Comparison

Particle Music vs EchoSketch

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

Head to head
About

Particle Music

Create generative music by dropping particles into a physics-driven playground. Collisions trigger notes, with particle size determining pitch and color influencing sound. Shape bumpers to alter audio and build unique compositions.

Highlights
  • Physics-driven particle collisions for sound generation
  • Adjustable particle size for pitch control
  • Customizable particle colors and voice layers
  • Configurable bumper shapes with audio effects
  • Four independent voice layers with waveform morphing
  • Support for 6 musical scales and microtonal import
  • Gyroscope control and physics simulation
Features
Read full description

Particle Music is a generative music sandbox where physics makes the song. Drop colored particles into a glass playground, tilt your device — or let auto-motion drive them — and every collision becomes a note. A particle's size picks its pitch on the active scale. Its color is yours. Its voice comes from the layer it lives in. Scatter shaped bumpers across the scene to deflect, accent, detune, filter-sweep, randomize, or echo the sounds that strike them, and a simple still life turns into a composition that keeps unfolding. Four independent layers stack SATB-style, each with its own waveform (morph freely between sine, triangle, square, and saw), subtle pitch drift for choral breath, filter tilt, reverb send, and an octave shift so voices can sit in different registers. What's inside: • Up to 32 particles across 4 voice layers • 6 musical scales plus full Scala (.scl) microtonal import • 6 bumper shapes with spin modes and per-shape audio effects • Per-layer timbre morph, drift, filter, reverb, and octave • Physics you can feel — gyroscope control, edge bounce, collisions, friction, restitution • Preset snapshots to save a configuration and return to it later • Reverb presets from small room to cathedral There's no timeline, no grid, no tutorial telling you what to do. Build a configuration, watch it play, change one thing, watch it play differently. Use it as a quiet background for focus, an ambient companion, or a toy to spark ideas for music made somewhere else. Particle Music is a result of research in the Visual Arts

About

EchoSketch

Shape delay and reverb effects in real-time with a playable X/Y performance surface. Explore four distinct delay types and multiple reverb options, with extensive parameter control for unique sound morphing. Works as a standalone app or an Audio Unit plugin.

Highlights
  • X/Y performance surface for real-time sound shaping
  • Four distinct delay types: digital, analog, reverse, ping-pong
  • Spring, plate, and hall convolution reverb
  • Modulation and tone control for echoes
  • HOLD, LIFT, FREEZE, and MOTION performance gestures
  • Standalone app and AUv3 plugin compatibility
Features
Read full description

EchoSketch turns delay and reverb into a live, playable instrument. Shape your sound in real time using a responsive X/Y performance surface designed for intuitive touch expression. At its core are four great-sounding delays: digital, analog, ping-pong, and reverse. The range for each parameter and the XY axes direction can be set independently, allowing you to easily morph between sounds. It works as an Audio Unit plugin or standalone — iOS or Mac. Comprehensive Delays • Digital (patterned after a legendary '80s rack delay), Analog (warm, with tape-style pitch glide), Reverse, and Left/Right Ping-Pong • Delay times can sync to tempo or be set in milliseconds • Feedback features delay-dependent tone shaping — bright for short delays and darker for long ones Convolution Reverb • Stereo or mono Spring, Plate, and Hall • Reverb path is separate from the delay (same as vintage tape echo units), so repeats don’t get washed out Modulation and Filter • Analog-style modulation for chorused, warbly pitch echoes • Tone control — darken or brighten delays, with a center detent for flat Designed for Hands-On Performance • HOLD / LIFT — leave the XY cursor in place, or touch the pad for momentary delay sounds • FREEZE — set the current feedback into an infinite loop and play over it • MOTION — record a gesture on the XY pad and loop it Presets and More • Presets are transferable between hosts • Two looks — light "Trail" and dark "Glow" • Works standalone with live audio or as an AUv3 plugin • Universal — iPad/iPhone also gets you the Mac version — one purchase • Mac: after installing, open EchoSketch once to use it as a plugin in your DAW • Works in AUM, AudioBus, GarageBand, Logic, and other AUv3 hosts

Screenshots

Particle Music4 screens
EchoSketch4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Particle Music at Free against EchoSketch's $7.99. EchoSketch's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 174 months). On ads, monetization model, device support and iOS requirement 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

Particle Music is free to download; EchoSketch costs $7.99 up front. Particle Music sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. EchoSketch asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Particle Music ships an update every 174 months, EchoSketch every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 8, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Particle Music versus EchoSketch: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterParticle MusicEchoSketch
PriceFree — better$7.99
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 174 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS18.017 — better
Further details — not scored
Size4 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSteve JoslinAvi Bortnick

Customer experience

Particle Music

Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

EchoSketch

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Particle Music

One-time1
  • Particle Music Pro$9.99
None

EchoSketch

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Particle Music free?
Particle Music is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is EchoSketch free?
EchoSketch costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Particle Music or EchoSketch have ads?
Neither Particle Music nor EchoSketch shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Particle Music or EchoSketch?
Particle Music ships an update every 174 months, and EchoSketch every 2 days. Most recently, Particle Music was updated on October 8, 2026 and EchoSketch on October 14, 2026.

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