Chip's Jack Machine vs VU202 FX
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Chip's Jack Machine
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Chip's Jack Machine is a pocket-sized classic house drum machine — 16 voices, a 16/32-step sequencer, and the hands-on knob-per-function workflow of the original hardware, with no menus to dig through. Most of the kit is synthesized live rather than played back from a sample library, so every knob genuinely reshapes the sound instead of filtering a recording. A few voices are built from recordings where a real one simply sounded better. FEATURES • 16 voices — bass drum, snare, low/mid/hi tom, clap, closed and open hat, cowbell, rim shot, maracas, low/mid/high conga, claves, and cymbal. • Per-voice TUNE, DECAY, TONE, SNAPPY, LEVEL, PAN and VERB — every one of them live. • 4 scenes (A/B/C/D) with instant switching, copy and paste. Each scene keeps its own pattern, bar length, mute/solo state and knob settings. • 8, 16 or 32-step patterns with swing. • Step recording — arm RECORD and play the pads in. • Load your own audio into any voice with SAMPLE. • Low-latency audio engine built for playing, not just playback. • Export a pattern as WAV, or export every voice separately as stems. • Save and load projects as .house files and move them between your devices — the same format the whole Architect Series uses. Runs on iPhone and iPad. Buy it once and it's yours. No subscription, no account, no ads, no in-app purchases, and no network connection — the app works entirely offline, forever. Part of the Time2Jack Architect Series.
VU202 FX
This audio effect plugin brings the character of a sampler engine to your iOS music production workflow. Apply gritty resampling, lo-fi textures, and unique tone shaping to drums, loops, vocals, and more within your AUv3 host.
- AUv3 audio effect integration
- Sampler engine character
- Four tone shaping modes (HIFI, STANDARD, LOFI, LOFI2)
- Flexible input routing (LEFT, RIGHT, MONO, STEREO)
- Six-slot effects chain
- Extensive list of available effects
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VU202 FX brings the sound and behavior of the free VU202 app into your AUv3 workflow. It uses the same VU202 engine, rebuilt as a compact audio effect for producers who want that crunchy sampler character directly inside their favorite iOS host. Run drums, loops, synths, vocals, or whole buses through the VU202 signal path. Shape the tone with four character modes: HIFI, STANDARD, LOFI, and LOFI2. Choose LEFT, RIGHT, MONO, or STEREO input routing, set pad-style volume, then build your own six-slot effects chain. Available effects include Pitch, Pitch Free, Filter LP, Filter HP, Filter BP, EQ Low, EQ Mid, EQ High, Comp, Drum Comp, Limit, Delay, Tape Delay, Flanger, Phaser, Reverb, Ring Mod, and Vinyl Sim. Use it for gritty resampling color, lo-fi drums, filtered breaks, unstable tape-style echoes, pitch-shifted textures, crushed mono grooves, animated modulation, vinyl wear, and simple SP-style tone shaping without leaving your AUv3 session. VU202 FX is not a generic clean effect. It is made to give your audio the attitude of the VU202 engine: direct, rough, musical, and fast to control.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is chart position: VU202 FX at #43 against Chip's Jack Machine's unranked. VU202 FX also leads on price ($2.99 vs $4.99) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Chip's Jack Machine costs $4.99 and VU202 FX $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
| Parameter | Chip's Jack Machine | VU202 FX |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | $2.99 — better |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 2 — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | — | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #43 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 8 MB | 10 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Irwin Eberhart | Dariusz Chynek |
In-app purchases
Chip's Jack Machine
No in-app purchases
VU202 FX
No in-app purchases









