Comparison

RTA Pro vs AudioToolsMax

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

Head to head
About

RTA Pro

Transform your iOS device into a professional audio analysis tool. Analyze ambient noise frequencies, pinpoint room resonance, and set up sound systems for events. Features include custom calibration, multiple display modes, and adjustable speed settings.

Highlights
  • Real-time audio spectrum analysis
  • Frequency range 32Hz to 16kHz
  • Linear, dB(A), and dB(C) weightings
  • 1/3 Octave Bands, Octave Bands, and FFT display
  • Adjustable speed settings
  • Custom calibration options
Read full description

RTA Pro is a real time audio spektrum analyzer. It turns your iOS device into a powerful audio test system usually seen only in audio research laboratories and music studios. Such instruments are used to analyze the frequency spectrum of ambient noise, e.g. to be able to pinpoint frequencies which cause rumble in a room. Another use is the level setting setting of PA systems for concerts. Features: RTA Pro requires iOS11 or later and has been calibrated for the microphones of most iPhones. Custom calibration is also possible. The frequency range is 32Hz to 16kHz. Linear display, as well as weightings for measuring dB(A) and dB(C) is provided. Apart from 1/3 Octave Bands and Octave Bands, RTA Pro also features the display of a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The speed is adjustable to impulse, 128ms and 1 second.

About

AudioToolsMax

This comprehensive audio testing application provides a suite of professional measurement tools for acoustic analysis. It includes advanced features like SPL metering, real-time analysis, FFT, and impulse response, all unlocked and ready for use.

Highlights
  • SPL Meter
  • Real Time Analyzer (RTA)
  • FFT Analysis
  • Speaker Polarity Checker
  • Delay Finder
  • Audio Oscilloscope
  • Audio Calculators
Features
Read full description

AudioToolsMax is the complete professional audio test & measurement app with every tool completely unlocked and ready to use. Educational discounts are available under the Apple Educational Discount program. AudioToolsMax includes all of the additional optional modules, like SoundSource, SPL Graph, SPL Traffic Light, LARSA, Transfer Function, STIPA, Impulse Response, and more. It's the full package. We test every iOS device and calibrate the microphone level and frequency response for the best results. We have the ability to turn off the Apple low frequency filters, and on many devices we can measure up to 120 dB SPL. Add iTestMic, iPrecisionMic, or iAudioInterface2 for a complete professional audio and acoustic test and measurement platform. Actual reviews: “...AudioTools is a “how did I ever live without it” app”. “I think this application is the best I EVER purchased.” “I have used many thousands of dollars of complicated test equipment that doesn’t measure up to this app suite.” ***** Included in the app price ***** * SPL Meter A faithful reproduction of a classic analog SPL meter. Includes A and C weighting, and Fast and Slow ANSI decay modes. All filters meet or exceed ANSI type 1. * RTA A 1/3 and octave band Real Time Analyzer. Includes touch-GUI range control, a cursor, max/min bars, and noise curve overlays. * FFT Detailed acoustic analysis, up to 32876 points. View full detail or smooth to 1/24, 1/6, 1/3 or octave. Includes cursor, scalable graphics, and peak tracking. * Polarity Speaker polarity checker. Route the test signal to a speaker, and read the polarity of the speaker on the screen. * Delay Finder Measures the time it takes for a pulse to return from a speaker. * Generator Generates sine waves, square waves, white and pink noise. * Line Level Tests A line level measurement function and frequency counter. * Audio Scope A dual-channel audio oscilloscope that includes auto-triggering, variable gain and sweep rate, and storage of scope images. * Recorder A mono/stereo audio recorder with WAV and compressed formats and 8k-48k sample rate. Transfer files via WIFI. * File transfer of results via wifi to PC / Mac. * Audio Calculators * Smaart® Tools - Single channel module. The power of Smaart® on a mobile platform. Includes RTA graphs to 1/48th octave and Spectrograph. Split-screen on iPad. * Transfer Function -- Requires 2-channel interface. Two-channel FFT-based measurement. Allows you to analyze sound system performance with music or pink noise as the signal source. * ETC Energy Time Curve. Plot decay of an impulse over time, and compute RT60 time. Internal or External trigger. * Impulse Response Record and analyze an impulse or sine sweep, compute octave and 1/3 octave ETC, T30, C50, C80, CT, Definition. * LARSA Fast and accurate sine-sweep measurement of loudspeakers and rooms. * SPL Pro Digital SPL meter with ANSI Slow, Fast, Peak, and Impulse mode, along with LEQ. Includes A and C weighting, and all 10 octave band filters. * SPL Graph Plot second-by-second SPL level for up to 24 hours, and optionally record the audio. Also, add the optional Octave Band Logging upgrade to elevate this tool to rival any professional logging SPL Meter. * SPL Traffic Light Monitor live sound levels SPL and Leq and see status in a simple green-yellow-red display. * STIPA Speech Intelligibility Meets the current NFPA code standards for testing evac systems and schools. * Speaker Distortion Measure THD+n of any driver. * THD+n (requires iAudioInterface) * Impedance Meter and Plot (requires iAudioInterface) * Phase Meter * Amplitude Sweep

Screenshots

RTA Pro4 screens
AudioToolsMax2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: RTA Pro at $5.99 against AudioToolsMax's $399.99. AudioToolsMax's advantage is rating (4.9 vs 4.5) and ratings volume (8 vs 2). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

RTA Pro costs $5.99 and AudioToolsMax $399.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

AudioToolsMax holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 8 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
RTA Pro versus AudioToolsMax: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRTA ProAudioToolsMax
Price$5.99 — better$399.99
Rating4.5 (2 ratings)4.9 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings28 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB95 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMatthias SchorerAndrew Smith

Customer experience

RTA Pro

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

AudioToolsMax

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

RTA Pro

No in-app purchases

None

AudioToolsMax

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is RTA Pro free?
RTA Pro costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is AudioToolsMax free?
AudioToolsMax costs $399.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, RTA Pro or AudioToolsMax?
AudioToolsMax is rated higher. RTA Pro averages 4.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while AudioToolsMax averages 4.9 from 8 ratings.
Do RTA Pro or AudioToolsMax have ads?
Neither RTA Pro nor AudioToolsMax shows ads.
Which is updated more often, RTA Pro or AudioToolsMax?
RTA Pro ships an update every 3 months, and AudioToolsMax every 3 months. Most recently, RTA Pro was updated on October 26, 2026 and AudioToolsMax on October 29, 2026.

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