Bagpipe Tuner vs Braw Tunes
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bagpipe Tuner
This application provides precise tuning for Highland bagpipes. It accurately detects chanter notes and drones, displaying their frequency and pitch position. Ideal for pipers and those assisting with tuning, it simplifies the complex process of achieving good tone.
- Auto note and drone detection
- Frequency and pitch display
- Analog and digital meters
- Waveform input monitor
- External microphone support
- Large horizontal display
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The Bagpipe Tuner App allows precision tuning of Highland bagpipes. Simply sound a note and start tuning. It's easy and accurate. Bagpipe Tuner App for Highland Bagpipes accurately detects your pipe chanter notes, drones and displays the note, frequency and pitch position. Detection is via the inbuilt microphone, or in noisy environments an external microphone like the HBT clip mic can be attached. Bagpipe Tuner features both digital and analog style meters, waveform input monitor and auto gain limiter. Simply press the Learn button and start tuning, or turn horizontal to access a larger meter display. Using a Bagpipe Tuner can really make tuning less stressful, listening more pleasant and playing more enjoyable. You can quickly check your pipes at anytime to maintain good tone– before a gig, practising or competition. And, non-pipers can easily use it to help out with tuning. Why a Bagpipe Tuner? Highland bagpipes are incredibly hard to tune and unlike standard chromatic instruments, the intervals between each note continue to vary. Bagpipe Tuner correctly displays the scale and takes the guesswork out of using a chromatic tuner. Bagpipe Tuner compliments the standalone BLAIR tuners and Bluetooth clip. Features: • Auto detection and display of notes and drones • Analog style meter • Large horizontal display • Frequency display meter • Input waveform meter • Frequency position bar • Learn function for calibration setting • Auto input limiter • Internal microphone • External microphone support (HBT clip mic) • Large frequency detection range • Special Bluetooth mic/ sensor for Bagpipes supported
Braw Tunes
This app listens to bagpipe music and displays the sheet music in real-time. It helps organize tunes into sets, track practice progress, and collaborate with band members. Access a large library of bagpipe tunes or upload your own.
- Real-time music recognition
- Automatic sheet music display
- Set planning and auto-transition
- Organize personal music library
- Band collaboration and sharing
- Practice analytics and statistics
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Braw Tunes is the app you open every time you practise your pipes. It's where you keep your music: the tunes you play, your sets, your practice history. And it stays yours, on any phone. Free, for everyone in your band Braw Tunes is free, on any phone. Everyone in your band can use it with a Piper's Account, and the free level is sized so a band or a tutor can put their sets on it and every member has them. No account is needed to try it: open the app, search, play, and your music appears. Pro, a paid yearly subscription, is space as your library grows. New in version 2: sharing, done properly Your Pipe Major shares the set. One tap, and it's in your app. Sharing tunes used to mean emailing files around and hoping everyone could open them. Now you send a link or a short code, and whoever you send it to taps it and the set appears in their app. Build an address book of contacts and groups. Shares are live, you control who has access, and you can revoke a share at any time. Got your music as PDFs? Add them. Photos of a page and recordings too. Attach them to a tune, a set or a collection. Your music doesn't have to be a BWW file. Your library • Your tunes, your sets, your collections, organised the way you play them. Import BWW and MusicXML files, or start from the 7,000 bagpipe tunes that come with the app, with the full music for the public-domain ones. • Saved to your Piper's Account, so it comes back if you reinstall, and it syncs between your devices. With you as you play • Play, and your sheet music appears. Braw Tunes listens, works out which tune you're playing, and shows the music, then the opening bars of the next tune in your set. • Remember a tune but not its name? Play it, and Braw Tunes will tell you. Keeps you at it • Every practice session is tracked automatically: your history, stats on what you play, and a weekly streak. I'm Bruce. I've made the Braw apps for pipers for ten years: the Braw Bagpipe Tuner, Piper's Metronome, and Braw Tunes. If you've used Piper's Metronome, your Piper's Account already works here. Questions, problems, ideas: bruce@brawsound.com. It comes straight to me, and I read every one.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Braw Tunes at Free against Bagpipe Tuner's $11.99. Braw Tunes also leads on update cadence (monthly vs every 7 months). Bagpipe Tuner's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (84% vs 50%). 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
Braw Tunes is free to download; Bagpipe Tuner costs $11.99 up front. Braw Tunes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Bagpipe Tuner asks for nothing beyond the download.
Bagpipe Tuner ships an update every 7 months, Braw Tunes monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bagpipe Tuner | Braw Tunes |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $11.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 3.6 (14 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 84.4% of reviews — better | 50.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 14 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 7 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #184 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 8.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 23 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Murray Blair | Avoir Technology |
Customer experience
Bagpipe Tuner
Braw Tunes
Bugs and requests
Bagpipe Tuner
Reported bugs
5 issues- App won't open
- App crashes on launch
- App crashes when using tuning clip
- App not working on latest iOS versions
- App not working on iPhone X
Requested features
9 requests- Add documentation/help file
- Implement manual calibration option
- Improve learn mode functionality
- Add watch app support
- Allow manual pitch setting within app
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Re-center analog meter on set pitch
- Add screen lock button
- Improve readability of help window font
- Rename 'learn' button to 'calibrate' with reset option
Braw Tunes
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Bagpipe Tuner
No in-app purchases
Braw Tunes
- Braw Tunes Monthly$1.991 Month
- Braw Tunes Yearly Subscription$19.991 Year
- Supporters edition upgrade$79.99
Questions
Is Bagpipe Tuner free?
Is Braw Tunes free?
Do Bagpipe Tuner or Braw Tunes have ads?
Which is updated more often, Bagpipe Tuner or Braw Tunes?
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