Does it know which drum I'm playing?
It scores your timing, not the drum: when you hit, not what you hit. So a practice pad, snare, hand percussion, claves, anything with one clear sound works great, acoustic or electronic. It's not a full-kit tool, though. It won't tell a tom from a cymbal, it doesn't follow pitch, and a loud kit ringing into itself will throw it off. If you want to know whether your time is solid, that's the whole job. It's a timing coach, not a way to notate a groove around the kit.
Isn't drumming about feel, not milliseconds?
Fair question, and feel is timing anyway. Laying back, pushing, sitting in the pocket are all timing choices. But a choice is only a choice if you can make it on purpose and repeat it. This doesn't reward playing to a grid. It shows you your own consistency and drift, so you can turn a happy accident into a feel you trust and control. It's a woodshed tool, not a judge at your gig. You have to own your time before you can bend it.
Isn't the scoring just a gimmick?
Because the practice that fixes your time, pad work, rudiments, staying steady, is the most important and the most boring. No feedback, no finish line, easy to skip. The score, the streak, and watching your consistency actually improve over weeks are there to make the reps something you'll come back to. It's not about turning drumming into a video game. It's about making the boring part worth doing.
What about latency on AirPods or Bluetooth headphones?
RhythmForge stores a separate timing calibration for each audio output you connect, so AirPods, Bluetooth speakers, wired headphones and the built-in speaker each get their own offset. On AirPods the delay also drifts during a session, by tens of milliseconds, and the app corrects it while you play. Calibrate once so the first few beats are right too.
How I measured the drift.
What happens to my numbers when Assist plays?
Assist only steps in when you're playing a different part than the click, like eighths over a quarter click, and two bars in a row land under 65% within 35 ms. The click drops back (the downbeat stays at full level) and your part plays in its own sound until you give it three bars at 80% or better. Those bars are left out of your accuracy, your rushing and dragging, and every timing card. They still count as practice time and toward your streak and weekly goal. The session tells you how much it helped: “Assist on in 6 of 40 bars.” It's on by default; the switch is in the “I play” sheet.
How does the energy meter work?
The free tier is metered by time rather than by which challenges you're allowed to touch, so the whole library is open from day one. You hold up to 6:00 of challenge time. It refills continuously on its own, and four times faster while a practice session is running — practicing literally pays for your next challenge run. You're only charged for challenge time you actually play: quit in the first 30 seconds and it costs nothing, and a run is never cut short once it has started. The metronome and practice mode are unlimited and never cost anything. If you're short, any challenge still gives you a free 25-second run with live scoring. PRO removes the meter entirely.
What happens after the free trial?
You drop back to the free tier: the full metronome and unlimited practice mode with all the analytics, plus 6:00 a day of challenge time you can spend on any challenge in the library. Nothing you've made is deleted — your custom challenges, personal bests and history are all still there, though the free tier shows the last 7 sessions in Activity until you resubscribe. Each challenge's own run history stays complete.
Will my session history sync across devices?
Yes. Your history and custom challenges sync across your iPhone and iPad over your own iCloud, and they come back on their own when you set up a new phone. On by default, no account to make. Nothing goes to a server of mine. It lives in your iCloud, so I never see your data. And if you'd rather move things yourself, manual export and import still works.
Does it need an internet connection?
No. Practice and challenges work fully offline. Internet is only needed for the initial App Store purchase and occasional subscription validation.
