Dark Noise: Ambient Sounds Reviews

by Ve’ Gana Kale

I like DarkNoise . The problem is that DarkNoise conveniently forgets quite often that you already have an active subscription. DarkNoise then locks you out of the premium features, because it wants you to spend money to sign you up for a more expensive subscription.
Therefore, I have stopped using DarkNoise and canceled my subscription. I refuse to use any app that has a primary focus of using me to make money. Really sad that such a great app has as a primary focus scamming subscribers out of their money. If I could give DarkNoise no stars I would. I mean what is the point of paying a subscription to have access to premium features when DarkNoise will the next day conveniently forget that you have an active subscription and want you to sign up for an even more expensive subscription.

by Ryan-in-Miami

I paid for DarkNoise already. My family became dependent on it for sleep sound. Tonight, DarkNoise informed me that I am no longer a paying user, that I must now pay, AGAIN, every year, to continue using an app that I already bought. This is a violation of section 3.1.2(a) "Permissible uses" in Apple's App Store Review Guidelines: "If you are changing your existing app to a subscription-based business model, you should not take away the primary functionality existing users have already paid for." I'm reporting DarkNoise to Apple.

If you want more of my money then you need to make another app that I want to buy. You can't just charge me for the same app over and over after I already paid you for it.

by The Nickname Review

I agree with scampercom about the sound quality being off. The sounds sound thinned out. I use in-ear headphones (not Apple’s) to help blocked out co-workers when trying to concentrate. I usually listen to music but sometimes that can get tiresome and I prefer white noise. DarkNoise, though I really like the selection, probably wouldn’t help. The sound quality from other apps like Noisli and Noizio are better, with Wildfulness being the absolute best with 3D sound. I can mix sounds with Noisli but DarkNoise hasn’t been updated in a year or so and you can hear the looping. Noizio is updated, has more sounds than Noisli, but you can hear the looping and it requires so many in app purchases to expand the library. Wildfulness, Wildfulness 2, and it’s 3rd counterpart Sonas Island (or something like that) has beyond amazing sound quality. You can hear the looping with a few sounds but it’s biggest flaw for me is the lack of variety. It’s ALL nature sounds. There are other apps I have tried but most were unnecessarily complicated or not worth mentioning. DarkNoise is good for it’s simplicity, ease of use, features, and variety, but unfortunately not it’s sound quality.

by Scampercom

[2.0 update below] DarkNoise design is lovely, and the sounds are of a fine quality … except there aren’t any stereo sounds as far as I can tell. I’m a sounds app connoisseur (yes, that’s a thing), and of the six sound apps I use, even the free ones, this is the only one I have that has no stereo sounds. (Even the color noise sounds can be produced in stereo.) So the sounds will be fine if you’re far from the source, but if you’re close by they’ll sound a bit flat and less immersive. I’m hoping the “more to come!” promise means this may be addressed in the future.

2.0 update: this version introduces some new sounds, but after auditioning them I’ve found only two that are in stereo: Lake, and Ship Deck. For me, an app centered around monaural ambient sounds is like a camera app that can take only black and white photos. But YMMV.

by GraceBorn

I’ve been very pleased with Dark Noise. Really helpful for sleep inducing ambient sound. The variety is solid. Good design. I especially like the ability to create custom sounds by combining the stock sounds and adjust their individual volume to make a highly customized mix. It even synchronizes my custom mixes and settings through iCloud to the other devices, including the macOS version.

I would rate it five stars, but the audio samples need to be stereo or surround sound to really deliver realistic ambience.

by WokaWokaWoka

Great sound loops, but generally DarkNoise is too loud with my headphones one. There's an option to "Lower Volume" — it only works after enabling the setting in the preferences. If you later adjust DarkNoise 's main volume bar, it "breaks" the setting and the sound is again too loud.

Also, being new to DarkNoise , I wasn't aware there were 50 sounds because the UI is too minimal/unclear: The main window didn't look like it could scroll, and there was no indication that there were more sounds available.

by Secular South

DarkNoise is gorgeous and thoughtfully designed with excellent widgets and Shortcuts integration, and the variety of sounds is impressive (5 stars). However, the quality of the majority of sounds is frankly just average, which is disappointing, considering that sound is DarkNoise 's entire purpose (3 stars). Most of the sounds are thin and practically monophonic, with only a couple providing any sense of depth and spatiality at all ("Lake" and "Ship Deck," for example, are excellent and convincingly immersive), and volume levels vary wildly across sounds (at 50% volume, "Heavy Rain" is finally audible, while "Cat Purring" is deafening). I hope the developer will make sound quality improvement a priority for future updates. Until then, I'll return to the similar apps in my library that offer superior recordings with exemplary stereo presence.

by Kree2T333

I love DarkNoise, if it ever gets the ability to blend sounds together like noizio it will completely replace that app for me but for now I like to mix it up and use both. The interface is clean and easy to use and the sounds are amazing.

My only complaint is that DarkNoise doesn’t stay in the BG very well even just opening a few apps afterwards on my XR causes it to not want to resume the audio, even when opening DarkNoise and pressing play. Also if my phone is locked and I have to pause the audio it won’t resume until I unlock my phone and press play.

But these are minor issues to me and I am super happy with it, keep up the awesome work!

by EC ED

I have Tinnitus and I have my favorite sound on all the time while I’m at home. I use to have a sound machine, but many years ago I found DarkNoise and I have used it every day since. My only complaint is if I have it on and I get a text or an alert on my phone, it changes my sound or turns it down real low about 5 seconds after the alert. I have to unlock my phone, go to DarkNoise , and turn the volume back up or switch it back to my preferred sound. I can’t turn it up with just the volume button. Imagine my frustration when I’m group texting!! EVERY SINGLE TIME!

by Doc N Training

So this might get lost in the reviews but i wanted to review and rate DarkNoise ASAP. I've been a beta tester for DarkNoise for awhile now but had no reason to rate it until today. My dad has difficulty getting to sleep, and uses a white noise app on his phone. Tried to convince him to switch to Dark Noise a couple months ago but he wouldn't. When asked he said because of all the years he spent in the military, he fell in love with "rain on a tent" and he only found one app that did it. I submitted the feedback to have that sounds added right away. And now, DarkNoise has it thanks to the developer. And my dad is now full on using DarkNoise .

Cheers to the dev, I wasn't sure if that sound would get added, yet here we are. 5/5 all around

by Joshua D.

I really like the selection of sleep or relaxation sounds in this program a lot. If I need something to listen to, to be able to sleep or just to de-stress, Dark Noise, is what I inevitably choose almost every time.

Also, I cannot thank the developer enough for offering DarkNoise as a premium program. The fact that Dark Noise doesn't contain any greedy micro-transactions or stupid subscriptions and is just sold for one fair price is the main reason I took a chance and purchased this application. I only buy premium programs and I'm very glad to add this one to my collection.

I own more than a two handfuls of these types of noise applications and Dark Noise is easily among the best in my opinion. Thanks, again, for being a rad developer and selling Dark Noise ethically and morally as a premium program and God bless.

by JonathanSorum

Dark Noise has a gorgeous app on both iOS, iPadOS and macOS...don't think there's anything else out there that is so well designed and works across all platforms.

Now that it has the ability to mix together several sounds into a unique mix (which you can save), it has everything you need from a white noise generator.

This is DarkNoise that everyone else in the category should measure themselves against.

by BigDaddyCatan

I have been using DarkNoise for hours every day, mostly because it has Shortcuts functionality. That feature alone makes it more useful than other noise apps. The drawback for me is the sound library. As a person with tinnitus, some days I need different blends of sounds, and rain is best for this, but there aren’t enough rain choices for me. I wish that it had EQ sliders or the ability to import other sounds. Still, it’s a great app!

by Carrmelo Anthony

I like this sound more than Apple’s default background noises, and haven’t seen it available elsewhere. The pressurized sound inside and an airplane is an under appreciated stimulus I’ve come to realize. Kinda nostalgic. Good background sounds on a free app, and the straightforward user interface prevents me from overthinking the settings on an app I use to relax. DarkNoise is deserved of a Five count’em (5) star review from my pov.

by Islamahmad

I heard about DarkNoise in Mac Power user poscast. It is a simple to use app, the ready made sounds are a diverse and covers a lot of ground. And in the same time you can customize your own mix of sounds. During working from home, it's very useful for me to have the ambient sound of people, while keeping the benefit of no inturruptions.
Add to that your prefered natural sound, and you get the nicest ambient environment. Using it on macOS is even more awesome because you can play it while you are listening to something else.
The awesomest of awesome things is the fact that it works on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
I wonder if it can be modified can be modified to work on the watch too :)

by Rpgbx

Underwater and (now with update) Spaceship have helped me fall asleep consistently since Day 1 of downloading DarkNoise. I rarely sleep without it now. It’s also helped me wake up, since I become acutely aware the moment the timer stops the sound and my body naturally wakes up, miraculously 5 minutes before my alarm is set to ring. Unbelievable, especially as someone actively recovering from social media addiction (I previously suffered from anxiety driven largely by Facebook/IG, had a difficult time sleeping for more than a few hours, etc.) I am so grateful I found DarkNoise on Product Hunt.

by SulSilverVan

Long time user and I have to say DarkNoise is the best. The variety of white noises and other sounds keeps my other friends on their toes. The new green noise is amazing! My new favorite for sure Setting up shortcuts and automation with the action button is just the icing on the cake. The ability to play this under other audio is so helpful when studying or listening to long meetings that I really need to focus on. I could not be without it 🙌

by Bowsertune

Dad jokes aside, just think about this. Paying an inexpensive subscription price for a joyous app like Dark Noise is totally worth it if you want to stay focused for the entire year and block out external sounds and be aurally transported to bliss. Chapman cares so deeply about DarkNoise, and though I already bought DarkNoise on a one-time purchase, I will subscribe when the time comes. Kudos to Dark Noise, king of the soundscapes apps. Now - Apple Watch app? Here's to hoping :)

by CollegeProfWhoRecordsVideos

I've tried many of these apps, and they are all missing key features or lacking in terms of overall functionality. Dark Noise hits all the right notes, so to speak. It's lightweight and won't drain your battery, offers deep customizability, lets you combine sounds to create custom background noises, and most importantly, the sounds it has are top-notch. I listen to a customized Thunder/Rain/Crickets sound while I work and it's perfect. DarkNoise is more than worth the price.

by Brianhoch

I've always wanted to have a sound machine that let me combine the different sounds together and DarkNoise does just that, and it does it so well. The selection of various sounds is pretty amazing too. Even my teenage daughter was impressed, though she did question what sort of sick developer would put a snoring sound as an option. Keep up the great work!

by CH👋

The fact that it let's you COMBINE (i.e., mix) sounds to make the perfect one for yourself, has a minimal interface (i.e., all you care about is the sound, not an accompanying wallpaper or video) makes it great. The thing that makes it PERFECT (and why I gave it 5 stars), however, is the fact that it has a macOS widget 😍 (i.e., a quick start shortcut that shows up when you two-finger swipe to show the widget panel on the right side of the screen)--thank you for supporting what I think is one of the most underutilized macOS features! Maybe consider adding a screenshot of that in DarkNoise Store if you're not already?

by Timothyjtracey

I use Dark Noise everyday when I work and when I'm trying to relax or fall asleep. The mini player in the Mac app is a delightful addition. I miss the animated icons for the noises when I'm using the Mac app. I also wish there could be custom icons for the Mac app but I get that the implementation of custom icons on the Mac would be janky and thus likely not worth pursuing. I appreciate all the hard work you put into DarkNoise . Keep it up! It's awesome stuff!

by SchemeViller

This is a great sound app & I've already purchased the lifetime upgrade. However, it's a bit annoying to have DarkNoise take up valuable dock real estate when it's open. An app like this would easily benefit from a "hide dock app" option and menu bar icon with a drop-down menu of quick actions, such as play noise.... I'm still using it, but this is something I've been looking forward to for a while, since others have also asked.

by Jnjbrewer

My wife and I both use DarkNoise extensively. Current favorite is a mix between spaceship and brown noise. DarkNoise is one of the best developed and supported app accross all mac and IOS platforms-- I wish more developers put as much time and care into their apps. Highly recommend. It's been so long since I bought it I don't even remember the price I paid, but it would be worth far more in value add to my work.

by Brian_123456

This is a perfect, simple app that follows the philosophy of doing one thing, and one thing well.
I appreciate the unified experience across the Apple ecosystem.
Thank you for not collecting data - if you did, I wouldn't use it.
Thank you for your humor - unamed goose mode xD.
The one thing, on OSX, is the volume is super loud, which you acknowledge via the Labs section - and the 'Lower Volume' setting works perfectly - but I am curious why not change the range on the volume control?

by RussOniPhone

Good app, but I never had to pay for an app twice even when logged in with same Apple ID. Contacted company they just said the obvious “if you were logged in with the same Apple ID you shouldn’t have to pay twice. I had in on my iPhone wand wanted it on my iPad but the system didn’t detect I purchased it before. Plus most paid apps tell you within DarkNoise you paid for it or are a premium user.. no follow up from developer, sad with such a good app.