Comparison

SPL vs Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA

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

Head to head
About

SPL

This professional-grade digital sound level meter measures decibels with advanced modes and filters meeting ANSI Type 1 standards. It allows storing, exporting, and calibrating measurements, and can be used with external calibrated microphones for precise results.

Highlights
  • Professional-grade digital sound level meter
  • ANSI/IEC Type 1 standards compliant filters and modes
  • Store, recall, and export GPS/time-stamped results
  • Supports external calibrated microphones
  • Adjustable calibration for accuracy
  • Internal mic compensation filter
Features
Read full description

SPL is a professional-grade digital sound level meter (decibel meter) for your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch. It includes all of the modes, filters, and features that you would expect from a professional ANSI or IEC Sound Level Meter. All filters and averaging modes meet or exceed the criteria for ANSI Type 1 standards or better. SPL is created from the same team who brought you the Audio Toolbox and ATB Plus. Store Results -- Uses the same powerful Save / Recall engine as our premier app, AudioTools. Allows storing GPS and time-stamped results, and exporting them to your computer. You can also use SPL with our calibrated iPhone measurement mic, iTestMic, or iAudioInterface. The screen flips if you turn the phone upside down, so that you can point the built-in iPhone mic directly at the sound source. *** Modes: Slow, Fast, Impulse, Peak, and Leq. *** Filters: A and C weighting, and 10 octave band filters. *** Includes a resettable Max field to track the highest reading. *** Includes a reference field (except in Leq mode) so that you can set a reference level and do seat-to-seat comparisons. The SPL meter can be fully calibrated. It comes preset with the calibration for a typical iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch. Most iOS devices will be within a few dB of this reading. If you have access, even temporarily, to a calibrated sound level meter, just use the calibration field on the settings scree to match the meter, and you will be accurately calibrated. Also, see our other professional-grade audio apps: AudioTools, our premier suite of professional-caliber audio and acoustics test apps, Speaker Pop, to test speaker polarity, and RTA, a real-time analyzer for the iPhone. And, we have a group of calibrated, accurate measurement microphones, including iTestMic,iTestMic2, and iAudioInterface2, that allows full professional results for Type 1 or Type 2 measurements. This will allow measuring a range from approximately 30 dB SPL to 130 dB SPL. Each mic will include a calibration factor that you will enter into the SPL app for calibrated measurements. This mic will also work with Speaker Pop, our speaker polarity tester, FFT, RTA, ETC, and other acoustical measurement apps in our AudioTools app that is available now. Also, see our iAudioInterface2 system, which supports any pro test and measurement mic. Now includes an iPhone internal mic compensation filter, to cancel out the low-frequency roll-off present in the iPhone and other iOS devices. See our other audio apps, including AudioTools.

About

Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA

Analyze sound frequencies and decibel levels with this advanced tool. Ideal for tuning audio systems, it offers real-time spectrum analysis and sound metering for various applications.

Highlights
  • Octave Band Real-Time Analyzer
  • FFT Plot - Fast Fourier Transform
  • Integrated Sound Level Meter (dB-A)
  • Multispectral Harmonic Analyzer
  • Hold Max and Min Peaks
  • Various Window Functions
Features
Read full description

Spectrum Analyzer is full of fantastic advanced features you won’t find elsewhere easily! This app offers a fast and accurate spectrum analysis suitable for both amateur hi-fi enthusiasts and professional A/V engineers. This incredibly precise, pro level tool is perfect for tuning your home cinema, car stereo, subwoofers, and more. Spectrum analyser gives insight into your sounds and deconstructs the audio spectrum, showing the levels of the various frequencies in your audio signal. The built-in sound meter provides high-quality measurement results when measuring ambient noise levels in a multitude of real-life scenarios. Features include- ● Octave Band Real-Time Analyzer ● FFT Plot - Fast Fourier Transform ● Smooth HD Graphics ● Multispectral Harmonic Analyzer ● Integrated Sound Level Meter (dB-A weighted) FFT Features ● FFT size from 256 to incredible 16384 ● Hold Max and (unique feature) Min peaks ● Linear and Logarithm scales ● Various window functions: Rectangle, Hanning, Hamming, Tukey, Cosine, Lanczos, Blackman ● Max frequency live tracking ● Selected frequency live tracking ● Fullscreen mode Octave RTA features ● Bars and unique spline plot modes ● Full, 1/3, 1/6 octave modes ● Hold max mode ● Selected bar tracking. And much more... Please feel free to contact us with any questions, problems or ideas via e-mail support@lspapps.com. Privacy Policy - https://www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/42622625 Terms of Use https://www.iubenda.com/terms-and-conditions/42622625

Screenshots

SPL1 screens
Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA at Free against SPL's $8.99. Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA also leads on rating (4.5 vs 3.0) and ratings volume (3K vs 4). SPL's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and review sentiment (68% vs 44%). On update cadence, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA is free to download; SPL costs $8.99 up front. Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. SPL asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA has 3K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 68% of SPL's written reviews are positive against 44% of Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SPL ships an update every 6 months, Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
SPL versus Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSPLAudio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA
Price$8.99Free — better
Rating3.0 (4 ratings)4.5 (3K ratings) — better
Positive reviews67.6% of reviews — better43.6% of reviews
Number of ratings43K — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 5 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015
Further details — not scored
Size30 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAndrew SmithMarina Polyanskaya

Customer experience

SPL

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews34 reviews
Positive67.6%
Neutral8.8%
Negative23.5%

Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA

All ratings3,042 ratings
Positive87.7%
Neutral4.1%
Negative8.2%
Written reviews484 reviews
Positive43.6%
Neutral7.4%
Negative49.0%

Bugs and requests

SPL

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Freezing and crashing on certain devices
  • Incorrect frequency readings in Octave RTA mode
  • Inability to switch between microphone sources

Requested features

4 requests
  • External microphone support
  • Ability to save and compare measurement results
  • More detailed instructions and tutorials
  • Vertical orientation option

In-app purchases

None

SPL

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA

Subscriptions1
  • Premium Access3 Days trial$1.991 Month
One-time1
  • Spectrum Analyzer Pro$7.99

Questions

Is SPL free?
SPL costs $8.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA free?
Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, SPL or Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA?
Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA is rated higher. SPL averages 3.0 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA averages 4.5 from 3K ratings.
Do SPL or Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA have ads?
Neither SPL nor Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SPL or Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA?
SPL ships an update every 6 months, and Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA every 5 months. Most recently, SPL was updated on October 23, 2026 and Audio Spectrum Analyzer dB RTA on October 22, 2026.

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