SrutiBox vs Relic Waves
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SrutiBox
This app simulates an Indian harmonium, generating drones with customizable timbres and precise intonations. It offers a realistic bellows-pumping feature and can be used for musical practice, spiritual chanting, or as a tuning aid.
- Indian harmonium simulation
- Customizable drone timbres
- Precise intonation control
- Background audio playback
- Bellows-pumping realism
- Pitch source for tuning
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SrutiBox simulates an Indian harmonium, used as a base tone in Indian music and in spiritual practices of chanting and droning. SrutiBox 1.4 now works under iOS8, iPhone 4,5,6, and 6+ sizes, has a slightly different look, and fixes a few bugs that you may have encountered. SrutiBox is a synthesizer, creating drones with various timbres and precise intonations that blur the distinction between tones, timbres and chords. The drone can be fairly static or undergo slow modulation and harmonic change. It now plays in the background under iOS 4.0 like many other music apps! Pop over to http://www.jhhl.net/iPhone/SrutiBox/ and listen to some examples! "I wanted you to know that I have made my debut in Vienna a couple of weeks ago as an iPHONEist. I played two simultaneously - one with sruti box and the other with a variety of apps. I am enjoying sruti box immensely! Thank you!" — Dr. Pauline Oliveros I also have another Droning app, Droneo, which has a similar interface, but more droning options! SrutiBox uses 12 "reeds" which can be tuned to a great number of scales, randomly detuned, and chorused and modulated. The pitch interval and volume of each "reed" can be set individually, making for a wide variety of drones. The reeds can be set to various timbres suitable for drones, including vocal-like timbres and low frequency-friendly chirps. A special iPhone feature of SrutiBox is that you can wave the phone in an imitation of pumping the bellows, adding a touch of realism to the simulation. SrutiBox can also be used as a pitch source for instrument tuning purposes, or as an aid for learning the difference between Just and Equal Tempered intervals. As with other iPhone/iPod touch audio applications, it'll sound better through headphones, although in a quiet room, it's quite effective! Make sure to use the volume controls on the side of the phone to set the volume level you like. See the SrutiBox web pages for more information, hints, and possibly tales of YOUR performances and discoveries: http://www.jhhl.net/iPhone/SrutiBox It's also the place to ask for support and advice, or email tutti-srutti at jhhl.net also: visit my iPhone App Facebook group for starting discussions etc! http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=150360054839 Thank You! Check out my other apps: Droneo, Tondo, the iPhone Wind Chimes, Lake Piano and Enumero!
Relic Waves
Generate unique Lo-Fi sounds, pads, and effects using advanced synthesis algorithms. Explore billions of sonic possibilities with intuitive controls and real-time recording. Perfect for musicians and sound designers seeking experimental audio.
- Billions of unique Lo-Fi sounds
- Random sound generation with search
- Multiple keyboard input options
- Real-time audio recording to WAV
- Export to WAV, SunVox, and clipboard
- MIDI control and processing
- iOS Audio Unit Extension (AUv3)
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Relic Waves is a generator of Lo-Fi noises, pads and effects based on unique synthesis algorithms from NightRadio. More than 4 billion samples from the depths of the Mathematical Universe! Features: * search for new sounds with three buttons: next random set, edit code, previous set; each set of 12 sounds corresponds to a code of 8 characters; * three types of keyboards for live performing: on-screen buttons, PC keyboard, MIDI input; * several processing parameters + control via MIDI; * real-time audio recording to WAV (32-bit); * export to: WAV (one file or a set), SunVox (samples + effects in one file), text clipboard; * the LCK button freezes individual samples - they will not change during the search for new sets; * iOS Audio Unit Extension (AUv3). Double clicking on a parameter opens a window for setting the exact value. If you enable the Hold option, the notes will play endlessly, without reacting to key release (noteOff) events; turning the note on again works like turning it off; there are two ways to enable this option: 1) using the Hold parameter in the "MIDI Mapping" window; 2) by pressing the HOLD button, which appears in place of LCK while playing the musical keyboard: press HOLD, release the desired notes - then the released notes will continue to play.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Relic Waves at 5.0 against SrutiBox's 4.3. Relic Waves also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 74%) and ratings volume (43 vs 11). SrutiBox's advantage is update cadence (every 3 months vs every 11 months) and iOS requirement (7.1 vs 12.0). 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
SrutiBox costs $1.99 and Relic Waves $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Relic Waves holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 11 and 43 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of SrutiBox's written reviews are positive against 100% of Relic Waves's.
SrutiBox ships an update every 3 months, Relic Waves every 11 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SrutiBox | Relic Waves |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 | $1.99 |
| Rating | 4.3 (11 ratings) | 5.0 (43 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 74.5% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 11 | 43 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 11 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 7.1 — better | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 13 MB | 6 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Henry Lowengard | Alexander Zolotov |
Customer experience
SrutiBox
Relic Waves
In-app purchases
SrutiBox
No in-app purchases
Relic Waves
No in-app purchases









