Percussion Loops HD vs Soft Drummer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Percussion Loops HD
Access a vast library of professionally recorded percussion loops and samples for iOS devices. Integrate seamlessly with DAWs like Garageband, Auria, and Cubasis, with full Audiobus and Inter-App Audio support. Explore diverse genres and instruments for your music production needs.
- Extensive percussion loop library
- High-quality studio recordings
- Supports Audiobus and Inter-App Audio
- Seamless DAW integration
- Multiple genres and tempos
- Sampled percussion instruments
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Percussion Loops HD is a vast library with hundreds of percussion loops and samples, played by a pro and built for iOS only! Use them with any daw - a.o. Garageband, Auria, Cubasis, (AUDIOBUS and INTER APP AUDIO SUPPORT included). GB users can change a loops tempo freely (Apple Loops). Now added: 4 new Salsa chapters, Brazilian, Reggae, Calypso and Udu (check content list), and many new samples!, played by Jeroen de Rijk. This is simply the best live percussion option around, every loop or sample was performed in a pro studio by the Dutch number one player. This app is a direct sibling of Drum Loops HD and Drum Loops HD 2 (release July '15) and they work together perfectly (music wise and technically) The number one partner for any daw but even more so for GB, pasting loops into GB creates Apple loops, making them follow GB tempo! Main features! * Full percussion loop library for anyone making music on an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch, containing 13 styles with Audiobus (> iOS 8) and Inter App audio (> iOS 7) support built in * Loops and samples performed on congas, shakers, tambourine, djembe, shaker, udu, timbales, agogo bells, pandeiro and more * 4 complete salsa chapters with all relevant grooves and instruments * Big library of sampled percussion instruments (besides the loops) * Copy/paste to your favorite multi tracker! * Copy a wav to any DAW, copy an Apple Loop to Garageband for changing tempo and composing on Apple’s main music App! * Percussionist to play along with when practicing your timing on any instrument (all grooves loop perfectly in app itself) * Many styles in many bpms (check content list) * 4/4, 6/8 loops and shuffles, 'smooth' loops, loops in straight time and shuffled time plus some unique 'urban loops'. * Uncut, not time stretched, not chopped but actual high end recordings. * Audio quality: 44.1 kHz, 16 bit (cd). * All loops actually played in all bpms separately, with subtle changes and differences, * All loops can be used creatively outside their respective styles, giving endless combinations. * All loops played in 2 bars (less repetition effect and more musical feel) Content: Every style comes in a wide range of tempos including: * Salsa-bongos/congas/claves/güiro/cowbell and timbales, 80-280 bpm with 20 bpm increments (double time) * Ballads-60, 66, 72 and 78 bpm (beats per minute), 3 congas loops, 3 shaker loops and 3 tambourine loops per bpm * Pop/Rock-80-170 bpm, in 10 bpm increments, 3 congas loops, 3 shaker loops and 3 tambourine loops per bpm * Funk/Hip-Hop-80, 90, 100, 110, 120 and 130 bpm, 3 congas loops, 3 shaker loops and 3 tambourine loops per bpm * Dance/DnB-120, 130, 140, 160 and 180 bpm, 3 congas loops, 3 shaker loops and 3 tambourine loops per bpm * Soul-100, 110, 120 and 130 bpm, 3 congas loops, 3 shaker loops and 3 tambourine loops per bpm * Smooth loops-60-130 bpm (10 bpm increments), 3 congas loops, 3 shaker loops and 3 tambourine loops per bpm * 6/8 and Shuffles-75, 85, 95, 110 and 130 bpm, conga loops, shaker loops, tambourine loops, shekere loops and djembe loops. * Jazz,100-280 bpm, 20 bpm increments, 3 congas loops and 2 tambourine loops per bpm * Urban Loops-80-120 bpm (10 bpm increments) played on congas, djembe, shekere, shaker and tambourine * Brazilian: bossa, samba, agogo bells and pandeiro, 80-280 bpm * Reggae, 80-120 bpm grooves and fills * Calypso, 80-280 bpm congas * Udu, 80-280 bpm plus single tones * Mixed percussion loops-80, 100, 120 and 140 bpm mixes of congas, shaker, tambourine and djembe, mixed for your comfort * Conga and Djembe-samples huge library of percussion samples at multiple dynamic levels, covering all conga hand techniques plus some Djembe samples * Sampled instruments- a vast number of percussion samples (from familiar to less standard with effects) Tired of programming? Download this app today and start enhancing your tracks! Check out www.iosappsformusicians.com (support and trailers)
Soft Drummer
This app generates realistic, improvisational drum grooves for various genres using brushes, hot rods, and hands. It functions as an AUv3 plugin for DAWs and offers extensive sound customization, live performance pads, and song structuring capabilities. Export options include audio, MIDI, and effects.
- Improvisational drum groove generation
- AUv3 plugin for DAWs
- Brush, hot rod, and hand playing styles
- Multi-layer sounds with round robin
- Live performance pads
- Song structure building
- MIDI In/Out and Ableton Link sync
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Soft Drummer is your subtle session drummer, and now it works as an AUv3 plugin inside GarageBand, AUM, Loopy Pro or your favourite DAW. It doesn't loop. It improvises. With brushes, hot rods and hands, Soft Drummer generates warm, musical grooves for ballads, soft pop, jazz and latin, adapting in real time like a real session player. No patterns. No repetition. AUv3 Use Soft Drummer as a plugin in any AUv3 host. Send and receive grooves between Soft Drummer, Pop Drummer and iBassist. Sync everything in real time. SOUND More than 50 multilayer sounds with 3 hit types (ghost, accented, drag/open) × 3 Round Robin alternating samples for natural, authentic feel. 4 playing styles: Brushes, Hot Rods, Hands and Mallets. 4 Effects: Compressor/Gate, EQ, Delay and Reverb with individual track control. LIVE PERFORMANCE 8 assignable Live Pads for fills, intros and endings, playable live or with any MIDI controller (iRig Blueboard and 4-button compatible). Ableton Link sync for tight integration with your setup. SONG MODE Build your song structure in seconds. Arrange rhythmic sections and let Soft Drummer follow your song from intro to outro. MIDI MIDI Out, MIDI Sync (Legacy, recommended Ableton Link), Sound Module (Play individual sounds by MIDI In). ⏺ Assignable MIDI controls (default mapping): - Transport: Play: G2 · Fill: C2 · Fill + Play/Stop: A2 · Tap Tempo: Bb2 - LivePads: Pads 1–8: C1–G1 · Load LivePad: C3 · Previous LivePad: Db3 · Next LivePad: D3 · Select LivePad Set: Eb3 · Fill on LivePad Change: E2 - Performance: Toggle Hats/Ride: Db2 · Fill + Toggle Hats/Ride: D2 · Toggle Snare: Eb2 · Crash Cymbal: B2 · Random: B1 - Songs: Previous: Gb2 · Next: Ab2 - Continuous controls: Jam: CC1 · Intensity: CC2 · Master Volume: CC7 · Swing: CC11 · Progression: CC12 · Tempo Fader: CC20 · Reverb: CC91 - Sound selection: Bank: CC32 · Rhythm: CC0 · Soundset: Program Change All assignments are user-remappable. Note octave naming follows the Logic / Cubase / Ableton / Pro Tools convention (middle C = C3) and is adjustable in MIDI Setup → OCTAVE REFERENCE. Tempo Fader is standalone-only (host-driven in AUv3). EXPORT Multi-Track or Full Mix export in seconds. Audio, MIDI or with Effects , your choice. TRY FOR FREE Soft Drummer is free to explore for 7 days with access to all features. Some actions are limited during the trial (exports, random grooves, sound changes and bars per session). After the trial, keep playing with more limitations. Unlock the Full Version with a one-time purchase, no subscription. Extra drummers (Clayton and Joe), sound packs and Studio Mix are sold separately.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Soft Drummer at Free against Percussion Loops HD's $7.99. Soft Drummer also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.0) and update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 8 months). Percussion Loops HD's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 16). On ads 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
Soft Drummer is free to download; Percussion Loops HD costs $7.99 up front. Soft Drummer sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Percussion Loops HD asks for nothing beyond the download.
Soft Drummer holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Soft Drummer has 516 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 72% of Percussion Loops HD's written reviews are positive against 91% of Soft Drummer's.
Percussion Loops HD ships an update every 8 months, Soft Drummer every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Percussion Loops HD | Soft Drummer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $7.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.0 (5 ratings) | 4.7 (516 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 72.2% of reviews | 91.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 5 | 516 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 8 months | Every 4 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | Free with in-app purchases — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 16 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 608 MB | 816 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Go Independent Records | Lumbeat |
Customer experience
Percussion Loops HD
Soft Drummer
Bugs and requests
Percussion Loops HD
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Soft Drummer
Reported bugs
2 issues- Song mode issues, including crashes and missing features
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions and devices
Requested features
4 requests- Add support for time signatures beyond 4/4
- Improve MIDI integration and control
- Implement audio/MIDI export options
- Provide preset management and organization
In-app purchases
Percussion Loops HD
No in-app purchases
Soft Drummer
- Big & Low$3.99
- Presence$3.99
- Raw Brush$3.99
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Tight Control$3.99
- Clayton$4.99
- Joe$4.99
- Studio Mix$8.99
- Soft Drummer Full Access$22.99
Questions
Is Percussion Loops HD free?
Is Soft Drummer free?
Which has better reviews, Percussion Loops HD or Soft Drummer?
Do Percussion Loops HD or Soft Drummer have ads?
Which is updated more often, Percussion Loops HD or Soft Drummer?
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