# Harman Kardon Controller vs HiByMusic

The clearest difference is rating: HiByMusic at 3.4 against Harman Kardon Controller's 1.8. HiByMusic also leads on review sentiment (42% vs 9%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 14.0). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

HiByMusic holds the better App Store score, 3.4 against 1.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 100 and 140 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 9% of Harman Kardon Controller's written reviews are positive against 42% of HiByMusic's.

Harman Kardon Controller ships an update every 2 months, HiByMusic every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on August 13, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Harman Kardon Controller | HiByMusic |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [1.8 (100 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harman-kardon-controller/id905859401/reviews) | **[3.4 (140 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hibymusic/id1048838844/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 100 | **140** |
| Positive reviews | 9.2% of reviews | **42.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 64 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | **12.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Harman International Industries](https://appshunter.io/developer/419840205) | [Dongguan Hiby Music Technology Co., Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1048838843) |

## What reviewers say

### Harman Kardon Controller

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/harman-kardon-controller/id905859401)

Stream high-definition audio throughout your home with this app. It allows you to set up and customize compatible wireless speakers, create surround sound systems, and control audio playback from local or cloud sources.

**Highlights:** Stream HD audio wirelessly, Set up and customize speakers, Create 5.1 surround sound, Control multi-room audio, Stream local and cloud content

**Features:** Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great sound quality
- 👍 Easy setup
- 🚀 Wireless connectivity

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Unstable WiFi connection
- 🐛 Buggy app with frequent crashes
- 👎 Lack of music service integration (Spotify, Apple Music)
- 👎 Unintuitive and limited app functionality
- 👎 Unreliable multi-room/party mode

**Reported bugs**

- Speakers frequently disconnect from WiFi
- App fails to detect or connect to speakers
- Music playback issues like skipping, popping, and abrupt stops
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions

**Requested features**

- Add support for popular music streaming services
- Improve app stability and user experience
- Implement advanced features like EQ, gapless playback, and custom playlists
- Provide better integration with local music libraries


### HiByMusic

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hibymusic/id1048838844)

A free, high-fidelity audio player for audiophiles and music lovers. It supports a wide range of lossless and lossy formats, offering high-precision decoding and advanced audio features for a premium listening experience.

**Highlights:** Wide lossless/lossy audio format support, CUE sheets and ISO image support, High precision decoding (32-bit output, 64-bit float), External USB DAC support, Gapless playback, 10 band graphic EQ, MSEB support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🎵 Excellent hi-res audio support (DSD, FLAC, WAV, APE)
- 🆓 Free app without ads or hidden fees
- 🎨 Clean and intuitive user interface
- 🔗 HibyLink functionality for controlling compatible devices
- ⚙️ Effective equalizer and DSP effects

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 📱 Poor iOS optimization compared to Android version
- 🔌 Unreliable Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity
- 🎯 Clunky and unintuitive user experience
- 🚫 CarPlay support removed in recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes during music library scanning (around 3,000 files)
- HibyLink connection drops repeatedly
- Music playback stops when app is backgrounded
- Rewind button behavior inconsistent (goes to previous song instead of replaying)
- Album shuffle mixing with existing playlist songs

**Requested features**

- Manual playlist reordering
- ID3 tag editing capability
- Folder-based music library scanning
- Album artist sorting (not just track artist)
- Album favorites/bookmarking


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Harman Kardon Controller free?

Harman Kardon Controller is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is HiByMusic free?

HiByMusic is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Harman Kardon Controller or HiByMusic?

HiByMusic is rated higher. Harman Kardon Controller averages 1.8 out of 5 from 100 ratings, while HiByMusic averages 3.4 from 140 ratings.

### Do Harman Kardon Controller or HiByMusic have ads?

Neither Harman Kardon Controller nor HiByMusic shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Harman Kardon Controller or HiByMusic?

Harman Kardon Controller ships an update every 2 months, and HiByMusic every 3 months. Most recently, Harman Kardon Controller was updated on August 13, 2026 and HiByMusic on September 22, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*