Remaking the lead synth from the 1979 song "What A Fool Believes" by The Doobie Brothers can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "What A Fool Believes" lead 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
The Doobie Brothers’ 1978 hit “What a Fool Believes” features a distinctive organ-inspired synthesizer lead that emerges around 9 seconds into the track. This blippy, percussive sound is constructed using two square wave oscillators tuned an octave apart, creating a bright, and artificially fun timbre. A quick filter envelope attack adds a “squishy” attack transient. Played by Michael McDonald and Bill Payne, this synth part anchors the song’s rhythmic groove while blending seamlessly with the band’s soulful rock arrangement.
Our Remake of The Lead Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the lead synth from the song "What A Fool Believes" by The Doobie Brothers, 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 unlimited famous sound challenges 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
- Sustain: 100%
- Release: 40 ms
Oscillators
- Oscillator 1
- Waveform: Pulse
- Pulse Width: 100%
- Volume: 30%
- Oscillator 2
- Waveform: Pulse
- Pulse Width: 100%
- Pitch: +1 Octave
- Volume: 70%
Filter
- Type: Low Pass
- Cutoff: 55%
- Key Tracking: 50%
Filter Envelope
- Modulation Amount: 25%
- Attack: 70 ms
- Sustain: 100%
- Release: 10000 ms
Chorus
- Mix: 30% Wet
- Rate: Slow
Reverb
- Mix: 10% Wet
- Size: Medium
Velocity
- Destination: Volume
- Modulation Amount: 100%
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Classic Tracks: The Doobie Brothers’ “What a Fool Believes” (MixOnline)
Details the use of an Oberheim 8-voice analog synthesizer and Steinway piano for the track’s synth parts, including collaboration between Michael McDonald and Billy Payne on synthesizer programming.
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
