Synthesis Basics

An interactive course on electronic sound — hear every concept, then find it on your device

No device needed — every lesson makes sound in the browser

1. Lesson 1The three things you hearPitch, loudness, and timbre — every knob on every synth ultimately moves one of these three.
2. Lesson 2Waveforms and harmonicsWhy a saw sounds bright and a square sounds hollow: every waveform is a recipe of pure tones.
3. Lesson 3Envelopes: shaping a note in timeADSR — the four-stage contour that turns a steady drone into a pluck, a stab, or a pad.
4. Lesson 4Filters: carving the recipeA filter removes harmonics you already have. Cutoff chooses where the knife goes; resonance sharpens its edge.
5. Lesson 5The filter envelope: brightness over timeLesson 3's contour, aimed at lesson 4's knob — the single move behind most "movement" in synth sounds.
6. Lesson 6LFOs: a periodic hand on the knobVibrato, tremolo, and wah are one mechanism — a slow oscillator turning a parameter, over and over.
7. Lesson 7Delay and reverb: the space around the soundBoth effects are made of copies. A delay's copies you can count; a reverb's you cannot — that is the whole difference.
8. Lesson 8Drive and compression: energy and densityTwo effects everyone mixes up. Distortion changes the waveform — new harmonics. Compression changes loudness over time — controlled dynamics.