SoundGym alternatives
Short answer: the right swap depends on why you’re leaving SoundGym.
- You want it on your phone: MixSense (iPhone, Android and web) or Quiztones (iPhone and Mac).
- You want more than EQ, in a browser: Reverie Mix (EQ, compression, stereo, phase and loudness, on real mixes), or Mix Chops (EQ, compression and level balance).
- You want to train on your own music: TrainYourEars EQ Edition, one payment for Mac or PC, or Reverie Mix Pro in a browser.
- You want it free and deep on EQ: EQ Academy, a free download for Mac and Windows.
- You want to find and fix the problem instrument in a full mix, free in a browser: Mix Chops.
- You just want to guess bands for five minutes: eqtrainer.app, free in a browser.
- You want quick games beyond EQ, in a browser on a computer: Audiodrillz.
I make Mix Chops, one of the tools below, so weigh that. Everything here about the other tools was read from their own websites and app store listings on 27 September 2026; prices, free options and own-audio support were checked again on 4 October 2026; Critical Listening Lab and EQ Academy were checked again on 8 November 2026, when Audiodrillz was added, and Reverie Mix and Quiztones on 9 November 2026. Prices change: check the vendor’s page before you buy.
At a glance
| Tool | Best for | Runs on | Free option | Price | Your own audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SoundGym | The widest range: EQ, compression, panning, space and effects | Web browser | Yes: three games per workout | Pro monthly, yearly or lifetime; prices shown after sign-in | Not stated |
| MixSense | SoundGym-style range on a phone | iPhone, Android, web | Yes: core exercises and daily sessions | App Store: US$9.99 a month or US$49.99 a year | Not stated |
| Reverie Mix | More than EQ: compression, stereo, phase and loudness on real mixes | Web browser, computer or phone | Yes: all 8 exercises, 15 rounds a day (free account) | US$12 a month or US$120 a year | Yes, with Pro (seven exercises) |
| TrainYourEars | Drilling EQ on your own music | Mac, Windows | No demo at the moment | €49 once (lifetime licence) | Yes |
| Quiztones | Frequency and gain quizzes on iPhone or Mac | iPhone, Mac (bought separately) | Yes, on iPhone | iPhone Pro US$4.99 a month or US$19.99 a year; Mac US$19.99 once | Yes (with Pro on iPhone; included on Mac) |
| EQ Academy | Free, deep EQ drills: gain, frequency, Q, mid/side | Mac, Windows | Free | Free | Yes, after 30 levels |
| Mix Chops | EQ from naming bands to fixing the problem instrument, plus compression and level balance, on music split into stems | Web browser, computer or phone | Yes: daily session and levels 1 and 2 of two exercises in each of EQ, compression, balance and space | Pro: US$12 a month (7 days free) or US$99 a year | Yes, with Pro |
| Critical Listening Lab | A structured course across EQ, dynamics, panning and more | Web browser | Free EQ demo and free account | Early-bird: US$19.99 a month, US$169 a year, US$399 lifetime | Not stated |
| eqtrainer.app | Quick band guessing | Web browser | Free | Free | No (uploads listed as a possible feature) |
| Audiodrillz | Quick games across EQ, compression and effects | Web browser, desktop only | Games play with no sign-in | None shown | Not stated |
What people want from a SoundGym alternative
Most people looking for one want one of four things: something cheaper or free, something that works on a phone, a way to train on their own music, or more depth on one skill, usually EQ, than a mixed workout gives. SoundGym is a web app with no native iPhone or Android apps, its Pro prices only show once you’re signed in, and its own pages don’t say you can train on your own audio. Those are the gaps the tools below fill.
SoundGym (what you’d be replacing)
SoundGym trains “frequency, compression, panning, and space”, and its games page adds delay, reverb and distortion. Its Pro page lists 21 games. Free members get the same three games in each workout with basic training sounds; Pro opens every game, five per workout, and premium sounds. Pro comes as monthly, yearly and lifetime plans in US dollars, with 30% off for students and teachers. It runs in a web browser, and its help centre says iOS isn’t fully supported.
Official pages: SoundGym Pro, browsers and devices.
MixSense
The closest to SoundGym’s range, on a phone. MixSense trains EQ, compression, balance (gain and panning) and effects (reverb, distortion and delay), and runs on iPhone, Android and the web with one account across them. The free tier covers core exercises, daily sessions and its Ear Score, with no card needed. The App Store lists Premium at US$9.99 a month or US$49.99 a year; Google Play shows a different price range, so check your store. Its App Store listing notes that it contains advertising.
Official pages: mixsense.co, App Store. Side by side with Mix Chops: MixSense alternatives.
Reverie Mix
A browser trainer that goes beyond EQ. Reverie Mix is ear training for producers and mix engineers, with eight exercises: an EQ boost, an EQ cut, compressor attack, compressor release, stereo image, phase, matching a high-pass filter cutoff, and loudness matching, all on full musical material rather than test tones. It runs in any modern browser, phones included, though its own FAQ says desktop is more comfortable for the exercises that need precise clicks. The free plan covers all eight exercises for 15 rounds a day with a free account (one sample round needs no sign-up). Pro is US$12 a month or US$120 a year and adds unlimited rounds, per-instrument practice, saved stats and seven of the exercises on your own audio files.
Official pages: reveriemix.com, its SoundGym comparison. Side by side with Mix Chops: Reverie Mix alternatives.
TrainYourEars EQ Edition
Desktop software for EQ only, and the pick if you want to train on your own music: you load the tracks you want to work with. It has two methods: guess the EQ that was applied, or correct a sound that needs it. It costs €49 once, a lifetime licence, for macOS 10.15 or later and Windows 10 or later, with a 20% student discount. Its support page says there’s no demo at the moment, and no mobile version.
Official pages: trainyourears.com, support. Side by side with Mix Chops: TrainYourEars alternatives.
Quiztones
Frequency and gain training on iPhone and Mac: a tone quiz, an EQ quiz, EQ practice and a gain quiz, with “450+ quizzes”. The iPhone app is free to start, with Pro at US$4.99 a month or US$19.99 a year; the Mac app is a separate US$19.99 purchase. You can import your own audio: with Pro on iPhone, included on Mac. It isn’t available for Android or Windows. More in Quiztones alternatives.
EQ Academy
A free download from Mastering The Mix for Mac and Windows, with the longest free EQ path on this page: 100 levels in 10 sections covering frequency, gain, Q and mid/side, where you match your EQ to a target. Song import unlocks after 30 levels. It’s EQ only, and desktop only.
Official page: EQ Academy.
Mix Chops
Mine. Ear training for mixing in the browser, on a computer or a phone, with nothing to install and no account needed. Its EQ module is a path of seven exercises that goes past naming bands: Identify the band, Sweep to find a boost, Hunt a ringing resonance and cut it, Restore an EQ move, fix a sound with cuts only, re-judge a solo move in context, and Fix the Mix: find the one instrument that’s muddy, boxy or harsh in a full mix and cut it there. The daily session and the first two levels of two exercises in each of EQ, compression, balance and space are free. Pro, for every level, is US$12 a month (the first 7 days free) or US$99 a year.
It also has seven compression exercises (hear whether a part is compressed, how hard it’s working, its attack and its ratio, then set a compressor’s threshold, ratio, attack, release and a parallel blend yourself) and seven balance exercises: hear which part of a song was turned up or down, find the part that’s out of place with no before to compare, set knocked-off faders back by ear, rebuild a balance from memory, build a mix from silence, even out a lead part phrase by phrase, and make a fader move of a set size in dB by ear. Its limits: depth, echo and reverb in Space, and practising on your own songs, are Pro only.
Critical Listening Lab
A newer browser platform, still in active development, that runs as a structured course across EQ, dynamics, panning, mixing and pitch, with reverb and stereo width training listed as coming soon. There’s a free EQ demo with no sign-up and a free account that saves your results. Its early-bird prices are US$19.99 a month, US$169 a year or US$399 for lifetime access, and its pricing page says they’ll go up.
Official page: pricing.
eqtrainer.app
A free web page for identifying EQ boosts, on pink noise or music, with a daily challenge. It does one thing, quickly. Its developer says the website will stay free; uploading your own tracks is listed as a possibility.
Official page: eqtrainer.app.
Audiodrillz
Twelve quick browser games: three on EQ (name a boosted frequency, name a cut one, name the filter type), two on gain, plus panning, compressor ratio, attack and release, distortion, delay time and reverb, on genre loops, instruments or noise. They play with no sign-in or price shown. It says it’s desktop only for now, and the site doesn’t name its maker.
Official page: games.
How to choose
- Stay with SoundGym if you want one subscription that covers EQ, compression, panning and space, in a browser. Reverie Mix covers similar ground (EQ, compression, stereo, phase) with a free plan of 15 rounds a day.
- Train on a phone: MixSense for the widest range, Quiztones for focused frequency and gain quizzes.
- Train on your own songs: TrainYourEars on a computer, Quiztones on iPhone and Mac, or Reverie Mix Pro in a browser.
- Spend nothing: EQ Academy on a desktop, or Mix Chops, eqtrainer.app and Reverie Mix’s free plan in a browser. Every free option is in Free EQ ear training tools.
- Hear EQ where it matters, in a mix: Mix Chops ends on finding and fixing the problem instrument in a full mix.
Questions
Is SoundGym free?
Partly. SoundGym has a free membership: each workout gives free members the same three games, with basic training sounds. Pro opens every game, five games per workout and premium sounds.
How much does SoundGym cost?
SoundGym sells Pro as monthly, yearly and lifetime plans, charged in US dollars. Its prices appear once you’re signed in, so check them there. Students and teachers can get 30% off.
Does SoundGym have an app?
SoundGym is a web app that runs in desktop and mobile browsers. Its help centre says there are no native iPhone or Android apps at the moment and that iOS isn’t fully supported.
What’s the best free SoundGym alternative?
For EQ on a desktop, EQ Academy is free with 100 levels. In a browser, Mix Chops’ daily session and the first two levels of two exercises in each of EQ, compression, balance and space are free, and eqtrainer.app is free for quick band guessing. Reverie Mix’s free plan gives 15 rounds a day across compression, stereo and phase as well as EQ. On a phone, MixSense has a free tier, and Quiztones is a free download with in-app purchases.
Which one lets me train on my own music?
TrainYourEars EQ Edition (Mac and Windows), Quiztones (Mac, and iPhone with Pro), EQ Academy (after 30 levels) and Reverie Mix (with Pro, seven exercises). Mix Chops does with Pro.