Comparison

iSymphonic Orchestra vs Mini Orchestra

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

Head to head
About

iSymphonic Orchestra

This app provides sophisticated, realistic orchestral sounds for musicians. Connect a MIDI keyboard to your device to access a wide range of instruments for live performance or composition. It supports advanced audio and MIDI connections with other apps.

Highlights
  • Realistic orchestral instrument sounds
  • MIDI keyboard connectivity
  • Audio Unit and Inter-App Audio support
  • Low latency audio engine
  • Integrated effects with presets
  • MIDI recording and playback
Features
Read full description

The ultimate orchestra sound app for sophisticated musicians by award-winning sound designer Kurt Ader, designed as professional sound module for your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch by connecting an external MIDI keyboard, using the Apple USB camera adapter or another adapter supported by Apple.¹ Listen to the demo videos on our product website! This app supports Audio Unit and Inter-App Audio for audio & MIDI connections from/to other audio apps, as well as Bluetooth LE MIDI ! iSymphonic Orchestra was designed with the goal to deliver you superb, extremely realistic and stunning orchestra sounds, instantly with the first key being pressed by you on your MIDI keyboard. Just select a sound and you are ready for your live performance or for a boost of creativity while composing new songs. The sounds used in this app were explicitly recorded to fulfill these requirements and involved several months of recording and post processing under supervision of Kurt Ader and included a variety of innovative, new recording techniques. So far these sounds were only available to very few, famous movie composers. Now they are finally available for the first time to everybody. The supreme quality of these sounds, combined with the unique way they were recorded and assembled, gives us confidence that you haven't heard anything comparable as of to date, even not on Mac or PC. 25 Sounds included with base App: • Orchestra Strings Spiccato & Legato 1 - 4 • Orchestra Strings Slow 1 - 3 • Chamber Arco Strings • Legato Orchestra Strings 1 • Full Sordino Strings 1 - 2 • Legato Orchestra • Staccato Orchestra 1 - 3 • Tremolo Orchestra • Pizzicato Strings • Full Strings • Tremolo Strings • All Brass 1 - 2 • Trombone Section • Cello & Woodwinds • Horns & Strings • Full Legato Orchestra 297 additional sounds available as 15 optional in-app purchase sound sets: „Pro-", „Arpa-", „Canto-", „Boato-", „Vento-", „Ottone-", „Voce-", „Varia-", „Perla-", „Aulos-", „Keys-", „Cupra-", „Organ-", „Tosca-" and „Corda Sound Set". You find a detailed sound list & demo videos on our product website. General Features: • Low latency disk streaming. • Very efficient audio engine. • Polyphony of several hundred stereo voices.² • Audio latency down to 1 ms. • Integrated effects with 18 presets. • 16 parts. • Scale Tuning & Master Tune. • MIDI velocity response curve editor. • App States: Save app's entire state as user presets. • Interactive, easy & quick sound finder. • App can keep running in the background, so you can play on your keyboard while e.g. using Safari or another app to display scores or surfing the Internet. • Hermode Tuning: Imitates the tuning behavior of well educated musicians of i.e. orchestras and choirs. • Audio Unit v3 Plugin included. • Supports Apple's "Inter-App Audio" (IAA) system. • Virtual on-screen piano keyboard with velocity support, scalable & scrollable. MIDI Player / Recorder: • Record, save and load your songs in standard MIDI file format. • Share your songs easily as audio file. • Unlimited amount of tracks. • Configurable MIDI channel per track. • Unlimited recording and playback length. • Open MIDI (.mid) files directly from other apps (i.e. from Safari, Mail). • Metronome • Use the "Tempo Zoom" dial knob to i.e. slow down playback at any time and learn your favorite songs easily. ¹ For more information about supported adapters and MIDI keyboards, please visit our product website. ² Sounds are using several voices per note. Polyphony depends on the exact device model being used. You find a polyphony table on our product website. Anti-Spy Commitment: We take your privacy very seriously. None of our apps contain so called „spy” behaviors and we committed ourself to a very high privacy standard. For more information read our „Privacy Policy for Mobile Apps”.

About

Mini Orchestra

Create symphonic orchestral sounds with a high-quality sample-playback synthesizer. Easily control dynamics and expression with adjustable parameters for nine distinct instrument sections. Offers a built-in reverb and programmer for creating custom sounds.

Highlights
  • 9 orchestral instrument sections
  • Adjustable velocity, aftertouch, and expression sensitivity
  • Programmable velocity zones
  • Mute groups for section control
  • 256 voices of polyphony
  • Built-in stereo reverb effect
  • Unlimited program creation
Features
Read full description

GSi Mini Orchestra is a sample-playback synthesizer based on a selection of high quality stereo samples with long loops, that helps reproducing the sound of a symphonic orchestra easily and quickly. It offers 9 sections including: bass brasses (tubas, trombones), cellos and contrabass, french horns, woodwinds (flutes, oboe, fagotto), treble brasses (trumpets and trombones), treble strings (violins, violas), choirs, glockenspiel and percussions (timpani and cymbals). Each section can be programmed independently to have a given response to velocity, expression pedal, aftertouch, and velocity zone. The "aftertouch lag" parameter lets you adjust the response to the aftertouch messages in order to obtain smooth dynamic transitions. Main features - Includes 9 sections, each with adjustable volume, pan, attack, release - Individual sections can be adjusted to velocity, aftertouch and expression sensitivity - Each section can be limited to a programmable velocity range - Three mute groups allow muting and unmuting sections at the push of a button - 256 voices of Polyphony - Built-in Stereo Reverb effect - Built-in programmer with unlimited Programs - Embedded user's' manual - Available as Stand-alone App and audio AUv3 plugin - Very low CPU and RAM usage

Screenshots

iSymphonic Orchestra4 screens
Mini Orchestra3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: iSymphonic Orchestra at $9.99 against Mini Orchestra's $19.99. iSymphonic Orchestra also leads on update cadence (every 2 months vs every 30 months) and ratings volume (103 vs 8). Mini Orchestra's advantage is rating (4.9 vs 3.8) and review sentiment (100% vs 63%). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

iSymphonic Orchestra costs $9.99 and Mini Orchestra $19.99 up front. iSymphonic Orchestra sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. Mini Orchestra asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Mini Orchestra holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iSymphonic Orchestra has 103 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 63% of iSymphonic Orchestra's written reviews are positive against 100% of Mini Orchestra's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iSymphonic Orchestra ships an update every 2 months, Mini Orchestra every 30 months. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and August 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
iSymphonic Orchestra versus Mini Orchestra: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriSymphonic OrchestraMini Orchestra
Price$9.99 — better$19.99
Rating3.8 (103 ratings)4.9 (8 ratings) — better
Positive reviews62.5% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings103 — better8
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 30 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.012.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.3 GB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChristian Schoenebeck d/b/a CrudebyteGenuine Soundware

Customer experience

iSymphonic Orchestra

All ratings103 ratings
Positive64.1%
Neutral12.6%
Negative23.3%
Written reviews144 reviews
Positive62.5%
Neutral11.1%
Negative26.4%

Mini Orchestra

All ratings8 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

iSymphonic Orchestra

Reported bugs

14 issues
  • App crashes when using multiple AU instances in AUM
  • GarageBand integration fails during export and audio merging
  • Audio cuts out or plays only partially during export
  • Track deletion causes complete app crash and data loss
  • Reverberation artifacts on specific notes (C4, C5)
Show 9 more
  • Loud distortion spikes occurring randomly
  • MIDI keyboard connection freezes or stops working
  • Settings menu becomes garbled with accessibility features enabled
  • App freezes when connecting to certain MIDI controllers
  • Audiobus compatibility issues despite advertised support
  • Sound packs fail to download or load correctly
  • Stuck MIDI notes when changing channels with pedal depressed
  • Glitching and connection loss in multi-instance setups
  • Export functionality broken in GarageBand AU version

Requested features

15 requests
  • Ability to hide unowned sound packs for easier navigation
  • Zoom function for keyboard section
  • Adjustable attack and release envelope controls
  • Filter to show only owned sounds
  • Dedicated save/record/play controls on main screen
Show 10 more
  • Bundle pricing option for all sound packs
  • Separate woodwinds, horns, and strings-only IAP options
  • Improved AU plugin UI closer to standalone version
  • Microphone placement and mixing options like Spitfire Labs
  • Favorites or custom sound folders
  • Better orchestral percussion sounds
  • Ability to import files from device without USB
  • Export preset functionality between devices
  • All-off MIDI signal for all channels simultaneously
  • Cheaper entry-level sound pack bundle

Mini Orchestra

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

12 purchases

iSymphonic Orchestra

One-time12
  • Arpa Sound Set$8.99
  • Vento Sound Set$8.99
  • Pro Sound Set$11.99
Show 9 more
  • Canto Sound Set$11.99
  • Boato Sound Set$11.99
  • Voce Sound Set$11.99
  • Varia Sound Set$11.99
  • Aulos Sound Set$11.99
  • Perla Sound Set$11.99
  • Cupra Sound Set$16.99
  • Corda Sound Set$16.99
  • Keys Sound Set$24.99
None

Mini Orchestra

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iSymphonic Orchestra free?
iSymphonic Orchestra costs $9.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Mini Orchestra free?
Mini Orchestra costs $19.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, iSymphonic Orchestra or Mini Orchestra?
Mini Orchestra is rated higher. iSymphonic Orchestra averages 3.8 out of 5 from 103 ratings, while Mini Orchestra averages 4.9 from 8 ratings.
Do iSymphonic Orchestra or Mini Orchestra have ads?
Neither iSymphonic Orchestra nor Mini Orchestra shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iSymphonic Orchestra or Mini Orchestra?
iSymphonic Orchestra ships an update every 2 months, and Mini Orchestra every 30 months. Most recently, iSymphonic Orchestra was updated on September 22, 2026 and Mini Orchestra on August 26, 2026.

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