Marimba-style Pluck

Sounds like: A woody, rounded mallet tap, like a marimba.

Sound type: pluck · Genre: Downtempo, Minimal House · Style: woody, percussive mallet-instrument character

A woody, rounded percussive tone suggesting a struck mallet instrument — softer and less metallic than Classic FM Pluck, with a quick decay and minimal sustain.

Open this patch in the interactive Patchpad

Digitone II

Exact match: Woody, struck-bar percussive tone

SYN page 1

• ALGO: 8
• RATIO C: 1.00
• RATIO A: 4.00
• MIX: -40

SYN page 2 · Operator A

• LEV: 40
• ATK: 0
• DEC: 20
• END: 0

FLTR page 1 · Multi-mode

• FREQ: 76
• RESO: 6
• TYPE: 0 (LP)

AMP page

• ATK: 0
• DEC: 55
• SUS: 0
• REL: 25
• MODE: ADSR

FX page

• REV: 15

Operator A's ratio 4.00 gives an inharmonic overtone typical of a struck bar, kept at a lower level (40) and faster decay than a bright bell pluck for a woody rather than metallic edge. FLTR stays mostly open with minimal resonance so the FM engine, not the filter, carries the woody character.

Syntakt

Exact match: Woody, struck-bar percussive tone

SYN — SY TONE

• TUNE: 0
• RATIO: 40
• PNCH: 0
• DEC: 40
• FDBK: 0
• MOD: 25
• MENV: 30
• OVER: 0

FLTR PAGE 1

• FREQ: 76
• RESO: 6
• TYPE: Lowpass
• ATK: 0
• DEC: 20
• SUS: 0
• ENV: 15

AMP PAGE 1

• ATK: 0
• DEC: 55
• SUS: 0
• REL: 25

Syntakt's SY TONE machine is a two-operator FM voice (RATIO, FDBK, MOD, MENV), so FM is available on the melodic tracks. A low MOD amount with a quick MENV gives the woody strike overtone that then decays away to a rounder tone. RATIO is by ear.

Novation Summit

Exact match: Osc 1 > Osc 2 FM

OSCILLATOR 1

• WAVE: Sine
• RANGE: 2'

OSCILLATOR 2

• WAVE: Sine
• RANGE: 8'

MIXER

• Osc 1: 0
• Osc 2: 100

FM

• Osc 1 > Osc 2 DEPTH: 25
• Osc 1 > Osc 2 SOURCE: Mod Env 2

MOD ENVELOPE 2

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 25
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 20

FILTER

• SHAPE: LP
• SLOPE: 12dB
• FREQUENCY: 76
• RESONANCE: 15
• SOURCE: Amp Env
• ENV DEPTH: 15

AMP ENVELOPE

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 55
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 25

EFFECTS

• REVERB TIME: 30
• REVERB LEVEL: 12

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 at 2' is exactly 4 times the carrier's frequency, the overtone of a struck bar; a low FM depth with a very fast Mod Env 2 decay gives the woody strike before it settles into a rounder tone.

Arturia MiniFreak

Exact match: Modal physical-modelling engine

OSCILLATOR 1

• TYPE: Modal
• WAVE (Inharm): 20
• TIMBRE (Timbre: exciter brightness): 45
• SHAPE (Decay): 35
• VOLUME: 100

ANALOG FILTER

• TYPE: Low Pass
• CUTOFF: 60
• RESONANCE: 5
• ENV/VELO: 0

ENVELOPE

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 40
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 22

DIGITAL EFFECTS · FX1

• TYPE: Reverb (Room)
• TIME (Decay): 25
• INTENSITY (Damping): 30
• AMOUNT (Dry/Wet): 12

Osc 1 is Modal, a physical model of a struck object: Wave is Inharm (woody to metallic), Timbre is the exciter brightness and Shape is the decay. Values are on MiniFreak's native 0-100 scale.

Dreadbox Typhon

Approximation: No FM: sine-leaning blend with a fast envelope

FRONT PANEL

• WAVE: ~12 o'clock (VCO1 sine-leaning, VCO2 low)
• CUTOFF: ~1-2 o'clock (fairly open)
• RESON: ~8-9 o'clock (low)
• EG LEVEL: ~9 o'clock (light)
• FILTER TIME: ~4 o'clock (fast)
• AMP TIME: ~4 o'clock (fast)
• VOLUME: ~12 o'clock

FILTER ADSR

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 20
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 15

AMP ADSR

• ATTACK: 0
• DECAY: 55
• SUSTAIN: 0
• RELEASE: 25

Typhon has no FM/digital physical-modeling engine, so a sine-leaning VCO blend with a fast envelope stands in for the woody thud -- expect a softer, less percussive-mallet-like result than the FM-capable synths. Front-panel knobs are physically unmarked, so WAVE/CUTOFF/RESON/EG LEVEL/FILTER TIME/AMP TIME are described by clock position, not a percentage.

ASM Hydrasynth Desktop

Exact match: Woody, struck-bar percussive tone

OSCILLATOR 1

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

MUTATOR 1

• MODE: FM-Lin
• RATIO: 4.000
• DEPTH: 35.0
• DRY/WET: 60%

FILTER 1

• TYPE: LP 1 Pole
• CUTOFF: 76.0
• RESONANCE: 5.0
• ENV 1 AMOUNT: 15.0
• KEYTRACK: 0%

ENVELOPE 1

• DELAY: 0 ms
• ATTACK: 0 ms
• DECAY: 60 ms
• SUSTAIN: 0.0
• RELEASE: 30 ms

ENVELOPE 2

• DELAY: 0 ms
• ATTACK: 0 ms
• DECAY: 180 ms
• SUSTAIN: 0.0
• RELEASE: 100 ms

REVERB

• TYPE: Room
• TIME: 900 ms
• DRY/WET: 12%

Mutator 1's FM-Lin mode at Ratio 4.000 gives a real 2-operator FM modulator, at a lower Depth than Classic FM Pluck's brighter/metallic setting, for a woody rather than metallic overtone.

How the synths compare

A softer, lower-modulator-level relative of Classic FM Pluck — same FM approach, tuned down for wood rather than metal.

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.