Comparison

SimpleSampler vs ORPHEUS

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

Head to head
About

SimpleSampler

Features
Read full description

SimpleSampler turns any sound into an instrument. Record a piano note, a clap, your voice or a glass you tap with a spoon. The app detects the pitch and puts the sound on a keyboard, so you can play it across several octaves right away. RECORDING Press record and the app shows you what it hears before the take starts. The recording begins with your first sound, not with the button press, so there is no silence or click at the start. If you don't like the take, cancel it and nothing is saved. KEYBOARD AND DRUM PADS The keyboard shows two octaves at a time and scrolls. It is fully multitouch, so chords and glissandos work. Eight drum pads hold eight different samples for beats. Pitch and length are independent: higher notes last as long as lower ones. If you prefer the classic tape sound, where higher also means faster, switch it on with one tap. LOOP STATION Tap a loop slot, play something and tap again to close the loop. Every new layer stays in time with the first one. You can also record a loop straight from the microphone. Your loops are still there the next time you open the app. RECORD YOUR SONG One button records everything you play: keyboard, pads and loops. It records what the app outputs, not what the microphone picks up, so the result is clean. Share it via AirDrop, Messages or any other app. PORTRAIT AND LANDSCAPE On iPhone, hold it upright to record and edit samples and turn it sideways to play. On iPad you get pads and keyboard on one screen. No account, no subscription, no tracking. Your recordings stay on your device unless you share them.

About

ORPHEUS

Create music by tapping cells on a glowing grid, which plays them back as a loop. Build melodies, bass lines, and countermelodies on multiple layers with adjustable patterns and instruments. Turn your loops into full songs using a sequencer, with no musical training required.

Highlights
  • Grid-based touch instrument
  • Multi-layer pattern creation
  • Adjustable loop lengths and scales
  • Song sequencer for chaining patterns
  • Multiple playing modes
  • Built-in guide and customization options
Features
Read full description

ORPHEUS is a musical instrument you play by touch. Tap cells on a glowing grid and it plays them back as a loop. Columns are time and rows are pitch, so a pattern you can see is a melody you can hear. No musical training needed. THREE LAYERS, PLAYING TOGETHER Build a bass line, a melody and a countermelody on three separate layers. Each has its own pattern, loop length (4 to 16 steps), instrument, scale and octave. Give the layers different loop lengths and they drift in and out of step, so the music keeps changing. SIX WAYS TO PLAY • Sweep: tap notes on and off while the playhead loops across the grid. • Floor: every lit cell becomes a bouncing ball that strikes a note each time it lands. • Order: your notes play one at a time, in the order you tapped them. • Draw: drag a finger to paint a melody that plays for a few loops, then fades away. • Hold: touch and hold to sustain a note, and slide up or down to change its pitch. • Free: play the rows live, like a keyboard, or slide across them for a run of notes. A SEQUENCER FOR WHOLE SONGS A single grid is a loop. The sequencer turns your loops into a song: chain your saved patterns into a series and they play back to back with no gap between them, each one at its own tempo, starting again after the last. A sequence holds up to 80 patterns and there are 100 sequences to fill, so a verse, a chorus and a bridge can live side by side. Tap any pattern while the song plays and it carries on from there. FIVE INSTRUMENTS Standard piano, kalimba, marimba, plucked string and bell, all synthesized on the device for quick, responsive sound. EIGHT SCALES Chromatic, harmonic major and minor, major and minor hexatonic, major and minor pentatonic, and the Japanese hirajoshi scale. Pick a pentatonic scale and every combination of notes sounds good together, which is perfect for children and first-time players. AN 88-KEY PIANO One tap turns the grid into a full 88-key piano keyboard. Slide your finger for a glissando, or switch to two keyboards side by side and play a duet with a friend. PATTERNS THAT COME ALIVE Turn on Life and your pattern evolves by the rules of Conway's Game of Life, a new generation every loop. Mirror symmetry paints each note in mirror image, left and right, top and bottom, or both at once. MAKE IT YOURS • 100 save slots for your patterns, each with the date and time of its last save • Everything saves automatically as you play • Seven colour themes and square or round cells • Tempo from 60 to 180 BPM • A full-screen mode with nothing between you and the grid • A built-in guide behind the question-mark button Works on iPhone and iPad, upright or sideways. No ads, no account, and no data collected: everything stays on your device.

Screenshots

SimpleSampler4 screens
ORPHEUS4 screens

Verdict

The call

SimpleSampler and ORPHEUS are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
SimpleSampler versus ORPHEUS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSimpleSamplerORPHEUS
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—1 — better
Update frequency—Weekly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.415.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size49 MB61 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMax NowackHYUNG MIN SON

In-app purchases

None

SimpleSampler

No in-app purchases

None

ORPHEUS

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SimpleSampler free?
SimpleSampler is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ORPHEUS free?
ORPHEUS is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do SimpleSampler or ORPHEUS have ads?
Neither SimpleSampler nor ORPHEUS shows ads.

Other comparisons