Another solid NI Massive video tutorial from Marcus James, this time he covers how to make the classic 1980′s funky synth stabs, which is a timeless and infectious sound!

 

Although YouTube user MarcusJamesProducer has just begun his music production tutorial series, he is showing some great skill and savvy in his presentation of both NI Massive and the sound design lesson he has shared in the first two installments. Moving at a nice pace that anyone can keep up with, he explains both the reasons for making the selections he does and the way Massive handles these things as he moves through the video. The is really nothing left unexplained in the end and you are rewarded with a very cool sound that can be used in a very wide range of music styles because the instrument is so incredibly versatile, which is exactly why it was loved and made popular by such artists like Stevie Wonder. We are definitely looking forward to more tutorials from him in the near future!

This sound is based on a couple of very basic waves. OSC1 is running a saw wave, OSC2 is running a square wave but it pitched down one octave. Adding some white noise exposes the classic analogue character which is absolutely necessary for this sound to work right. All of this is then sent through a series of two lowpass filters set up to really squeeze the sound. The cutoff of these filters are then modulated by an envelope to create the desired development and shape of the synth. Adding a classic tube amp and some reverb round out the sound and wrap up this sound design session. You have just recreated one of the most iconic sounds of the 1980′s funk music scene! Feel free to send us a message letting us know how you end up using it.

Cheers,
ΩhmLab