Comparison

Cantoria vs ShowMIDI

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

Head to head
About

Cantoria

This app is a virtual pipe organ that uses physical modeling and additive synthesis to emulate a Baroque-style instrument. It offers a dynamic sound range, expression pedal control, and built-in effects, functioning as both a standalone application and an audio plugin.

Highlights
  • Physical modeling engine (no samples)
  • Full polyphony (61 notes, 776 pipes)
  • 9 organ stops
  • 3 couplers
  • Tremulant motor
  • Swell pedal
  • Built-in stereo reverb
Features
Read full description

GSi Cantoria is a physical modeling emulation of a Baroque-style Pipe Organ. INSTRUMENT BACKGROUND A pipe organ is not something you see every day, there are thousands of different pipe organs that differ by the number of stops, the number of manuals, the number and the type of pipes, their size, their position, etc. Cantoria is a Baroque-style organ based on a single manual and 9 stops plus 3 couplers and the classic "tremulant" effect. This type of organ has "only" 776 pipes, which Cantoria simulates one by one. It doesn't sound "massive" like bigger organs, but is very dynamic and can vary from a soft delicate flute sound to a loud and majestic. vibrant full organ. This synth engine works as an hybrid synthesizer, uses additive synthesis and physical modeling together, there are no samples involved. The expression pedal responds naturally and varies the amount of air that passes through the pipes. About the name: the name we chose for this plugin "CANTORIA" is the italian name of the place, inside a Church, where the organ and the choir are located. Main features: - Physical Modeling engine (no samples) - Full Polyphony (61 notes, 776 pipes) - 9 Organ Stops - 3 Couplers - Tremulant Motor - Swell Pedal - Built-in Stereo Reverb effect - Built-in programmer with unlimited Programs - Embedded user's manual - Available as Stand-alone application and audio plugin - Very low CPU and RAM usage Works as AUv3 plugin.

About

ShowMIDI

This application provides a real-time, glanceable view of all MIDI activity on your computer. It visualizes various MIDI messages and allows you to pause the flow for a data snapshot. It can be used as a standalone tool or an AUv3 plugin within your DAW.

Highlights
  • Real-time MIDI visualization
  • Auto-hides irrelevant messages
  • Pause and snapshot data
  • Standalone application
  • AUv3 plugin support
  • Supports MPE configuration
Features
Read full description

ShowMIDI is an open-source multi-platform GUI application to effortlessly visualize MIDI activity. Instead of wading through logs of MIDI messages to correlate relevant ones and identify what is happening, ShowMIDI visualizes the current activity and auto-hides what you don't care about anymore. It provides you with a real-time glanceable view of all MIDI activity on your computer. ShowMIDI is designed to be always on, using the spacebar or play/pause button you can pause the flow and focus on a data snapshot with the latest state of any MIDI entity. ShowMIDI can be ran as a standalone application that automatically detects all your MIDI devices, or as an AUv3 plugin in your DAW or host to visualize MIDI data in your sessions. ShowMIDI visualizes: * MIDI ports * channels * program change * note on/off * channel pressure * polyphonic pressure * continuous control change * pitchbend * RPN and NRPN * MPE configuration and channel modes ShowMIDI supports: * themes * standalone operation * AUv3 operation

Screenshots

Cantoria1 screens
ShowMIDI4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Cantoria at every 4 days against ShowMIDI's every 2 months. On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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

Both are free to download. 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 Cantoria against 4.8 for ShowMIDI. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 23 and 18 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 94% of Cantoria's written reviews are positive against 88% of ShowMIDI's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Cantoria ships an update every 4 days, ShowMIDI every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on August 26, 2026 and September 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
Cantoria versus ShowMIDI: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCantoriaShowMIDI
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (23 ratings)4.8 (18 ratings)
Positive reviews93.8% of reviews — better87.5% of reviews
Number of ratings23 — better18
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size23 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGenuine SoundwareUwyn, LLC

Customer experience

Cantoria

All ratings23 ratings
Positive95.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative4.3%
Written reviews16 reviews
Positive93.8%
Neutral0.0%
Negative6.3%

ShowMIDI

All ratings18 ratings
Positive94.4%
Neutral5.6%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive87.5%
Neutral12.5%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Cantoria

No in-app purchases

None

ShowMIDI

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Cantoria free?
Cantoria is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ShowMIDI free?
ShowMIDI is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Cantoria or ShowMIDI?
Cantoria and ShowMIDI are both rated 4.8 out of 5 on the App Store, from 23 and 18 ratings respectively.
Do Cantoria or ShowMIDI have ads?
Neither Cantoria nor ShowMIDI shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Cantoria or ShowMIDI?
Cantoria ships an update every 4 days, and ShowMIDI every 2 months. Most recently, Cantoria was updated on August 26, 2026 and ShowMIDI on September 5, 2026.

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