WRITTEN BY KATIE MAYNARD
MPSE SOUND EFFECTS EDITOR, BOOM BOX POST
I wrote a blog post a few years ago on an ear training website called Soundgym. It’s a very well-rounded, cost effective, and great tool for those in music or post production sound. Like many, I find it a bit difficult to set aside time for ear training, so I was looking for a more on-the-go alternative, preferably something I could do from a mobile device. It could be just a couple minutes a day, on a lunch break, at the gym, or waiting in line somewhere. Consistent ear training can really help you develop your skills over time. Like anything in life, consistency is one of the biggest factors in personal growth, so I find convenience and accessibility to be big factors in whether or not I will be able to consistently practice something. With so many people streaming from their phones, tablets, laptops, etc., I think ear training on any device has actually become increasingly helpful.
During my search for the ideal app for ear training, I found that there is a lack of ear training apps that aren’t music specific for training pitch recognition, while many other options couldn’t act as a standalone application. I also found many apps that operate only within a DAW like ProTools. Ultimately, I found two great apps that checked a lot of the boxes I was looking for, both for different reasons. These apps are called Quiztones and EQ Perfect. Let’s look at and compare the two.
Here are the facts about Quiztones:
Quiztones is a fun, game-like interface for ear training, similar to SoundGym. It’s available for both iOS and Android, and is only $4.99 for your iPhone or iPad. The price does increase to $14.99 if you download it from the mac store for your iMac.
There’s a practice mode and a quiz mode for all of the games.
Here are the games included in the app:
Tones - Fundamental Frequencies - ‘Tones’ has two levels: Easy and Expert. Both are offered in the form of distinguishing sine waves. Easy is octave changes of 1 but expert offers ⅓ octave intervals. Each quiz is 10 questions which is perfect for a short break.
EQ - Boosts and Cuts - ‘EQ’ has choices of acoustic guitar, drums, electric bass, electric guitar, orchestra, piano, pink noise, strings, strings 2, upright bass, vocals, and importing songs from your own music library (which is really cool!). There is also a much wider range of difficulties in each of these categories - easy +8db, hard +5 db, hard -10 db, expert +7db -⅓ octave, and expert +4db -⅓ octave.
Gain - Changes in volume level - ‘Gain’ has all of the same musical sample choices as the EQ game, but only two difficulty settings. There’s an ‘easy - start here’ option, and a ‘hard - listen carefully’ option.
Here are the facts about EQ Perfect:
This one is technically free in the app store, but only for the first few games and it does have in-app purchases. Unfortunately for android users, it’s currently only an iOS app, but supports all devices with the same app, though it is optimized for the iPad. EQ Perfect is overall a bit more refined than Quiztones and a lot more visual. Unlike Quiztones though, there are only 4 pre-recorded songs and pink noise as examples in the free version. You have the option to buy additional songs with which to further practice.
The biggest difference between the two is that instead of working with a pre-recorded example, you get to work with an EQ curve in real time making a more realistic practice-experience. If you’re a visual learner, this can really help aid your ability to hear the differences. You also get a percentage of correctness since it isn’t a multiple choice quiz, making it easier to track your progress (and less pure luck involved.)
There’s also a comprehensive lesson plan which allows you to progress more linearly. The lesson plan addresses frequency, gain, bandwidth (Q), and EQ shape. Users are also given a more detailed assessment which shows you your strengths and weaknesses as a numerical score out of 100, and a graph which shows the frequencies you are able to differentiate the most. Again, if you’re a very visual person this can be immensely helpful.
Both apps are so much fun (really)! If you’re looking for an on-the-go ear training solution, I think these two apps are the best choices.
Quiztones is best for:
Android users
Those looking for many different instruments to be used as practice examples
People who want a lot of control over the difficulty of the games
Those who don’t mind spending $5 in the app store
EQ Perfect is best for
Those looking for a free introduction
People who own an iOS compatible device
Visual learners
Those looking to progress linearly with lots of feedback and data to track their progress
Final Verdict
Ultimately, I think the biggest factor in your ability to progress with ear training is how much you practice, regardless of the platform. Though SoundGym may have the most features, the convenience of practicing in an app setting may cause you to utilize it more and make it feel more natural and fun. If you want the best ear training experience, you should also practice on good speakers, preferably similar to your working environment. Both EQ perfect and Quiztones have pros and cons, but I think they are very valuable, cost effective, and convenient ways to get ear training in a busy schedule.
Helpful Links
Link to Quiztones in the app store
Link to EQ Perfect in the app store