Synthesizing A TR-909 Kick With NI REAKTOR

In this video, we explore the process of synthesizing a TR-909 kick drum in modular synth environment, REAKTOR. A sound that requires a distinct sonic character, it’s fascinating to watch it get built from scratch.

To do this, he employs a process of reverse-engineering with CORE, a new feature that takes DSP to its bare-bones. Given the complexity of these modular procedures, it makes us appreciate the under-the-hood operations of the many products we use.

Something that we learned from this demonstration is the extensive role ADSR envelopes (hehe) play in shaping each component of the signal path. What did you take away from this?