Synthwave

Octave-sequenced bass (Analog or Drift, mono, filter env)

The engine of the genre: a saw/square bass playing root–octave–root–octave 16ths with a snappy filter envelope so every note "spits".

1. Drift: Voice mode Mono, Legato off so every note retriggers the envelopes. Osc 1 Saw, Osc 2 Rectangle one octave down at ~−6 dB; a touch of Drift amount (10–15%) for analog instability.
2. Filter MS2 (12 or 24 dB) cutoff ~250 Hz, resonance 15%. Env 2 → cutoff amount 40–50% with A 0, D 120–180 ms, S 0.1, R 100 ms. This decay is the knob that sets the "spit".
3. Amp env (Env 1): A 1 ms, D 250 ms, S 0.5, R 60 ms. Gate note lengths at 50–60% of a 16th so the sequence pumps.
4. Saturator Analog Clip 3–5 dB; Compressor sidechained from the kick, 2–4 dB GR with a 50–80 ms release — the pump is subtle, this is not French house.
5. Alternative: Analog with Osc 1 Saw + Osc 2 Square −1 oct, Filter 1 LP4 with Env amount 40%, Filter env decay 150 ms, Quick Routing set so both oscs hit Filter 1 in series. Analog's filter has more bite; Drift's is smoother.

Variations: Keep a TD-3 playing the same line through External Instrument with its own filter env — a real 303 square wave with resonance down is a legitimate synthwave bass. Mix the Drift sub under it.

Drum-machine kit with gated snare and toms (Drum Rack + Hybrid Reverb + Gate)

LinnDrum / DMX / 707-style samples with the most famous effect of the decade: a huge reverb cut dead by a gate.

1. Build a Drum Rack with Drum Sampler pads: punchy kick (Decay 200 ms, Punch 40%, a little Sub), snare with a bright crack, closed/open hats, clap, and at least four toms (hi, mid, low, floor) pitched to the key.
2. Create a return track: Hybrid Reverb with the Quartz or Dark Hall algorithm, Decay 2–4 s, no pre-delay, 100% wet, then a Gate. Set the Gate's sidechain input to the dry snare (or toms) track with Audition on to tune it; Hold 80–150 ms, Release 10–20 ms, Threshold so it closes immediately after the hold.
3. Send the snare and toms to this return at 0 dB; hats not at all. The result: a huge splash that stops dead — the gated reverb.
4. Toms: Drum Sampler with Pitch envelope −7 st over 80 ms (use the Pitch Env in Drum Sampler), Decay 300–500 ms. Write tom fills descending across the kit on the last bar of 8.
5. Drum Buss on the rack: Transients +10, Drive 10%, Boom 5% at 55 Hz, then Glue Compressor 2:1 slow attack for weight.

Chorused polysynth pad (Analog + Chorus-Ensemble + Echo)

Juno/OB-style pad: two detuned saws, a slow filter, and a chorus that makes it three-dimensional.

1. Analog: Osc 1 Saw, Osc 2 Saw detuned +5 to +9 cents (and Osc 2 a sub-octave Square at −12 dB if you want it thicker). Noise 3–6% for air. Unison/Spread as available in the global section: 2 voices, slight spread.
2. Filter 1 LP 12 dB (LP2) around 1–1.5 kHz, Env amount small (+10%), Filter env A 400 ms, D 1 s, S 0.7. Amp env A 300–600 ms, D 1 s, S 0.8, R 1.5 s.
3. Vibrato section: rate 0.3–0.5 Hz, amount tiny — the whole pad drifts like a real VCO. Drift amount in Analog's global section 5–10%.
4. Chorus-Ensemble Classic mode 40–60%, rate 0.5–0.8 Hz, full stereo width. This is the step that makes it sound like 1984.
5. Echo synced 1/8 dotted ping-pong, 20–30%, with the repeats low-passed at 4 kHz so the delay sits behind the pad; Hybrid Reverb Dark Hall 3–5 s, 25–35%.

Variations: Drift Poly mode with Osc 1 Saw + Osc 2 Shark Tooth, Stereo voice mode for built-in width; Wavetable Vintage category for the digital DX/PPG flavour; Meld Dual Saw engine with the Scrambler off for a dense, unison-like pad.

Brass stab (Analog pulse-width + fast filter env)

The horn-section hit — a wide pulse wave with a rapid "wah" from the filter envelope and a short, punchy amp shape. Played in 5ths and octaves.

1. Analog Osc 1 Square/Pulse with pulse width ~35% (Analog lets you set the pulse width and modulate it from an LFO — add 10% LFO at 2 Hz for shimmer). Osc 2 Saw one octave down at −4 dB.
2. Filter 1 LP4: cutoff 400–600 Hz, resonance 10%, Env amount +60%, Filter env A 5 ms, D 200–250 ms, S 0.2. Amp env A 5 ms, D 400 ms, S 0.6, R 150 ms.
3. Chord MIDI effect with +7 and +12 for the stacked-5ths voicing; play single notes rhythmically on the "and"s.
4. Chorus-Ensemble at a modest 20–30% and a short bright Hybrid Reverb (Quartz) to put it in the same hall as the snare.

Endless arpeggio (Arpeggiator + Drift + Echo ping-pong)

A 16th-note arpeggio that runs through the whole track, usually a pulse or saw with a short filter envelope and a dotted-8th delay that fills the gaps.

1. Hold a triad or sus2 chord in a MIDI clip; Arpeggiator Up-Down (or Random for a more modern feel), Rate 1/16, 2 octaves, Gate 40%. Add Steps/Distance for the "pattern" feel.
2. Drift: Osc 1 Rectangle (narrow), Osc 2 Saw +12 at −10 dB. MS2 LP ~1.5 kHz, Env 2 → cutoff 30% with D 100 ms. Amp env A 0, D 200 ms, S 0.2, R 100 ms.
3. Echo 1/8 dotted in ping-pong, 30–40% wet, feedback 35–45%; the dotted repeats against straight 16ths create the shifting 3-against-4 pattern that defines the genre's movement.
4. Auto Pan-Tremolo (12.3) in Pan mode at 1/4, light depth, or an LFO on Drift's pan for extra motion.

Sync / saw lead with glide (Analog hard sync, Wavetable alternative)

Hammer-style lead: a mono saw with portamento and vibrato, or a hard-sync screamer with the sync pitch swept by the envelope.

1. Analog: Osc 2 Sync to Osc 1, Osc 2 pitch +7 to +12 st; modulate Osc 2 pitch from the Pitch envelope (negative, so it falls) or from Filter env via the mod amounts — the sync sweep gives the "yeow" attack. Mono, Glide 50–100 ms, Legato on.
2. Filter LP4 ~3 kHz, resonance 10%; amp env A 5 ms, D 400 ms, S 0.8, R 200 ms. Vibrato via LFO 1 → pitch with 300 ms delay so held notes acquire vibrato.
3. Overdrive at 15–25% for guitar-like grit (the 80s lead often doubled a guitar). Echo 1/4 note.
4. Wavetable alternative: Osc 1 Basics>Saw, Osc 2 same, Unison Classic 2 voices small detune, Filter 1 MS2 with drive 20%, Mono/Legato on, Glide 60 ms; set the Mod matrix: Env 2 → Osc 2 Transpose −12 for a pseudo-sync sweep.

Variations: Add Vocoder with the lead as carrier and a drum loop as modulator for a rhythmic, talking lead; or run the lead through Amp (Clean/Boost) + Cabinet for the guitar-amp sheen.

FM bells and electric piano (Operator / Electric → chorus)

The DX7 side of the decade: glassy FM bells for melodies and the famous bright EP for chords.

1. Operator: algorithm with B modulating A, C in parallel. Osc B Coarse 3, Fine 500 (ratio 3.5 — inharmonic = bell), level −14 dB, B envelope D 800 ms S 0. Osc C sine at +2 octaves, −24 dB, D 300 ms for the "tine" click.
2. Amp env A 1 ms, D 2.5 s, S 0, R 1 s. Velocity → B level 40% so harder notes are brighter.
3. For the EP: Electric with pickup type W, mallet force high, fork tone high; Chorus-Ensemble Classic 30–40%; Compressor 3:1 for evenness.
4. Chorus is mandatory on both; Prism reverb adds the metallic 80s digital-reverb colour.

80s vocal / vocoder and tape delay (Vocoder + Echo + Chorus)

Vocals sit in a wash of chorus and dotted delays; vocoded doubles in 5ths are a genre staple.

1. Main vocal: HP 100 Hz, presence bell at 3 kHz, Compressor 4:1 with 4–6 dB GR, Chorus-Ensemble Classic 20–30%, Echo with both delay lines (1/8 dotted and 1/4) and the Modulation section on for tape-like motion, Quartz reverb.
2. Vocoder double: new audio track with Vocoder, carrier set to External from an Analog playing a sustained saw chord (root + 5th), 20–24 bands, Formant 0, Release 60 ms. Mix at −10 dB under the main vocal.
3. For a darksynth growl, send the vocal to a Roar return (Multiband, Hard shaper on the mids) at a low level.