Recreate Fairlight CMI SARAAR Vocal Patch in Massive

In this tutorial, learn how to create one of the most famous vocal samples of all time, the Fairlight SARAAR vocal patch in Massive.

If you don’t know what a Fairlight CMI is click that link. It is the grandfather of modern sampling technology as we know it. It was a modern marvel back in 1980 and is one of the most mythological pieces of gear ever created. Michael Jackson, Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, Depeche Mode, Deadmau5, Hans Zimmer (just to name a few) have all used one in their music at some point. Unfortunately, with todays current CPU limitations, it is not possible to faithfully recreate a Fairlight CMI. So for those of use who don’t have $20,000 or more to drop on an instrument, we’re out of luck. Enter this tutorial.

Here is the original sound SARAAR DEMO (go to 55 seconds in). It’s a vocal sound that is similar to a pad. Using a mix of digital/hybrid waveforms and one analog/digital waveform, you can get pretty close to the original sound. It’s very important to turn the CPU settings to ECO for a more analog and vintage sound. Otherwise the sound is too polished.

Overall it’s a pretty easy sound to make and even thought it may not be 100% like a Fairlight CMI, it’s pretty close. It’s crazy to think that a modern synth like Massive can have a hard time recreating a sound that is from the 1980’s.

Cheers,

Echo Sound Works