Remaking the bass synth from the 1997 song "Smack My Bitch Up" by The Prodigy can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "Smack My Bitch Up" bass 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 Prodigy’s 1997 track “Smack My Bitch Up” features a prominent bassline that samples Randy Weston’s “In Memory Of” from his 1973 album *Tanjah*. To emulate this bassline using a synthesizer, focus on replicating the deep, resonant tones characteristic of Weston’s composition.
Original Performing Instrument
A Fender P-Bass resampled from the song 'Randy Weston - In Memory Of'
Our Remake of The Bass Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the bass synth from the song "Smack My Bitch Up" by The Prodigy, 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: 50%
- Oscillator 2
- Waveform: Sine
- Volume: 50%
- Reset All Oscillators Phase On Note Start: Yes
Filter
- Type: Band Pass
- Cutoff: 25%
- Resonance: 30%
Filter Envelope
- Modulation Amount: 25%
- Attack: 0 ms
- Decay: 650 ms
- Sustain: 0%
Distortion
- Drive: 66%
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Notes And Observations
This is a recording a Fender P-Bass resampled from the song ‘Randy Weston – In Memory Of’. We’ll try to get close with a synth.
Explore More
- Recreating Prodigy’s “Smack My Bitch Up” lead sounds with a Frap Tools system (YouTube)
- Discussion on recreating The Prodigy’s bass sound using a Korg Prophecy preset (KVR Audio)
- RESAMPLED BASSES SOUND 100 TIMES BETTER CHANGE MY … (YouTube)
- The Prodigy’s ‘Smack My Bitch Up’ sample of Randy Weston’s ‘In Memory Of’ (Whosampled)
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
