Comparison

Sampletoy vs Spiral Chorus

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

Head to head
About

Sampletoy

Capture and manipulate sounds using a unique musical instrument and plaything. This app allows you to record audio, then loop, pitch, and distort it live with multitouch controls. Explore creative sound design with filters, delays, and envelopes, and export your performances as high-quality audio files.

Highlights
  • Capture sounds via microphone
  • Live playback, looping, pitching, and distortion
  • Multitouch control for up to 5 notes
  • Resonant filters, delays, and envelopes
  • Stepped and free playback modes
  • Record and email performances as WAV files
  • Import audio from various sources
Features
Read full description

Sampletoy is a radical new musical instrument/plaything; part sampler, part granular synthesiser. Use it to capture sounds through the microphone, then play, loop, pitch and distort them live on the screen. There are plenty of features under the hood, such as resonant filters, delays and envelope. You can enable "stepped" mode to play your sounds like a traditional keyboard, or keep it in "free" mode for some microtonal madness. Once you've recorded a sound, use the main area of the screen to play it back at different pitches (up to 5 fingers at a time). You can crop the sound by dragging a selection over the waveform. The crop area is also multitouch and you can adjust the crop while playing the sound too. The y-axis is pitch of the sound, and the x-axis is configurable to control filters or envelope. You can record your performances on Sampletoy and send them via email within the app as a CD-quality wav file (mono or stereo) FEATURES ------- * Create your own instruments out of any sound. * Email your performances as audio files straight from the app. * Built-in resonant filters, delay and envelope. * Auto-saves current recording and state and recalls it again on next launch. * Stepped mode allows chromatic, major, minor, pentatonic and whole-tone scales to be played. * Totally multitouch - play up to 5 notes at once. * 44kHz/16bit - professional quality sound. * AudioBus3 output * Import any audio file to Sampletoy from Files, Voice memos, DropBox etc * Open non-audio files and hear what they sound like * Bluetooth / Airplay support * Built-in comprehensive manual.

About

Spiral Chorus

This music effect plugin offers an analog-modeled LCR chorus with touch-friendly controls and immersive 3D visuals. It seamlessly integrates into DAWs for iOS, adding depth and texture to various music productions.

Highlights
  • Analog Modeled LCR Chorus
  • Touch-Friendly Controls
  • Immersive 3D Visuals
  • Versatile Music Application
  • Optimized for iOS
  • Seamless DAW Integration
Features
Read full description

FX Forms #001 - Spiral Chorus from Wild Surmise Music, number one in the series of AUv3 FX plugins. Key Features: - Analog Modeled LCR Chorus: Delve into the rich, warm textures of an analog-modeled LCR (Left-Center-Right) chorus effect, bringing a new dimension to your tracks. - Touch-Friendly Controls: With an interface tailored for iOS, Spiral Chorus offers intuitive, touch-friendly controls. Effortlessly sculpt your sound with responsive sliders and xy pads, ensuring a seamless workflow. - Immersive 3D Visuals: Enhance your audio manipulation experience with captivating 3D visuals in the background. - Versatile Application: Whether you're working on dreamy soundscapes, dynamic beats, or cutting-edge experimental sounds, Spiral Chorus adds a layer of depth and texture to your music. - Optimized for iOS: Crafted specifically for the iOS environment, Spiral Chorus ensures a stable, high-performance experience on your favorite devices. 3D Visuals leverage SceneKit and Metal Shaders providing good visual performance on iOS devices. - Seamless Integration: Use Spiral Chorus seamlessly within your favorite DAW as an AUv3 plugin, fitting perfectly into your existing workflow.

Screenshots

Sampletoy4 screens
Spiral Chorus1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Spiral Chorus at 5.0 against Sampletoy's 4.2. Sampletoy's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and update cadence (every 7 months vs every 15 months). On price, review sentiment, 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

Both are free to download. Spiral Chorus sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Sampletoy asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Spiral Chorus holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sampletoy has 104 ratings behind it against 15, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 90% and 89% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sampletoy ships an update every 7 months, Spiral Chorus every 15 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Sampletoy versus Spiral Chorus: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSampletoySpiral Chorus
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (104 ratings)5.0 (15 ratings) — better
Positive reviews89.8% of reviews — better88.9% of reviews
Number of ratings104 — better15
Update frequencyEvery 7 months — betterEvery 15 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS8.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMazbox LimitedTom Power

Customer experience

Sampletoy

All ratings104 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral10.6%
Negative14.4%
Written reviews98 reviews
Positive89.8%
Neutral4.1%
Negative6.1%

Spiral Chorus

All ratings15 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive88.9%
Neutral11.1%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Sampletoy

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Spiral Chorus

One-time3
  • Small Tip$1.99
  • Medium Tip$4.99
  • Large Tip$9.99

Questions

Is Sampletoy free?
Sampletoy is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Spiral Chorus free?
Spiral Chorus is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sampletoy or Spiral Chorus?
Spiral Chorus is rated higher. Sampletoy averages 4.2 out of 5 from 104 ratings, while Spiral Chorus averages 5.0 from 15 ratings.
Do Sampletoy or Spiral Chorus have ads?
Neither Sampletoy nor Spiral Chorus shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sampletoy or Spiral Chorus?
Sampletoy ships an update every 7 months, and Spiral Chorus every 15 months. Most recently, Sampletoy was updated on October 16, 2026 and Spiral Chorus on September 28, 2026.

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