By Francis Preve

LAST MONTH, WE LOOKED AT A CLASSIC APPROACH TO MAKING MONSTER LEADS VIA LAYERING AND blending multiple synths playing the same riff. For the second part of this tutorial, we’ll look at a more complex way of whipping up memorable leads that morph and mutate via macros. We’ll be using Ableton Live and its FM/subtractive synth, Operator, but you can get the same result in other DAWs, notably Propellerhead Reason’s Combinator. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1.

Once you’ve crafted a catchy lead, add Operator (or another soft synth) and select a few parameters that make your sound go from simple to massive. For this example, I started with a simple sine wave on oscillator 1, added FM from oscillator 2 at a 1:1 ratio, and then layered a third oscillator playing a square wave an octave higher. Once you have your basic synth patch and a few cool parameters selected, it’s time to go big.

Step 2.

Next, add a few effects that add dimension to the original synth. For this example, I put an overdrive immediately following Operator. Then I added a tight stereo delay with left and right times set at 33.7ms and 36ms, respectively. That runs into a longer, dotted eighth-note delay, then a lowpass filter, bit-crusher, and highpass filter. Note that I also placed a limiter at the end of the chain, set to defaults. This is essential if you’re working with effects like distortion and delays with lots of feedback, as they tend to jack your levels way up.

Step 3.

Using Live’s macro assignments—or Reason’s Combinator rotary knobs—select the synth and effect parameters that create the biggest impact on your sound. My assignments are: FM amount from oscillator 2, volume of the octave square, overdrive wet/ dry, short delay mix plus feedback, long delay mix plus feedback, lowpass cutoff, highpass cutoff, and bit-crush amount.

Step 4.

The last step is the most fun: Record your riff and turn those knobs! Always keep your DAW in record during this process, because magic happens when you least expect it and it’s crucial to capture that. Once you have a solid take, you can always go back and edit. The end result will be a lead that twists, turns, grows, shrinks, and keeps the dance floor engaged with your track.