ECD Tunes vs Strum Machine
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ECD Tunes
This app provides a digital library for English Country Dance musicians, allowing them to organize and access sheet music. It supports various file formats and lets users create and share event schedules.
- Digital sheet music library
- Supports PDF, GIF, TIF, PNG
- Add custom music volumes
- Capture images via camera
- Create and share events
- AirDrop and email sharing
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ECD Tunes is meant for English Country Dance musicians. It contains a copy of the Blue and Red Barnes and allows users to add their own volumes of music by creating ZIP archives of PDF, GIF, TIF, and PNG files. Users can also capture images using their iPad's camera and image library. Events can be created and shared via AirDrop, email, and file sharing apps. You can find instructions for this app at http://www.TransportedProductions.com/iDeas
Strum Machine
Generate realistic backing tracks for practice with real instrument audio. Customize chord progressions, keys, and tempo. Features a large song library, song editor, and band customization options. Works offline and syncs across devices.
- Realistic instrument audio backing tracks
- Customizable chord progressions, keys, and tempo
- Extensive song library
- Simple song editor
- Band and instrument customization
- Cross-platform syncing and offline mode
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Elevate your music practice with customizable backing tracks generated with audio from real instruments (guitar, mandolin, and standup bass). Strum Machine can play any chord progression, in any key, at any speed. It's the only backing-track app built specifically for players of bluegrass, old-time, fiddle tunes, and other such genres. (Although it works pretty good for some jazz/swing now, too!) Why musicians of all levels love Strum Machine: • Realistic Sound: Backing tracks are assembled in real time from studio-quality instrument recordings. • Quick Adjustments: Instantly adjust the speed/tempo, change the key, loop part of a song, etc. • Auto-Speedup: Gradually increase the BPM at the end of every repetition for training purposes. • Chord Reference: Clean, beautiful chord charts, which can be displayed in letters or numbers (i.e. "1-4-5"). • Extensive Library: Over 1,300 songs (mostly from bluegrass and old-time) ready to go, with thousands more posted on the community forum. • Simple Song Editor: Add your own songs (or edit existing ones) in minutes. Almost every chord you can play on a guitar is available for use. • Customize the Band: Choose from a variety of built-in band styles, then optionally customize each instrument individually – adjust the strumming pattern, add automatic bass runs, and more. • Organize & Share: Create song lists for practicing or even performing, and share them with your friends or on the community forum. • Cross-Platform: Sync your custom songs, lists, and preferences with any device you use Strum Machine on: phone, tablet, or computer. (It works offline, too!) • Responsive Support: If you run into any problems or have questions, write us an email or post a message on the forum and someone will get back to you within a few days! Strum Machine is under active development and we're always working on ways to make the app even more useful to our users... while keeping it uncluttered and intuitive first and foremost. Discover how Strum Machine can improve your music practice today! Download Strum Machine and play a handful of demo songs instantly, without signing up. For the full experience, including access to all built-in songs and the ability to create your own, start a free trial. Terms of Use: https://strummachine.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://strummachine.com/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Strum Machine at Free against ECD Tunes's $40.99. Strum Machine also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.0) and review sentiment (89% vs 50%). ECD Tunes's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On ads 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
Strum Machine is free to download; ECD Tunes costs $40.99 up front. Strum Machine sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per month. ECD Tunes asks for nothing beyond the download.
Strum Machine holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Strum Machine has 120 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of ECD Tunes's written reviews are positive against 89% of Strum Machine's.
ECD Tunes ships an update every 35 months, Strum Machine fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ECD Tunes | Strum Machine |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $40.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.0 (3 ratings) | 4.7 (120 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 88.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 120 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 35 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Best chart rank | — | #188 — better |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 15.4 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 41 MB | 77 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Transported Productions | Luke Abbott LLC |
Customer experience
ECD Tunes
Strum Machine
In-app purchases
ECD Tunes
No in-app purchases
Strum Machine
- Monthly Subscription14 Days trial$4.991 Month









