Comparison

Sparkle vs Phase84

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

Head to head
About

Sparkle

Transform audio by transferring the temporal structure of one sound to another while preserving spectral properties. Create unique sound transformations with advanced spectral hybridization algorithms. Ideal for musicians and sound designers seeking innovative audio manipulation.

Highlights
  • Spectral hybridization
  • Envelope preservation
  • Phase-sync processing
  • High-quality sound transformations
  • Temporal structure transfer
  • Spectral property preservation
Features
Read full description

Sparkle is a tool for advanced spectral hybridizations made of several algorithms that operate on frequency domain. By means of envelope preservation and phase-sync processing it can creates high-quality sound transformations. The basic idea is to transfer the temporal structure of a sound (source) onto another sound (target) of which the spectral properties are preserved. Simply put, you can take a voice and make it sing a Beethoven’s symphony!

About

Phase84

This app is a powerful phase distortion synthesizer that blends digital grit with analog warmth. It offers over 100 presets for various sounds and integrates with other music apps for a modular workflow.

Highlights
  • Over 100 presets
  • MIDI support
  • Inter-App Audio support
  • Tabletop Ready App integration
  • Advanced Keyboard section
  • Expressive Perform Mode
  • Stereo delay with loss modeling
Features
Read full description

Phase84 is a next generation phase distortion synthesizer. It fuses gritty digital sounds with traditional analog punch. +++++ Phase84 is a Tabletop Ready App. Combine Phase84 with drum machines, sequencers, effects, and more inside Tabletop — a free modular music app for iPad. +++++ Phase84 is an extremely capable synthesizer and features over 110 presets, containing all sorts of basses, leads, pads, bell tones, sweeps, atmospheric sounds, pseudo-realistic tones, and more. While you don't need to know much about synthesizers to get a lot out of Phase84, experienced synth tweakers will be thrilled at the sheer variety of unique sounds that can be produced with this incredibly versatile synth. So What's Phase84 All About? Phase84 is what's known as a Phase Distortion synthesizer. This form of waveshaping synthesis has its roots in Casio’s brilliant CZ line of digital synthesizers from the 80s. It is designed to have the warmth of a subtractive (analog) synthesizer, yet be capable of the squelchy tones and sharp attacks of an FM synth. Phase84 in particular can create warm pads, glitchy sounds, dirty basses, filthy sweeps, screaming leads, and anything in-between. For those familiar with the typical Moog-like (or iMini-like!) synthesis, think of the "shaper" as being synonymous with "brightness" or "filter cutoff”. Features: More than 100 presets. MIDI support. inter-App Audio support. Advanced Keyboard section. Expressive Perform Mode with Groove Gate. Tabletop Ready App. Precision Knob mode. Phat, naturalistic unison feature for super thick pads and sweeps. Oscillator Section: 9 Params, 2 General-Purpose Oscillators, 1 Formant Oscillator. Mix Section: 8 Params including Delay Amount and Pulse Width. Envelope Section: Amplitude and Shaper Envelopes. Fully visualized and interactive ADSR plus special Fade Param. Delay/Filter Section: Stereo delay with loss modeling and a punchy overdriven analog-style filter. 3 LFOs: More flexible than your average LFO, this has 4 waveforms, optional delay and repeat count, and can go into the audible frequency range.

Screenshots

Sparkle4 screens
Phase844 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Sparkle at 5.0 against Phase84's 3.8. Sparkle also leads on review sentiment (96% vs 57%) and update cadence (every 6 weeks vs every 26 months). Phase84's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.0). On ratings volume, 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

Sparkle costs $9.99 and Phase84 $12.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Sparkle holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 48 and 41 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 96% of Sparkle's written reviews are positive against 57% of Phase84's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sparkle ships an update every 6 weeks, Phase84 every 26 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Sparkle versus Phase84: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSparklePhase84
Price$9.99 — better$12.99
Rating5.0 (48 ratings) — better3.8 (41 ratings)
Positive reviews95.8% of reviews — better56.5% of reviews
Number of ratings48 — better41
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeks — betterEvery 26 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size37 MB33 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperapeSoftRetronyms Inc

Customer experience

Sparkle

All ratings48 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive95.8%
Neutral0.0%
Negative4.2%

Phase84

All ratings41 ratings
Positive63.4%
Neutral12.2%
Negative24.4%
Written reviews46 reviews
Positive56.5%
Neutral15.2%
Negative28.3%

In-app purchases

None

Sparkle

No in-app purchases

None

Phase84

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Sparkle free?
Sparkle costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Phase84 free?
Phase84 costs $12.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Sparkle or Phase84?
Sparkle is rated higher. Sparkle averages 5.0 out of 5 from 48 ratings, while Phase84 averages 3.8 from 41 ratings.
Do Sparkle or Phase84 have ads?
Neither Sparkle nor Phase84 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sparkle or Phase84?
Sparkle ships an update every 6 weeks, and Phase84 every 26 months. Most recently, Sparkle was updated on October 21, 2026 and Phase84 on October 20, 2026.

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