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Better Ears
MAMP GmbH lists In den Niederwiesen 4a, 76744 Wörth am Rhein, Germany.
What it is
Better Ears is an ear-training and sight-reading app for musicians, students, and teachers, with 15 exercises for listening and music reading. Rhythm work includes recognition and reading, with practice options such as a count-in, metronome, triplets, and time signatures including 3/4, 4/4, and 5/4. Users can respond by singing, playing an instrument, using a virtual keyboard or guitar fretboard, or connecting a MIDI device. Four preset levels are available, and an editor supports custom levels, chords, scales, and chord progressions. The app includes six instruments and supports custom SoundFonts; its site says Mac supports more than 100 sounds through DLS SoftSynth. Better Ears tracks correct and incorrect answers for each exercise and question. The maker describes syncing levels, sounds, and statistics across Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Android, and syncing levels, statistics, and settings through Dropbox. The free Mac Beginner version is limited to one level and one instrument and lacks custom exercises and microphone pitch detection. Listed purchases include Android at 2.60 CHF, paid once and iPhone and iPad at $4.99, paid once.
For and against
For
- Includes 15 listening and music-reading exercises.
- Answers can be given by voice, instrument, virtual controls, or MIDI.
- Custom levels, chords, scales, and progressions can be created.
- Tracks right and wrong answers for each exercise and question.
- Levels, sounds, and statistics sync across listed platforms.
Against
- Mac Beginner is limited to one level and one instrument.
- Mac Beginner lacks custom exercises and microphone pitch detection.
- Android costs 2.60 CHF, paid once.
- iPhone and iPad cost $4.99, paid once.
The verdict
Better Ears combines ear training and sight reading with several ways to answer and customize practice. The free Mac Beginner edition has substantial limits, while listed mobile purchases have one-time prices.
Who it suits
Better Ears suits musicians, students, and teachers who want structured practice in listening and music reading. The custom exercise options may also suit learners who want to shape practice around particular chords, scales, or progressions.
Plans and prices
Better Ears Beginner (Mac)
one level · one instrument · no custom exercises · no microphone pitch detection
Read 15 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Better Ears macOS trial
trial duration not stated
Read 15 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Better Ears (Android)
phones and tablets · 1,000+ downloads shown
Read 15 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Better Ears (iPhone/iPad)
universal iPhone and iPad app
Read 15 Oct 2026 · appbrain.com
Better Ears — macOS trial
Free macOS trial; trial duration not stated
Read 11 Oct 2026 · better-ears.mamp.info
Better Ears Beginner — Mac
Free version; one level and one instrument; no custom exercises or microphone pitch detection
Read 11 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
Better Ears — Android
Phones and tablets
Read 11 Oct 2026 · play.google.com
Better Ears — iPhone and iPad
One universal app
Read 11 Oct 2026 · apps.apple.com
On the record
- Answer methods
- Users can answer by singing, playing a real instrument, using a virtual keyboard or guitar fretboard, or connecting a MIDI device.better-ears.mamp.info · read 11 Oct 2026
- API and SDK
- The public product and store pages describe MIDI, SoundFonts and Dropbox as integrations but do not document a public API or SDK.better-ears.mamp.info · read 15 Oct 2026
- Changelog
- The App Store history records Dropbox-sync fixes, Apple-silicon optimization, SoundFont support, Dark Mode, pitch-detection improvements and the later rhythm-training release.apps.apple.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Company size and founding
- LinkedIn lists MAMP GmbH at 2–10 employees, headquartered in Wörth am Rhein, and founded in 2019.de.linkedin.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Custom levels
- Four preset levels are provided and users can create unlimited custom levels with the editor.apps.apple.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Custom practice
- The app has four preset levels and an editor for creating custom levels, chords, scales, and chord progressions.better-ears.mamp.info · read 11 Oct 2026
- Custom sounds
- The app includes six sampled instruments and accepts user SoundFonts in .sf2 format.better-ears.mamp.info · read 15 Oct 2026
- Exercise coverage
- The current product page lists 15 exercises spanning interval, scale, chord, pitch, melodic, tempo, key-signature and rhythm training plus music-reading variants.better-ears.mamp.info · read 15 Oct 2026
- Exercises
- The app includes 15 exercises covering ear training and music reading, including rhythm recognition and rhythm reading.better-ears.mamp.info · read 11 Oct 2026
- Free version limit
- The Mac App Store listing says Better Ears Beginner is limited to one level and one instrument and lacks custom exercises and microphone pitch detection.apps.apple.com · read 11 Oct 2026
- Interface
- The maker advertises a redesigned interface, full Dark Mode and clearer music notation on iPhone, iPad and Mac.better-ears.mamp.info · read 15 Oct 2026
- Licence
- AlternativeTo classifies Better Ears as paid proprietary commercial software with a one-time purchase model.alternativeto.net · read 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: interface
- An Apple reviewer found the exercise-start control unintuitive, requiring trial and error to discover.apps.apple.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: missing practice control
- An Apple reviewer wanted the ability to play a piano freely before submitting an answer.apps.apple.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: notation accuracy
- Google Play reviewers reported that staff notation was sometimes too imprecise to identify lines and spaces reliably.play.google.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: stability
- Google Play reviewers reported recurring bugs, crashes and unresolved notation problems.play.google.com · read 15 Oct 2026
- Mac sound library
- The product page says Mac users can access more than 100 sounds through DLS SoftSynth.better-ears.mamp.info · read 15 Oct 2026
- Maker legal name
- The company imprint identifies the maker as MAMP GmbH.mamp.info · read 15 Oct 2026
