Comparison

SMFPlayer Portable vs ARPJAM Studio

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

Head to head
About

SMFPlayer Portable

Features
Read full description

・Standard MIDI Fileを再生できます  Standard MIDI File can be played ・Bluetooth-MIDI、またはUSB-MIDIで接続されたMIDI音源が必要です  Requires a MIDI sound module connected via Bluetooth-MIDI or USB-MIDI ・複数のMIDI CHで作成されたピアノ曲をCH1だけで演奏する設定が可能です  Piano songs created with multiple MIDI CHs can be set to play on CH1 alone ・お好きなStandard MIDI Fileを「ファイル」アプリ、またはMacを使って追加することができます  Add your favorite Standard MIDI File using the “Files” app or your Mac ・Standard MIDI Fileはフォルダで作曲者・カテゴリーなどの分類分けすることもできます  Standard MIDI File can also be sorted into folders by composer, category, etc.

About

ARPJAM Studio

This app offers a generative synthesizer experience focused on sound design without requiring keyboard skills. It allows users to shape waveforms, filters, and effects in real-time as music plays, offering a unique approach to music creation for those who enjoy sound sculpting.

Highlights
  • Generative arpeggios with multiple waveforms
  • Probability-based drum generation
  • Chord progression locking
  • Real-time XY pad parameter control
  • Assignable LFOs for dynamic sound shaping
  • Play pad for layering live input
  • Preset saving and sharing
Features
Read full description

No sequence. No play button needed. An instrument that keeps going without you programming anything. Two generative engines invent phrases endlessly inside the scale and chord you choose. What you shape is not a song — it is a way of sounding. Move a control and the sound changes shape without ever stopping. Density, contour, filter, tape movement. It is built so that nothing you touch can break it. And you can play it. On the key pad or from a MIDI keyboard, right on top of the stream it is generating. What you play can be captured into the looper. Now your own sound can go in too. Record a bar into SAMPLE, the fifth machine, and chopping it up and rearranging it is the app's job. ■ Generate • Two independent arpeggio engines (waveform, filter, envelope, effects) • Eight arpeggio types, chord progressions, ten time signatures • BASS — a bass machine of its own (STEP / COMPLEXITY / OMIT / PATTERN) • Drum machine • Six LFOs, XY pad, performance FX ■ Slice (SAMPLE) • Record one bar from a mic or line input, with count-in and click • Record the app itself (ARP A / ARP B / drums), and overdub onto it • Load audio files — and the audio from a video file • Up to 32 slices, ordered by the same rules as the arps: direction, reverse, octave, probability, groove • STRETCH (on by default) — change tempo without changing pitch • Its own filter, envelope and delay / reverb sends ■ Play • On-screen key pad — always in scale • MIDI keyboard input (damper pedal, pitch bend, standard control changes) • One-bar looper that records how hard you played ■ Sound • Piano — three velocity layers, stereo, damper release • Electric piano — harmonics shift with how hard you strike • Kalimba, handpan and chime — struck metal, measured from the real instruments and synthesised • Waveforms (sine / triangle / saw / square) plus an acid filter • Delay, reverb, Glitch, Granular, overdrive • DRIFT / FLUTTER — tape movement on the synth voices and the live input alike • Concert pitch A=415–444 Hz ■ Connect • AUv3 plug-in — as an instrument and as an effect • Ableton Link, MIDI Clock, MIDI out • External audio input (line / microphone) • WAV recording and export One-time purchase. No subscription.

Screenshots

SMFPlayer Portable4 screens
ARPJAM Studio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SMFPlayer Portable at Free against ARPJAM Studio's $12.99. ARPJAM Studio's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 5 weeks) and device support (4 vs 2). On ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement 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

SMFPlayer Portable is free to download; ARPJAM Studio costs $12.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SMFPlayer Portable ships an update every 5 weeks, ARPJAM Studio every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
SMFPlayer Portable versus ARPJAM Studio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSMFPlayer PortableARPJAM Studio
PriceFree — better$12.99
Rating—5.0 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—6 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Paid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS16.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB84 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperHiroshi OkawaTakashi Tsunoda

In-app purchases

None

SMFPlayer Portable

No in-app purchases

None

ARPJAM Studio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SMFPlayer Portable free?
SMFPlayer Portable is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ARPJAM Studio free?
ARPJAM Studio costs $12.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do SMFPlayer Portable or ARPJAM Studio have ads?
Neither SMFPlayer Portable nor ARPJAM Studio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SMFPlayer Portable or ARPJAM Studio?
SMFPlayer Portable ships an update every 5 weeks, and ARPJAM Studio every 2 days. Most recently, SMFPlayer Portable was updated on October 1, 2026 and ARPJAM Studio on October 10, 2026.

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