Comparison

Jam Synth vs Overdrive Synth

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

Head to head
About

Jam Synth

Transform your guitar into a synthesizer with this app. It accurately tracks pitch and amplitude to control digital oscillators, offering unique synth leads and effects. Go beyond MIDI with expressive, organic sounds and advanced modulation options.

Highlights
  • Monophonic guitar synthesizer
  • Pitch and amplitude tracking
  • Multiple oscillator wave shapes
  • Dynamic filter tracking
  • Advanced FX section (LFO, Delay, Harmonizer, etc.)
  • MIDI output for external synths
  • High-accuracy pitch tuner
Read full description

Jam Synth is a fully featured monophonic guitar synthesizer / multi FX for iOS. It tracks the pitch and amplitude of an incoming guitar signal and uses this information to control digital oscillators, adding a unique guitar infused edge to your synth leads. Unlike typical pitch to MIDI converters, Jam Synth forgoes MIDI altogether when producing sounds internally because it is impossible to shoehorn the expressive pitch and dynamics of a stringed instrument into the MIDI standard. Jam Synth can accurately track string bends and vibrato with the extreme accuracy of a strobe tuner (1/10 of 1 cent) to produce much more organic synth sounds than other guitar to MIDI converters, including its own MIDI output (though its MIDI output still creates quite a unique guitar / synth hybrid sound because of its pitch bend abilities). It also features some of the most esoteric and unique FX you can get for your guitar. Features: • 3 Phase Distortion Oscillators (4 on iPad) with 8 different wave shapes: Saw, Square, Pulse, Double Sine, Saw-Pulse, Resonant 1, Resonant 2, and Resonant 3 • Filter can be set to track picking dynamics • Input section with Gate, Compressor, ADSR, and Input Filter • FX section - A fully featured LFO with 5 wave shapes and an invert switch for a wide range of pulsating effects - Stereo Delay with a stereo width control for ping pong effects and a filter for emulating analog delay - 3D Chorus, a classic "motionless" chorus that adds a stereo DIMENSION to the synth - Intelligent Harmonizer: This creates musically correct harmonies based on the key you are playing in. The harmonies can be altered by choosing a specific interval and one of the seven musical modes: Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, and Locrian. It works on MIDI output using multi-channel pitch bending for synths that support such fancy things. It also works on your dry guitar output using high quality formant corrected pitch shift. It is just the best. - Rotary Vibe: This recreates the swirling psychedelic sounds of the 1960's by combining a thick 12-stage stereo phaser with a 3D rotary panning effect. Create anything from a slow stereo swirl to a futuristic synth organ with this. - Rainbows: Adds analog modeled auto rainbows to your sound. Adds extra rainbows when used with the harmonizer. - Time Stopper: Freezes time... • LFO / Stereo Delay / Rotary Vibe can be synced to tap tempo or incoming MIDI clock sync / Inter App Audio sync • Highly accurate pitch tracking and tuner, accurate to 1/10th of a cent • MIDI OUT and guitar to MIDI conversion for controlling other MIDI synths with your guitar through Core MIDI accessories and Virtual MIDI • string bends and vibrato are converted to MIDI pitch wheel data • picking dynamics are converted to MIDI volume expression data • compatible with guitar and audio interfaces made for iPhone and iPad • detailed user manual • Fat Bass • Super Chip Leads • Beagle Time • Little Cesars Jam Synth is designed to be easy to use even for users who don't have a lot of experience programming or playing synthesizers. When in doubt, just press buttons and turn knobs while plucking a string until you find a sound you like! J a m S y n t h 2 coming soon ---------------- http://www.facebook.com/PrimitiveDigitalSoftware

About

Overdrive Synth

Explore unique synth sounds processed through classic guitar overdrive pedals. This app offers professionally recorded samples with multiple keyboard layouts and AUv3/MIDI support. Unlock over 100 additional instruments to expand your sonic palette.

Highlights
  • Vintage synths re-amped through guitar pedals
  • Multiple keyboard layouts
  • AUv3 and MIDI support
  • Professionally recorded samples
  • Expandable instrument library via IAP
Features
Read full description

What does a synthesizer sound like through an overdrive pedal? To answer this great mystery, I visited NightSound Studio to re-amp a plethora of synth tones through various classic guitar pedals. The results are now available for your ears in Overdrive Synth! FEATURES: • Vintage Synths Re-amped Through Guitar Pedals • 3 Keyboard Layouts (Piano, Guitar & Scaled) • AUv3 & MIDI Support • Professionally Recorded Samples • 10 Instruments (+100 more with IAP) • Proudly Built With AudioKit The app comes with 10 default instruments, and If you like the starting sounds, unlock the full version (+100 instruments) and become a turbo-powered crunch synth master! I'm also EXTREMELY excited to bring you the full video development story on how this app was made! If you're curious to see what all went into making this app including the recording process, follow the behind-the-scenes link in the app! Special thanks to Nightsound Studios where the samples were recorded, AudioKit for providing the tools to build this app, the amazing open source synth community, and you for supporting indie developers. Thank You & Enjoy! Nick Culbertson MobyPixel.com

Screenshots

Jam Synth4 screens
Overdrive Synth4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Overdrive Synth at monthly against Jam Synth's every 4 months. Jam Synth's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 14.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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

Both are free to download. Jam Synth sells 4 one-off in-app purchases and Overdrive Synth sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Jam Synth against 4.9 for Overdrive Synth. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 28 and 34 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 84% of Jam Synth's written reviews are positive against 79% of Overdrive Synth's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Jam Synth ships an update every 4 months, Overdrive Synth monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Jam Synth versus Overdrive Synth: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJam SynthOverdrive Synth
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (28 ratings) — better4.9 (34 ratings)
Positive reviews84.2% of reviews — better79.2% of reviews
Number of ratings2834 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better14.0
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB247 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDerek MesecarMoby Pixel

Customer experience

Jam Synth

All ratings28 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive84.2%
Neutral10.5%
Negative5.3%

Overdrive Synth

All ratings34 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive79.2%
Neutral12.5%
Negative8.3%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Jam Synth

One-time4
  • Intelligent HarmonizerFree
  • Rotary VibeFree
  • RainbowsFree
Show 1 more
  • Time StopperFree
1 purchases

Overdrive Synth

One-time1
  • Unlock Full Version$4.99

Questions

Is Jam Synth free?
Jam Synth is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Overdrive Synth free?
Overdrive Synth is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Jam Synth or Overdrive Synth?
Jam Synth is rated higher. Jam Synth averages 5.0 out of 5 from 28 ratings, while Overdrive Synth averages 4.9 from 34 ratings.
Do Jam Synth or Overdrive Synth have ads?
Neither Jam Synth nor Overdrive Synth shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Jam Synth or Overdrive Synth?
Jam Synth ships an update every 4 months, and Overdrive Synth monthly. Most recently, Jam Synth was updated on October 6, 2026 and Overdrive Synth on October 9, 2026.

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