LH Grain vs Microtonal Lab
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
LH Grain
Create intricate soundscapes and dynamic audio effects with a dual-channel granular synthesizer. Features include diverse amplitude envelopes, extensive audio effects, and intuitive live performance tools like a touchpad and customizable pitch bar.
- Dual-channel granular synthesis
- 8 amplitude envelope options
- 10 integrated audio effects
- Real-time touchpad control
- Customizable pitch bar
- OSC compatibility
- Record and share sound files
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LH Grain: A Dual-Channel Granular Synthesizer for Live Performance Mastery Unleash your creative potential with LH Grain, an innovative two-channel granular synthesizer designed for both immersive soundscapes and dynamic live performances. Each channel operates independently, allowing for intricate granular textures and rich audio effects. Key Features: *Amplitude Envelope Diversity: Choose from 8 unique amplitude envelopes for crafting your grains, offering a spectrum of wave shapes for unparalleled sound design. *Extensive Audio Effects: Elevate your sound with 10 integrated audio effects, ranging from EQ and formant filters to chorus and reverb, adding layers of complexity to your sonic creations. *Intuitive Live Performance Tools: --Touchpad Control: Visualize and manipulate grains in real-time with a responsive touchpad interface. --Customizable Pitch Bar: Fine-tune your sound with an easily adjustable pitch bar for on-the-fly modifications. *OSC Compatibility: Seamlessly integrate with other devices in real-time using OSC format messages, enhancing live collaboration and interaction. *Robust File Management: Record your creations, and easily share sound files for collaborative projects or personal archiving. Please Note: LH Grain currently does not support Audiobus, external sound recording, or importing additional audio files. Explore Rich Soundscapes with Advanced FX: Immerse in deep audio manipulation with a suite of FX including EQ, Formant Filter, Ring Modulation, Low Pass Filter, MultiFilter, Chorus, Flanger, Distortion, Delay, and Reverb. Each effect is fine-tuned to complement the granular synthesis process, ensuring your performance stands out. Elevate your audio experience with LH Grain – where innovation meets artistry in the realm of granular synthesis.
Microtonal Lab
Explore music beyond the traditional 12-note scale with this comprehensive microtonal studio. Create custom scales, play a microtonal keyboard, sequence patterns, and perform live with a launchpad. Export your creations as MIDI files for further production.
- Harmonic Galaxy visualizer
- Microtonal keyboard with custom scales
- 32-step sequencer with FX
- Launchpad for live performance
- Extensive world scale library
- Multiple tuning systems support
- MIDI export for DAWs
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Microtonal Lab is a complete microtonal music studio for iOS. Break free from the 12-note octave and explore the infinite space between the notes. AUv3 PLUGIN Use MicrotonalLab as a plugin inside GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis, Drambo, and any AUv3-compatible host. The full step sequencer, tuning system, and SF2 instruments are available directly in your DAW. Record sequences as MIDI regions with automatic tempo sync. HARMONIC GALAXY Discover musical intervals as a visual universe. Every dot is an interval above the root — its size shows consonance, its color shows its position in the octave, and its number shows the exact distance in cents. Pinch to zoom and new microtones emerge from the depths. Build custom scales by tapping intervals and save them to your library. MICROTONAL KEYBOARD A fully playable keyboard with exact microtonal tuning. Choose from piano, strings, marimba, vibes, bass, pad, flute, or synthesized waveforms. Activate any scale from the library and the keyboard reconfigures to show precisely those notes. Supports glide between notes for expressive playing. STEP SEQUENCER A 16-step sequencer with microtonal note assignment per step, velocity, gate, and swing control. Syncs to the host tempo in AUv3 mode. LAUNCHPAD A grid-based launchpad for live performance. Rows correspond to scale degrees, columns to time — tap to toggle notes and play your patterns in real time. SCALE LIBRARY Browse world scales from dozens of musical traditions, including Arabic maqam, Indian ragas, Persian dastgah, Javanese gamelan, and many more. Preview any scale, then activate it across all views with one tap. TUNING SYSTEMS Switch between 12-TET, 19-TET, 24-TET, 31-TET, and 53-TET. Full access to all scale degrees in the sequencer for every tuning system. MIDI EXPORT Export your sequences to standard MIDI files with full microtonal pitch bend on each channel. Import directly into any DAW for further production. FX Filter (low-pass with cutoff and resonance), reverb (from small room to cathedral), and delay — all controllable via XY pads in real time during playback. Microtonal Lab is built for composers, sound designers, music theorists, and anyone curious about the music that lives between the keys.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: LH Grain at 2.3 against Microtonal Lab's 1.0. LH Grain also leads on price ($2.99 vs $6.99) and ratings volume (3 vs 1). Microtonal Lab's advantage is update cadence (every 2 months vs every 15 months) and chart position (#197 vs unranked). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
LH Grain costs $2.99 and Microtonal Lab $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
LH Grain holds the better App Store score, 2.3 against 1.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 1 respectively.
LH Grain ships an update every 15 months, Microtonal Lab every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 10, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | LH Grain | Microtonal Lab |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 — better | $6.99 |
| Rating | 2.3 (3 ratings) — better | 1.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 25.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 15 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #197 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 34 MB | 90 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | 昊 刘 | Martin Adler |
Customer experience
LH Grain
Microtonal Lab
In-app purchases
LH Grain
No in-app purchases
Microtonal Lab
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is LH Grain free?
Is Microtonal Lab free?
Which has better reviews, LH Grain or Microtonal Lab?
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Which is updated more often, LH Grain or Microtonal Lab?
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