Comparison

PhaseRings vs Dahlia Tape Delay

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

Head to head
About

PhaseRings

Create expressive music with intuitive touch gestures. Explore various sound schemes and generative composition tools to craft unique musical pieces. Supports MIDI and Audiobus for advanced integration.

Highlights
  • Expressive touch gesture music creation
  • Seven unique sound schemes
  • Generative composition engine
  • Customizable pitch compositions
  • Core MIDI support
  • AudioBus and Inter-App Audio support
Features
Read full description

PhaseRings is a musical instrument for performing expressive music with touch gestures. Anyone can create a beautiful piece of music with our sound schemes and generative composition engine! Each ring on the screen represents a different pitch, and you can tap and swirl on each ring to create combinations of long and short notes. The angle and size of your tap will change the timbre of the notes you create! New in version 3.0, PhaseRings is also an AUv3 Audio Unit plugin. Load it as an instrument in hosts like AUM, GarageBand, Logic Pro for iPad, and Cubasis — play the rings inside your host, run several instances at once, drive it from MIDI tracks, and record it through your host's effects. PhaseRings includes seven expressive "sound schemes" featuring percussive sounds like marimba and singing bowls as well as pure synth sounds like phase and string synthesis. Four "compositions" of pitches are included in the app, but you can also create your own custom composition by choosing three base notes and scales. PhaseRings will do the rest, generating a series of great setups from the harmony you choose! Features: - AUv3 Audio Unit instrument for AUM, GarageBand, Logic Pro, Cubasis, and other hosts - 7 sound schemes - 4 built-in compositions - Custom generative composition - 11 scales and modes - Core MIDI in and out for iOS MIDI accessories and MIDI-enabled apps - VoiceOver support and light/dark appearance

About

Dahlia Tape Delay

This app emulates the warm, organic sound of vintage tape delay units. It offers advanced features like independent stereo controls, tape-like EQ, and modulation for unique sonic textures. Includes a classic version for nostalgic users.

Highlights
  • Tape wow & flutter modulation
  • Tape head EQ modeling
  • Independent stereo delay times
  • Ping-pong stereo with width control
  • Four delay time modes with host sync
  • Includes Dahlia Delay Classic AUv3
Read full description

Dahlia Tape Delay is an AUv3 effect built as a love letter to a bygone era. WOW & FLUTTER Noisy oscillators drive pitch modulation to give the same organic variation from tape aging. TAPE HEAD EQ A filter models the frequency response of the playback head of an analog tape delay, adding warmth and high-end roll-off in the feedback path. FEEDBACK Tape compression at the end of the signal path lets you push feedback to its limits without fear of runaway. STEREO / SPLIT Independent left/right delay times, ping-pong mode, stereo width, and spread controls using a mid/side splitter. FEATURES • Four delay time modes with host sync. • Independent left/right delay times. • Ping-pong stereo with adjustable width. • Tape wow + flutter modulation. • Feedback path with tape EQ and head response filtering. • Drift-compensating delay lines for stable long delays. • 12 factory presets. • Support for custom presets DAHLIA DELAY CLASSIC: The app includes a whole second AUv3 at no extra cost. Dahlia Delay Classic is a reincarnation of the original 2015 Dahlia Delay - it's a stereo delay with a resonant filter in the feedback path and a subtle pitch modulating warble. This new rendition has a more performant audio engine, host sync capabilities, improved presets and a more modern UI. Faithful to the original character, but with a new look and feel. COMPATIBILITY Runs standalone and as an AUv3 audio unit. Compatible with GarageBand, AUM, Cubasis, and any host that supports AUv3 effects on iOS 17 or later. — Timothy J. Barraclough / Horse Parade

Screenshots

PhaseRings3 screens
Dahlia Tape Delay4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PhaseRings at Free against Dahlia Tape Delay's $3.99. PhaseRings also leads on ratings volume (18 vs 6). Dahlia Tape Delay's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 5 months). On ads, in-app purchases, 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

PhaseRings is free to download; Dahlia Tape Delay costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Dahlia Tape Delay holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 18 and 6 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 80% of PhaseRings's written reviews are positive against 100% of Dahlia Tape Delay's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PhaseRings ships an update every 5 months, Dahlia Tape Delay every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
PhaseRings versus Dahlia Tape Delay: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhaseRingsDahlia Tape Delay
PriceFree — better$3.99
Rating4.5 (18 ratings)5.0 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings18 — better6
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size6 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCharles MartinFlora Creative Ltd.

Customer experience

PhaseRings

All ratings12 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral8.3%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews20 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral5.0%
Negative15.0%

Dahlia Tape Delay

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

PhaseRings

No in-app purchases

None

Dahlia Tape Delay

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PhaseRings free?
PhaseRings is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Dahlia Tape Delay free?
Dahlia Tape Delay costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PhaseRings or Dahlia Tape Delay?
Dahlia Tape Delay is rated higher. PhaseRings averages 4.5 out of 5 from 18 ratings, while Dahlia Tape Delay averages 5.0 from 6 ratings.
Do PhaseRings or Dahlia Tape Delay have ads?
Neither PhaseRings nor Dahlia Tape Delay shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PhaseRings or Dahlia Tape Delay?
PhaseRings ships an update every 5 months, and Dahlia Tape Delay every 5 days. Most recently, PhaseRings was updated on November 1, 2026 and Dahlia Tape Delay on October 31, 2026.

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