Comparison

Recodec vs Melthaven

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

Head to head
About

Recodec

Transform clean audio signals into rich, textured tones with a suite of powerful effects. Experiment quickly with a classic interface, save custom presets, and gain hands-on control via MIDI and host learning. Includes a companion app for routing and a user manual.

Highlights
  • Bit-depth and sample-rate reduction
  • Harmonic drive and tone shaping
  • Dry/Wet blend and limiter
  • 35 factory presets
  • User preset saving
  • MIDI and Host Learn
  • Mono/stereo operation
Read full description

Recodec is an AUv3 audio effect for turning clean signal into textured, character-rich tone. Use Crusher for bit-depth style reduction, Reducer for sample-rate style degradation, Refine for smoother oversampled processing, Drive for added harmonic color, and Bass and Treble to rebalance the result. Then place the effect exactly where it belongs with Dry / Wet and the always-on Limiter. Recodec is built for fast experimentation. The classic interface keeps the core controls close, supports mono and stereo operation, includes factory presets across multiple categories, and lets you save your own user presets for quick recall. Recodec also includes MIDI Learn, Host Learn, CC assignment, and optional CC broadcast feedback for hands-on control workflows. Features: - Crusher for digital bit-depth style reduction - Reducer for sample-rate style degradation - Refine oversampling control - Drive, Bass, and Treble tone shaping - Dry / Wet blend and always-on Limiter - 35 factory presets across multiple categories - User preset save and recall - MIDI Learn, Host Learn, CC assignment, and CC broadcast - Mono and stereo operation Great for: - drums and percussion - vocals - synths and keys - bass and guitar - loops and transitions - creative sound design

About

Melthaven

This app provides a note-triggered phase shifter for guitarists, bassists, and synthesizers. It offers organic, rhythmic movement that syncs to your playing, with analog-modeled filters for diverse sonic textures. Enhance loops or create experimental sounds with its input-dependent modulation.

Highlights
  • Note-triggered phase shifting
  • Analog-modeled OTA filters
  • Responds to guitar and bass transients
  • Enhances pre-recorded loops
  • Input-dependent synth modulation
  • Low-latency engine
Features
Read full description

Melthaven is a note-triggered phase shifter built to give guitarists and bassists organic, rhythmic movement that syncs to their playing, rather than a fixed LFO. It's also highly suited for a number of synth basses and sounds with sharp attacks and fast decays. Its analog-modeled OTA filters provide deep resonance and character, ranging from wah-like effects to complex, shifting formant textures or even experimental tones, like bubbling or hard, slappy effects. For bright, harmonically dense signals – such as saturated or overdriven tones and synthetic sounds – the effect range also includes growls and glistening sweeps. FOCUSED ON BASS & GUITARS The effect was specially developed to respond to the frequency response and transient peaks of electric guitars and basses. Every pluck, pop, or pick attack re-triggers the phase sweep, effectively turning your rhythmic timing into the "engine" of the effect. USING LOOPS? BREAK THEM OPEN Add various resonant effects like growls, or vintage bark / quacks "after the fact." This unlocks a level of control usually lost the moment a loop is bounced. Instead of being stuck with locked-in sound design, you can now reshape the envelope of any pre-recorded sample, breathing new life into your loop library. FOR SYNTHS & SOUND DESIGN: INPUT DEPENDENT Soft signals like pads or heavy/layered effects can produce wild, unpredictable responses. While such use is outside the plugin's core design, the smoothing feature can tame these re-triggers, yielding a flow that can feel organic and physical in its instability when operating beyond the plugin’s transient-focused comfort zone. MOVING BEYOND ENVELOPE FILTERS The plugin uses low-latency note detection paired with its own envelope generator and LFO, allowing sculpting and even reshaping each note’s modulation profile or filter envelope. It even detects notes that hide under a consistent signal amplitude when using a traditional envelope follower. BASE FEATURES: - Built around a versatile preset from the Pro version to suit a wide variety of applications - Controls: feedback & panoramic position, attack & hold timings, LFO Rate - Smoothing: from envelope shaping to creating a weighted, fluid response, giving note sequences a sense of physical momentum - Low-latency engine: preserves natural playing feel when used as a real-time effect PRO FEATURES - Requires Pro Edition Upgrade (In‑App Purchase): - Additional envelope parameters, several envelope flavors with pre-mapped control subsets - Pro presets encompassing both strong and milder effects, including the quintessential rubber bass - Enhanced stereo phaser modes & internal stereo re-imaging modulator (for formant-like effects and more) - Vintage-style phaser feedback that can optionally build or ramp with each note onset (non-rampable in the base version) - Instant visual feedback via an audio scope with dual-channel envelopes overlaid on the input waveform TECHNICAL NOTES: - Place before creative effects (unless experimenting). It can be used before or after harmonic processing (saturation, amp sims) depending on your preference - Response may vary on sustained notes with shifting harmonic content - Not optimized for upright bass due to its reliance on sharp signal transients - Note detection involves statistical signal processing and confidence intervals. Weak transients and phantom notes could lead to a loss of output determinism, i.e. sensitivity to changes in certain project settings - While it offers multiple layers of real-time control, Melthaven operates primarily as an automatic effect; for full manual filter manipulation, please refer to RealPhase, a separate app PLEASE NOTE: • The Pro Edition Upgrade is offered as a one‑time In‑App Purchase • An AUv3-compatible host is required to use this app • Suported sampling rates: 44.1, 48, 96 kHz

Screenshots

Recodec4 screens
Melthaven3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Melthaven at $2.99 against Recodec's $14.99. Recodec's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and device support (4 vs 2). On rating, ratings volume, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Recodec costs $14.99 and Melthaven $2.99 up front. Melthaven sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Recodec asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Recodec against 5.0 for Melthaven. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 4 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Recodec ships an update every 5 weeks, Melthaven every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and September 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Recodec versus Melthaven: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRecodecMelthaven
Price$14.99$2.99 — better
Rating5.0 (3 ratings)5.0 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings34 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristian Thompsonquantovox

Customer experience

Recodec

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Melthaven

All ratings4 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Recodec

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Melthaven

One-time1
  • Melthaven Pro$4.99

Questions

Is Recodec free?
Recodec costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Melthaven free?
Melthaven costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Recodec or Melthaven?
Recodec and Melthaven are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 3 and 4 ratings respectively.
Do Recodec or Melthaven have ads?
Neither Recodec nor Melthaven shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Recodec or Melthaven?
Recodec ships an update every 5 weeks, and Melthaven every 6 weeks. Most recently, Recodec was updated on September 19, 2026 and Melthaven on September 15, 2026.

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