Machine or TEMPO?
Additive Drum Machine ships an update every 15 months, and TEMPO every 4 days. Most recently, Additive Drum Machine was updated on November 7, 2026 and TEMPO on November 5, 2026.

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