Comparison

Rock Drum Machine Lite vs Drum Loops by Steve Gadd

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

Head to head
About

Rock Drum Machine Lite

Transform your device into a powerful rock drumming tool. Access high-quality drum sounds and a variety of rhythms for instant power drumming. Easily create and customize your own beats.

Highlights
  • High-quality rock drum sounds
  • Extensive rhythm library
  • Easy rhythm editing
  • Pattern mode for component beats
  • Groove Edit Mode for subdivisions
Features
Read full description

Rock Drum Machine Lite will no longer receive updates. Get Rock Drum Machine 7, now free to download with a 7-day free trial, then unlock it once. Turn your iPhone or iPad into a solid Rock Drummer. Top quality and powerful drum sounds, with lots of rhythms to get power drumming grooves easily in a flash. The best drum machine for Rock... for FREE!!! You can edit or create your own rhythms very easily in two modes: * Edit Mode allows you to edit the whole rhythm quickly. * Patterns Mode allows you to set the patterns for each component (hihat/ride cymbal, snare or kick )easily with a wheel. Combine the best acoustic drum sounds with any rhythm to get top inspiring rocky grooves. * In Groove Edit Mode you can set any subdivision to any beats. Just do a long press on the time until it shows a red border and drag up or down to rest or add notes. EASY and QUICK!

About

Drum Loops by Steve Gadd

Access studio-quality drum loops performed by legendary drummer Steve Gadd. Ideal for songwriters, producers, and musicians, this app allows you to play along, record, or copy/paste loops into your DAW. Explore signature grooves and diverse styles for practice and creative projects.

Highlights
  • Studio-quality drum loops by Steve Gadd
  • Copy/paste loops into DAWs
  • Play along with loops
  • Audiobus and Inter App Audio support
  • Signature grooves and styles
  • VR videos of Steve Gadd
Features
Read full description

Play along or record your own songs with the best studio drummer in the world! Steve Gadd Loops is one of a kind, the first time the celebrity drummer (James Taylor, Chick Corea, Paul Simon) comes to IOS with 4 bar drum loops for you to copy/paste into your DAW or to play along with! It features full Audiobus and Inter App Audio support. A perfect partner for GB, loops and fills follow GB tempo!. Click "...More" to learn why you should download this App today! Perfect for songwriters, producers, teachers and fans…… a one time opportunity to play along with as legend. hundreds of loops and fills played by the absolute master of his craft. Steve has recorded in his fav tempos and styles, providing you with signature ‘feel’ grooves that have set Steve aside long ago from his colleagues. Copy any loop to any paste equipped DAW for songwriting or play loops within the app as a ‘human metronome’ for practicing. If you use GB as your DAW of choice you get an incredible advantage, you can copy a loop or fill into GB and from there on change the tempo and maintaining Steve’s feel! MAIN FEATURES: * Steve Gadd in your back pocket! * Introduction video by Steve himself * All loops are 4 bars in length giving you a very natural sense of groove and feel and less repetition than normal * Copy/paste to your favorite multi tracker! * Ability to change loops and fills in tempo in Garageband! * Audiobus compatible * Inter App Audio compatible * Play along for as long as you want and enjoy Steve’s groove. (all grooves loop perfectly in the app itself) * Performed, recorded and built only for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch * Famous grooves chapter with some of his signature feel grooves on hits we all know * Loops in 4/4, 6/8, ballads plus a special chapter with brushes loops, performed with his own unique technique * Uncut, not time stretched, not chopped but actual high end recordings * 360 degree videos included, check out Steve and the studio in VR * Audio quality: 44.1 kHz, 16 bit (cd). For copying to any multi tracker including GB. * All loops and fills actually played in all bpms, by a living legend * Copies loops to any DAW, all loops offered in 2 formats, WAV and Apple Loops Every loop or fill is available in 2 distinct mixes, a close miked ‘dry’ mix and a ‘room mics added’ version, giving you the option to choose or to combine both sounds within the environment of your sequencer. Full content: Every chapter comes in a wide range of tempos including: * Steve’s favorite tempos - 88, 88 plus cowbell (signature!), 108, 116 plus cowbell and 124, 8 to 10 loops each * Famous grooves - 8 loops played as an homage to the originals Steve performed on like 50 WAYS, LATE IN THE EVENING, ROOF GARDEN, AJA…… * Brushes - 80, 90, 104 (half time and regular time), 108 and 126 bpm grooves, 10 loops each * 4/4 grooves - 80, 90, 100, 110 and 120 bpm grooves, 10 each plus 6 fills per tempo * Ballads - 62 and 72 bpm grooves, 10 each plus 6 fills per tempo * 6/8 grooves - performed at 110 and 130 bpm (eight note is 110/130), 6 grooves each plus 6 fills * Ending drum fills (3) plus crashes (6) to complete your arrangement and to add crashes after fills! * 360 videos of Steve performing grooves and improv (including 50 ways to leave your lover)……..look around in the studio where the app was recorded * About Steve Gadd - full bio on Steve’s career * Instructions - the company’s page on ‘how to’ with tips and tricks * Mic list and credits * Other apps page In fact, a revolutionary app with a living legend on drums! The most sought after studio and live drummer for the last couple of decades unleashes his feel for the world to have and to enjoy! See this app in action here: www.iosappsformusicians.com (support site with trailers) Also you will find DAW specific instructions on this site.

Screenshots

Rock Drum Machine Lite4 screens
Drum Loops by Steve Gadd4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Rock Drum Machine Lite at Free against Drum Loops by Steve Gadd's $14.99. Rock Drum Machine Lite also leads on update cadence (every 3 months vs every 10 months) and ratings volume (130 vs 12). Drum Loops by Steve Gadd's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.3) and review sentiment (100% vs 85%). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Rock Drum Machine Lite is free to download; Drum Loops by Steve Gadd costs $14.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Drum Loops by Steve Gadd holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Rock Drum Machine Lite has 130 ratings behind it against 12, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of Rock Drum Machine Lite's written reviews are positive against 100% of Drum Loops by Steve Gadd's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Rock Drum Machine Lite ships an update every 3 months, Drum Loops by Steve Gadd every 10 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Rock Drum Machine Lite versus Drum Loops by Steve Gadd: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRock Drum Machine LiteDrum Loops by Steve Gadd
PriceFree — better$14.99
Rating4.3 (130 ratings)4.7 (12 ratings) — better
Positive reviews85.2% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings130 — better12
Update frequencyEvery 3 months — betterEvery 10 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS168.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB847 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLumbeatGo Independent Records

Customer experience

Rock Drum Machine Lite

All ratings130 ratings
Positive85.4%
Neutral7.7%
Negative6.9%
Written reviews459 reviews
Positive85.2%
Neutral8.5%
Negative6.3%

Drum Loops by Steve Gadd

All ratings12 ratings
Positive91.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Rock Drum Machine Lite

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Incompatibility with certain audio apps
  • Crashes or freezes on some devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • More free bars/time in lite version
  • Ability to save/load custom beats
  • Integration with other music apps
  • More drum kit/sound options

Drum Loops by Steve Gadd

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Rock Drum Machine Lite

No in-app purchases

None

Drum Loops by Steve Gadd

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Rock Drum Machine Lite free?
Rock Drum Machine Lite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Drum Loops by Steve Gadd free?
Drum Loops by Steve Gadd costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Rock Drum Machine Lite or Drum Loops by Steve Gadd?
Drum Loops by Steve Gadd is rated higher. Rock Drum Machine Lite averages 4.3 out of 5 from 130 ratings, while Drum Loops by Steve Gadd averages 4.7 from 12 ratings.
Do Rock Drum Machine Lite or Drum Loops by Steve Gadd have ads?
Neither Rock Drum Machine Lite nor Drum Loops by Steve Gadd shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Rock Drum Machine Lite or Drum Loops by Steve Gadd?
Rock Drum Machine Lite ships an update every 3 months, and Drum Loops by Steve Gadd every 10 months. Most recently, Rock Drum Machine Lite was updated on November 1, 2026 and Drum Loops by Steve Gadd on November 2, 2026.

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