The things people ask before they download.
Yes — GranSample is free to download, and the first eight pads, the granular engine, mic recorder, effects, and step sequencer are all playable out of the box. An optional one-time GranSample Pro upgrade unlocks pads 9–16, Song Mode, the Modulation Matrix, Musical Granular, Sample Chop, kit export, custom backgrounds, and WAV/M4A export. No subscription, no ads, no account.
Granular synthesis chops a sound into tiny fragments called grains and replays them in clouds — letting you stretch, freeze, pitch, and scatter audio in ways a normal sampler can't. In GranSample, seven controls (Position, Size, Density, Pitch, Pitch Jitter, Spray, Spread) plus a Freeze toggle, an ADSR cloud envelope and four window shapes let you sculpt any recording grain by grain, up to 128 grains at once — and the display draws the cloud while it plays, so you can see what each knob does.
Yes. GranSample ships as an AUv3 plugin, so it runs inside any AUv3 host — Logic Pro, GarageBand, AUM, Drambo, Loopy Pro, Cubasis, and more. Per-pad parameters automate from the host, the sequencer locks to host transport, and since 1.4.3 you can load your own samples onto a pad without leaving the host. The app and the plugin share one sample library, so a recording made in either place is available in both.
Yes. Connect any external MIDI controller over USB, Bluetooth, or a virtual port to trigger pads with velocity sensitivity and per-pad note mapping. MIDI Learn binds any CC to any on-screen knob in the standalone app. Chromatic mode fans a single sample across all 16 pads at semitone pitches, turning the grid into a playable instrument.
Yes — GranSample is universal and runs on any iPhone or iPad with iOS 16 or later. iPad gets a native landscape layout where the pad grid, properties panel, and step sequencer share the screen without scrolling.
Absolutely. Record up to 60 seconds from your device mic, or import WAV, AIFF, M4A, and MP3 files. Scale Lock can pitch your source into any root and scale so it lands perfectly in tune before it hits a pad.
Yes — since v1.4.0 every project has eight step patterns (A–H) you can switch live with bar-quantized timing, and Song Mode chains them into a full arrangement with per-section repeats. Patterns, the song, and BPM all save with the project. Song Mode is part of GranSample Pro.