Remaking the keys synth from the 2015 song "Make It Work" by Blended Babies can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "Make It Work" keys patch and play this iconic sound on most hardware or software subtractive synthesizers (Serum, Vital, Pigments, Prophet, Korg, Moog, etc). We've included the preset download directly for your convenience, but we strongly recommend you use our programming tutorial to recreate it yourself.
Original Audio
Blended Babies’ 2015 collaboration “Make It Work” featuring Anderson .Paak, Asher Roth, and Donnie Trumpet introduces a distinctive Lo-Fi Keys patch immediately at the track’s opening. This warm, nostalgic sound relies on sine wave oscillators for its rounded, mellow timbre, while a slow downward pitch envelope creates a subtle, drunken wobble effect that adds character to the chord progression. The patch’s simplicity and tape-like saturation evoke classic lo-fi hip-hop textures, with the synth taking center stage during the track’s atmospheric intro before blending into the full arrangement. The sound is prominently audible from the song’s start at 0:00, establishing the track’s laid-back foundation.
Our Remake of The Keys Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the keys synth from the song "Make It Work" by Blended Babies, giving you a reference point as you design your own synthesizer preset. Play it as often as you need to familiarize yourself with the nuances of the sound.
Synth Patch Programming Recipe
Getting Started
- Start by initializing your synthesizer to a plain saw with no filter, modulation or effects. For soft synths use the "init"/"default" preset or the the button to reset all parameters to their default factory values.
- No two synths are exactly alike, so treat the values below as approximate, and use your ear.
- Percentage values (e.g. 50%) represent the relative position of a knob or slider within its full range. The full range of each parameter may differ from synth to synth, so use your ear.
Voices
- Voice Mode: Poly
- Voice Count: 6
Amp Envelope
- Attack: 20 ms
- Sustain: 100%
- Release: 50 ms
Oscillators
- Oscillator 1
- Waveform: Sine
- Volume: 100%
Modulation Envelope
- Destination: Pitch
- Modulation Amount: 7 Semitones
- Attack: 20 ms
- Decay: 10000 ms
- Sustain: 0%
- Release: 10000 ms
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Making LoFi Chill Samples & Sound Design with BABY AUDIO Plugins! (YouTube) – Demonstrates techniques for creating lo-fi textures using plugins like SuperVHS and Crystalline, which align with the “drunk” pitch-bending and saturation described in the sound.
- How to Make LoFi Beats + Free Plugin ‘I Heart NY’ (YouTube) – Covers automation strategies for gradual frequency sweeps and pitch modulation, relevant to the downward-bending envelope mentioned.
- Beat Break: Blended Babies Share the Story Behind Their 5 Biggest Songs (DJ Booth) – While not explicitly detailing the synth used in “Make It Work,” this interview provides context on the duo’s production approach, which often incorporates vintage-inspired sounds and unconventional processing.
Preset Downloads
Don't want to learn synth programming now? Use our synth preset as your starting point and tweak it from there. Register an account with Audible Genius and download the presets for free for the following synths:
- Primer, our free synthesizer VST
- Vital
Comments
This recipe is the result of a Syntorial community preset remake request. Need support remaking this sound? Have comments?
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