Patterning vs AD
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Patterning
This music creation app offers a circular drum machine with a powerful sequencer. It's free to download and includes a vast library of drum kits and effects. Unlock advanced production and sync tools through an in-app purchase or a monthly subscription.
- Circular drum machine interface
- Powerful sequencer engine
- Extensive drum kit library
- Built-in effects and mixing
- Song mode for arrangement
- Audio and MIDI export options
- Ableton Link and MIDI sync
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Patterning is a circular drum machine that is both intuitive and deep. Built on the powerful sequencer engine of "Patterning 3: Drum Machine," this new iPhone version bottles the energy and excitement of our flagship instrument for the small screen. Free to download and make music with. The full sequencer, drum kits and sampler, effects and mixing, project saving, and access to nearly 800 drum kits are all included. "Patterning Studio" is an in-app purchase that unlocks production and sync tools for life : - AUv3 : Run Patterning as an instrument plugin. - Song Mode : chain patterns into full songs - Unlimited access to over 800 free drumkits. - 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 - MIDI output to hardware and your DAW - Ableton Link - Link Audio : send stereo or multitrack audio wirelessly to Ableton Live. - MIDI clock send/receive Patterning Studio is offered at a discounted price for existing owners of "Patterning for iPhone." Alternately, you can subscribe to Patterning+ and unlock all current and any future features on a monthly basis.
AD
This app emulates a classic 1983 micro synthesizer with modern enhancements like MPE and eight-voice polyphony. It offers a rich sound engine with multiple oscillators, filters, and a comprehensive drive section for unique sonic textures. Enjoy extensive modulation options and a built-in keyboard for immediate creativity.
- Eight-voice polyphony
- MPE support
- Classic four-pole lowpass filter
- Comprehensive drive section
- AUv3 and standalone operation
- Preset manager with favorites
- Built-in chicklet keyboard
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We rebuilt the legendary micro composer of 1983, then gave it everything the original owners wished for: eight voices, MPE, a sequencer worthy of the name, and a couple of new dirty tricks. The voice is the one you know: a single fat oscillator with sawtooth and pulse (manual, LFO, or envelope PWM), a three-mode sub oscillator, and a noise source, mixed and driven into a classic four-pole lowpass filter. One snappy ADSR, switchable env/gate VCA, and an LFO with triangle, square, stepped random, and noise shapes, complete with onset delay, tempo sync, and retrigger. Portamento with the proper on/auto/off modes, and gate, gate+trig, and LFO trigger modes, exactly like the hardware. And the a sequencer: eight patterns of up to 64 steps, drawn right on the panel, with accent, slide, and octave per step, follow actions and repeats, swing, and tools to randomize in a key and scale, mutate, copy, and rotate. Play a pattern from a held key, transpose it from the keyboard, lock it while you browse presets, and run it from its own clock, the host transport, or an Ableton Link session in the standalone. Sequences save with your presets. • Eight-voice polyphony, or the original mono behavior with the flip of a switch • MPE support with per-note pitch bend and pressure, four aftertouch destinations (VCO mod, VCF mod, filter freq, LFO rate), and adjustable pressure smoothing • MTS-ESP microtonal tuning, retuned continuously while notes sound • SPREAD for stereo voice panning, and AGE, which drifts each voice like forty-year-old components • A full drive section: pre-filter saturation, filter drive, post-VCA distortion, and a tilt EQ • Velocity to filter and amp • A chicklet keyboard with latch and octave shift, playable right on the panel • Full preset manager with favorites and a factory bank • Five faceplate colors, including one for console cowboys • AUv3 and standalone, with an interface that fills whatever window your host hands it AD-202 works everywhere iOS makes noise: AUM, apeMatrix, Logic Pro, GarageBand, Cubasis, and any other AUv3 host, plus a standalone app with its own audio and MIDI settings, Ableton Link, and background audio. No subscriptions. No accounts. No nonsense. Buy it once, own it forever.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Patterning at Free against AD's $6.99. Patterning also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs every 3 weeks) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). AD's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and review sentiment (86% vs 67%). 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
Patterning is free to download; AD costs $6.99 up front. Patterning sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. AD asks for nothing beyond the download.
Patterning holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 10 and 12 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 67% of Patterning's written reviews are positive against 86% of AD's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Patterning ships an update every 3 days, AD every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Patterning | AD |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $6.99 |
| Rating | 5.0 (10 ratings) — better | 4.7 (12 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 85.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 10 | 12 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 94 MB | 74 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Olympia Noise Co. | Audio Damage, Inc. |
Customer experience
Patterning
AD
In-app purchases
Patterning
- Patterning+$1.991 Month
- Patterning Studio Upgrade$7.99
- Studio Pack (Lifetime)$12.99
AD
No in-app purchases









