Comparison

Steve Roach Immersion I vs DroneLab

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

Head to head
About

Steve Roach Immersion I

Create infinite ambient music soundscapes from the soundworlds of pioneer Steve Roach. This interactive tool allows you to mix loops to craft the perfect atmosphere for deep listening, meditation, work, reading, or sleep.

Highlights
  • Create custom soundscapes from source loops
  • Infinite mix combinations from five loops
  • Save and control custom mixes
  • Evolve function for new mixes
  • Background playback
  • CD quality sound
Features
Read full description

A re-release of the classic Immersion Station App. Immersion Station brings you infinite ambient music, created from the soundworlds of ambient music pioneer Steve Roach. Use Immersion Station to create the perfect atmosphere for deep listening, meditation and supportive sound spaces for working at the computer, reading, and sleeping. Immersion Station is an elegant interactive sound immersion tool. Create infinite mix combinations from five different loops of varied lengths for endless playback. These sounds have been extracted from the heart of Steve Roach’s soundworlds and carefully chosen for a congruent relationship allowing the user to sculpt constantly changing ambient music. The Immersion Station interface and application, created by Software Artist Eric Freeman (working closely with Steve), allows you to mix loops using a simple, intuitive, interactive and organic interface that is reflective of Steve's work. You can visit http://www.immersionstation.com for a complete demonstration. FEATURES * Easily create custom soundscapes from Steve Roach's source loops * Includes 80 megabytes of loops custom crafted by Steve Roach * Includes five custom mixes from Steve Roach * Each mix provides constantly changing ambient music * Save your own mixes at any time * Control the volume or stereo pan of each loop * Incubate new mixes using the evolve function * Plays music in the background with iOS 4 * Optimized with HD Images for iPhone 4 Retina display * CD quality sound * Supports Apple's remote interface for controlling playback * User's guide provided in the App and online Recommended for headphones or external speakers. ATTENTION iPhone/iPod touch 3.1 Users iOS 3.1 does not support stereo pan, but that's okay, the Immersion station still sounds wonderful. To enable control of stereo pan, just freely upgrade to iOS 4.

About

DroneLab

Generate evolving ambient music with three parallel audio sources and unique sound effects. Save and export your creations for use in music or video projects, or use it for improvisation and practice.

Highlights
  • Three parallel continuous audio sources
  • Custom sound effects
  • Preset selection and customization
  • Stereo audio export up to 96KHz
  • Real-time recording
  • Improvisation and experimentation tool
Features
Read full description

DroneLab creates slowly shifting musical soundscapes. Control three continuous audio sources running in parallel, each with its own rate of shifting intensity. Expand the soundscape with unusual sound effects crafted specifically for DroneLab. Get going quickly by selecting one of the included presets. Go further by selecting and customizing the sound sources, and save your own presets to the list. Create soundscapes for your music and video projects: - Export a stereo audio file with your current settings, at sample rates up to 96KHz. On newer devices, exports occur faster than real time. - Or, you can record in real time, capturing all the changes you make to the sounds as you go. DroneLab is great for improvisation and experimentation: - Explore the melodic side of your instrument in a fun, relaxing setting. - Warm up before practicing more difficult material. - Explore sounds and articulations that aren't part of your usual repertoire. Please visit us at dronelab.app for videos, more information and support.

Screenshots

Steve Roach Immersion I4 screens
DroneLab4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Steve Roach Immersion I at Free against DroneLab's $1.99. Steve Roach Immersion I also leads on review sentiment (90% vs 70%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). DroneLab's advantage is update cadence (every 4 months vs every 43 months). On rating, 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

Steve Roach Immersion I is free to download; DroneLab costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Steve Roach Immersion I holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 29 and 20 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 90% of Steve Roach Immersion I's written reviews are positive against 70% of DroneLab's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Steve Roach Immersion I ships an update every 43 months, DroneLab every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Steve Roach Immersion I versus DroneLab: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSteve Roach Immersion IDroneLab
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.6 (29 ratings) — better4.4 (20 ratings)
Positive reviews90.4% of reviews — better70.0% of reviews
Number of ratings29 — better20
Update frequencyEvery 43 monthsEvery 4 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size121 MB16 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEric FreemanJon Lukas

Customer experience

Steve Roach Immersion I

All ratings29 ratings
Positive89.7%
Neutral3.4%
Negative6.9%
Written reviews73 reviews
Positive90.4%
Neutral4.1%
Negative5.5%

DroneLab

All ratings20 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral5.0%
Negative15.0%
Written reviews20 reviews
Positive70.0%
Neutral15.0%
Negative15.0%

Bugs and requests

Steve Roach Immersion I

Reported bugs

8 issues
  • My mixes scroll issue
  • Pause on lock screen issue
  • Cannot save mixes anymore (iOS 7)
  • Cannot enter track name when saving
  • Default title save doesn't work
Show 3 more
  • No new mix appears in list after saving
  • Save new mix doesn't work on iOS7
  • Scroll on loop selection page doesn't allow reaching mixes at the bottom

Requested features

48 requests
  • Sleep timer function
  • More loops available
  • More spheres
  • More stations for variety
  • Ability to pause on lock screen
Show 43 more
  • More complexity
  • More spheres, especially chants or angelic choirs
  • Customizable spheres
  • More sphere-loops added
  • More presets (by composer) and/or tracks
  • Automatic updates of loops and other acoustic components
  • Option to keep screen lit while charging
  • Access to additional loops (paid option)
  • iPad version
  • More sounds
  • Sleep timer
  • More options for setting a sleep timer
  • More sounds please
  • More balls/loops
  • Reverb adjuster
  • More sound orbs
  • Upgrade to evolve feature (randomly turn spheres on/off)
  • Add more balls
  • Put your own wallpaper (photo) in the background
  • Mixes run in the background
  • Background play is awesome
  • Evolve feature changes sounds, not just mix
  • More spheres, especially chants or angelic choirs
  • Customizable spheres
  • More sphere-loops added
  • More presets (by composer) and/or tracks
  • Automatic updates of loops and other acoustic components
  • Option to keep screen lit while charging
  • Access to additional loops (paid option)
  • iPad version
  • More sounds
  • Sleep timer
  • More options for setting a sleep timer
  • More sounds please
  • More balls/loops
  • Reverb adjuster
  • More sound orbs
  • Upgrade to evolve feature (randomly turn spheres on/off)
  • Add more balls
  • Put your own wallpaper (photo) in the background
  • Mixes run in the background
  • Background play is awesome
  • Evolve feature changes sounds, not just mix

DroneLab

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Steve Roach Immersion I

No in-app purchases

None

DroneLab

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Steve Roach Immersion I free?
Steve Roach Immersion I is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is DroneLab free?
DroneLab costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Steve Roach Immersion I or DroneLab?
Steve Roach Immersion I is rated higher. Steve Roach Immersion I averages 4.6 out of 5 from 29 ratings, while DroneLab averages 4.4 from 20 ratings.
Do Steve Roach Immersion I or DroneLab have ads?
Neither Steve Roach Immersion I nor DroneLab shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Steve Roach Immersion I or DroneLab?
Steve Roach Immersion I ships an update every 43 months, and DroneLab every 4 months. Most recently, Steve Roach Immersion I was updated on October 14, 2026 and DroneLab on October 15, 2026.

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