Super J8 Synth + AUv3 vs KeyPad MIDI Controller
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Super J8 Synth + AUv3
This app offers a powerful analog synthesizer emulation, inspired by a legendary vintage instrument. It provides a vast array of sounds, from lush pads to deep basses, with advanced DSP and numerous modulation options. Explore over 700 presets and use it standalone or as an AUv3 plugin.
- Analog emulation sound engine
- 700+ presets
- True poly unison
- Oscillator sync
- Classic step sequencer
- Dual arpeggiators
- AUv3 plugin support
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SUPER J8 (Inspired by Jupiter-8*) Next Level Analog Emulation SUPER J8 delivers lush pads, deep basses, classic keys, and vibrant leads that feel truly alive. Inspired by a LEGENDARY analog synthesizer, SUPER J8 was trained by ethical machine learning and uses advanced DSP. No Generative AI! NO SAMPLES. PURE SYNTH POWER! NEW FEATURES: Oscillator Sync, Cross-Modulation, 2x Oversampling, True Per-Voice Poly Unison, PWM, Analog Voice Modeling, Analog Panning, and Single-Note Polyphony for epic pads and drones that never stop. WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING: “I studied a lot of Jupiter-8s. I know how a Jupiter-8 sounds. This is it!” – App/VST Maker “Man I’m already sold after just 1 sound… That’s definitely the Jupiter sound.” – Audio Production (YouTube) “WOW! I'm at 5 minutes in and more than Blown Away” – Jay Zen DEVICE REQUIREMENTS: iPad: 2016 iPad Pro (A9X) or newer (Does not work on iPad Air 2) iPhone: 2018 iPhone XS (A12) or newer (Works on iPhone SE 2020) INSTANT INSPIRATION Explore 700+ hand made presets, a classic step sequencer, dual arpeggiators, analog-style filters, tape delay, reverb, chorus, 3 LFOs, and real-time FX control. Your creativity will never hit a wall "FANTASTIC!" – The GarageBand Guide “I like SUPER J8’s presets BETTER than both the Arturia Jup-8 and Cherry Audio Mercury-8” – Editor, All Things VST “SUPER J8 is a fun, easy-to-use app that everyone should own” – Field Tone Audio WATCH VIDEOS TO HEAR IT IN ACTION: audiokitpro.com/superj8 FEATURES • NEW Sound Engine with advanced DSP • 700+ presets included (more to come) • True Poly Unison with Unison Start Sync • J8-style Cross-Mod plus frequency tracker • 64 voices! Like a Jupiter-64?! Play 8 notes with 8-voice unison • 2x oversampling for more analog-style lows and highs • Awesome Oscillator Sync • PWM engine modeled after vintage hardware behavior • Per-Voice Analog Panning • Single Note Polyphony for notes & unison stacks! • FX: Glorious Reverb based on Sean Costello’s code (Valhalla* Plug-ins), Analog Tape Delay, Crush, and more. • 3 LFOs with 60+ destinations; modulate almost anything (even other LFOs) • MIDI keyboard support plus MIDI Learn • Classic ARP & Vintage-style Step Sequencer • ENV-1 Polarity & 2 ADSR envelopes, just like classic hardware • Juno* style type I & II Chorus • Dual assignable Touch pads for real-time performance control • Jupiter-inspired filter with deep growl WORKS AS A PLUG-IN Use SUPER J8 as an AUv3 instrument in Logic for iPad, GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis, and more. WORKS BY ITSELF • Built-in Record button: capture your synth and FX, then export a WAV file • Control it with a MIDI Keyboard, MIDI Learn to map your controls to the app No other apps required. If you’ve never played a next-generation analog synth emulation, get ready to be inspired! LEARN MORE audiokitpro.com/superj8 * LEGAL NOTICES SUPER J8 is not affiliated with or endorsed by Roland Corporation. “Jupiter-8”, "Juno", and any other referenced trademarks are the property of their respective owners and are used for identification and reference only. SUPER J8 is not an official emulation of any specific instrument. It is an original creation inspired by classic synthesizers, created to celebrate music creation and education. SUPER J8 is not affiliated or endorsed by Valhalla Plugins. We thank Sean Costello for his amazing and generous contributions to open-source code, making this app's beautiful Reverb possible.
KeyPad MIDI Controller
Transform your device into a professional MIDI controller with touch-optimized piano keys, drum pads, and performance controls. It supports SFZ, SF2, WAV, and M4A samples, and can control iOS apps, hardware synths, and Mac software wirelessly or wired.
- Touch-optimized piano keyboard
- 9-pad drum grid
- XY performance pad
- Built-in sound engine (SF2, SFZ, WAV, M4A)
- AUv3 plugin support
- Network MIDI for Mac control
- Aftertouch and MPE expression
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Transform your iPad or iPhone into a professional MIDI controller with a touch-optimized piano keyboard, isomorphic grid, drum pads, and XY performance controls. Control iOS apps, hardware synths, and Mac software wirelessly or wired, as a standalone app or an AUv3 plugin in your favorite DAW. Perfect for mobile producers, live performers, beat makers, and sound designers. CORE FEATURES • Built-in sound engine for SF2, SFZ, WAV, and M4A. • Piano keyboard, isomorphic grid, 9-pad drum grid, and XY performance pad. • Scale mode with 12 scales and any root key, on both piano and grid. • Aftertouch and MPE with Mono AT, Poly AT, and XY MPE modes. • Aftertouch and Mod Wheel remapping to any MIDI CC or Pitch Bend. • Velocity, Pitch Bend, and Modulation faders, plus a latching sustain button. • AUv3 plugin for GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis, BeatMaker, and Drambo. • Network MIDI, OSC output, and 16 MIDI channels + Omni. • Adaptive interface for all iPad and iPhone sizes. VIEW MODES Switch between five layouts from the View menu: Piano: a familiar 2-octave keyboard with height-based velocity. Grid: Isomorphic: every row and column keeps the same interval, so chords and scales have one shape anywhere. Grid: 2 Rows: a piano-style pair of rows, naturals below, sharps above. Grid: Minor Thirds: columns step up by 3 semitones, rows move chromatically. Grid: Big Piano: large naturals with quarter-size sharps. Your view, layout, and root note persist across sessions. SCALE MODE Choose from 12 scales - Major, Natural Minor, Harmonic Minor, Melodic Minor, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Locrian, Pentatonic Major, Pentatonic Minor, Blues, and Whole Tone - in any of the 12 root keys. On the grid, cells remap so only in-scale notes are laid out, putting every note under your fingers. On the piano, the keyboard keeps its familiar shape - the black and white pattern is how you find your place without looking. Rather than move notes around, out-of-scale keys dim and stop responding to touch, so only the keys in your key are labelled and playable. Wrong notes are simply out of reach. Switch back to Chromatic anytime for the full keyboard. GRID EXPRESSION Every grid layout includes a dedicated mod-wheel row. A vibrant gradient highlights roots and notes, optional labels show note names, and per-note MPE with pitch bend gives each finger independent control. BUILT-IN SOUND ENGINE Play sounds directly without any external app. Load SF2 SoundFonts with multi-preset selection, or import SFZ, WAV, and M4A samples. The low-CPU engine maps samples across the keyboard automatically, and sound files persist across sessions. AFTERTOUCH & MPE EXPRESSION Add expressive depth with four aftertouch modes. Mono AT applies uniform pressure across chords, Poly AT sends independent pressure per note, and XY MPE allocates per-note MIDI channels (2-16) with Y on CC74 and X on Pitch Bend. Remap aftertouch or mod wheel to any MIDI CC or Pitch Wheel. A green gradient on pressed keys shows pressure in real time. CONNECT TO YOUR MAC Control Logic Pro, Ableton Live, or any Mac music software from your iPad or iPhone. Connect wirelessly over your local network with Bonjour, or plug in via USB for a rock-solid, zero-latency link. STANDALONE OR AUV3 Load KeyPad inside GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis, BeatMaker, Drambo, or any AUv3 host to play your instruments without switching apps, with settings saved in your project. Or run it standalone to drive hardware synths, route MIDI to other iOS apps, or control your Mac. TOUCH-OPTIMIZED PERFORMANCE Height-Based Velocity: Touch keys at different vertical positions for dynamic velocity, with three curves to shape the response. XY Performance Pad: Control two parameters at once with multi-touch. Assign any MIDI CC to each axis for filter sweeps, effect morphing, or live sound manipulation. Smart Layout: Scales to the window, keeping the full layout with controls and pads on iPhone, iPad, Split View, and AUv3 plugin.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: KeyPad MIDI Controller at Free against Super J8 Synth + AUv3's $14.99. Super J8 Synth + AUv3's advantage is ratings volume (81 vs 13). On rating, review sentiment, 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
KeyPad MIDI Controller is free to download; Super J8 Synth + AUv3 costs $14.99 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 — 5.0 for Super J8 Synth + AUv3 against 4.9 for KeyPad MIDI Controller. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Super J8 Synth + AUv3 has 81 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 96% of Super J8 Synth + AUv3's written reviews are positive against 100% of KeyPad MIDI Controller's.
Super J8 Synth + AUv3 ships an update every 3 days, KeyPad MIDI Controller every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 20, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Super J8 Synth + AUv3 | KeyPad MIDI Controller |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $14.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 5.0 (81 ratings) — better | 4.9 (13 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 95.9% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 81 — better | 13 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.4 | 14.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 78 MB | 13 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | AudioKit Pro | DiscoDSP LLC |
Customer experience
Super J8 Synth + AUv3
KeyPad MIDI Controller
In-app purchases
Super J8 Synth + AUv3
No in-app purchases
KeyPad MIDI Controller
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Super J8 Synth + AUv3 free?
Is KeyPad MIDI Controller free?
Which has better reviews, Super J8 Synth + AUv3 or KeyPad MIDI Controller?
Do Super J8 Synth + AUv3 or KeyPad MIDI Controller have ads?
Which is updated more often, Super J8 Synth + AUv3 or KeyPad MIDI Controller?
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