Comparison

PhaseRings vs Synesthesia Synth

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

Synesthesia Synth

An experimental audio-visual instrument that allows users to sculpt evolving spatial audio by manipulating floating capsules. Position, rotation, and pulse changes affect tone, texture, and synchronized particle generation. It's a visual synthesizer, not a game.

Highlights
  • Experimental audio-visual instrument
  • Sculpt evolving spatial audio
  • Manipulate floating capsules
  • Control tone, texture, and particles
  • Visual synthesizer
Read full description

Synthaestesia is a free experimental audio-visual instrument. Three capsules float in space. Every contraction produces sound. Move them, rotate them, reshape their pulse — and sculpt evolving spatial audio. Position changes tone. Rotation alters texture. Delay generates synchronized particles. This is not a game. It’s a spatial synth you can see.

Screenshots

PhaseRings3 screens
Synesthesia Synth2 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Synesthesia Synth at 5.0 against PhaseRings's 4.4. Synesthesia Synth also leads on update cadence (every 10 days vs every 5 months). PhaseRings's advantage is ratings volume (16 vs 2). On price, 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

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

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Synesthesia Synth holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PhaseRings has 16 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PhaseRings ships an update every 5 months, Synesthesia Synth every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on July 7, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
PhaseRings versus Synesthesia Synth: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhaseRingsSynesthesia Synth
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (16 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings16 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.016.0
Further details — not scored
Size6 MB141 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCharles MartinMICHELE ZACCAGNINI

In-app purchases

None

PhaseRings

No in-app purchases

None

Synesthesia Synth

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PhaseRings free?
PhaseRings is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Synesthesia Synth free?
Synesthesia Synth is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PhaseRings or Synesthesia Synth?
Synesthesia Synth is rated higher. PhaseRings averages 4.4 out of 5 from 16 ratings, while Synesthesia Synth averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do PhaseRings or Synesthesia Synth have ads?
Neither PhaseRings nor Synesthesia Synth shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PhaseRings or Synesthesia Synth?
PhaseRings ships an update every 5 months, and Synesthesia Synth every 10 days. Most recently, PhaseRings was updated on July 7, 2026 and Synesthesia Synth on September 19, 2026.

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