Comparison

ARC vs EchoSketch

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

Head to head
About

ARC

Create music with a versatile groovebox featuring eight tracks for synths, samplers, and drums. Its intuitive interface allows for real-time performance and easy arrangement into songs, all while staying in key and scale.

Highlights
  • Eight dynamic tracks (synth, sampler, drums)
  • Key and scale locked note/chord pads
  • 16-pad sampler with import/record
  • Deep synth editing and 25 arpeggiator patterns
  • Full mixer with EQ and individual track effects
  • Song mode for arrangement and live performance
  • MIDI input and iCloud sync
Features
Read full description

Eight tracks. Synths, samplers, drums. Play it like an instrument. ARC-24 is a groovebox for iPhone and iPad. Pads, loops, and a mixer in one place. Everything stays in key. Pick a key and a scale and the pads follow, so you can play fast without landing on a wrong note. Record a loop, keep overdubbing while it runs, and fix whatever you fumbled on the grid afterwards. Once you've got a few loops going, chain them into a song. Or leave the transport running and fire them off by hand from the mixer. • Eight tracks that sort themselves out. Synth, sampler, or drums, decided by what you play first. Overdub while the loop cycles. • Note and chord pads locked to your key and scale. Hold latches notes so they sustain. Pulse retriggers them on the beat. • A sixteen pad sampler. Import WAV, AIFF, MP3, M4A, AAC, or FLAC, pull audio from a video, or record through the mic. Chop it into slices across the grid, or map one sample over every pad and play it pitched, in scale or chromatic, at the original length or at tape speed. • Ten drum kits, from 909 and trap to lo-fi, boom bap, and hand percussion. Tune, pan, and level every pad. • Synth editing that goes deep enough to matter. 21 presets to start from, two oscillators, filter, envelope, and LFO when you want to build your own. Save the keepers. • 25 arpeggiator patterns, all of them in your key, from slow drifting phrases to sixteenth note runs. • A piano roll editor. Move, stretch, and delete notes while the loop keeps playing. • A real mixer. Faders, pan, mute, solo, and three band EQ on every channel. • Every track gets its own effects rack, not a shared send. Resonant low and high pass with cutoff and resonance. Compressor and gate. Distortion, bit crusher, ring mod, flanger. Tempo synced delay in digital, analog, or tape. Reverb with chorus and tape wow. Character for texture, air, width, and warmth. • Motion, so synth parts never sit still. Slow LFOs drift the filter as the loop runs, and Bloom opens the cutoff every time you play a note. • Song mode. Arrange loops into sections, or switch between them live from the mixer without ever stopping. • MIDI in from a USB or Bluetooth controller. • Export to WAV or AAC. • iCloud. Start something on the iPad, pick it up on the phone. Seven days free, the whole app. After that one purchase unlocks it for good. No subscription, no renewal, nothing to cancel.

About

EchoSketch

Shape delay and reverb effects in real-time with a playable X/Y performance surface. Explore four distinct delay types and multiple reverb options, with extensive parameter control for unique sound morphing. Works as a standalone app or an Audio Unit plugin.

Highlights
  • X/Y performance surface for real-time sound shaping
  • Four distinct delay types: digital, analog, reverse, ping-pong
  • Spring, plate, and hall convolution reverb
  • Modulation and tone control for echoes
  • HOLD, LIFT, FREEZE, and MOTION performance gestures
  • Standalone app and AUv3 plugin compatibility
Features
Read full description

EchoSketch turns delay and reverb into a live, playable instrument. Shape your sound in real time using a responsive X/Y performance surface designed for intuitive touch expression. At its core are four great-sounding delays: digital, analog, ping-pong, and reverse. The range for each parameter and the XY axes direction can be set independently, allowing you to easily morph between sounds. It works as an Audio Unit plugin or standalone — iOS or Mac. Comprehensive Delays • Digital (patterned after a legendary '80s rack delay), Analog (warm, with tape-style pitch glide), Reverse, and Left/Right Ping-Pong • Delay times can sync to tempo or be set in milliseconds • Feedback features delay-dependent tone shaping — bright for short delays and darker for long ones Convolution Reverb • Stereo or mono Spring, Plate, and Hall • Reverb path is separate from the delay (same as vintage tape echo units), so repeats don’t get washed out Modulation and Filter • Analog-style modulation for chorused, warbly pitch echoes • Tone control — darken or brighten delays, with a center detent for flat Designed for Hands-On Performance • HOLD / LIFT — leave the XY cursor in place, or touch the pad for momentary delay sounds • FREEZE — set the current feedback into an infinite loop and play over it • MOTION — record a gesture on the XY pad and loop it Presets and More • Presets are transferable between hosts • Two looks — light "Trail" and dark "Glow" • Works standalone with live audio or as an AUv3 plugin • Universal — iPad/iPhone also gets you the Mac version — one purchase • Mac: after installing, open EchoSketch once to use it as a plugin in your DAW • Works in AUM, AudioBus, GarageBand, Logic, and other AUv3 hosts

Screenshots

ARC4 screens
EchoSketch4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ARC at Free against EchoSketch's $7.99. EchoSketch's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.3) and in-app purchases (none vs 2). On ratings volume, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

ARC is free to download; EchoSketch costs $7.99 up front. ARC sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. EchoSketch asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

EchoSketch holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 2 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ARC ships an update weekly, EchoSketch every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
ARC versus EchoSketch: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterARCEchoSketch
PriceFree — better$7.99
Rating4.3 (3 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews33.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better2
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS18.117 — better
Further details — not scored
Size52 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDaelan WoodAvi Bortnick

Customer experience

ARC

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral33.3%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive33.3%
Neutral33.3%
Negative33.3%

EchoSketch

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

ARC

One-time2
  • 7-Day TrialFree
  • ARC-24 Full Version$9.99
None

EchoSketch

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ARC free?
ARC is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is EchoSketch free?
EchoSketch costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ARC or EchoSketch?
EchoSketch is rated higher. ARC averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while EchoSketch averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do ARC or EchoSketch have ads?
Neither ARC nor EchoSketch shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ARC or EchoSketch?
ARC ships an update weekly, and EchoSketch every 2 days. Most recently, ARC was updated on October 5, 2026 and EchoSketch on October 14, 2026.

Other comparisons