Santoor HD vs Pulsar
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Santoor HD
Experience the traditional Santoor instrument with realistic sound and touch controls. Play individual notes, create vibrate effects by sliding, and even play semitones. Record and playback your musical creations with loop and fast-forward options.
- Realistic Santoor instrument simulation
- Individual string touch for notes
- Vibrate effect with horizontal sliding
- Semitone playback option
- Record and playback functionality
- Loop and fast-forward playback
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Played the Harp? Try the Santoor - A Traditional Musical Instrument. Supports touching individual strings to play notes as well as sliding horizontally across a string for VIBRATE effect. Fade out your vibrate effect by sliding your finger to the edge of the Santoor. Now also includes the option to play semitones! ***** Ranked in the top 7 and top 25 in the India APP STORE in the Music category for iPad and iPhone respectively. *****Ranked in the top 31 in the Greece APP STORE in the Music category for iPad. ***** Ranked in the top 45 in the US APP STORE in the Music category for iPad. FEATURES * Hi Quality Retina Display Optimized Graphics * Studio Quality Sounds. Realistic Vibrate Effect with tuned strings across two octets. New option to also play Semitones * Fast, Fluid Touches and Sounds. Recognizes multiple touches with both hands * Features sliding across a string for VIBRATE effect. * Slide along a string to the edges for a unique fade out effect. * Switch to play Semitones to truly play out all of your melodies! (Pro Version) * Record And Playback your own creations * Options to Loop playback of recordings and also to play them at Fast Forward Speeds Questions/suggestions/bugs? Email us at: thesoftwarekitchen@gmail.com To fun times with "Santoor HD"!!
Pulsar
This music app provides a virtual drum machine with 8 pads for improvising and playing along to built-in rhythm presets. It features real-time rhythm switching, tempo control, and various effects. It also supports Ableton Link and MIDI for seamless integration with other music software and hardware.
- 8-pad drum machine
- Built-in rhythm presets
- Real-time rhythm switching
- Tempo and accent control
- Drive, reverb, and filter effects
- Ableton Link synchronization
- MIDI In/Out support
- AUv3 compatibility
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Pulsar-ES is a sample-based drum machine inspired by the Estradin Pulsar. Start with 128 factory rhythms, 64 in bank A and 64 in bank B, play the eight-pad kit, and edit MIDI notes and velocities. In version 1.0.8, Random rhythm generates a new pattern in the current slot. Swing adjusts the timing from 0 to 100%. Shape the sound with filter, reverb, overdrive, delay, chorus and compression. Save edited rhythms as separate user patterns; the factory patterns remain available. Open LINK for tempo-sync settings with compatible peers. Start/stop synchronization is a separate setting. With a MIDI output selected and a compatible route configured, send pattern notes to another instrument. In a plug-in host, routing depends on the host. For iPhone and iPad: standalone app and AUv3. Hosting, MIDI and Link features require the corresponding compatible setup.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Pulsar at none against Santoor HD's 1. Pulsar also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 3 months). Santoor HD's advantage is review sentiment (85% vs 67%) and ratings volume (157 vs 7). On rating, 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
Santoor HD costs $2.99 and Pulsar $4.99 up front. Santoor HD sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Pulsar asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.3 for Santoor HD against 4.3 for Pulsar. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Santoor HD has 157 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 85% of Santoor HD's written reviews are positive against 67% of Pulsar's.
Santoor HD ships an update every 3 months, Pulsar every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Santoor HD | Pulsar |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 — better | $4.99 |
| Rating | 4.3 (157 ratings) — better | 4.3 (7 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 84.9% of reviews — better | 66.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 157 — better | 7 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 29 MB | 69 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Software-Kitchen | Dmytro Kiro |
Customer experience
Santoor HD
Pulsar
Bugs and requests
Santoor HD
Reported bugs
8 issues- App crashes immediately upon opening
- Freezes on startup screen with stuck audio
- Black screen with continuous sound on launch
- Incompatible with iOS 10.2 and later versions
- Popup keyboard fails to appear when saving recordings
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- App becomes unresponsive and requires force close
- Strange noise and visual glitches during startup
- Recording feature doesn't function properly
Requested features
10 requests- iOS 11+ compatibility and regular updates
- Note labels on strings for non-harp players
- Ability to layer and edit recorded tracks
- Audio input/output functionality
- Better pitch control options
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- Improved rhythm buttons with customization
- Remove or reduce aggressive monetization
- Better note selection precision
- Export recorded songs functionality
- Semitone access without paywall
Pulsar
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Santoor HD
- Santoor HD - No Ads$3.99
Pulsar
No in-app purchases









