Fugue Machine Rubato vs M8C
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Fugue Machine Rubato
This app offers a unique musical canvas for creating and manipulating MIDI sequences. It features a nonlinear time engine that allows for expressive acceleration, deceleration, and directional changes of playheads, along with robust parameter automation for notes and other elements.
- Time-bending playheads
- Parameter automation
- Nonlinear time engine
- Sculpt envelopes with curves
- Up to eight playheads
- Per-playhead note echoes
- Multiple MIDI outputs
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Bend time. Automate notes. A single grid as a multi-dimensional musical canvas — for iPad, iPhone, and Mac. Fugue Machine Rubato dives deeper into the multi-playhead piano roll concept of Fugue Machine Classic by adding time-bending playheads, parameter automation, and much more. At the heart of the sequencer is a nonlinear time engine that lets playheads move with a natural — or surreal — feel. Unlike conventional sequencers, where time advances at a constant rate, time in this engine can expressively accelerate, decelerate, freeze, and change direction. Playheads are now free to swing, strum, bounce, move elastically, and more. Built upon the time engine is a robust parameter automation system with time-bending automation playheads and envelopes sculpted with points, curves, and shapes. Nearly everything can be automated — even the notes. Eight years in the making, Fugue Machine Rubato is rock-solid and absolutely packed with features. HIGHLIGHTS • Bend time with curves, rates, and offsets • Automate notes and nearly everything else • Sculpt envelopes with curves and shapes • Position playheads anywhere on the grid • Play up to eight playheads at once • Apply note echoes per-playhead • Arpeggiate notes from multiple playheads • Blend notes from multiple playheads • Offset, stack, spread, and invert pitches • Clamp, compress, and expand velocities • Program drums via per-note Drum Trigs • Route notes to up to eight MIDI outputs • Organize patterns in nestable folders • Launch patterns quantized to the beat • Revert state via auto-saved Snapshots • Learn contextually via popovers • Explore ~150 built-in patterns • Control via touch, keyboard, and cursor • Resize Mac window at native resolution COMPATIBILITY Fugue Machine Rubato supports iPad, iPhone, Mac (Intel & Apple Silicon), Ableton Link, MIDI, and AUv3* MIDI. With the included AUv3 MIDI plugin, you can run multiple instances of Fugue Machine Rubato within AUv3 host apps — like AUM, Logic Pro for iPad, Loopy Pro, and Cubasis. UNIVERSAL APP — ONE-TIME PURCHASE Pay once and use on iPad, iPhone, and Mac. LEARN MORE — TRY A FREE DEMO To learn more or try a free demo via TestFlight, visit fuguemachinerubato.com.
M8C
This application mirrors the screen of a Dirtywave M8 Tracker to an iOS device. It requires a compatible hardware tracker and does not handle audio routing. Users can view their M8 Tracker's interface remotely.
- Remote screen mirroring
- iOS device compatibility
- Requires M8 Tracker hardware
- No audio routing
- Official companion app
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M8C is a remote display client for the Dirtywave M8 Tracker. The app requires a production Dirtywave M8 tracker with firmware 6.0 or newer. The application allows you to mirror the M8 screen to your iOS device. To learn more about the Dirtywave M8 Tracker, visit the official Dirtywave website. Important Notes: - While Teensy 4.1 based headless units might work with the app, they are not officially supported and haven't been tested. - M8C does not provide audio routing. To handle audio, please use compatible apps such as AUM or other iOS audio hosts.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: M8C at Free against Fugue Machine Rubato's $39.99. M8C also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 75%). Fugue Machine Rubato's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 months) and chart position (#105 vs unranked). On rating, ads, in-app purchases 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
M8C is free to download; Fugue Machine Rubato costs $39.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Fugue Machine Rubato against 4.8 for M8C. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 68 and 16 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 75% of Fugue Machine Rubato's written reviews are positive against 100% of M8C's.
Fugue Machine Rubato ships an update weekly, M8C every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Fugue Machine Rubato | M8C |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $39.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.8 (68 ratings) | 4.8 (16 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 74.6% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 68 — better | 16 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #105 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 17 MB | 4 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Alexandernaut | Dirtywave |
Customer experience
Fugue Machine Rubato
M8C
Bugs and requests
Fugue Machine Rubato
Reported bugs
2 issues- Doesn't work with Logic Pro
- Compatibility issues with older macOS versions
Requested features
2 requests- Add a parameter randomizer feature
- Improve documentation and provide a complete manual
M8C
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Fugue Machine Rubato
No in-app purchases
M8C
No in-app purchases







