“Burn Rubber on Me” | Legendary Synth Bass REVEALED

* THINK LIKE A SYNTH * ✅
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*ABOUT THIS VIDEO*

The bass sound in "Burn Rubber on Me (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)" by The Gap Band is one of the most iconic synth bass lines of all time. It’s deep, punchy, and dripping with personality—an unmistakable groove that helped define the early '80s electro-funk sound. In this video, I break down exactly how to create that legendary bass tone, starting with a side-by-side comparison on four classic synths: the Minimoog, Jupiter-8, Prophet-5, and ARP 2600.

Then, I’ll take you step by step through programming the sound on a Minimoog—so you can apply the same principles to any synth, including your favorite software plugin. I’ll show you my go-to waveform settings, tuning tricks, special filter envelope and performance techniques that gives the sound its signature voice and attitude.

If you’re into synth history, deep sound design, and real-world techniques from decades of professional experience, you’re in the right place. Subscribe for more synth breakdowns, exclusive interviews, and performances. And if you really want to master programming like a pro, check out my new course, Think Like a Synth, where I teach the exact method I’ve used on records and film scores for over 40 years so you can make legendary sounds on your tracks.

I appreciate all of you!

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*ABOUT ANTHONY*

Anthony's musical touch as both composer and performer is connected with some of the most influential creative minds over the last 40 years. He’s composed and conducted original orchestral scores for over 80 feature films including _*Young Guns*_ , _*Internal Affairs*_ , _*The Man From Elysian Fields*_ , _*15 Minutes*_ and _*Planes, Trains & Automobiles*_ , been commissioned by the *Los Angeles Philharmonic* for his symphonic work "In the Family Way", written over one thousand TV commercials in a myriad of musical styles, co-founded Levels Audio Post (LA's premiere post production facility) and performed and arranged on big-box-office films and influential hit records such as *Michael Jackson's* _*Thriller*_ .

His extensive work as a young arranger, orchestrator and performer for *Quincy Jones* , *Jack Nitzsche* , *Lamont Dozier* , *Arthur Rubenstein* and *Giorgio Moroder* was vital in launching his own career. His early years pioneering modular analog synthesizers along with his wide-ranging music scholarship positioned Anthony at the center of the music technology revolution. He attended the University of Southern California School of Music as a piano and composition major.

[merchannel]

2 bits of feedback: 1. zooming in on your panel as you turn knobs and sculpt sound is GREATLY appreciated; 2. making the sound in real time like this feels like a genuine learning experience — like I actually got a lesson from Anthony. Some creators try to edit down videos too lean and overproduced. This felt like a real world interaction if that makes any sense. Thanks team!

[neurokinetik]

Always loved those Gap Band bassline sounds. This one, Early In the Morning, and You Dropped a Bomb On Me especially.

[JiveTalker]

This man's channel is why Youtube was invented! Dropping the synth knowledge we've all been wanting.

[tradewinds-wbkn]

This is incredible. I just learned in 7 minutes what I have wondered about for the last 50 years. I had an old old Hammond mono synth my parents bought me for $50 and I had no clue who/what and how all those buttons and knobs worked. Just wow man.

[Art-zssl]

Why is that mini so expressive? It's insane!

[ericjohnson]

One of best bands of ALL TIME. Thank you for this!!

[akastewart]

5:30 Those ‘no sustain’ notes gave me instant audio flashbacks to early ‘80s electro classic ‘Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)’ by Hashim. 👂🔥😘👌

[ChrisMills-AmbientSpace]

Talking to the oscillators makes me think of the way Steve Vai is always talking to his guitar when he plays. What a treat! Thank you Anthony!

[dannymaher]

Anthony, I have thank you for all you (and have done) for music. I woke up paralysed in 2019 and have struggled to engage in music like I used to, it was my passion but my illness has taken so much from me. When I see your videos and tutorials it dose cheer me up, so thank you for that. My kindest regards

[macronencer]

I love how logically you think about waveforms - when you talked about the square wave having fewer harmonics and leaving room for the sawtooth, I was reminded of a music tutor I had lessons with for a while. He was talking about intervals and suspensions in an orchestral context, but it's really the same sort of thing - a lot of it's based on the harmonics of the notes. Very cool!

[fabiandeka]

Wow!. Best Sound ever, together with Rene & Angela "I'll be good". Thanks

[noeldacosta]

This is awesome. Really enjoyed hearing the comparison. Synth bass is one thing I never quite got right, back when I was working with synths, so this is amazing information.

[zvenx]

This song is such a classic in my opinion.. and that bass.. thanks for doing this...

[GizzyDillespee]

Thanks for the buffet at the beginning!

[brerkris]

One of my all time favorite basslines ❤

[ChrisChapmanIAm]

Great little clinic on how to build and play a funky synth bass line! Totally enjoyed this.

[Mr-ezbu]

Love it, these synths will always have that iconic sound. Thanks for the deep dive on this, and the Gap Band was one of my favorites.

[stanwilliams]

You can put your price on that unit Damn I like that board!! 👊🏿😎

[mikeprice]

This is like one of my top 3 Gap tunes and always thought about sick the bass sound on it is. Can't wait to watch this!!

[dictabeat]

I absolutely LOVE the Gap band and their bass sounds. Thanks for this