Comparison

PocketPipes vs SideBand

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

Head to head
About

PocketPipes

Practice bagpipe tunes with realistic sound and detailed playback options. Manage your music library with import, export, and categorization features. Track your progress with playback statistics to improve your training sessions.

Highlights
  • Realistic bagpipe sound with polyphony and drones
  • Section playback and loop mode for focused practice
  • Import tunes via iTunes, Dropbox, email, or Files App
  • Categorization and search for tune management
  • Playback statistics for training progress
  • Sheet music printing and iCloud Drive upload
  • Dark/light mode support
Features
Read full description

PocketPipes is an iPhone/iPad/iPod touch/Mac player for bagpipe tunes  (abc and bww files) with lot of options. Polyphony and drones produce a very realistic bagpipe sound. A vertical bar shows the note being played on the sheet music. PocketPipes is your partner for practicing, with your own tunes. Statistics about recent playbacks help you to drive your training sessions. PLAYBACK OPTIONS - bagpipe chanter sound or practice chanter sound - polyphonic capacity (one file for each voice: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th). Select the first one to play in a polyphonic way. - defining a section of the tune for playback (to focus on few measures when training, with long press on the sheet music). The area outside the section is grayed. - loop mode - playing with or without drones - C natural, or C natural + F natural - synchronized metronome with the current play - optional 5-7-9 attack before each play - tempo tuning for the current tune TUNES MANAGEMENT - the app proposes to install demo files automatically when the tunes list is empty (it includes few polyphonic sets) - importing tunes from a desktop with iTunes or Finder, a Dropbox(TM) account, or email attachements, or with Files App - file sharing : you can send tunes or sheet music as email attachments - file uploading to the user's iCloud Drive (wav soundtrack and pdf sheet music) - sheet music printing - categorization (tagging) of the tunes allows to work on subsets within the personal tunes (i.e. Marches, Slow airs, To learn, Next performance ....). See guide on website. More flexible than folder hierarchy. When categorized, a tune appears in blue color. - searching by keys, crossed with categories - statistics on recent playbacks, crossed with categories - file edition in textual mode with revert capability to the previous file - backup/restore of the data to/from iCloud, giving a way to align different devices with the same data USER INTERFACE - contextual menu with a long press on the tune title or the sheet music - two pop-up controllers to handle playback options on the sheet music - categories editor - full screen and zooming on sheet music (important for iPhones) - ability to colorize some parts of the tunes (%%bgcolor for ABC files) - support of clear/dark mode - built-in help book to learn how to use the app and including useful links Nota: beat setting and section marks are made persistent at file level. Available ressources on the support web site: Packs of tunes, ABC tutorial, FAQ ... See FAQ for specific questions.

About

SideBand

This app helps musicians learn songs by ear. It allows users to slow down music, loop sections, and change the key to match their voice or instrument. Import music from various sources like the Music app or iCloud.

Highlights
  • Adjust tempo
  • Transpose key
  • Change tuning
  • Loop sections
  • Import unprotected music
  • Supports iPhone and iPad
Features
Read full description

Learn tunes by ear - slow down and loop sections of a tune. Change the key to fit your voice or instrument. Import any unprotected music from the Music app, from the iCloud Files application or drag tunes from your desktop. Support for all iPhone screen sizes as well as iPad. Use slide-over while listening to your Music files to quickly import on iPad Use split screen to listen while viewing music • Adjust tempo - change the speed from half-speed to double speed • Transpose - change the key by semi-tones up to an octave higher or lower • Change the tuning - Adjust the pitch of an out-of-tune recording • Import from any other app that can export an audio file - wav, mp3 and AAC files are supported.

Screenshots

PocketPipes4 screens
SideBand4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: PocketPipes at every 6 weeks against SideBand's every 22 months. PocketPipes also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). SideBand's advantage is price ($2.99 vs $5.99). On review sentiment, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

PocketPipes costs $5.99 and SideBand $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PocketPipes ships an update every 6 weeks, SideBand every 22 months. Both last shipped on October 23, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
PocketPipes versus SideBand: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPocketPipesSideBand
Price$5.99$2.99 — better
Rating—4.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews80.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 22 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size31 MB15 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperClaude Le DûWil Macaulay

Customer experience

PocketPipes

Written reviews10 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%

SideBand

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%

In-app purchases

None

PocketPipes

No in-app purchases

None

SideBand

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PocketPipes free?
PocketPipes costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is SideBand free?
SideBand costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do PocketPipes or SideBand have ads?
Neither PocketPipes nor SideBand shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PocketPipes or SideBand?
PocketPipes ships an update every 6 weeks, and SideBand every 22 months. Most recently, PocketPipes was updated on October 23, 2026 and SideBand on October 23, 2026.

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