Remaking the brass synth from the 1984 song "Jump" by Van Halen can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "Jump" brass 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
Van Halen’s “Jump” is renowned for its iconic brass synthesizer sound, which dominates the track from the beginning to the end. The sound is characterized by a bright, piercing, fat quality achieved through the use of detuned sawtooth waveforms.
Original Performing Instrument
Oberheim OB-Xa
Our Remake of The Brass Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the brass synth from the song "Jump" by Van Halen, 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: 5
Amp Envelope
- Attack: 0 ms
- Decay: 10000 ms
- Sustain: 0%
- Release: 80 ms
Oscillators
- Oscillator 1
- Waveform: Saw
- Volume: 100%
- Unison
- Oscillators: All
- Voice Count: 4
- Detune Range: 9 Cents
- Reset All Oscillators Phase On Note Start: No
Filter
- Type: Low Pass
- Cutoff: 85%
- Resonance: 25%
Reverb
- Mix: 30% Wet
- Size: Medium
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Van Halen “Jump” Intro Breakdown (YouTube)
- Van Halen “1984” sweep synth and string sound (Gig Performer Community)
- Popular “older” synth sounds in the Montage (Yamaha Synth Community)
- How do I get Van Halen “Jump” 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:
- Primer, our free synthesizer VST
