Classic FM Pluck

Sounds like: A bright, glassy, bell-like pluck that decays quickly.

Sound type: pluck · Genre: House, Techno, Electro · Style: DX-style bell/pluck FM tones

A bright, glassy, short-decaying pluck with an unmistakably FM-metallic edge — the kind of sound that cuts cleanly through a mix without needing much level.

Open this patch in the interactive Patchpad

Digitone II

Exact match: Bright, short FM-metallic pluck

SYN page 1

• ALGO: 8
• RATIO C: 1.00
• RATIO A: 4.00
• MIX: -64

SYN page 2 · Operator A

• LEV: 70
• ATK: 0
• DEC: 20
• END: 10

FLTR page 1 · Multi-mode

• FREQ: 102
• RESO: 6
• TYPE: 0 (LP)
• ATK: 0
• DEC: 25
• SUS: 0
• ENV: 15

AMP page

• ATK: 0
• DEC: 70
• SUS: 0
• REL: 90
• MODE: ADSR

FX page

• REV: 19

ALGO 8 with MIX at -64 selects the X output (Operator A modulating Operator C, plus B2 as a plain carrier) directly -- the classic DX-style bell/pluck topology. Operator A's own LEV/DEC on SYN page 2 makes the bright modulator content decay faster than the carrier's own AMP envelope, so the tone starts metallic and settles into a plainer sine-like tail as the note dies -- the real mechanism behind an FM bell's characteristic pitch/brightness drop.

Syntakt

Exact match: SY TONE two-operator FM

SYN — SY TONE

• TUNE: 0
• RATIO: 50
• PNCH: 0
• DEC: 60
• FDBK: 0
• MOD: 60
• MENV: 50
• OVER: 0

FLTR PAGE 1

• FREQ: 102
• RESO: 6
• TYPE: Lowpass
• ATK: 0
• DEC: 25
• SUS: 0
• ENV: 15

AMP PAGE 1

• ATK: 0
• DEC: 70
• SUS: 0
• REL: 90
• REV: 19

Syntakt's SY TONE machine is a two-operator FM voice, so a genuine FM bell/pluck is available on the melodic tracks: RATIO sets the operator ratio, MOD the modulation depth, and MENV the decay and depth of the modulation envelope, so the metallic edge is strongest at the attack. RATIO is by ear.

Novation Summit

Exact match: Osc 1 > Osc 2 FM

OSCILLATOR 1

• WAVE: Sine
• RANGE: 4'
• COARSE: +9 semitones

OSCILLATOR 2

• WAVE: Sine
• RANGE: 8'

MIXER

• Osc 1: 0
• Osc 2: 100

FM

• Osc 1 > Osc 2 DEPTH: 70
• Osc 1 > Osc 2 SOURCE: Mod Env 2

MOD ENVELOPE 2

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 45
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 30

FILTER

• SHAPE: LP
• SLOPE: 12dB
• FREQUENCY: 102
• RESONANCE: 6
• SOURCE: Amp Env
• ENV DEPTH: 15

AMP ENVELOPE

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 70
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 90

EFFECTS

• REVERB TIME: 40
• REVERB LEVEL: 19

Summit has real FM: the panel FM section's Osc 1 > Osc 2 control sets how much Oscillator 1 frequency-modulates Oscillator 2's pitch, and its Source button picks Manual, Mod Env 2 or LFO 2 (the sources add together). Osc 1 is the modulator (its Mixer level is 0) and Osc 2 is the carrier; the Osc 1 : Osc 2 pitch ratio (set with Range and Coarse) decides whether the sidebands are harmonic or bell-like. Osc 1 sits an octave up plus 9 semitones (a ratio of about 3.4:1, inharmonic), and Mod Env 2 (fast decay, zero sustain) sweeps the FM depth so the metallic sidebands are strongest at the attack and fade to a plain tone.

Arturia MiniFreak

Exact match: Two Op. FM engine

OSCILLATOR

• TYPE: Two Op. FM
• TIMBRE (Amount: modulation index): 65

ANALOG FILTER

• TYPE: Low Pass
• CUTOFF: 80
• RESONANCE: 5
• ENV/VELO: 0

ENVELOPE

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 55
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 35

DIGITAL EFFECTS · FX1

• TYPE: Reverb (Hall)
• TIME (Decay): 40
• INTENSITY (Damping): 45
• AMOUNT (Dry/Wet): 15

Osc 1 is Two Op. FM: Wave sets the ratio between the two operators (non-integer ratios are inharmonic and bell-like), Timbre is the modulation index and Shape is the feedback. Values are on MiniFreak's native 0-100 scale.

Dreadbox Typhon

Approximation: No FM: narrow pulse and resonance

FRONT PANEL

• WAVE: ~5 o'clock (narrow VCO1 pulse, minimal VCO2 blend)
• CUTOFF: ~2 o'clock (mostly open, ~80%)
• RESON: ~1-2 o'clock (pushed for edge)
• EG LEVEL: ~11 o'clock (moderate)
• FILTER TIME: ~2 o'clock (medium)
• AMP TIME: ~2 o'clock (short-medium)
• VOLUME: ~12 o'clock

FILTER ADSR

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 30
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 20

AMP ADSR

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 35
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 25

No FM engine on Typhon -- the metallic edge is approximated with a narrow pulse waveform and pushed resonance rather than true FM sidebands, so expect a warmer, less metallic result than the FM-capable synths in this family.

ASM Hydrasynth Desktop

Exact match: Mutator FM-Lin

OSCILLATOR 1

• MODE: Single
• WAVE: Triangle
• SEMI: 0
• CENTS: 0
• KEYTRACK: 100%

MUTATOR 1

• MODE: FM-Lin
• RATIO: 4.000
• DEPTH: 70.0
• FEEDBACK: 0%
• DRY/WET: 65%

FILTER 1

• TYPE: LP 1 Pole
• CUTOFF: 120.0
• RESONANCE: 5.0
• ENV 1 AMOUNT: 0
• VEL ENV: 0
• KEYTRACK: 0%

AMP

• LFO 2 AMOUNT: 0
• VELOCITY: 0
• AMP LEVEL: 110.0

ENVELOPE 2

• DELAY: 0 ms
• ATTACK: 0 ms
• HOLD: 0 ms
• DECAY: 220 ms
• SUSTAIN: 0.0
• RELEASE: 150 ms

REVERB

• TYPE: Room
• PREDELAY: 10 ms
• TIME: 1.5 s
• TONE: 0
• HI DAMP: 30.0
• LO DAMP: 30.0
• DRY/WET: 15%

Filter 1 is kept nearly wide open with no envelope movement so it stays out of the way of the FM content doing the actual brightness work.

Compared with other synths: Mutator 1's FM-Lin mode is genuine 2-operator linear FM applied directly to Oscillator 1 -- the same real carrier-plus-modulator-ratio mechanism Digitone II uses, and Hydrasynth's most literal match for this patch's DX-style brief.

How the synths compare

Digitone II (FM TONE), Syntakt (SY TONE) and Hydrasynth (via its FM/ring-mod routing) offer real FM; the purely analog synths approximate the metallic character with filter resonance instead.

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.