sir Sampleton vs Fluss
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
sir Sampleton
Record and play back sounds on dual keyboards with a built-in rhythm machine. Inspired by 80s samplers, this app lets you create lush, complex musical textures from your voice, instruments, or other noises. Samples can be looped, customized, saved, and shared.
- Sample from microphone
- Dual piano keyboards
- Built-in rhythm machine
- Save and email samples
- Download free samples
- Adjust tuning and effects
- Sample from other apps via Audiobus
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"surprisingly powerful" - Wall Street Journal used by DJ/producer Zedd! // supports Audiobus, MIDI, iOS13 Sir Sampleton is a sampling musical keyboard inspired by Casio and Yamaha samplers from the 80s. The app allows you to record sounds through the microphone and then play them on dual piano keyboards accompanied by a rhythm machine. You'll be surprised at the lush, complex musical sounds that can be created with samples of your voice, musical instruments, and other noises. Samples can be looped, customized, saved, and emailed, and we offer free samples for download on our website. Supports Audiobus, Inter-app Audio, CoreMIDI, MIDI Mobilizer 1 and 2. Works as a virtual instrument for apps like Cubasis, Beatmaker 2, and Genome sequencer. Capable of sampling other apps and effects through Audiobus. Sampleton applies a subtle stereo effects process to the audio giving it a fuller, warmer sound that you'd typically get from sampling a monaural microphone. If you like my apps please leave ratings or reviews! For support email sirsampleton@gmail.com FEATURES: • Sample from the microphone and immediately play your sounds on dual keyboards • Save and email sample packs to friends, or to yourself for backup/transfer • Download free samples from our website • Built-in beats and computer beat generator • Adjust tuning, release, vibrato, sample time, and much more • Record, add effects, and sample from other apps (requires Audiobus app) • Put a different sample on each keyboard in dual-sample mode • Multitouch with 18 voices for rich sound • Automatic smart microphone level adjustment • Supports all CoreMIDI devices, Line6 MIDI Mobilizer 1 and 2 • Virtual MIDI for compatibility with Cubasis, Beatmaker 2, and Genome • Multichannel MIDI mode places different samples on each MIDI channel, up to 24 samples • Supports iRig external audio input adapter and iRig microphone • Low latency • Coming soon: Audio copy/paste, additional sample banks, and more! INSTRUCTIONS: TO SAMPLE: press the red button and speak into the microphone. It will sample for about 3 seconds. TO PLAY A DRUM BEAT: press the drum icon button in the upper left to open the Rhythm Menu, and then select the beat you want to play. To change the tempo or beat volume, use the buttons on the right. Press the X to return to the keyboard. TO GENERATE A RANDOM BEAT: press the drum icon button to open the Rhythm Menu, and then press the RANDOM button. To generate a new random beat, press the button again. TO SAVE A SAMPLE: press the keyboard icon button in the upper left to open the Sounds Menu. Press SAVE and then choose one of the flashing numbered buttons. Your sample is then saved on that button. Press the X to return to the keyboard. TO LOAD A SAMPLE: press the keyboard icon button in the upper left to open the Sounds Menu. Press the numbered button where you saved the sample. Press the X to return to the keyboard. TO PREVIEW A SAVED SAMPLE: press and hold the numbered button in the Sounds Menu. TO SAVE CHANGES TO A SAMPLE'S SOUND SETTINGS: press and hold the 'save' button in the Sounds Menu.
Fluss
Explore granular synthesis with a tactile interface. Import, record, or live-process audio to create unique sound textures, drones, and echoes. Features kinetic sliders for dynamic modulation and a unique shimmer feedback effect.
- Granular synthesis engine
- Import, record, or live process audio
- Kinetic sliders for modulation
- Shimmer feedback effect
- MIDI playable
- Oberheim Xpander inspired filter
- Microtonal experiment support
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Fluss is a sonic playground designed by Bram Bos and Berlin-based musician Hainbach to let you explore granular synthesis in a hands-on way. The playful touch UI invites anything from live performance, experimentation to learning and mastering the granular concept. Multiple plugins: Import, Record or Live Process You can import your own WAVs (standalone & AUv3 Instrument plugin), Record audio (Record effect plugin) or live-process sound (Process effect plugin) to create anything from drones and granular echoes to moving microtonal audio textures. Designed for touch: Kinetic Sliders All sliders and XY pads are linked to a physics model which lets you flick and throw them around. Minimise the friction for endless bouncing motion, as an innovative substitute for traditional LFOs and modulation. There was never a better reason for using a touchscreen for music. Shimmer Feedback effect Like a shimmer reverb, except it feeds the processed audio back into the grain engine. This lets you create an endless loop of pitch-shifting spaciousness, turning even the simplest of sounds into massive woolly mammoths. - 3 Voice grain engine, each with an independent playhead - Playable via MIDI (since version 1.1) - Filter inspired by the Oberheim Xpander, including its resonant Phase filter - Kinetic sliders and pads for playful interaction with the sound - Universal design (iPhone and iPad; iPad Air 2 or higher recommended) - Custom scales, unquantised mode and even Scala-import for microtonal experiments - Use WAVs (or other audio files), record audio or load the app as a live-processing audio effect - Real world tested as an instrument in numerous live performances by Hainbach - Offers light mode and dark mode UI
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: sir Sampleton at $0.99 against Fluss's $13.99. sir Sampleton also leads on iOS requirement (10.0 vs 12). Fluss's advantage is rating (4.8 vs 3.3) and review sentiment (78% vs 66%). On ratings volume, update cadence, 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
sir Sampleton costs $0.99 and Fluss $13.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Fluss holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 48 and 71 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 66% of sir Sampleton's written reviews are positive against 78% of Fluss's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | sir Sampleton | Fluss |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 — better | $13.99 |
| Rating | 3.3 (48 ratings) | 4.8 (71 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.3% of reviews | 78.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 48 | 71 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 12 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 21 MB | 453 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Paul Slocum | Bram Bos |
Customer experience
sir Sampleton
Fluss
User reviews
sir Sampleton
From 48 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Simple, intuitive, easy-to-use interface
- 🎹 Great Casio SK-1 emulation and nostalgic appeal
- 🎵 High-quality sound and audio fidelity
- 🎧 MIDI and Audiobus support for integration
- 🎨 Clean, minimalist design
Room to improve
- 🐛 Screen orientation issues (stuck in portrait/vertical mode)
- 🐛 Touch input misalignment and unresponsive controls
- 🐛 Graphics scaling problems on newer devices
- 📱 Incompatible with iOS 16 and later versions
- 🐛 Distorted/crackling audio from microphone recording
Fluss
From 71 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💡 Innovative touch interface
- 🎶 Great for soundscapes
- ✨ Unique sound manipulation
- 🎛️ Intuitive controls
- 🎵 Highly playable instrument
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- ⚫ Black screen issue
- 🎧 No audible output
- 🎛️ Not enough control
- 😵 Too much chaos
Bugs and requests
sir Sampleton
Reported bugs
13 issues- Screen stuck in portrait mode, won't rotate to landscape
- Touch input only registers on 1/4 of screen
- Graphics and app engine mismatch causing display corruption
- App incompatible with iOS 16, 16.2, 16.4.1, 17.5.1
- Microphone recording produces unintelligible distorted crackling
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- Audio outputs through earpiece speaker instead of main speaker
- App crashes on startup
- App freezes and locks up device
- Keys play different notes than pressed
- Some keys don't register input
- Requires full device restart to fix screen orientation
- MIDI interface not recognized
- Volume too low or no volume after updates
Requested features
15 requests- Export samples as MP3/WAV files
- Sequencer for arranging samples into songs
- Reverse/reverse-loop functionality
- Sustain button/function for live performance
- Arpegiator feature
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- Sample envelope presets
- Ability to assign different samples per key
- GarageBand compatibility
- Audio copy/paste between apps
- Sample gain adjustment
- Pitch shift without changing playback rate
- Record and layering features
- Loop begin/end point selection
- Effects (reverb, delay, etc.)
- Sample naming and preset saving per sample
Fluss
Reported bugs
4 issues- Crashes with black screen
- No audible output
- App resets when put in background
- Cyan play head difficult to see on waveform
Requested features
20 requests- Adjustable layer field per grain
- Record from internal microphone
- More control over grain direction
- BPM settings
- Transition from clean to new sounds
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- AUv3 plugin version
- Scan speed multiplier (x2, x4)
- Draw lines on pitch XY pad
- Lock oscillators on pitch XY pad
- Assign play heads triggered by external controller
- Snapshots for pitch section
- More clock and tempo syncing options
- Visualization of buffer, playback head speed, modulation
- Quantizer visualization
- User-changeable pitch XY pad layout
- Global friction and separate sensitivity option
- Modulation to specific play head
- Proper sampling button (microphone access)
- Preset browser arrows
- More control over panning, filter, scan speed
In-app purchases
sir Sampleton
No in-app purchases
Fluss
No in-app purchases








