Comparison

PhaseRings vs Fishtail

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

Fishtail

This app generates complete musical forms using algorithmic composition based on music theory. Users can shape, perform, and rearrange these compositions, routing seven musical channels to their chosen instruments via MIDI. It offers extensive control over keys, modes, and expressive elements.

Highlights
  • Algorithmic music generation
  • Multi-section compositions
  • Seven-channel MIDI output
  • Retain, reorder, and perform Takes
  • Multiple intonation systems
  • AUv3 MIDI plug-in support
  • Ableton Link integration
Features
Read full description

Fishtail is a generative MIDI instrument for iPhone and iPad. It composes complete musical forms, then lets you shape, perform, retain and rearrange them! Explore six composers, including Lumière’s evolving modal colour and Ritual Engine’s rhythmic energy. Roll D7 for a shaped recipe, then Generate and edit it. Fishtail does not use AI to generate music. Its musical output is created through algorhythmic generation grounded in musical theory. Build pieces from sections with independent keys, modes, meters, cadences and expressive treatments. Generate distinct Takes, compare them, reorder them and hand the next Take over at a natural whole-piece boundary. Fishtail produces MIDI rather than sound. Use it standalone or as an AUv3 MIDI plug-in, and route its seven musical channels to the instruments you choose. Ableton Link supports shared tempo and transport. Features: • Complete multi-section generative compositions • Seven-channel MIDI output • Retain, reorder and perform Takes • Seven intonation systems • Normal MIDI, pitch-bend and MPE output • MTS output • Ableton Link • .fishtail project save and recall • Standard MIDI and per-channel export • Experimental analogue CV file packages • Accessible light and dark interfaces No account, advertising, analytics or tracking. Tested in AUM

Screenshots

PhaseRings3 screens
Fishtail3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PhaseRings at Free against Fishtail's $14.99. PhaseRings also leads on review sentiment (80% vs 50%). Fishtail's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 5 months). On rating, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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; Fishtail costs $14.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for PhaseRings against 4.4 for Fishtail. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 18 and 7 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 80% of PhaseRings's written reviews are positive against 50% of Fishtail's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PhaseRings ships an update every 5 months, Fishtail every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
PhaseRings versus Fishtail: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhaseRingsFishtail
PriceFree — better$14.99
Rating4.5 (18 ratings) — better4.4 (7 ratings)
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings18 — better7
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size6 MB37 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCharles MartinAMY NICOLA MCBRIDE

Customer experience

PhaseRings

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

Fishtail

All ratings6 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

None

PhaseRings

No in-app purchases

None

Fishtail

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PhaseRings free?
PhaseRings is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Fishtail free?
Fishtail costs $14.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, PhaseRings or Fishtail?
PhaseRings is rated higher. PhaseRings averages 4.5 out of 5 from 18 ratings, while Fishtail averages 4.4 from 7 ratings.
Do PhaseRings or Fishtail have ads?
Neither PhaseRings nor Fishtail shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PhaseRings or Fishtail?
PhaseRings ships an update every 5 months, and Fishtail every 3 days. Most recently, PhaseRings was updated on November 1, 2026 and Fishtail on October 31, 2026.

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