Comparison

nils vs RE

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

Head to head
About

nils

This real-time audio effect machine offers bitcrush, delay, and gain for distortion. It functions as a sampler and looper, allowing for lo-fi sound manipulation for both beginners and professionals. Supports Audiobus and various audio inputs.

Highlights
  • Real-time audio effects
  • Bitcrush, delay, gain
  • Sampler functionality
  • Minimalistic looper
  • Audiobus support
  • Export audio
Features
Read full description

..:: || NEW || AudioBus Support || ::.. Real time bitcrush, sampler and looper. Nils is a real time sound effect machine with a minimalistic looper. It comes with bitcrush, delay and gain for distortion. As input you can use the internal microphone, your earpods or accessories like iRig. Can also be used as a sampler, by holding the delay buffer and changing its phase. Lo-fi looping for both beginners and professionals. +++ Audiobus (input/effects/output). +++ Real time. +++ Bitchrush. +++ Sample rate (1 Hz - 44100 Hz). +++ Delay. +++ Hold delay buffer. +++ Play delay buffer. +++ Gain (goes up to 11). +++ Limiter. +++ Tape looper. +++ Export (email, soundcloud, MAPI audio copy).

About

RE

This app is a versatile virtual tape machine offering authentic tape echo and chorus effects. It also functions as a sampler, looper, and overdubbing tool, allowing for creative audio manipulation and real-time performance.

Highlights
  • Virtual tape deck with 3 read heads
  • Authentic tape echo emulation
  • Tape loop mode with overdubbing
  • Sample/loop library
  • Real-time parameter visualization
  • Wow, Flutter, Color, Hiss & Saturation controls
Features
Read full description

RE-1 - Tape Echo RE-1 is a full featured virtual Tape Machine capable of delivering authentic tape based echo and chorus effects but it doesn't stop there. With it's interactive tape player, sample, loop and overdub features it's possible to use it like a virtual tape recorder, sample player, looper or simply as a master effect. Overview: - Virtual Tape deck including 3 individually controllable read heads, variable delay time and feedback - Interactive user interface and realtime visualisation of various parameters related to the tape simulation - Dedicated controls for Wow, Flutter, Color, Tape Hiss & saturation amount - Tape Loop mode with overdub, tape reverse and time-stretching - Sample/Loop library loads wave files onto the virtual tape loop - Transport and Tempo Sync - Stereo Spread & Stereo Panner - Input processing: Highpass filter - Output processing: 2 band eq Tape Echo: - Authentic tape echo emulation - Multi-tap delay with 3 individually controllable read heads - Color Control adjusts the echo's tone from dark to bright - Delay Time: 5ms - 1000ms (or 1/32th to 1/1) - Wow & Flutter - Tape Hiss and Saturation - Stereo spread - Stereo panner Looper / Sample Player: - Uses the tape like a traditional looper with unlimited overdubs - Configurable Loop length with 1 - 8 bars and tempo sync and tape reverse - Tape transport can be linked to the host's transport controls - Time stretching keeps loops in sync - Samples/loops can be loaded onto the tape directly - Samples can be created from the tape loop and stored in the sample library at any time - Factory content includes a variety of loops grouped by style - Samples/loops can be imported from and exported to other apps Connectivity: - Standalone - AUv3 - InterApp-Audio - Audiobus - Ableton Link - MIDI (Tempo, CC, Program Change) - Requirements: - iOS 11+

Screenshots

nils4 screens
RE3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: nils at $1.99 against RE's $9.99. nils also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 3 months) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 11.0). RE's advantage is ratings volume (132 vs 13). On rating, review sentiment, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

nils costs $1.99 and RE $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for nils against 4.7 for RE. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: RE has 132 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 72% of nils's written reviews are positive against 65% of RE's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

nils ships an update every 5 weeks, RE every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
nils versus RE: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameternilsRE
Price$1.99 — better$9.99
Rating4.8 (13 ratings) — better4.7 (132 ratings)
Positive reviews72.2% of reviews — better64.9% of reviews
Number of ratings13132 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better11.0
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB107 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperErik SigthKai Aras

Customer experience

nils

All ratings13 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews18 reviews
Positive72.2%
Neutral5.6%
Negative22.2%

RE

All ratings132 ratings
Positive90.2%
Neutral4.5%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews37 reviews
Positive64.9%
Neutral16.2%
Negative18.9%

In-app purchases

None

nils

No in-app purchases

None

RE

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is nils free?
nils costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is RE free?
RE costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, nils or RE?
nils is rated higher. nils averages 4.8 out of 5 from 13 ratings, while RE averages 4.7 from 132 ratings.
Do nils or RE have ads?
Neither nils nor RE shows ads.
Which is updated more often, nils or RE?
nils ships an update every 5 weeks, and RE every 3 months. Most recently, nils was updated on October 12, 2026 and RE on October 21, 2026.

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