Classic Analog Saw Lead

Sounds like: A clean, bright, buzzy saw lead, the all-purpose analog sound.

Sound type: lead · Genre: House, Techno · Style: timeless single-saw analog lead tone

The baseline analog lead — one bright saw through a moderately open filter with a simple envelope. No tricks, just a clean, versatile lead that works in almost any context.

Open this patch in the interactive Patchpad

Digitone II

Exact match: WAVETONE Saw wave

SYN page 1 · WAVETONE

• TUN1: 0
• WAV1: Saw (PRIM table)
• PD1: 0
• LEV1: 100
• TUN2: 0
• WAV2: Saw (PRIM table)
• PD2: 0
• LEV2: 0

SYN page 2 · WAVETONE

• OFS1: 0
• TBL1: PRIM
• MOD: OFF
• RSET: ON
• OFS2: 0
• TBL2: PRIM
• DRIF: 8

FLTR page 1 · Multi-mode

• TYPE: 0 (LP)
• FREQ: 83
• RESO: 19
• ATK: 6
• DEC: 60
• SUS: 70
• ENV: 32

AMP page

• ATK: 6
• DEC: 50
• SUS: 95
• REL: 40
• MODE: ADSR

FX page

• DEL: 13

Digitone II's WAVETONE machine (select with FUNC+SYN). WAV1 is a real saw from the PRIM table with LEV2 at 0 and MOD OFF, so this is a real oscillator wave, not an FM stand-in.

Compared with other synths: This is the reference/baseline lead in this library -- moderate everything, nothing pushed to an extreme.

Syntakt

Exact match: Plain saw through a moderately open filter

SYN — SY RAW

• WAV1: Saw
• TUNE: 0
• LEV2: 0

FLTR PAGE 1

• TYPE: Lowpass
• FREQ: 83
• RESO: 19
• ATK: 6
• DEC: 60
• SUS: 70
• ENV: 32

AMP PAGE 1

• ATK: 6
• DEC: 50
• SUS: 95
• REL: 40
• DEL: 13

AMP PAGE 2

• MODE: ADSR

The most direct, native translation of this patch in the whole library -- SY RAW's plain WAV1 Saw is a literal analog-style sawtooth. AMP PAGE 2's MODE must be ADSR (the default for SY machines, but drum machines default to AHD), or SUS on AMP PAGE 1 is ignored and the sustained lead tone can't hold.

Novation Summit

Exact match: Plain saw through a moderately open filter

OSCILLATOR 1

• WAVE: Sawtooth
• RANGE: 8'

FILTER

• SHAPE: LP
• FREQUENCY: 83
• RESONANCE: 19
• SOURCE: Mod Env 1
• ENV DEPTH: 32

MOD ENVELOPE 1

• ATTACK: 6
• DECAY: 60
• SUSTAIN: 70

AMP ENVELOPE

• ATTACK: 6
• DECAY: 50
• SUSTAIN: 95
• RELEASE: 40

EFFECTS

• DELAY LEVEL: 13

As simple and direct as this patch gets -- FILTER's SOURCE routes Mod Env 1 into the cutoff for a modest, musical opening.

Arturia MiniFreak

Exact match: Plain saw through a moderately open filter

OSCILLATOR

• TYPE: BasicWaves
• WAVE (Morph): 50 (pure sawtooth)
• TIMBRE (Sym): 0
• SHAPE (Sub): 0
• VOLUME: 100

ANALOG FILTER

• TYPE: Low Pass
• CUTOFF: 65
• RESONANCE: 15
• ENV/VELO: 25

ENVELOPE

• ATTACK: 5
• DECAY: 30
• SUSTAIN: 75
• RELEASE: 25

DIGITAL EFFECTS · FX1

• TYPE: Delay (Digital)
• TIME: 20
• AMOUNT (Dry/Wet): 12

Osc 1 is BasicWaves with Morph at 50 (pure sawtooth): the Morph knob runs from a square (0) through a sawtooth (50) to a double sawtooth an octave up (100), Sym only changes the pulse width below 50, and Sub adds a sine an octave down (0 here). ENV/VELO at 25 gives a mild, musical filter opening since MiniFreak has no separate filter envelope; the same Envelope shapes both amp and filter together. 0-100 scale, not 0-127. Values are on MiniFreak's native 0-100 scale.

Dreadbox Typhon

Exact match: Plain saw through a moderately open filter

FRONT PANEL

• WAVE: ~9 o'clock (VCO1 saw alone, VCO2 silent)
• CUTOFF: ~2 o'clock (fairly open)
• RESON: ~9 o'clock (low)
• EG LEVEL: ~1 o'clock (moderate filter-envelope amount)
• FILTER TIME: ~12 o'clock
• AMP TIME: ~12 o'clock
• VOLUME: ~12 o'clock

AMP ADSR

• ATTACK: 5
• DECAY: 45
• SUSTAIN: 95
• RELEASE: 35

Very natural fit for Typhon's straightforward analog voice -- a plain saw through a moderately open filter is exactly what this synth does well. Typhon's front-panel knobs are physically unmarked, so those values are clock positions, not percentages.

ASM Hydrasynth Desktop

Exact match: Plain saw through a moderately open filter

OSCILLATOR 1

• MODE: Single
• WAVE: Saw

FILTER 1

• TYPE: LP Ldr12
• CUTOFF: 83.0
• RESONANCE: 19.0
• ENV 1 AMOUNT: 32

ENVELOPE 1

• ATTACK: 5 ms
• DECAY: 180 ms
• SUSTAIN: 70.0

ENVELOPE 2

• ATTACK: 5 ms
• DECAY: 150 ms
• SUSTAIN: 95.0
• RELEASE: 120 ms

DELAY

• TYPE: Basic Stereo
• DRY/WET: 12%

Envelope 1 (pre-wired to Filter 1) and Envelope 2 (pre-wired to Amp) are independent real modules here, so a moderate opening on the filter and a fuller sustain on the amp can be dialed in separately rather than sharing one shape.

How the synths compare

The reference/baseline lead in this library — useful starting point to modify into any of the more specific lead patches elsewhere.

Patchpad is a free reference of drum patterns and synth patches written for real hardware: Digitakt II, Digitone II, Syntakt, Novation Summit, Arturia MiniFreak, Dreadbox Typhon and ASM Hydrasynth Desktop.