Rhythm Ace vs M2DX

Rhythm Ace is a faithful simulator of the Ace Tone FR-1 — one of the earliest consumer drum machines, built in Japan in 1967 and the ancestor of the legendary Roland rhythm machines. Every sound is synthesized in real time using classic transistor-style audio circuits — no samples, no loops. Just pure, characterful analog-era percussion the way it was meant to sound. Eight synthesized voices Bass Drum · Snare · Low Conga · High Conga · Cymbal · Claves · Cowbell · Maracas 16 classic rhythm presets Waltz, Bossa Nova, Samba, Rock, Swing, Foxtrot, and more — all faithfully recreated from the original FR-1 diode matrix. Authentic pattern combining Select multiple rhythm buttons to layer patterns exactly like the original hardware — the diode matrix OR-combines their steps, letting you build complex grooves from simple presets. Voice cancel controls Mute individual instruments on the fly with the dedicated cancel buttons, just like the original panel. Precision tempo control Large rotary knob for natural, tactile BPM adjustment. Sample-accurate scheduling Built on a lookahead audio clock for tight, rock-solid timing — no drift, no jitter. Whether you're a vintage gear enthusiast, a music producer hunting for retro textures, or just curious what the dawn of the drum machine sounded like, Rhythm Ace brings a slice of music history to your iPhone.

M2DX is a 6-operator, 32-algorithm FM synthesizer for iPhone, built from the ground up in pure Swift 6. Open it and play immediately — tap the built-in on-screen keyboard and start making sound with M2DX's own hand-crafted presets. No external hardware or MIDI controller is required. The FM engine is a bit-exact port of the open-source Dexed / msfa DSP, verified sample-for-sample against the reference. It is also compatible with the classic DX7 patch format: bring your own DX7-format .syx banks and play them alongside M2DX's originals. KEY FEATURES - Built-in on-screen keyboard with velocity and octave control — play standalone, no hardware needed - 6-operator, 32-algorithm DX7-style FM synthesis - M2DX's own original FM presets, plus DX7-format .syx bank import (bring your own) - A 6-stage FX chain: EQ, Drive, Chorus, Reverb, Stereo, Maximizer - Low-latency audio with AVAudioSourceNode direct rendering - AUv3 plug-in — use M2DX as an Audio Unit (AUv3) in compatible hosts OPTIONAL MIDI (not required to use the app) - Connect any MIDI controller over Bluetooth or USB if you have one - Native MIDI 2.0 — UMP with 16-bit velocity and 32-bit controllers - MIDI-CI Property Exchange — patch names appear on compatible controllers (for example, KORG KeyStage) - MIDI Learn for hands-on control MIDI 2.0 done natively, classic FM done faithfully. The FM engine is built on Dexed / msfa (Apache License 2.0). M2DX is an independent product and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Yamaha Corporation. DX7 and Yamaha are trademarks of Yamaha Corporation. iOS 18 or later.