GranSample vs Resonance Orb
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
GranSample
This app offers a 16-pad sampler with a powerful granular engine for sculpting unique audio textures and sequencing patterns. It functions as a standalone application and an AUv3 plugin for popular DAWs. Unlock advanced features with a one-time purchase.
- 16-pad granular sampler
- AUv3 plugin support
- Step sequencer
- Modulation matrix
- Sample chopping
- Kit sharing
- Per-pad effects
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A 16-pad sampler with a granular engine underneath. Standalone app + AUv3 plugin for GarageBand / Logic / AUM / Drambo / Loopy Pro. Tap pads, sculpt textures, sequence patterns, chain songs. Same instrument either way. Free to try. One purchase unlocks GranSample Pro — everything listed at the bottom. No subscription, no ads, no telemetry. NEW IN 1.5 Swing, in the app and in your host. Choke groups: hi-hats that cut each other off. Resample (Pro): record your beat back onto a pad as a bar-locked loop. A rebuilt AUv3 plugin editor. PATTERN BANK & SONG MODE Eight patterns per project (A–H). Switch live — the change waits for the bar end so the groove never stumbles. Then chain them into a song: tap letters to build, set repeats per section, loop or play once (song mode is Pro). Patterns, song and BPM save with the project. MODULATION MATRIX (PRO) LFO + ADSR envelope on 8 destinations per pad: grain position / size / pitch / density, volume, pan, pitch, playback start. Drag the envelope chart, set depth per lane — host-automatable in AUv3. SAMPLE CHOP (PRO) Slice any sample across the pads — equal grid, transient detection, or manual markers you drag. Audition before you commit; the grid shows where every slice lands. KIT SHARING Export any kit as a single .gskit file — samples, settings, effects, patterns. Send it anywhere. Importing is free for everyone; exporting is Pro. PAD NAMES, COLORS & CHOKE GROUPS Name your pads, pick from 8 colors, set one of 8 choke groups. AUv3 PLUGIN Load "nono.audio: GranSample" under AU Instruments in any AUv3 host. Same grid, Kits and engine, with Sound, Grain and Sequence tabs. 900 host-automatable parameters. Load your own samples without leaving the host. Sequencer locks to host transport; everything persists in the host project. LIBRARY Factory Kits + your Projects in one place — load, tweak, save. GRANULAR ENGINE Eight knobs per pad. Position scans the sample; grain size + density set the texture from pebbles to glass. Pitch + jitter, spray + stereo spread, four window shapes, an ADSR cloud envelope, Freeze for infinite sustain. 128 grains per voice — and you can watch them fire. CHROMATIC MODE Any pad becomes the root; the grid plays chromatically. STEP SEQUENCER Per-pad patterns at 16/32/64 steps, per-step velocity, drag-to-paint, swing. SAMPLE EDITOR Waveform view — drag the grain region, trim playback range, loop, reverse, normalize per pad. LINEAR or GRAN preview. Works inside the plugin too. EFFECTS Per-pad AND master bus. Reverb, Delay, Distortion, EQ, Compressor, Chorus, Filter — up to 8 per chain, automatable from any DAW. Hand-tuned presets; save your own. IPAD Pads bigger than an MPC; recorder, properties and sequencer get their own column. MIDI USB, Bluetooth (built-in browser), or virtual MIDI. MIDI Learn on every knob standalone, per-pad channel routing. The plugin routes MIDI in through the host and emits MIDI out for pad taps. RECORDING 60 seconds from the mic straight into a pad with a live waveform. Resample the master onto a pad, free or locked to 1–8 bars (Pro). Master bounces to WAV/M4A (Pro). 10 FACTORY KITS, 16 SAMPLES Late Night Room, Outer Space, Neon City, Midnight Dub, Tape Machine, Crystal Cave, and more — each with bespoke granular settings. FREE TIER Pads 1–8 — drums and melody, enough to finish a track — with the full granular engine, effects, pattern bank, mixer, MIDI in/out. Same in standalone and AUv3. Kit import (.gskit) is free too. GRANSAMPLE PRO — ONE PURCHASE, NO SUBSCRIPTION All 16 pads unlocked everywhere — standalone AND AUv3 plugin Song mode — chain patterns into an arrangement Modulation matrix — LFO + envelope on 8 destinations per pad Sample chop to pads Resample to pads Kit export (.gskit) Per-pad ADSR envelope editor Custom backgrounds — wallpapers or your own photo, with dim and pad-opacity WAV / M4A export Made by one person who wanted a granular beat pad that fit on a phone — and in their DAW.
Resonance Orb
Explore harmonic soundscapes with a visual instrument. Tap to play tones from generative chord progressions, with each semitone mapped to a unique color. Switch between various instrument textures for a calming and immersive listening experience.
- Ambient audiovisual instrument
- Generative chord movement
- Expressive touch interaction
- Real-time visuals
- Multiple instrument textures (piano, pad, marimba, Rhodes, vibraphone)
- Harmonic exploration
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Resonance Orb is an ambient audiovisual instrument for slow listening, touch, and harmonic exploration. Choose a sequence and watch cascading arpeggios ripple across a luminous sphere. Each chord shift blooms into a new color, with every semitone mapped to its own visual palette. Tap the orb to play tones from the current harmony, or switch instruments to reshape the mood with piano, pad, marimba, Rhodes, and vibraphone textures. Designed as a calming music experience, Resonance Orb blends generative chord movement, expressive touch interaction, and real-time visuals into a calm space for listening, focus, and play.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Resonance Orb at none against GranSample's 1. Resonance Orb also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6). GranSample's advantage is ratings volume (16 vs 2). On price, ads, device support 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
Both are free to download. GranSample sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Resonance Orb asks for nothing beyond the download.
Resonance Orb holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: GranSample has 16 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.
| Parameter | GranSample | Resonance Orb |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (16 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 16 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 17.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 17 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Chih Han Lin | DERRICK LAWWAH CHANSEW |
Customer experience
GranSample
Resonance Orb
In-app purchases
GranSample
- GranSample Pro$3.99
Resonance Orb
No in-app purchases









