Remaking the gritty synth from the 1999 song "Sandstorm" by Darude can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "Sandstorm" gritty 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
Darude’s “Sandstorm,” a trance instrumental released in 1999, features an iconic lead synthesizer sound that becomes prominent around 0:30. This sound is characterized by its piercing, high-pitched timbre and is often described as having a sharp, metallic quality. The lead synthesizer is typically created using a sawtooth wave and a pulse wave.
Original Performing Instrument
- Roland JP-8080
Our Remake of The Gritty Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the gritty synth from the song "Sandstorm" by Darude, 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
Remake This Sound Yourself
Learn how to program this synth preset with Syntorial, all by ear. Download the demo and try up to three challenge packs for free.
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: Mono
Amp Envelope
- Attack: 0 ms
- Decay: 6000 ms
- Sustain: 0%
- Release: 20 ms
Oscillators
- Oscillator 1
- Waveform: Saw
- Volume: 50%
- Oscillator 2
- Waveform: Pulse
- Pulse Width: 100%
- Pitch: +31 Semitones
- Volume: 50%
Filter
- Type: Low Pass
- Cutoff: 70%
- Resonance: 40%
Distortion
- Drive: 68%
Reverb
- Mix: 10% Wet
- Size: Medium
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Darude Sandstorm for Dune 3 | Trance Presets Tutorial (YouTube)
- Recreating 5 Synth Sounds From The Pop Charts (+ Free Presets) (YouTube)
- Vital Darude Sandstorm Lead Sound Design Tutorial (YouTube)
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
