Comparison

MetaSkew vs Microtonal Lab

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

Head to head
About

MetaSkew

This audio effect processor offers granular delay and pitch-shifting for creating width, motion, and unique textures. Shape delay times, pitch intervals, grain size, and stereo spread with built-in LFO modulation and extensive preset categories. It's ideal for producers, musicians, and sound designers seeking controlled sonic damage and experimental soundscapes.

Highlights
  • Granular delay and pitch-shifting
  • Adjustable grain size, smoothing, and gain
  • Stereo spread and asymmetry control
  • Built-in LFO modulation with multiple shapes
  • Extensive preset categories for production jobs
  • MIDI Learn for hardware control
  • Standalone app and AUv3 plugin support
Read full description

MetaSkew is a granular delay and pitch-shift effect built for producers, musicians, and sound designers who want one processor for width, motion, ambience, and controlled damage. What you can shape: - Delay time from tight doubling to long phrase memory - Pitch from deep drops to shimmer intervals - Grain size, smoothing, and gain for soft clouds or chopped repeats - Feedback, pan, mix, and output for clean blend control - Latch for frozen textures and phrase-end captures - Spread and Skew for stereo width, asymmetry, and unstable character The signature Skew control is the fastest way to move from polished enhancement into unstable texture. Keep it low for subtle smear, or push it with Spread, Feedback, and LFO movement for broken motion. Modulation is built in. Three LFOs can run free or sync to musical divisions, with Sine, Triangle, Sample & Hold, and Saw shapes. Route movement to Delay, Pitch, Grain, Smoothing, Feedback, Mix, Pan, Spread, or Skew, then push subtle drift or obvious rhythmic motion. Presets are designed around real production jobs, not random patches. Browse Utility, Width, Pitch, Atmosphere, Motion, Rhythmic, Freeze, Destruction, and Signature categories. Save your own snapshots, recall them later, and keep user presets synced through iCloud when available. For hands-on control, MIDI Learn lets you map parameters to hardware. Default assignments cover the core effect, and MIDI CC broadcast can reflect parameter movement in connected setups. Use MetaSkew for: - Vocal throws and shimmer trails - Wide synth doubles and guitar halos - Drum stutters, glitch fills, and tempo-locked motion - Frozen pads and transition beds - Experimental resynthesis, smear, and warped ambience MetaSkew includes a standalone app and effect plugin for host apps that support AUv3 plug-ins.

About

Microtonal Lab

Explore music beyond the traditional 12-note scale with this comprehensive microtonal studio. Create custom scales, play a microtonal keyboard, sequence patterns, and perform live with a launchpad. Export your creations as MIDI files for further production.

Highlights
  • Harmonic Galaxy visualizer
  • Microtonal keyboard with custom scales
  • 32-step sequencer with FX
  • Launchpad for live performance
  • Extensive world scale library
  • Multiple tuning systems support
  • MIDI export for DAWs
Features
Read full description

Microtonal Lab is a complete microtonal music studio for iOS. Break free from the 12-note octave and explore the infinite space between the notes. AUv3 PLUGIN Use MicrotonalLab as a plugin inside GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis, Drambo, and any AUv3-compatible host. The full step sequencer, tuning system, and SF2 instruments are available directly in your DAW. Record sequences as MIDI regions with automatic tempo sync. HARMONIC GALAXY Discover musical intervals as a visual universe. Every dot is an interval above the root — its size shows consonance, its color shows its position in the octave, and its number shows the exact distance in cents. Pinch to zoom and new microtones emerge from the depths. Build custom scales by tapping intervals and save them to your library. MICROTONAL KEYBOARD A fully playable keyboard with exact microtonal tuning. Choose from piano, strings, marimba, vibes, bass, pad, flute, or synthesized waveforms. Activate any scale from the library and the keyboard reconfigures to show precisely those notes. Supports glide between notes for expressive playing. STEP SEQUENCER A 16-step sequencer with microtonal note assignment per step, velocity, gate, and swing control. Syncs to the host tempo in AUv3 mode. LAUNCHPAD A grid-based launchpad for live performance. Rows correspond to scale degrees, columns to time — tap to toggle notes and play your patterns in real time. SCALE LIBRARY Browse world scales from dozens of musical traditions, including Arabic maqam, Indian ragas, Persian dastgah, Javanese gamelan, and many more. Preview any scale, then activate it across all views with one tap. TUNING SYSTEMS Switch between 12-TET, 19-TET, 24-TET, 31-TET, and 53-TET. Full access to all scale degrees in the sequencer for every tuning system. MIDI EXPORT Export your sequences to standard MIDI files with full microtonal pitch bend on each channel. Import directly into any DAW for further production. FX Filter (low-pass with cutoff and resonance), reverb (from small room to cathedral), and delay — all controllable via XY pads in real time during playback. Microtonal Lab is built for composers, sound designers, music theorists, and anyone curious about the music that lives between the keys.

Screenshots

MetaSkew4 screens
Microtonal Lab4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: MetaSkew at 5.0 against Microtonal Lab's 1.0. MetaSkew also leads on device support (4 vs 2). Microtonal Lab's advantage is price ($6.99 vs $14.99). On ratings volume, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

MetaSkew costs $14.99 and Microtonal Lab $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

MetaSkew holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MetaSkew ships an update every 5 weeks, Microtonal Lab every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 25, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 6 level
MetaSkew versus Microtonal Lab: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMetaSkewMicrotonal Lab
Price$14.99$6.99 — better
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better1.0 (1 ratings)
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size13 MB90 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristian ThompsonMartin Adler

Customer experience

MetaSkew

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Microtonal Lab

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

In-app purchases

None

MetaSkew

No in-app purchases

None

Microtonal Lab

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is MetaSkew free?
MetaSkew costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Microtonal Lab free?
Microtonal Lab costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, MetaSkew or Microtonal Lab?
MetaSkew is rated higher. MetaSkew averages 5.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Microtonal Lab averages 1.0 from 1 ratings.
Do MetaSkew or Microtonal Lab have ads?
Neither MetaSkew nor Microtonal Lab shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MetaSkew or Microtonal Lab?
MetaSkew ships an update every 5 weeks, and Microtonal Lab every 2 months. Most recently, MetaSkew was updated on October 25, 2026 and Microtonal Lab on October 24, 2026.

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