Patterning vs irio pro
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Patterning
Create unique rhythms with a circular sequencer that encourages new musical ideas. Sketch beats quickly or explore complex variations with customizable loops, trigger conditions, and automation. Offers built-in kits and the option to import your own samples.
- Circular sequencer with adjustable loop lengths
- Trigger conditions and probability for variation
- Automation for dynamic sound shaping
- Built-in drum kits and sampler
- Song mode for arranging patterns
- AUv3 plugin support
- Audio and MIDI export options
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Circular beats, off the grid. Most drum machines hand you the same 16-step grid. Patterning starts you on a circle, so new ideas come quickly and you discover rhythms you wouldn't have reached on your own. Sketch a simple beat in seconds, or go deep. Every track is a loop on the circle: • Give each loop its own length and hear polymeters drift in and out of phase. • Rotate a loop to move its downbeat and find a new groove. • Add trigger conditions, probability and automation to build variation into the loop. Patterning has been in development since 2015, and the original was a runner-up for Apple’s iPad App of the Year. It’s designed by a composer who has taught experimental electronic music for twenty years. FREE TO START • The circular sequencer: loop lengths, rotation, auto-rotate, trigger conditions, probability, ratchets, automation and playback modes • Undo • Mixer with levels, pan and sends • Built-in drum kits • Save your patterns and projects PATTERNING STUDIO A one-time in-app purchase that unlocks: • Song Mode: chain patterns into full songs • Sampler: import and shape your own samples • Effects: delay, reverb, EQ, distortion and compression • Parametric swing, per pattern or per loop • Cloud Kits: 800+ user-made and factory drum kits • AUv3: use Patterning as a plugin, or send its MIDI to other plugins • Audio export as stereo or multitrack stems (WAV or AIFF) • Ableton Live Set export, with a free Ableton Live 12 Lite license • MIDI file export and MIDI output to hardware and your DAW • Ableton Link, Link Audio and MIDI clock Owners of Patterning for iPhone get Patterning Studio at a discount. GO FURTHER WITH PATTERNING 3 Patterning 3 runs on iPad and Mac, on its own or as a plugin in your DAW, with loops up to 512 steps, modulation, randomization, fill patterns and more. Open your iPhone projects and keep going.
irio pro
This app offers a modular effects canvas for musicians, allowing for flexible signal chain routing with studio-grade modules. It supports various instruments and DAWs, featuring advanced amp modeling and modulation capabilities.
- Modular effects canvas
- Free signal chain routing
- Studio-grade audio modules
- Advanced amp modeling (NAM player)
- Customizable modulation effects
- AUv3 plugin support
- Scene and preset switching
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irio pro is a complete guitar rig / modular effects rig for iPhone, iPad and Apple Silicon Mac, built around a high-end NAM player. Add amps, cabinets, pedals and effects, connect them in any order, and play it all live from the perform page. It is easy to start with and as deep as you need it to be. It runs on its own or as an AUv3 plugin in your DAW, and it works just as well for bass, synths, vocals or any other audio. GUITAR / AMP - NAM (Neural Amp Modeler) player: A2, standard and nano models, one-tap input calibration to your interface, phase switch, dual mono - Cab section with IR loading, noise gate, 3-band EQ, high and low cut - Dual-cab IR blender with alignment scope - Drives and fuzzes - rosa: audio to MIDI converter - Chromatic tuner EFFECTS - 8 delays and 6 reverbs, among them a spring reverb with one to four springs and two classic digital reverbs of the 1980s in one module - Convolution for delays, reverbs and cabs - Chorus, flanger, pitch vibrato, photocell vibe, wah, ring modulator - Pitch shifting - Compressors - Noise gate - Parametric EQ with live analyzer - 8-voice synth - Analog guitar synthesizer after a classic 1980 unit, played from a normal guitar cable ROUTING / ENGINE - Free routing, any order - Multi-channel in and out - Instances limited only by CPU - Live metering on every connection - Patch-wide tempo - Hosts other AUv3 effects - Hosts AUv3 instruments - Block cards, 40+ DSP blocks - Engine blocks as modules on the main canvas - Folders: part of the rig in a card with a canvas, ports, shortcuts and memories of its own - Linked modules: modules of one kind that share every setting, with one badge colour per group - Any one-in one-out module can run as dual mono: a second pair of pins, one set of controls MODULATION - Three modifier types: LFO, envelope follower, hand-drawn LFO - Route a modifier to almost any control - One modifier to many targets, each with its own range - LFO rates and delay times lock to the tempo PERFORM - 8 scenes per preset - Perform page with multiple pad banks - Pads trigger presets, scenes, module memories, stomps, module switches (Stop, Freeze, Kill Dry), A/B, tap tempo, looper and player transport - Pads are momentary or latching, groupable, in 16 colors - Multi-pads: one pad controls several targets - XY pads - 4 assignable knobs - Shortcuts: switches and knobs assignable to any control - MIDI learn on every control - Host automation in AUv3 (AUTO slots) - Saveable perform layouts TOOLS - 4-track looper - Take recorder - Audio file player - Metronome with speed trainer - Whole-system backup - Mirror: a second iPhone or iPad shows and controls the device on your interface, canvas and perform page alike - Share a whole setup between your devices over Wi-Fi - Sync: both devices get every preset, memory and file either one has - Dark or light appearance Free version, no time limit: NAM player, morph drive, gyre mod, irio delay, irio verb, 3-band EQ, noise gate, audio player, metronome, global tempo. Free 5-day trial of everything, once per Apple ID, started when you choose. Pro Complete unlocks all modules. One purchase, no subscription, at any time. More at iriopro.com
Screenshots
Verdict
Patterning and irio pro both sit at 5.0 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of irio pro's written reviews are positive against 67% of Patterning's. On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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
Both are free to download. Patterning sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and irio pro sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Patterning against 4.9 for irio pro. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 12 and 17 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 67% of Patterning's written reviews are positive against 100% of irio pro's.
Patterning ships an update every 4 days, irio pro every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Patterning | irio pro |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (12 ratings) — better | 4.9 (17 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 12 | 17 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 days — better | Every 5 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 95 MB | 46 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Olympia Noise Co. | Mads Rohde |
Customer experience
Patterning
irio pro
In-app purchases
Patterning
- Patterning+$1.991 Month
- Patterning Studio Upgrade$7.99
- Studio Pack (Lifetime)$12.99
irio pro
- 5-day TrialFree
- Pro Complete$29.99








