Pulseq vs Oktopus Synthesizer

Pulseq is a multi-stage MIDI sequencer built for techno, acid, and experimental electronic music. It drives your external synths and AUv3 plugins over MIDI. Made up of 1-16 "stages", each stage carries its own note, velocity, gate behavior, and length. Chain scenes together into full arrangements. Use Pulseq as a standalone app or as an Audio Unit MIDI effect inside your host. SEQUENCING Build patterns from 1 to 16 stages. Each stage sets its own note, velocity, gate mode, and length in pulses. Let a stages hold for two or three pulses, and hear the loop come alive. PITCH & SCALES Pitch comes from each stage's note, guided by root and scale. Seventeen scales are available. Snap Notes to Scale keeps emitted notes in key; turn it off and stored notes play exactly as entered. GATE MODES & RHYTHM Gate mode is the character of each stage: Off, Single (one trigger per stage), Multi (retriggers every pulse, or every 2nd, 3rd, or 4th), Prob (fires by chance), Long (holds to the end), and Prog (a pattern you draw across up to 16 steps). Add Swing from 0 to 100%, shape Gate Length from tight and clipped to legato, and turn on per-stage Glide with global Portamento. PLAY & SPLIT MODES Play mode sets direction: Forward, Ping-Pong, Random, and Fixed. Split mode changes form: run a single lane, alternate lanes A and B by repeat counts (Serial, to build AAAB patterns), or run both lanes at once on two MIDI channels (Parallel) with an independent B clock multiplier. CC MODULATION Up to eight CC lanes drive filter cutoffs, mod wheels, or any destination that accepts MIDI CC. Lane values are per-stage, and every new lane starts with Don't Send so adding one can never surprise attached hardware. CLOCK & TRANSPORT When hosted, Pulseq follows the host transport and clock. Standalone, an internal tempo from 20 to 300 BPM drives playback, with clock divisions from 1/1 down to 1/32 plus triplet and dotted options. Apply Changes controls when live edits take effect: Immediate, Next Pulse, or Next Bar, for deterministic performance. SCENES & CHAIN Sixteen scene slots capture the full musical setup: stages, root, scale, tempo, split, and CC lanes, while leaving your user configuration intact. String scenes into a complete track with the Chain editor: set per-step lengths, loop the whole chain, and hand scene changes to the timeline. STANDALONE & AUV3 Use Pulseq as a standalone app or as an AUv3 MIDI effect. It runs in AUv3 hosts such as AUM, Drambo, Logic, and Cubasis.

Oktopus is a deep synthesizer and AUv3 extension instrument with a modular spirit built for sound design, performance, and music creation in any compatible DAW or standalone. This app includes an AUv3 extension! Shape sounds across 8 synth blocks, combine oscillators and samples, route MIDI creatively, and build movement with LFOs, arpeggiators, modulation, and a flexible effects chain. Use Oktopus as a standalone instrument or load it inside AUv3-compatible iOS hosts / DAWs. Features: + 8-block synth architecture for layered and evolving sounds + MIDI Sequencer for limitless song arrangement + MPE and MIDI input support + AUv3 instrument support for compatible hosts + Sample loading, slicing, and playback tools + Built-in recording and sample export workflow + Built-in spectrometer to clearly see what you're creating + Per-block arpeggiator and sequencing controls + LFOs, modulation routing, and performance macros + Factory presets and factory samples included + Share Voice Memos/Audio Files/Photos/Video clips to the app to sample almost anything you can imagine. Supported files: AIFF, MP3, WAV, MP4, MOV, JPEG, HEIF, PNG, SVG + Spectral synthesis + Flexible effects chain with EQ, distortion, bitcrusher, compressor, phaser, flanger, chorus, filter, delay, and reverb + Touch-friendly interface for iPhone and iPad music creation + Custom zoom level Oktopus is made for producers, composers, and experimental musicians who want a powerful synth environment that can move from quick ideas to detailed sound design.