Comparison

AirDrums vs MS

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

Head to head
About

AirDrums

Features
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Turn your phone into a motion-controlled drum instrument. Air Drums lets you play drums using nothing but your arm movements and your phone’s sensors. Each horizontal zone represents a different drum sound, and a fast downward motion triggers a hit β€” just like striking a real drum. No buttons. No tapping. Just movement, rhythm, and sound. How it works Rotate your phone to select a drum zone Swing your arm downward to hit Hit harder β†’ louder sound Smooth motion trail shows your rhythm visually Drum zones Note 1: Floor Tom Note 2: Bass Drum Note 3: Snare Drum Note 4: Cymbal Features Motion-based drum playing using device sensors Real-time audio with velocity-sensitive volume Clean, minimal black-and-white visual design Smooth motion trail that fades naturally No ads, no clutter, no learning curve Perfect for: Musicians Rhythm practice Creative play Exploring motion-based music interaction Put on your headphones, move your arm, and feel the rhythm in the air.

About

MS

Features
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MS-12 is a 16-pad sampler and step sequencer built around the sound of classic 12-bit hardware. Sample anything through the microphone, trim it, and play it straight from the pads. The sample rate and bit depth engine gives you the gritty, saturated character early digital samplers were loved for β€” not a filter placed on top, but the sound of the conversion itself. SAMPLING β€’ Record from the built-in mic, a USB or Lightning interface, or line input β€’ Resample the app's own output to bounce layers down β€’ Threshold recording starts the moment sound arrives β€’ Stereo or mono (L/R) capture SOUND β€’ Adjustable sample rate (8–44.1 kHz) and bit depth (4–32 bit) β€’ Presets for classic 12-bit voicings β€’ Ring modulator, compressor, punch and saturation per pad EDITING β€’ Trim, fade in and out, normalize, reverse, gain, silence β€’ Time stretch β€’ Auto slice by transient detection, or set slice points live with the pads β€’ Split a stereo sample into separate mono left and right samples SEQUENCER β€’ Step sequencer with velocity and tune per step β€’ Real-time recording with selectable quantize β€’ Up to 4 bars per pattern β€’ Note Repeat β€’ Song Mode chains patterns into a full track PLAYBACK AND MIXING β€’ Volume and pan per pad, mute and solo β€’ Mute groups so pads cut each other off, like a real drum machine β€’ Pad Link to trigger several pads at once β€’ Multi Level and Multi Pitch to spread one sample across the grid β€’ 13 effects: tape echo, delay, reverb, chorus, flanger, phaser, tremolo/pan, distortion, overdrive, fuzz, wah, isolator and a 4-band EQ EXPORT β€’ Bounce a pattern to a WAV file β€’ Save projects on the device and reopen them later FREE VERSION MS-12 is free to try, and the sound engine is not held back β€” nothing about the audio is degraded in the free version. You get Bank A (16 pads), one 1-bar pattern, two effects, and microphone sampling up to 10 seconds per pad. A single one-time purchase unlocks everything: all four banks (64 pads), unlimited patterns up to 4 bars, Song Mode, all 13 effects, unlimited sampling time, loading your own audio files, project save and load, and WAV export. Anything you made before buying carries straight over. No subscription. No ads. No account required.

Screenshots

AirDrums3 screens
MS4 screens

Verdict

The call

AirDrums and MS are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters β€” price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them β€” neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
AirDrums versus MS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAirDrumsMS
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyβ€”Every 5 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad β€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.518.0 β€” better
Further details β€” not scored
Size4 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEMIRHAN SIMSEKyuji yoshie

In-app purchases

None

AirDrums

No in-app purchases

None

MS

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is AirDrums free?
AirDrums is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MS free?
MS is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do AirDrums or MS have ads?
Neither AirDrums nor MS shows ads.

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