Remaking the fx synth from the 1981 song "Tom Sawyer" by Rush can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "Tom Sawyer" fx 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
Rush’s 1981 prog rock masterpiece “Tom Sawyer” from their album Moving Pictures opens with one of the most recognizable synthesizer sounds in rock history – a massive, sweeping filter effect that immediately captures the listener’s attention. The iconic sound was created using an Oberheim OBX synthesizer, whose distinctive filter characteristics allowed for extreme resonance without losing the fundamental bass frequencies that give the sound its powerful low-end presence. The effect features a dramatic downward filter sweep that occurs over approximately one bar, creating a swooshing, resonant cascade that defines the song’s futuristic atmosphere. You can hear this legendary synth sound prominently at the very beginning of the track at 0:00, and it returns intermittently throughout the song during key transitional moments.
Original Performing Instrument
Oberheim OBX
Our Remake of The FX Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the fx synth from the song "Tom Sawyer" by Rush, 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: Mono
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: 40%
- Resonance: 95%
Filter Envelope
- Modulation Amount: 55%
- Attack: 0 ms
- Decay: 6250 ms
- Sustain: 0%
LFO
- Destination: Pulse Width
- Waveform: Triangle
- Amount: 65%
- Rate: 1/2 Note
- Trigger: On
Chorus
- Mix: 100% Wet
- Rate: Slow
Delay
- Mix: 100% Wet
- Feedback: 25%
- Time: 1/16 Note
- Stereo Spread (Time shift of Left or Right Channel): 100ms
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Synth Secrets Of Rush’s ‘Tom Sawyer’ (Synthtopia)
- Synth Training/Tutorial (Rush – Tom Sawyer) [part 1] (YouTube)
- How to make the Tom Sawyer (Rush) synth patch in u-he Hive 2 (YouTube)
- Recreating the Synth Lead from Tom Sawyer – Rush (YouTube)
- Rush – Tom Sawyer Lead Synth Preset Remake (Syntorial)
- Recreate Rush’s Tom Sawyer sound? (KVR Audio Forum)
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:
- Vital
