Comparison

LuSID Synthesizer vs S

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

Head to head
About

LuSID Synthesizer

Create synthwave music with a powerful, intuitive synthesizer. Features a multi-voice engine, versatile filter, built-in sequencer, and a range of effects. Record and share your creations easily.

Highlights
  • Eight-voice polyphony with unison
  • Audio-rate filter envelope
  • Built-in 4-64 step sequencer
  • Tape-style delay, chorus, distortion, reverb
  • Neon Liquid-Glass interface
  • Record and share WAV files
Features
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LuSID Synthesizer — a SID-inspired SwiftUI synth with a synthwave heart. Eight-voice polyphony with detune-and-spread unison, audio-rate filter envelope, classic SID-flavoured ring modulation and pulse-width modulation, plus a built-in 4 to 64-step sequencer and tape-style delay, chorus, distortion, and lush reverb. Wrapped in a neon Liquid-Glass interface that matches what's playing — magenta sequencer steps that bloom lime when active, a gradient cyan oscilloscope that traces your output in real time, and a synthwave horizon that rolls under the step grid. FOUR TABS SYNTH — oscillator (triangle, sawtooth, square, noise) with PolyBLEP anti-aliasing. Custom Cytomic state-variable filter (low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, notch) with drive and self-oscillating resonance. Audio-rate filter envelope. LFO with pitch, cutoff, PWM, and pan destinations. Ring modulation. Distortion (lo-fi, broken, cubed, bitcrush, mangled). Chorus. Delay. Reverb (plate, room, hall, cathedral). Big rotary knobs, all the modulation routing visible. SEQUENCER — 4 to 64 steps. Tap-to-place notes with the chromatic note picker. Per-step ratchets (1x, 2x, 3x) and held-legato notes for gate-length variation. Tempo from 60 to 440 BPM, gate length 5 to 150 percent of step. KEYBOARD — two-octave touch piano with multi-touch chords and slide-to-play, velocity slider, octave switcher (C2 to C6). RECORD — capture everything you hear (filter, drive, delay, reverb, the full chain) to a WAV file in the app's Documents folder, then share via the iOS share sheet. 5 to 60 seconds per take. LuSID is built for the moments when you want to make sound, not learn software. No menus, no preset hunting, no tutorials. Tap a step, sweep a knob, hold a key. The app treats every parameter as performance. NO ACCOUNTS. NO ANALYTICS. NO TRACKING. NO ADS. LuSID does not collect any data, make any network requests, or contain any third-party SDKs. Recordings stay on your device until you choose to share them.

About

S

This app is a polyphonic synthesizer that works with specific hardware. It offers a variety of sound engines, filters, and effects for creating unique audio textures. Advanced modulation options and a flexible routing system allow for deep sound design.

Highlights
  • Dual engine slots per voice
  • Multiple sound flavors (analog, wavetable, FM, speech)
  • Classic and Modern filter modes
  • Advanced FX rack
  • Two free-routing LFOs
  • Unified mod matrix
  • Standalone, AU, and AUv3 formats
Features
Read full description

s-2 is a polyphonic synthesizer designed to work with the Roland AIRA Compact S-1. ENGINE Each voice runs two parallel engine slots that mix together. Pick a sound flavor per slot, including: • Classic analog — saw, square, sub, noise, pulse-width • Wavetable • FM • Speech • Chord • Plucked string FILTER AND FX Classic mode runs a vintage-style ladder filter into a simple Delay → Chorus → Reverb chain. Modern mode swaps in a multi-mode SVF (LP / BP / HP) followed by a 3-slot Advanced FX rack with Bitcrusher, Drive, Flanger, Phaser, Auto-Filter, Tape Delay, Plate Reverb and Chorus. MODULATION Two free-routing LFOs (sine / triangle / saw / square / random / noise, with optional clock-sync), a dedicated filter envelope with two destination slots, and a unified mod matrix dialog that visualizes every routing in one place. Click any knob in Learn mode to assign — no digging through menus. FORMATS • Standalone for iOS • Audio Unit (AU) for Logic Pro and other AU hosts • AUv3 plugin for iPad / iPhone in AUM, GarageBand, Cubasis and more - s-2 is an independent third-party application. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Roland Corporation. "Roland", "AIRA", "AIRA Compact", and "S-1" are trademarks of Roland Corporation, used here only to describe MIDI compatibility between this app and that hardware.

Screenshots

LuSID Synthesizer4 screens
S3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: LuSID Synthesizer at 5.0 against S's 4.5. S's advantage is ratings volume (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.4). On price, 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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

LuSID Synthesizer holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 4 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

LuSID Synthesizer ships an update every 2 months, S every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
LuSID Synthesizer versus S: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLuSID SynthesizerS
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better4.5 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews—0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings14 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.416.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB17 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLukasz PomianekMathias Kirkerød

Customer experience

LuSID Synthesizer

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

S

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral100.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

LuSID Synthesizer

No in-app purchases

None

S

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is LuSID Synthesizer free?
LuSID Synthesizer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is S free?
S is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, LuSID Synthesizer or S?
LuSID Synthesizer is rated higher. LuSID Synthesizer averages 5.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while S averages 4.5 from 4 ratings.
Do LuSID Synthesizer or S have ads?
Neither LuSID Synthesizer nor S shows ads.
Which is updated more often, LuSID Synthesizer or S?
LuSID Synthesizer ships an update every 2 months, and S every 6 weeks. Most recently, LuSID Synthesizer was updated on November 5, 2026 and S on October 31, 2026.

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