5 tips for how to learn a synthesizer

My 5 tips for learning your synth. Whether you just got a brand new synth or you've been neglecting an old synth, hopefully some of these tips will inspire you to dive deeper and really master your gear.

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[ubiquitousreverser]

I’m currently reading a real page turner, the Digitakt manual! It’s one knobby, button pushing plot twist after another.

[MSS-gf]

Very timely advice given the abundance of affordable, excellent synths available on the market today. I would add the following to your excellent top 5:
- If it's a two oscillator synth start with one only. Ensure it's in tune.
There are some great tutorials posted on YT by very experienced practitioners - study their work. Join a user-members forum or two.
Try to use the settings on VST pre-sets to see if you can replicate the tone.
Begin to understand the power of modulation.

[duckunderground]

Yessss! I always download the manual before a piece of gear arrives! And sometimes even before I even purchase. Thanks for the great tips my dude.

[miguelesteves]

You are a great tutor for any person who is trying to take the best out of their self-teaching process.

[scottfernelius]

Found your page over the past month and I cannot say enough good things about your content. I picked up a Minilogue and a Grandmother last weekend (first time synth purchase). Appreciate your work and will definitely be referencing your page often moving forward!

[AlessandroCarn]

These look all very useful tips to me. I'm a bass player with a passion for synthesizers and I believe that the most important tip is to try and make a song with a single instument. I think it could really bring you to the heart of the instument.

[aseomg]

Tip #6 or the bonus tip could be: teach a child or an adult with very little electronic music knowledge but with a mild curiosity the basics of synthesis on a soft synth or use an analog synth.

Teaching someone is good learning tool. Also works great on girlfriends, wives, boyfriends, etc.

[liviou]

It is so rare to hear these kind of common sens advices. Simple but very important. Thank you very much.

[dustyrhodes]

Great content as usual! I always read the manuals for any new gear I get at least twice and obviously reference them
often.

[craigbrowning]

I just got a Behringer Model D and Printed the Owner's Manual (and Schematic) in advance.

When I first got it, I took it to a jam and plugged it into the Keyboard player's Yamaha Motif.

[duster]

Just got one..first EVER.. I needed to hear this, good job man.tnx

[Quantumedic]

Thank you so much for this. I have a Volca Fm. I'm in love. I downloaded the DX7 manual and Chowning's papers. My fav thing to is destroy presets using what I learned. Or taking a preset working my way back to initial patch.

[sherwinS_]

downloading the manuals now....Great tips!!!!

[ubiquitousreverser]

Thanks for the great tips, I really appreciate your content and your approach! I’ve spent a few years learning synthesis and I will have to challenge myself to make a song at least with just one synth, I love it when people make demo songs like that.

[jonaseggen]

If you are totally new to synthesis I recommend these 3 old but good videos:
"Dean Friedman also set up the New York School of Synthesis and provided a series of videos entitled Intro to Synthesis.
Friedman presents the rudiments of this topic in an audio-visual format, whilst incorporating a unique sense of humor." From Wikipedia.
Intro to Synthesis Part 1 - The Building Blocks of Sound & Synthesis
Intro to Synthesis Part 2 - Types of Synthesis & Programming Examples
Intro to Synthesis Part 3 - Additional Synth Features, Performance Controls & Wrap Up
You find the other two to the right on this page.

[oddgreen]

Waiting for my first synth atm, this was really good to know! And I'll be back here soon. Great vid, man.

[LouisSerieusement]

you are someone good, it's a nice advice to recommand people to read manuals ! I teach syntesis and several time I learn a synth I don't have by reading the manual ; then I went to the student studio and showed him how to use it ; manuals are awesome, too many people dump them :/

[RadekPilich]

Great tip on using one synth to make the whole song. I'm gonna try that.

What I would like to get advice on is how to familiarise myself with the preset libraries that come with synths.

It's extremely frustrating and overwhelming when there is thousand(s) of sounds in the and no easy way to let them play and listen to without sitting in front of the synth.

[valdiskrebs]

Great advice... took my Boutiques to the cafe and played and learned for hours. Created many new patches there.
Go thru presets and write down the number for the ones you hate... use those numbers to save/overwrite the new patches you create.

[Xlrive]

Reading the manual for non owned Synths seems like a great idea, thanks.