Subtractive Synths - Comparing Sound Engines (The Theory)

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Sound engine is the most difficult of the 6 major subtractive synth features to define but it may also be the most crucial when deciding what instrument is going to work best for the sound/style you’re going for. We can define the synths sound engine in a similar way that we define timbre in relation to acoustic sound. What makes two instruments sound different when they are playing the same pitch for the same duration…that would be timbre. In the case of subtractive synthesizers I define the sound engine as what makes one super saw lead sound different to another super saw lead with the same oscillator, filter, and envelope settings. Why does a square based pluck in Serum sound so different to the square based pluck in Sylenth? Once you fully understand the basics of making sound in subtractive synthesizers it’s valuable to focus a lot of energy on hearing the nuisance and the character of your instruments. If you’re going for synthwave you’ll need to use synths whose sound engine fits that vibe (virtual analog, 80’s, etc). This is true for all genres and all sounds.