Comparison

OR vs AD

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

Head to head
About

OR

This application acts as a generative MIDI Note-FX, controlling external synths, samplers, and drum machines. It offers advanced features like Euclidean and polyrhythmic sequencing, stochastic drift, and scale quantization with chord lock. Designed for musicians to create complex MIDI patterns without generating sound itself.

Highlights
  • Euclidean sequencing
  • Polyrhythm generation
  • Stochastic drift
  • Modulators
  • Scale quantizer with chord lock
  • Tempo and random performance controls
  • MIDI Learn
Features
Read full description

OR-1 makes no sound on its own. It's a generative MIDI Note-FX — the brain, not the sound source — that plays your own synths, samplers, and drum machines for you… - Euclidean - Polyrhythm - Stochastic drift - Modulators - Scale quantizer with chord lock - Temp and random for performance - MIDI Learn - 19 factory presets, including 13 rhythm kits for General MIDI drums - Save your own presets - Light and dark themes — tap the OR—1 logo - Full-screen layout that grows to fill the 13-inch iPad and reflows to fit smaller iPads

About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read full description

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

AD4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: OR at Free against AD's $6.99. OR also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and review sentiment (100% vs 86%). On ratings volume, 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

OR is free to download; AD costs $6.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

OR holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 14 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of OR's written reviews are positive against 86% of AD's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

OR ships an update every 6 weeks, AD every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
OR versus AD: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterORAD
PriceFree — better$6.99
Rating5.0 (8 ratings) — better4.7 (14 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better85.7% of reviews
Number of ratings814 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB74 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJori Eero LarresAudio Damage, Inc.

Customer experience

OR

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

AD

All ratings12 ratings
Positive91.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive85.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative14.3%

In-app purchases

None

OR

No in-app purchases

None

AD

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is OR free?
OR is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is AD free?
AD costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, OR or AD?
OR is rated higher. OR averages 5.0 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while AD averages 4.7 from 14 ratings.
Do OR or AD have ads?
Neither OR nor AD shows ads.
Which is updated more often, OR or AD?
OR ships an update every 6 weeks, and AD every 3 weeks. Most recently, OR was updated on October 24, 2026 and AD on October 25, 2026.

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