Comparison

Drumgenius vs String Theory

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

Head to head
About

Drumgenius

Explore an encyclopedia of drum grooves from Jazz to Rock, played by legendary drummers. Practice with expert virtual drummers to develop your time-feel and expand rhythmic knowledge. Includes a smart metronome with "clave" and "swing regulator" features.

Highlights
  • Encyclopedia of 500+ drum grooves
  • Play along with master drummers
  • Develop time-feel and rhythm knowledge
  • Stretchable and loopable drum loops
  • Smart Metronome with clave and swing regulator
  • Descriptions and discography references
Features
Read full description

Master your sense of time by practicing with a drum genius! Created after years of research by Mauro Battisti (experienced musician and specialist in the field), Drumgenius is the choice of top players and leading music academies. An ever-growing rhythm library to practice on — 500+ loops across 21 styles, reproducing real grooves by the best drummers and following authentic patterns of rhythms from around the world. The loop player is packed with dedicated functions that put you in full control of every practice session. In-depth descriptions and insights offer a deeper understanding of the world of rhythm. Plus, using Metrogenius, the smart built-in metronome — with a fully editable library of 9 meters + 22 clave patterns — you can explore everything from basic patterns to the most complex rhythmic cycles. Easy Organization & Backup: Personalize your library by renaming loops, creating custom groups, and starring favorites. Save different practice setlists into single backup files to switch setups whenever you need, restore in a single tap on new devices, or share with friends, students, and fellow musicians. THE LOOP LIBRARY IS CONSTANTLY GROWING AND CURRENTLY INCLUDES: Afro-Cuban — 65 Boogaloo — 9 Brazilian — 53 Caribbean — 22 Country — 4 Disco — 3 Funky — 24 Gospel — 5 Hip-Hop — 5 Jazz — 53 Jazz – 3/4 — 9 Jazz – Ballad — 7 Jazz – Straight 8ths — 10 Jazz – Two Feel — 10 Jungle/D&B — 3 Neo Soul — 3 New Orleans — 14 Odd Time Signatures — 46 Polymeters — 17 Pop — 12 R&B — 3 Rock — 26 Shuffle — 17 Swing Lab — 24 World — 65 12/8 — 7 LOOP PLAYER TOOLS: • Count-in: Activate it if you don't want to miss the one. • Clave: Activate it to hear the rhythm backbone. Perfect for navigating tricky rhythms with confidence. • Play X Cycles: Structure your practice session by setting the exact number of repetitions for each loop. • Internal Loop Recording: Record yourself over the loop. Track your progress and share the recordings with peers and teachers. • Silence Mode (Internalize the Time): Set intervals of silence while the tempo keeps running — the ultimate test of your internal clock. • Time Morph (Rhythmic Elasticity): Accelerate and decelerate the loop in a continuous cycle, training you to react to the tempo in real time. STAY MOTIVATED: • Weekly Goals: Set practice targets, track your consistency, and share your achievements with a tap. WHAT MUSICIANS SAY: ▶ "Mauro Battisti has made it possible for anyone to play along with the greatest drummers in the world, historical and contemporary, with the ability to alter tempo. Drumgenius is a great resource that can bring any player closer to the flame." — Dave Liebman ▶ "Drumgenius sounds very good; I find it very handy to practice my instrument with real drums pattern that I can have always with me in my phone: thanks Mauro for this App." — Dominique Di Piazza, electric bass player (John McLaughlin, Trilok Gurtu, Biréli Lagrène, Dennis Chambers) ▶ "Love this app: these loops sound fantastic! They are real drum loops — not MIDI or sequences — and they loop flawlessly. A fantastic groove reference for musicians of any kind." — Damian Erskine, electric bass player (Peter Erskine, The Jaco Pastorius Big Band, Gino Vannelli, Tony Furtado), studio musician, author, adjunct professor at Portland State University ▶ "Drumgenius is a world-class teaching aid that addresses a fundamental challenge to successful performance practice for any musician: it is a virtuoso educational work by a true musical virtuoso!" — Harold Danko, jazz pianist (Lee Konitz, Chet Baker, Thad Jones & Mel Lewis Big Band), composer, Professor of Jazz Studies & Contemporary Media at Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY, USA Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

String Theory

This app helps guitarists explore scales and chords with an interactive fretboard. It allows users to compare scales, test custom tunings, and record riff ideas. The tool is designed for practicing improvisation, learning theory, and saving musical inspiration.

Highlights
  • Interactive guitar fretboard with scale mapping
  • Scale and Chord Finder tools
  • Custom tunings with octave control
  • Riff recording and vault organization
  • Left-handed mode
  • Scale comparison overlay
Features
Read full description

String Theory is a focused guitar tool for exploring scales, visualizing the fretboard, matching chords, and capturing riff ideas without clutter. Build better fretboard awareness with an interactive scales map, compare two scales at once, test custom tunings, and find compatible chords in seconds. When inspiration hits, record the idea and save it to your riff vault with notes and playback. Features: • Interactive guitar fretboard with scale mapping • Major, harmonic minor, melodic minor, and pentatonic scale families • Scale Finder and Chord Finder tools • Chords-to-scales matching • Add a second scale overlay for comparison • Custom tunings with per-string octave control • Left-handed fretboard mode • Fullscreen fretboard view • Riff recording, playback, rename, share, and vault organization • Light/dark mode, 3 color themes, haptics, and a polished liquid glass interface Whether you’re practicing improvisation, learning theory, or saving new ideas, String Theory keeps the essential guitar tools in one fast, modern app.

Screenshots

Drumgenius4 screens
String Theory4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Drumgenius at Free against String Theory's $1.99. Drumgenius also leads on ratings volume (230 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). String Theory's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and in-app purchases (none vs 5). 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

Drumgenius is free to download; String Theory costs $1.99 up front. Drumgenius sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. String Theory asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

String Theory holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Drumgenius has 230 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Drumgenius's written reviews are positive against 100% of String Theory's.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Drumgenius versus String Theory: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDrumgeniusString Theory
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.5 (230 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings230 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 8 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB10 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperProjazz LabDANIEL NIKOLAS SZTURM

Customer experience

Drumgenius

All ratings230 ratings
Positive84.8%
Neutral5.2%
Negative10.0%
Written reviews199 reviews
Positive76.4%
Neutral9.5%
Negative14.1%

String Theory

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Drumgenius

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Purchased loops disappearing
  • Inability to download/play some loops
  • Crashes when downloading loops

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more world rhythms and genres like Amapiano
  • Add more Tony Williams-style medium-uptempo swing tracks
  • Add ability to export/share loops
  • Add dark mode support
  • Improve organization and browsing of purchased loops

String Theory

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Drumgenius

Subscriptions1
  • Monthly Pass$1.991 Month
One-time4
  • 10 credits pack$0.99
  • 50 credits pack$1.99
  • Infinite Credits pack$7.99
Show 1 more
  • Lifetime Access$12.99
None

String Theory

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Drumgenius free?
Drumgenius is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is String Theory free?
String Theory costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Drumgenius or String Theory?
String Theory is rated higher. Drumgenius averages 4.5 out of 5 from 230 ratings, while String Theory averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Drumgenius or String Theory have ads?
Neither Drumgenius nor String Theory shows ads.

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