Looking for 90's eurodance sounds / techniques

[excuse me please]

Sorry guys but I don't understand something here. I watched on Youtube many presets presentations of these almost all classic synthesizers that have been mentioned on this all topic and none, literally none, had a preset that sounded like the ones used in Eurodance! Of course I only mean leads and synthes. I don't include organs, piano, guitars, even basses etc.
All these presets sound like 80's music, not mid 90's Eurodance!

None sounded like the ones used in projects like E-Rotic, Masterboy, Fun Factory, DJ Bobo, Culture Beat, Ice MC etc.
It's still some big secret what they used in their studios to create these sounds and how in the 90's I still think they had access to alien technology!

This is true. The only guy I know who comes close to these sounds is:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7S_Clf-pMgU

But then again, pretty sure that the bass/leadline of Zombie Nation by Kernkraft 400 comes from one synth, one sound. However, it goes through 3 octaves.

[Shiek927]

Sorry guys but I don't understand something here. I watched on Youtube many presets presentations of these almost all classic synthesizers that have been mentioned on this all topic and none, literally none, had a preset that sounded like the ones used in Eurodance! Of course I only mean leads and synthes. I don't include organs, piano, guitars, even basses etc.
All these presets sound like 80's music, not mid 90's Eurodance!

None sounded like the ones used in projects like E-Rotic, Masterboy, Fun Factory, DJ Bobo, Culture Beat, Ice MC etc.
It's still some big secret what they used in their studios to create these sounds and how in the 90's I still think they had access to alien technology!

As a big enthusiast of Eurobeat and Euro-music, here's a very quick rundown of many of the things they used.

That genre(s) makes immense use of the PCM, virtual analog, and digital synths of the era. The Roland JD800/JD990 is the cornerstone and will immensely get you the sound you're looking for. Nord Lead 1/2 as well as other VA"s like the Novation series (Supernova especially), Waldorf Q/MicroQ (my fave), not so much the Access Virus, but it can def be thrown in there. As well as other PCM synths like Korg M1, Yamaha TG55, and Korg Triton for sure. Modules like the JV1080, the JV80/SRX Expansions and XV5080 aren't bad as well. Analog synths don't really play much use here, but an Alpha Juno definitely wouldn't hurt. As for the basses, there's nothing like a Yamaha DX7-bass whether you're use a TX802, TX81Z, or a more keyboard-based synth like the DX7 or it's variants like the DX711D. Samplers like the Akai S5000 are/were very commonplace.

Mind you, It depends explicitly on the exact 'era' since every label has a somewhat different sound and you can get tonally different results depending on the synths and the cocktail you're looking for (early-to-mid 90s or late 90s/early 2k), not to mention your own personal preferences.

Trance-y synths like the JP8000 or Access Virus aren't 'bad' per se, but I wouldn't personally make too much use of them because they have a tone that's too far into that direction, unless that's your thing. I prefer fatter, richer tones that are still noticeably digital like the Roland JD or Waldorf. Of course, you can always layer for the exact sound you're going for and song.

For drums, I've always personally used samples, but I've seen the Alesis D4 drums in studio pictures enough to know that it's absolutely adored. I'm assuming the samples are processed in such a way for them to get the tone they are looking for. I personally haven't seen much success in my own attempts and usually just stick to preset packs, but big ol' fat 90's drums are the way to go. I have no idea why in the world everyone always recommends the 808/909 drums when they sound very House-y and don't sound appropriate for Euro music. Perhaps if you're making Italo Dance, but even then that's more up to taste imo. I've personally never seen them in studios, but I guess ymmv. That being said, the Toms (strictly just the toms mind you) from the SIMMONS SDS-V has been heard on quite a number of songs, so I have Alyjames plugin which is great. Again though, I pretty much just use the Toms now-and-then and have the Kick/Snare from elsewhere

Here's the bad news though: many of these synths still have not made the jump to software in 2021. Roland Cloud has a JV1080 and XV5080, Arturia has a great DX7 plugin, u-he has an awesome JP-oscillator..so there's some hope out there for sure. Korg recently added the Triton to their Legacy Collection which I adore. But the heavy-hitters like the JD990 and many of the virtual analogs (e.g. the Waldorf, Novation, Clavia Nord Leads, Yamaha's etc) of the era haven't made the jump and who really can say if/when it will happen. So if you want a really authentic tone, you'll either have to make the jump to hardware or stick with a modern day plugin which will have a very different tone. The plugins of today are very very clean and just have a different sound altogether than what was used in the old days. They're not 'bad', but they don't tickle my ear like the old stuff do and simply made for a different generation with different desires.

That's all I have! one thing you can do is go to vintagesynth.com and simply look up all the digital synths released during the 90's and early 2000's. Depending on the exact sound you're looking for, you may use more of something more than another. But whether you're going for a more early-to-mid 90's sound that heavily features the JD990, or more of a virtual-analog sound that features the VA's released a few years later like the Nords and Virus', you'll definitely be in the ballpark.

Best of luck!

[nix808]

Native Instruments FM7 or 8 would make something like a Yamaha DX 7 as an option to the Arturia one

[TB4C]

Another Vst to look at is Rp Blue2

[benitom25]

Check out this YouTube channel, lots of remakes of eurodance tracks from the 90s:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTWn ... v3uAnwqVVs

Lots of techniques and info about used synths.