MusicSearch vs Decaud
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
MusicSearch
Access a vast music database to find information on artists and songs. Cache data for offline use, filter content, and contribute to the database. Customize the app's appearance and track your listening history.
- Search MusicBrainz database
- Offline data caching
- Instant content filtering
- View visit history
- Save to collections
- Contribute to MusicBrainz
- Appearance customization
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Features: - Search MusicBrainz's massive database for any information related to your favorite artist or song - Offline-first; all data is cached on device after loading each page/tab - Almost every tab allows you to filter its content instantaneously - Aliases will be used when filtering to help find things in other languages - See every page you've visited in the history screen, and quickly get back to them - Save anything to a collection - Login using your MusicBrainz account to add to your existing collections - Scrobbling to ListenBrainz? Enter your username to explore your listens - Customize the app's appearance with: Light/Dark theme, Material theme based on your wallpaper, or pick a custom color - Is an artist's discography incomplete? Aliases missing? Other data missing? Contribute it to MusicBrainz: https://musicbrainz.org See all features here: https://lydavid.github.io/MusicSearch/docs/all_features.html This is a music database/discovery app, not a music player. There are external links to various streaming platforms which will open the album/song in their app if it's installed. The source code for this project can be found at: https://github.com/lydavid/MusicSearch
Decaud
This music player verifies the true quality of audio files, revealing if a "lossless" file originates from a lossy master. It offers a transparent signal path, advanced audio analysis tools, and supports a wide range of high-resolution formats.
- TrueHz analysis for file quality verification
- Transparent signal path inspection
- Real-time audio meters (spectrum, phase, LUFS)
- Support for FLAC, DSD, ALAC, and more
- Internet radio streaming
- NAS and DLNA server streaming
- Private listening history
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Decaud is free to use, with every feature included. No subscriptions, paid upgrades or locked features. In-app purchases are optional tips to support development; they do not unlock anything. Most players display the label on the file. Decaud looks deeper. TrueHz reads sampled windows across a track for spectral evidence consistent with lossy compression. It is evidence, not provenance. Decaud is a music player for people who care how their files actually reach their ears: hi-res lossless, DSD, and a signal path you can inspect at any moment. KNOW WHAT YOU'RE HEARING • TrueHz reads sampled windows for spectral evidence consistent with lossy compression, on songs whose audio is on this device • Analyzed songs keep their result on the row • Real-time analyzer, goniometer, phase, and LUFS meters BUILT FOR SOUND • An honest signal path: every stage between the file and the output, and what each one does to the audio • FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF, DSF, DFF, APE, WavPack, and more • DSD plays as PCM with an in-app system-volume slider, shown in Audio Path. Optional native DSD requires a compatible USB DoP DAC, system volume at 100% and confirmation of independent listening-volume control on the DAC or downstream equipment. There is no in-app volume control during native DSD • Gapless playback, optional crossfade, and headphone crossfeed • ReplayGain and a 10-band equalizer MORE WAYS TO LISTEN • Internet radio from Radio Paradise, SomaFM, FIP, and your own stations, with live titles and covers • Station creates an endless session from your own library, chosen locally by sound • Classical browsing understands works, movements, and composers • The waveform is the seek bar • Tap the sound information in Now Playing to open Audio Path ANYWHERE IN THE HOUSE • Stream from NAS and SMB shares and DLNA servers • Play to AirPlay speakers through the system AirPlay picker • Control your Mac library from your iPhone over the local network • iCloud keeps your catalog, ratings, and artwork on your devices in your own account. Sending audio is always a separate, explicit action A LIBRARY THAT STAYS YOURS • Copy songs and folders from USB and SD drives to this iPhone or iPad for offline listening, even with the drive disconnected • Or play files from an attached drive without copying them • Download seven complimentary DSD64 tracks courtesy of NativeDSD, listen offline, and optionally upload them to iCloud • Sort As fields change ordering without renaming your music and sync across devices • Browse the playable library in CarPlay • Smart playlists, synced lyrics, and compilations • Your listening history stays private, with optional export to a server you host PRIVATE BY DESIGN No Decaud account required. No analytics. No tracking. Online metadata lookups are opt-in and send text or audio fingerprints only, never your audio.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Decaud at 5.0 against MusicSearch's 3.0. Decaud also leads on device support (4 vs 2). MusicSearch's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads 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
Both are free to download. Decaud sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. MusicSearch asks for nothing beyond the download.
Decaud holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.
MusicSearch ships an update every 3 days, Decaud every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | MusicSearch | Decaud |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.0 (1 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 6 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.4 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 53 MB | 35 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | David Ly | Perimtr |
Customer experience
MusicSearch
Decaud
In-app purchases
MusicSearch
No in-app purchases
Decaud
- Coffee Tip$0.99
- Record Tip$2.99
- Studio Tip$4.99
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- Audiophile Tip$9.99









