Remaking the seq synth from the 1982 song "Hold Back The Rain" by Duran Duran can be an exciting challenge for any synthesizer enthusiast. Here’s how you can create the "Hold Back The Rain" seq 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
Duran Duran’s 1982 track “Hold Back the Rain” from their album *Rio* opens with a fast-flanged synth sequence that establishes the song’s energetic rhythm. This sound features rapid arpeggiated patterns processed through a flanging effect, creating a dynamic and percussive texture. The sequence is heard immediately at the track’s start (0:00), driving the song’s forward momentum.
Original Performing Instrument
Unknown
Our Remake of The Seq Synth
This audio clip is how close we've matched the original tone of the seq synth from the song "Hold Back The Rain" by Duran Duran, 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.
Note: the patch settings may slightly differ in the Syntorial challenge.
Explore More
- Hold Back The Rain Multitrack Analysis (Backtracks4All)
Provides isolated synth tracks (Synth Strings, Synth Keys, Arpeggiator) for detailed waveform and frequency analysis of the original sequence. - Korg Kronos Synth Sound Recreation Discussion (Korg Forums)
Community discussion about recreating Duran Duran’s synth sounds, including technical insights for “Hold Back The Rain” using modern hardware synths.
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:
- Vital
