Comparison

iReal Pro vs The Machine Awakes

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

Head to head
About

iReal Pro

This app provides a virtual band accompaniment for musicians to practice with, offering realistic sounding instruments and a variety of styles. It also functions as a digital chord chart book, allowing users to create, edit, and share their own song charts.

Highlights
  • Virtual band accompaniment
  • Create, edit, and share chord charts
  • Thousands of downloadable songs
  • Chord diagrams and scale recommendations
  • Practice exercises and transposition
  • Export charts and audio
  • Cloud synchronization
Features
Read full description

iReal Pro is two things musicians love in one app: a realistic backing band that plays along with you, and a huge free library of chord charts you can pull up anytime — at practice, at a jam session, or on a gig. Need to transpose a song for a singer? Done. Want to practice with a full rhythm section behind you? Hit play. Named one of TIME Magazine's 50 Best Inventions and trusted by thousands of students, teachers, and pros at schools like Berklee College of Music — iReal Pro has been helping musicians get better since 2008. BAND • 50 accompaniment styles — Swing, Bossa Nova, Blues, Funk, Rock, Bluegrass, Reggae, Latin, Gypsy Jazz, Country, and more • Customize each style with acoustic or electric piano, Fender Rhodes, guitars, upright or electric bass, drums, vibraphone, organ • 40 additional styles — blues, salsa, Brazilian — available as in-app purchases BOOK • Download thousands of free chord charts shared by the iReal Pro community • Create your own charts in minutes with the built-in editor • Organize charts into playlists for gigs, sets, or lessons PRACTICE • Adjust tempo, loop difficult sections, transpose to any key • Automatic tempo increase and key cycling for focused practice • Global Eb, Bb, F, and G transposition for horn players REFERENCE • Guitar, ukulele, and piano fingerings for any chord • Tap any chord in your chart to see how it's played • Scale suggestions for improvisation SHARE • Share charts and playlists with other iReal Pro users • Export charts as PDF or MusicXML • Export backing tracks as audio or MIDI files • Sync across iPhone, iPad, and Mac with iCloud FOR TEACHERS • Create playlists of exercises or tunes for students • Use in the classroom, over live stream, or while screen-sharing lessons We're a small team of musicians who built this app because we needed it ourselves. We hope you enjoy using it as much as we do.

About

The Machine Awakes

This application delivers the electronic soundtrack for live performances of a symphonic band or orchestra. It supports adaptable instrumentation versions of a specific musical composition.

Highlights
  • Electronic soundtrack delivery
  • Live performance support
  • Symphonic band accompaniment
  • Orchestra accompaniment
  • Adaptable instrumentation versions
Features
Read full description

This app provides the electronic soundtrack necessary for live performance of the symphonic band, symphony orchestra, and adaptable instrumentation versions of Steven Bryant's composition The Machine Awakes.

Screenshots

iReal Pro4 screens
The Machine Awakes3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: The Machine Awakes at $0.99 against iReal Pro's $21.99. The Machine Awakes also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 16.6). iReal Pro's advantage is review sentiment (83% vs 50%) and rating (4.9 vs 4.4). On ads and device support 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

iReal Pro costs $21.99 and The Machine Awakes $0.99 up front. iReal Pro sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. The Machine Awakes asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

iReal Pro holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iReal Pro has 11K ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 83% of iReal Pro's written reviews are positive against 50% of The Machine Awakes's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iReal Pro ships an update every 3 weeks, The Machine Awakes every 81 months. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
iReal Pro versus The Machine Awakes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriReal ProThe Machine Awakes
Price$21.99$0.99 — better
Rating4.9 (11K ratings) — better4.4 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews83.3% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings11K — better5
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 81 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank#7 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.68.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size179 MB25 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTechnimo LLCR Steven Bryant

Customer experience

iReal Pro

All ratings11,154 ratings
Positive97.5%
Neutral1.2%
Negative1.3%
Written reviews1,013 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral8.0%
Negative8.7%

The Machine Awakes

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

iReal Pro

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Occasional skipping or timing issues with playback
  • Trouble with registration and login process
  • Compatibility issues with newer devices or operating systems

Requested features

7 requests
  • Add ability to write rhythm notation
  • Integrate with Real Books
  • Improve sound quality and add more instrument options
  • Add melodies and lyrics support
  • Improve chord editing and customization
Show 2 more
  • Add more styles and grooves
  • Improve sync and backup functionality across devices

The Machine Awakes

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

iReal Pro

One-time3
  • Blues style backing tracks$6.99
  • Salsa style backing tracks$6.99
  • Brazilian backing tracks$6.99
None

The Machine Awakes

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iReal Pro free?
iReal Pro costs $21.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is The Machine Awakes free?
The Machine Awakes costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, iReal Pro or The Machine Awakes?
iReal Pro is rated higher. iReal Pro averages 4.9 out of 5 from 11K ratings, while The Machine Awakes averages 4.4 from 5 ratings.
Do iReal Pro or The Machine Awakes have ads?
Neither iReal Pro nor The Machine Awakes shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iReal Pro or The Machine Awakes?
iReal Pro ships an update every 3 weeks, and The Machine Awakes every 81 months. Most recently, iReal Pro was updated on November 11, 2026 and The Machine Awakes on November 6, 2026.

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