Comparison

Drop2 vs Cadence Chords

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

Head to head
About

Drop2

This app acts as a practice coach for jazz guitarists, offering real-time feedback on playing through the microphone. It includes features for ear training, fretboard navigation, and improvising over backing tracks, with personalized practice scheduling and weekly reports.

Highlights
  • Real-time note-by-note feedback
  • Practice without a guitar (tap interface)
  • Scales and arpeggios training
  • Improvise over backing tracks
  • Drop-2 voicings learning
  • Interval and chord ear training
  • Smart practice scheduling
Features
Read full description

Drop2: Jazz Guitar Ear Trainer - your complete practice coach Drop2 listens to your playing through the microphone and gives you instant, note-by-note feedback - no cables, no interface, just your guitar and your phone. It even hears you over its own backing band: play along over the speaker, no headphones required. A smart scheduler points your practice at what you haven't nailed yet, and a weekly report says what to work on next. No guitar to hand? Tap the neck instead, or train your ear alone. Works with acoustic and electric guitar. All listening happens on-device - your playing never leaves your phone. For iPhone and iPad. In English, French and Japanese, with note names in English, German or solfege. FRETBOARD TRAINER Hear a note, then find and play it anywhere on the neck. Start with naturals, add sharps and flats, then the whole fretboard. Spaced repetition drills the positions you keep missing. PRACTICE WITHOUT A GUITAR Guitar in the other room? Tap the answers instead. The app names a note and a string and you find it on the neck; it names a chord and the voice on top and you build the grip with four taps. Moves drills voice leading: the grip you are leaving is on the neck, the next chord is named, and you build the voicing that moves the voices least - then comp a whole tune the same way. Same scheduler, no microphone. SCALES & ARPEGGIOS Play the one-octave scale or arpeggio for any root and chord quality and have each note checked by ear. A full-neck map colors the chord tones so you see the shape as you learn it. A curriculum opens new keys and qualities as you master the basics. LINES - SOLO OVER THE CHANGES Walking bass and drums loop a progression or standard form - ii-V, the blues, So What, Blue Bossa, Autumn Leaves, All the Things You Are, and more - while you improvise. Targets mode prescribes the guide tone to land each bar and grades your voice-leading. Free mode classifies every note live - chord tone, tension, avoid or outside - on a color-coded neck map. Score on headphones or over the speaker: an on-device model picks your guitar out of the band. DROP-2 VOICINGS Learn and drill the essential jazz voicings across roots, qualities, inversions, and string sets. Browse any shape, hear it strummed - then the app names a chord, you play it, and all four notes are scored, octave by octave, so it tells inversions apart. Includes ii-V progressions, a daily review, and a play-along band to comp the changes with. EAR TRAINER Drop2 plays an interval, a chord, a cadence or a phrase, and you answer on the neck: intervals as degree-labeled circles, chords as real drop-2 voicings in any inversion - name the quality, or the voice on top - cadences as voice-led shapes, and jazz phrases you tap back note by note. Hold any answer to hear it first. Then pick up the guitar: hear the line over its chords and play it back, and the app checks every note. PRACTICE THAT ADDS UP Every drill has a finish line: a run of questions, a strip that fills, and a result card with your score and personal best. Tell the app how long you have and whether you have a guitar, and it plans the day's workout - an ordered route across the trainers that hands you on as each step is done. Each week it reads your log back to you: what you mastered, what is solid, and the one thing to work on next. Behind it: streaks, a heatmap, accuracy trends, coverage grids, iCloud sync, a widget and a daily reminder. FREE & PREMIUM Free: the Fretboard trainer and its no-guitar drill, Drop-2 Learn & Train, the tuner and metronome, your streak, history, widget and weekly report, and a taste of the ear trainer. Premium unlocks the full coach: Scales & Arpeggios, Lines, the Play-Along band, ear stats and review, played phrases, the daily workout, and accuracy charts. Drop2 Premium is an auto-renewing subscription (monthly or annual) with a free trial. Subscriptions renew automatically until canceled; manage or cancel anytime in your App Store settings.

About

Cadence Chords

Read full description

Cadence trains your musical ear. Learn to recognise, name and play back chords in short, addictive practice rounds that make you a little better every day. Whether you're just starting with music theory or sharpening skills you already have, Cadence builds the ability that matters most: hearing and understanding chords. PRACTICE MODES • By ear — hear a chord and name its root and quality. • By sight — watch the keys light up on the keyboard and identify the chord. • Root key — listen to a chord progression with a groove and work out the key. (Premium) • Play back — replay the chord you're shown using your microphone or the on-screen keyboard. (Premium) PIANO AND GUITAR Pick your instrument. Cadence plays real piano and guitar sounds and shows the correct shape on the keyboard or guitar diagram. AT YOUR LEVEL Choose which chord qualities you practise and whether sharps and flats appear. From simple major/minor to seventh and extended chords — you set the difficulty. STAY MOTIVATED Keep a daily streak going, earn XP for every correct answer and watch yourself improve. Set a daily reminder to turn practice into a habit. FREE & PREMIUM Practise every day for free. Cadence Premium (€4.99/month) removes the daily limit, unlocks every practice mode, removes ads, and gives you access to all upcoming features. New practice modes are always on the way. Start training today and build an ear you can rely on. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Drop24 screens
Cadence Chords4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Drop2 at none against Cadence Chords's shown. Cadence Chords's advantage is update cadence (every 5 days vs every 4 weeks) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, in-app purchases and device support 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

Both are free to download. Drop2 sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month and Cadence Chords sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Drop2 ships an update every 4 weeks, Cadence Chords every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
Drop2 versus Cadence Chords: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDrop2Cadence Chords
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 weeksEvery 5 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size18 MB76 MB
Age rating+44+
DeveloperOliver DuschkaLich Software

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Drop2

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly7 Days trial$8.991 Month
  • Annual7 Days trial$44.991 Year
1 purchases

Cadence Chords

Subscriptions1
  • Cadence Chords Premium$3.991 Month

Questions

Is Drop2 free?
Drop2 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Cadence Chords free?
Cadence Chords is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Drop2 or Cadence Chords have ads?
Cadence Chords shows ads; Drop2 does not.
Which is updated more often, Drop2 or Cadence Chords?
Drop2 ships an update every 4 weeks, and Cadence Chords every 5 days. Most recently, Drop2 was updated on October 31, 2026 and Cadence Chords on October 24, 2026.

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