I love synthesizing drums, but I've always been curious as to how buzzy synth toms were made. I've fallen in love with it in the past few years and as I inch further into producing synthwave I need some of that sweet synth tom mojo. Flutes has the quintessential sound I'm looking for (synth tom goodness in the fills rather than the lower-pitched ones throughout the rhythm, especially at 3:15):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=md7j-aW2nFM
I've never been able to quite get there with the subtractive approach, there is a more melodic/periodic component to the buzzy high-end of them that might be some type of audio rate modulation like FM?
80's buzzy synth toms?
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 10588 posts since 13 Jun, 2004 from Alberto Balsam
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- KVRian
- 626 posts since 15 Jun, 2015
Assuming you can get your hands on the hardware, I've got a couple suggestions:
The basic tom sound reminds me of the tom sounds from the classic Korg Electribe ER-1 (I haven't tried the new version of the ER-1, so not sure if it sounds the same). To achieve that buzzy-ness, push the signal through a cheap tube compressor like the HHB Radius 3 "Fat Man". I've achieved a similar buzzy effect by over-compressing kick drums using an ER-1 and a Fat Man. Shop around on eBay--you can probably pick up both for about $400.
The other thing you could try would be on an old Korg MS2000. Build your tom sound using typical subtractive synthesis, then engage the MS2000's Distortion button. I've built a steel drum patch on that synth, and the Distortion button adds a nice musical buzzy-ness to the tail of each hit.
Good luck!
The basic tom sound reminds me of the tom sounds from the classic Korg Electribe ER-1 (I haven't tried the new version of the ER-1, so not sure if it sounds the same). To achieve that buzzy-ness, push the signal through a cheap tube compressor like the HHB Radius 3 "Fat Man". I've achieved a similar buzzy effect by over-compressing kick drums using an ER-1 and a Fat Man. Shop around on eBay--you can probably pick up both for about $400.
The other thing you could try would be on an old Korg MS2000. Build your tom sound using typical subtractive synthesis, then engage the MS2000's Distortion button. I've built a steel drum patch on that synth, and the Distortion button adds a nice musical buzzy-ness to the tail of each hit.
Good luck!
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 10588 posts since 13 Jun, 2004 from Alberto Balsam
I have an MS2000B 
Love it.
I overdrive drums a lot. The type of sound I'm after has more dynamics than the result of getting that kind of buzz from a noise and tone source being distorted into each other. I way have to resample into a sampler to restore the envelope.
Here is another example of what I'm looking for, just a few seconds in:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwnFZkGwpHY
Love it. I overdrive drums a lot. The type of sound I'm after has more dynamics than the result of getting that kind of buzz from a noise and tone source being distorted into each other. I way have to resample into a sampler to restore the envelope.
Here is another example of what I'm looking for, just a few seconds in:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwnFZkGwpHY
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- KVRAF
- 3089 posts since 4 May, 2012
Gate some filtered white noise with the synthetic tom sound to layer them together. It's a trick more commonly used on snares but I think it applies here.
Otherwise, you could filter the top end from an acoustic tom and layer with the synthetic body.
Otherwise, you could filter the top end from an acoustic tom and layer with the synthetic body.
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- KVRist
- 279 posts since 27 Aug, 2015 from Paris, France
Hey here, in the same order of ideas, I would like to get that kind of tom sound (beginning of the song and all along)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8hsgWGOc_M
Always have the feeling that Mitch Murder gets cleaner and more percussive toms than the average, still can't manage to sound like this. Noticed that some overdrive on vintage synth toms works pretty well to make them stand out in the mix, then add (gated?) reverb for that 80's vibe. But if anyone has some more ideas about it, I'll take it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8hsgWGOc_M
Always have the feeling that Mitch Murder gets cleaner and more percussive toms than the average, still can't manage to sound like this. Noticed that some overdrive on vintage synth toms works pretty well to make them stand out in the mix, then add (gated?) reverb for that 80's vibe. But if anyone has some more ideas about it, I'll take it.
Soundcloud - Synthwave & More https://soundcloud.com/canapelee
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- KVRAF
- 3089 posts since 4 May, 2012
EdSfer,
You could simply take the tom to a second channel, distort it a little and then apply an HPF before mixing with the main tom sound. Then gate the reverb with it or however you want to treat it.
I've experimented with taping contact mics to toms before to get a click layer. If you can find an impulse response from a contact mic, you could use that for tone control in your click layer if doing it ITB.
Some additional compression of the click might help too.
You could simply take the tom to a second channel, distort it a little and then apply an HPF before mixing with the main tom sound. Then gate the reverb with it or however you want to treat it.
I've experimented with taping contact mics to toms before to get a click layer. If you can find an impulse response from a contact mic, you could use that for tone control in your click layer if doing it ITB.
Some additional compression of the click might help too.
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- KVRist
- 279 posts since 27 Aug, 2015 from Paris, France
Thanks for the input Unaspected. That contact mic technique sounds interesting, definitely have to experiment with the ITB version of it! How would you use that impulse? Through a convolution reverb? (that's actually the only use I know for impulses, and i've never really experimented with anything else than presets)
Soundcloud - Synthwave & More https://soundcloud.com/canapelee
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- KVRAF
- 3089 posts since 4 May, 2012
Yeah, any plugin that can load wav files for convolution with an input signal.EdSfer wrote:Thanks for the input Unaspected. That contact mic technique sounds interesting, definitely have to experiment with the ITB version of it! How would you use that impulse? Through a convolution reverb? (that's actually the only use I know for impulses, and i've never really experimented with anything else than presets)
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- KVRist
- 279 posts since 27 Aug, 2015 from Paris, France
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fluffy_little_something fluffy_little_something https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=281847
- Banned
- 12880 posts since 5 Jun, 2012
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- KVRAF
- 15269 posts since 8 Mar, 2005 from Utrecht, Holland
Use a synth which has white noise oscillator to mix in, problem solved.
We are the KVR collective. Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated. 
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My MusicCalc is served over https!!
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fluffy_little_something fluffy_little_something https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=281847
- Banned
- 12880 posts since 5 Jun, 2012
Who says one can create those toms on a normal synth to begin with? I suppose they used drum machines or maybe a specialized drum synth such as Simmons.
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- KVRAF
- 7540 posts since 7 Aug, 2003 from San Francisco Bay Area
It’s just a basic standard synth tom sound. Sine wave with an envelope sweeping the frequency downward, plus another envelope on the VCA, and filtered noise mixed in.
Incomplete list of my gear: 1/8" audio input jack.
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 10588 posts since 13 Jun, 2004 from Alberto Balsam
Y'all, a simple waveform layered with noise doesn't sound the same as a buzzy tom... That would be like a snare with a weird pitch envelope.
