How to Make an Effective EDM Buildup FX

Even though many companies release top-notch FX samples with buildup sounds, sometimes they fit your track well and sometimes they don't. That is why we will show you how to make your buildup from scratch that you can adjust to fit in every EDM track you make. For this tutorial, we have selected Sylenth by Lennar Digital. Therefore, in this VST synthesizer, we will show you how to make that buildup quickly!  

Building Up The Excitement

The first thing we will do is deal with the oscillator section. A good mix between two oscillators and their waveforms is a must. Additionally, on oscillator 1, we will choose the H Pulse waveform. Then, set the voices tab to 2, and crank that stereo knob to the right in order to have a wide stereo signal. Afterward, we'll move to the second oscillator, where we will choose the SAW waveform. Furthermore, transpose the octave of it to - 1, add some detuning with the detuning knob, and finally, increase the voices tab to 4.

By adding some additional coloration with Sylenth's effect section (distortion, chorus, reverb, and compressor), our base for the buildup will sound like this.

Next, we will deal with the modulation section, which is critical to making that rising effect. We will select the Pitch AB parameter from the modulation matrix drop-down menu, which the attack will control. By pushing the mod envelope knob to the right, we will control how fast our buildup will rise.

In addition, with this same setup, we can make our sound drop-down in pitch, which can be helpful in other parts of the arrangement. The only difference would be in the mod envelope knob. Turn it to the opposite side.

Let's listen to these two examples now:

Pitch-up

Pitch-down

With these tools, you can make the buildup you need in just a few clicks. In conclusion, with total control over the time, pitch, color, and other parameters, your buildup will suit your track way better than pre-made FX that you might find in sample libraries.