Remaking the pad synth from the 1981 song "In The Air Tonight" by Phil Collins can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "In The Air Tonight" pad 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
Phil Collins’ 1981 hit “In The Air Tonight” features a distinctive warm pad synthesizer sound that enters at 0:26. This sound is characterized by rich, layered chords that add depth and tension to the track. The pad synthesizer is a key element in creating the song’s haunting atmosphere, particularly during the intro and build-up sections. We’ll recreate this sound with just a single synth patch.
Original Performing Instrument
- Sequential Circuits Prophet-5
Our Remake of The Pad Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the pad synth from the song "In The Air Tonight" by Phil Collins, 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: Poly
- Voice Count: 4
Amp Envelope
- Attack: 0 ms
- Sustain: 100%
- Release: 20 ms
Oscillators
- Oscillator 1
- Waveform: Pulse
- Pulse Width: 50%
- Volume: 100%
Filter
- Type: Low Pass
- Cutoff: 50%
- Resonance: 45%
Chorus
- Mix: 50% Wet
- Rate: Slow
Delay
- Mix: 50% Wet
- Feedback: 0%
- Time: 1/16 Note
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Synth Sounds of Phil Collins “In The Air Tonight” – YouTube
- In the air tonight synth ? – Nord User Forum
- In the Air Tonight – synth patch HOW TO with Repro-5 – 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