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Nightcall Sustained Root Bass

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Nightcall Root Bass (MS-20)

Korg MS-20 Mini

Patch sheet ↗Device reference ↗Research 0/100Mapping medium · not numerically scored

The shared EG2 means the amp sustain follows the filter envelope's 55 % rather than the researched 85-90 %, so long notes sag slightly; the studio compressor saved with this rendition evens that out. The 12 dB low-pass is softer than the 24 dB target, and the drive comes from the studio tube stage.

23 saved controls · — means no saved value

Demo this preset

Play a short exercise to hear the attack, movement and release. These are original audition patterns, not transcriptions of the reference song.

Korg MS-20 Mini · Primary · Single notes · 4/4

Listen for a firm low end, even attacks and space between notes. Compare eighths and sixteenths.

Nightcall Sustained Root Bass · Korg MS-20 Mini · Primary2 bars · 4/4 · 110 BPM · C minor. Original audition exercise; not a song transcription. Horizontal position is time; vertical position is pitch.Original audition exerciseNightcall Sustained Root Bass · Korg MS-20 Mini · Primary2 bars · 4/4 · 110 BPM · C minorC#3C3B2A#2A2G#2G2F#2F2E2D#2D2C#2C2B1Bar 1234Bar 2234C2 · beat 1.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 1.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 2.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 2.50 · velocity 84G2 · beat 3.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 3.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 4.00 · velocity 104G2 · beat 4.50 · velocity 84C2 · beat 5.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 5.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 6.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 6.50 · velocity 84G2 · beat 7.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 7.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 8.00 · velocity 104G2 · beat 8.50 · velocity 84IT'S DIGITAL · C4 = MIDI 60 · Import MIDI to audition

How to play it

Import the MIDI into your DAW, route its track to the synth showing this preset, and loop the selected bars. Tempo and key are exercise settings. C4 means MIDI note 60; some DAWs label octaves differently. The MIDI sends notes on channel 1 and contains no patch change. It does not load the preset or trigger hardware from this page.

Why this preset? Sources, design & revisions

Follow the decisions from reference to recipe. Excerpts below link to the full write-up. A recording link confirms identity, not the original gear or settings.

  1. 01

    The reference

    Design inference · unsourced

    This saved write-up has no retrieved source record. Read the original notes below; its claims remain unverified.

  2. 02

    The sound → the decisions

    Design inference · unsourced

    A heavy, legato saw-and-sub bass that holds each chord root for bars under Nightcall's slow drums: dark at rest, with a slow filter swell and a driven, compressed edge.

  3. 03

    On this synth & chain

    inferred · rendition design

    The shared EG2 means the amp sustain follows the filter envelope's 55 % rather than the researched 85-90 %, so long notes sag slightly; the studio compressor saved with this rendition evens that out. The 12 dB low-pass is softer than the 24 dB target, and the drive comes from the studio tube stage.

  4. 04

    Listen → improve → revise

    Awaiting listening review

    These settings have not been marked auditioned. Use Demo this preset, compare the attack, low end and movement, then use Improve to record what you hear. A saved revision is not proof of a listening test.

Research & revision history · 3 saved events

Updates

The saved research and rendition history.

  1. Re-researched

    No write-up sections changed.

    Research: unsourced (recall) → unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  2. Rendition added · Korg MS-20 Mini

    Revision 1 · source version: primary

    Request this revision

    Copy into your connected Codex or Claude conversation. Review the differences and give a restore reason before saving.

    First saved rendition. Write-up unchanged.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  3. Researched

    First research write-up · sound-research@v1.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

Full saved write-up

Research confidence: 0/100 · unsourced (recall). This legacy write-up has not been re-researched.

Nightcall Sustained Root Bass

A heavy, legato saw-and-sub bass that holds each chord root for bars under Nightcall's slow drums: dark at rest, with a slow filter swell and a driven, compressed edge.

  • Class: mono — one note at a time
  • Category: Bass
  • Sound id: signature-kavinsky-nightcall-sustaine-6bc1de90
  • Requested as: "Kavinsky — Nightcall: Sustained root bass"

Identity

What it is. The floor of Nightcall. Unlike the pulsing eighth-note bass of other Kavinsky tracks, this part holds long root notes under the slow, heavy drums and moves only when the chord moves. It is monophonic, low (around the bottom octave of a bass register) and felt as much as heard.

Recalled traits (from the recording, not transcribed): long sustained notes; legato changes; a thick saw-family tone with strong sub weight; slow filter movement across phrases; a driven, compressed character that pumps with the kick.

Inferred (labelled): oscillator mix, cutoff, envelope, glide and drive values in The Sound. Class: mono.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

The Sound

Reconstruction. Recalled items describe what is heard; inferred items are this pack's patch guesses.

  • Oscillators - recalled: saw-based with heavy sub weight. Inferred: sawtooth at 16' plus a square or sub-oscillator one octave below at about 50 %; detune 0-4 cents, kept tight.
  • Filter - recalled: dark, slowly moving. Inferred: 24 dB low-pass, cutoff about 250-400 Hz, resonance 10-15 %, filter-envelope amount +20-30 %.
  • Filter envelope - inferred: attack 30-60 ms, decay 600-900 ms, sustain 50-60 %, release 250 ms: a slow bloom rather than a pluck.
  • Amplifier envelope - recalled: full-length sustained notes. Inferred: attack 5 ms, decay 0.8 s, sustain 85-90 %, release 200-300 ms.
  • Glide - inferred: 30-60 ms, legato only, for the slur between roots.
  • Modulation - inferred: very slow triangle LFO (0.1-0.2 Hz) to cutoff at small depth, or manual cutoff rides.
  • Drive - recalled: driven edge. Inferred: 25-35 % saturation on the synth or downstream.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

History & Provenance

Nightcall was released in 2010 on Record Makers. It was produced by Kavinsky (Vincent Belorgey) with Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk and mixed by SebastiAn; the chorus is sung by Lovefoxxx of CSS and the verses are a vocoded male voice. It opened the film Drive (2011), was included on the album OutRun (2013), and returned to wide attention when Kavinsky performed it at the Paris 2024 Olympic closing ceremony (recalled, medium confidence). SebastiAn's mix is recalled as heavily compressed, which is a large part of this bass's weight.

Gear note (unverified): this research knows of no published instrument or patch list for the session. Every setting in The Sound is an inferred reconstruction from the recalled recording, and this pack does not claim the original patch.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Heard In · Adapted By

  • Kavinsky - Nightcall (2010): enters with the drums under the first vocoded verse and holds the roots through the choruses (recalled).
  • Drive (2011) opening titles: the bass arrives as the title sequence settles into the verse (recalled).
  • Kavinsky - OutRun (2013): same recording.
  • Contrast: Testarossa Autodrive (2007) and ProtoVision (2013) use a pulsing eighth-note bass instead, which is why this pack treats the Nightcall bass as its own part.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Performance & Technique

control gesture effect
note length hold each root for its full chord, legato into the next the sustained floor (recalled)
glide 30-60 ms, legato only the slur between roots (inferred)
filter cutoff slow manual ride or LFO swell across each phrase slow movement (recalled shape, inferred amounts)
velocity flat consistent weight
octave drop an octave for the last chorus inferred

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

FX & Chain

  • No chorus, delay or reverb: the low end stays dry and mono.
  • Tube or tape saturation for the driven edge.
  • Firm compression (about 4:1, slower attack to keep the front of the note), then sidechain ducking against the kick (recalled pumping, inferred settings).
  • EQ: a little lift around 60 Hz, a small cut in the low mids.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Renditions

Auto-generated from the create-preset fan-out mapping outcomes; regenerated each run.

  • Korg MS-20 Mini — "Nightcall Root Bass (MS-20)" — confidence medium — 23 control(s) — The shared EG2 means the amp sustain follows the filter envelope's 55 % rather than the researched 85-90 %, so long notes sag slightly; the studio compressor saved with this rendition evens that out. The 12 dB low-pass is softer than the 24 dB target, and the drive comes from the studio tube stage.
  • Korg Prologue 8 — "Nightcall Root Bass (Prologue)" — confidence high — 40 control(s) — The 2-pole filter is a little less weighty than a 24 dB ladder; VCF drive, the mono-mode sub voices and L.F. COMP make up the bottom. Legato-only glide is a menu setting.

Lore

<!-- append-only: ask-about-sound appends dated entries below this line; never edit or reorder existing entries -->

VCO 1

WAVE FORM
OSC1.wave_form: pulse (indicative position)3/4
pulse
PW
OSC1.pw: 50% (indicative position)
50%
SCALE
OSC1.scale: 32' (indicative position)1/4
32'

VCO 2

WAVE FORM
OSC2.wave_form: sawtooth (indicative position)1/4
sawtooth
PITCH
OSC2.pitch: 0 cents (indicative position)
0 cents
SCALE
OSC2.scale: 16' (indicative position)1/4
16'

VCO MIXER

VCO 1 LEVEL
VCO_MIXER.vco1_level: 50% (indicative position)
50%
VCO 2 LEVEL
VCO_MIXER.vco2_level: 90% (indicative position)
90%

VC HPF

CUTOFF FREQUENCY
HPF.cutoff_frequency: 0% (indicative position)
0%
PEAK
HPF.peak: 0% (indicative position)
0%

VC LPF

CUTOFF FREQUENCY
VCF.cutoff_frequency: 25% (indicative position)
25%
PEAK
VCF.peak: 12% (indicative position)
12%

MODULATION GENERATOR

WAVE FORM
MG.wave_form: 50% (indicative position)
50%
FREQUENCY
MG.frequency: 5% (indicative position)
5%

ENVELOPE GENERATOR 1

DELAY TIME
EG1.delay_time: —
—
ATTACK TIME
EG1.attack_time: —
—
RELEASE TIME
EG1.release_time: —
—

ENVELOPE GENERATOR 2

HOLD TIME
EG2.hold_time: 0 ms (indicative position)
0 ms
ATTACK TIME
EG2.attack_time: 40 ms (indicative position)
40 ms
DECAY TIME
EG2.decay_time: 800 ms (indicative position)
800 ms
SUSTAIN LEVEL
EG2.sustain_level: 55% (indicative position)
55%
RELEASE TIME
EG2.release_time: 250 ms (indicative position)
250 ms

FREQUENCY MODULATION

MG/T.EXT
VCO_FREQ_MOD.mg_t_ext: 0% (indicative position)
0%
EG1/EXT
VCO_FREQ_MOD.eg1_ext: —
—

HPF CUTOFF MOD

MG/T.EXT
HPF_CUTOFF_MOD.mg_t_ext: —
—
EG2/EXT
HPF_CUTOFF_MOD.eg2_ext: —
—

LPF CUTOFF MOD

MG/T.EXT
LPF_CUTOFF_MOD.mg_t_ext: 5% (indicative position)
5%
EG2/EXT
LPF_CUTOFF_MOD.eg2_ext: 25% (indicative position)
25%

EXTERNAL SIGNAL PROCESSOR

SIGNAL LEVEL
ESP.signal_level: —
—
LOW CUT FREQ
ESP.low_cut_freq: —
—
HIGH CUT FREQ
ESP.high_cut_freq: —
—
CV ADJUST
ESP.cv_adjust: —
—

MASTER

PORTAMENTO TIME
MASTER.portamento_time: 45 ms (indicative position)
45 ms
MASTER TUNE
MASTER.master_tune: —
—

PATCH BAY

Patch bay
PATCHBAY.patch_bay: —
—

FX & outboard

Chain A: DeepMind 12 — Lush Pads & Strings

Repatch required.

Default route & patching

Committed wiring: Korg MS-20 → Pedal Chain 1 → AR22 inputs 3

Saved synth profile: Chain D: MS-20 Mini — Raw & Aggressive

Recipe chain: Pedal Chain 3 · The saved passive DI is a ProD2. Black Lion Audio Auteur is a separate mic preamp.

  • Pedal Chain 1: existing path; effective level unresolved at this connection.
Review the route on Patchbay ↗
✓ use · × bypass · ? unresolved · + optional
Saved settings outside this route
  • dbx1066: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
  • tl-audio-c1: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
  • mindprint-tcomp: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
  • behringer1273: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
Nightcall Root Bass (Prologue)

Korg Prologue 8

Patch sheet ↗Device reference ↗Research 0/100Mapping high · not numerically scored

The 2-pole filter is a little less weighty than a 24 dB ladder; VCF drive, the mono-mode sub voices and L.F. COMP make up the bottom. Legato-only glide is a menu setting.

40 saved controls · — means no saved value

Demo this preset

Play a short exercise to hear the attack, movement and release. These are original audition patterns, not transcriptions of the reference song.

Korg Prologue 8 · Primary · Single notes · 4/4

Listen for a firm low end, even attacks and space between notes. Compare eighths and sixteenths.

Nightcall Sustained Root Bass · Korg Prologue 8 · Primary2 bars · 4/4 · 110 BPM · C minor. Original audition exercise; not a song transcription. Horizontal position is time; vertical position is pitch.Original audition exerciseNightcall Sustained Root Bass · Korg Prologue 8 · Primary2 bars · 4/4 · 110 BPM · C minorC#3C3B2A#2A2G#2G2F#2F2E2D#2D2C#2C2B1Bar 1234Bar 2234C2 · beat 1.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 1.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 2.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 2.50 · velocity 84G2 · beat 3.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 3.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 4.00 · velocity 104G2 · beat 4.50 · velocity 84C2 · beat 5.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 5.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 6.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 6.50 · velocity 84G2 · beat 7.00 · velocity 104C2 · beat 7.50 · velocity 84C3 · beat 8.00 · velocity 104G2 · beat 8.50 · velocity 84IT'S DIGITAL · C4 = MIDI 60 · Import MIDI to audition

How to play it

Import the MIDI into your DAW, route its track to the synth showing this preset, and loop the selected bars. Tempo and key are exercise settings. C4 means MIDI note 60; some DAWs label octaves differently. The MIDI sends notes on channel 1 and contains no patch change. It does not load the preset or trigger hardware from this page.

Why this preset? Sources, design & revisions

Follow the decisions from reference to recipe. Excerpts below link to the full write-up. A recording link confirms identity, not the original gear or settings.

  1. 01

    The reference

    Design inference · unsourced

    This saved write-up has no retrieved source record. Read the original notes below; its claims remain unverified.

  2. 02

    The sound → the decisions

    Design inference · unsourced

    A heavy, legato saw-and-sub bass that holds each chord root for bars under Nightcall's slow drums: dark at rest, with a slow filter swell and a driven, compressed edge.

  3. 03

    On this synth & chain

    inferred · rendition design

    The 2-pole filter is a little less weighty than a 24 dB ladder; VCF drive, the mono-mode sub voices and L.F. COMP make up the bottom. Legato-only glide is a menu setting.

  4. 04

    Listen → improve → revise

    Awaiting listening review

    These settings have not been marked auditioned. Use Demo this preset, compare the attack, low end and movement, then use Improve to record what you hear. A saved revision is not proof of a listening test.

Research & revision history · 3 saved events

Updates

The saved research and rendition history.

  1. Re-researched

    No write-up sections changed.

    Research: unsourced (recall) → unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  2. Rendition added · Korg Prologue 8

    Revision 1 · source version: primary

    Request this revision

    Copy into your connected Codex or Claude conversation. Review the differences and give a restore reason before saving.

    First saved rendition. Write-up unchanged.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  3. Researched

    First research write-up · sound-research@v1.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

Full saved write-up

Research confidence: 0/100 · unsourced (recall). This legacy write-up has not been re-researched.

Nightcall Sustained Root Bass

A heavy, legato saw-and-sub bass that holds each chord root for bars under Nightcall's slow drums: dark at rest, with a slow filter swell and a driven, compressed edge.

  • Class: mono — one note at a time
  • Category: Bass
  • Sound id: signature-kavinsky-nightcall-sustaine-6bc1de90
  • Requested as: "Kavinsky — Nightcall: Sustained root bass"

Identity

What it is. The floor of Nightcall. Unlike the pulsing eighth-note bass of other Kavinsky tracks, this part holds long root notes under the slow, heavy drums and moves only when the chord moves. It is monophonic, low (around the bottom octave of a bass register) and felt as much as heard.

Recalled traits (from the recording, not transcribed): long sustained notes; legato changes; a thick saw-family tone with strong sub weight; slow filter movement across phrases; a driven, compressed character that pumps with the kick.

Inferred (labelled): oscillator mix, cutoff, envelope, glide and drive values in The Sound. Class: mono.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

The Sound

Reconstruction. Recalled items describe what is heard; inferred items are this pack's patch guesses.

  • Oscillators - recalled: saw-based with heavy sub weight. Inferred: sawtooth at 16' plus a square or sub-oscillator one octave below at about 50 %; detune 0-4 cents, kept tight.
  • Filter - recalled: dark, slowly moving. Inferred: 24 dB low-pass, cutoff about 250-400 Hz, resonance 10-15 %, filter-envelope amount +20-30 %.
  • Filter envelope - inferred: attack 30-60 ms, decay 600-900 ms, sustain 50-60 %, release 250 ms: a slow bloom rather than a pluck.
  • Amplifier envelope - recalled: full-length sustained notes. Inferred: attack 5 ms, decay 0.8 s, sustain 85-90 %, release 200-300 ms.
  • Glide - inferred: 30-60 ms, legato only, for the slur between roots.
  • Modulation - inferred: very slow triangle LFO (0.1-0.2 Hz) to cutoff at small depth, or manual cutoff rides.
  • Drive - recalled: driven edge. Inferred: 25-35 % saturation on the synth or downstream.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

History & Provenance

Nightcall was released in 2010 on Record Makers. It was produced by Kavinsky (Vincent Belorgey) with Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk and mixed by SebastiAn; the chorus is sung by Lovefoxxx of CSS and the verses are a vocoded male voice. It opened the film Drive (2011), was included on the album OutRun (2013), and returned to wide attention when Kavinsky performed it at the Paris 2024 Olympic closing ceremony (recalled, medium confidence). SebastiAn's mix is recalled as heavily compressed, which is a large part of this bass's weight.

Gear note (unverified): this research knows of no published instrument or patch list for the session. Every setting in The Sound is an inferred reconstruction from the recalled recording, and this pack does not claim the original patch.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Heard In · Adapted By

  • Kavinsky - Nightcall (2010): enters with the drums under the first vocoded verse and holds the roots through the choruses (recalled).
  • Drive (2011) opening titles: the bass arrives as the title sequence settles into the verse (recalled).
  • Kavinsky - OutRun (2013): same recording.
  • Contrast: Testarossa Autodrive (2007) and ProtoVision (2013) use a pulsing eighth-note bass instead, which is why this pack treats the Nightcall bass as its own part.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Performance & Technique

control gesture effect
note length hold each root for its full chord, legato into the next the sustained floor (recalled)
glide 30-60 ms, legato only the slur between roots (inferred)
filter cutoff slow manual ride or LFO swell across each phrase slow movement (recalled shape, inferred amounts)
velocity flat consistent weight
octave drop an octave for the last chorus inferred

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

FX & Chain

  • No chorus, delay or reverb: the low end stays dry and mono.
  • Tube or tape saturation for the driven edge.
  • Firm compression (about 4:1, slower attack to keep the front of the note), then sidechain ducking against the kick (recalled pumping, inferred settings).
  • EQ: a little lift around 60 Hz, a small cut in the low mids.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Renditions

Auto-generated from the create-preset fan-out mapping outcomes; regenerated each run.

  • Korg MS-20 Mini — "Nightcall Root Bass (MS-20)" — confidence medium — 23 control(s) — The shared EG2 means the amp sustain follows the filter envelope's 55 % rather than the researched 85-90 %, so long notes sag slightly; the studio compressor saved with this rendition evens that out. The 12 dB low-pass is softer than the 24 dB target, and the drive comes from the studio tube stage.
  • Korg Prologue 8 — "Nightcall Root Bass (Prologue)" — confidence high — 40 control(s) — The 2-pole filter is a little less weighty than a 24 dB ladder; VCF drive, the mono-mode sub voices and L.F. COMP make up the bottom. Legato-only glide is a menu setting.

Lore

<!-- append-only: ask-about-sound appends dated entries below this line; never edit or reorder existing entries -->

MASTER

MASTER
MASTER.master: —
—

TIMBRE

MAIN/SUB BALANCE
TIMBRE.main_sub_balance: —
—
TYPE
TIMBRE.type: ——
—
PANEL
TIMBRE.panel: ——
—

CONTROL

PORTAMENTO
CONTROL.portamento: 12% (indicative position)
12%
VOICE SPREAD
CONTROL.voice_spread: —
—
VOICE MODE DEPTH
CONTROL.voice_mode_depth: 30% (indicative position)
30%

OCTAVE

OCTAVE −
OCTAVE_MASTER.oct_down: ON (indicative position)
ON
OCTAVE +
OCTAVE_MASTER.oct_up: —
—

SUB / PGM FETCH

SUB ON / PGM FETCH
SUB_ON.sub_on_pgm_fetch: —
—

VOICE MODE

POLY
VOICE_MODE.poly: —
—
MONO
VOICE_MODE.mono: ON (indicative position)
ON
UNISON
VOICE_MODE.unison: —
—
CHORD
VOICE_MODE.chord: —
—
SELECT
VOICE_MODE.select: —
—

ARPEGGIATOR

ON / LATCH
ARPEGGIATOR.on_latch: —
—
TEMPO
ARPEGGIATOR.tempo: —
—
RANGE
ARPEGGIATOR.range: —
—
TYPE
ARPEGGIATOR.type: —
—

VCO 1

WAVE
OSC1.wave: sawtooth (indicative position)3/3
sawtooth
OCTAVE
OSC1.octave: 8' (indicative position)2/4
8'
PITCH
OSC1.pitch: 0 cents (indicative position)
0 cents
SHAPE
OSC1.shape: 0% (indicative position)
0%
PITCH EG
OSC1.pitch_eg: ——
—
INT
OSC1.pitch_eg_int: —
—

VCO 2

WAVE
OSC2.wave: square (indicative position)1/3
square
OCTAVE
OSC2.octave: 16' (indicative position)1/4
16'
PITCH
OSC2.pitch: 0 cents (indicative position)
0 cents
SHAPE
OSC2.shape: 0% (indicative position)
0%
SYNC / RING
OSC2.sync_ring: OFF (indicative position)2/3
OFF
CROSS MOD DEPTH
OSC2.cross_mod_depth: 0% (indicative position)
0%

MULTI ENGINE

TYPE SELECT
OSC3.select: ——
—
OCTAVE
OSC3.octave: ——
—
TYPE
OSC3.type: —
—
SHAPE
OSC3.shape: —
—

MIXER

VCO 1
MIXER.vco1: 90% (indicative position)
90%
VCO 2
MIXER.vco2: 50% (indicative position)
50%
MULTI
MIXER.multi: 0% (indicative position)
0%

VCF

CUTOFF
VCF.cutoff: 24% (indicative position)
24%
RESONANCE
VCF.resonance: 12% (indicative position)
12%
EG INT
VCF.eg_int: 25% (indicative position)
25%
DRIVE
VCF.drive: 50% (indicative position)2/3
50%
LOW CUT
VCF.low_cut: OFF (indicative position)
OFF
KEYTRACK
VCF.keytrack: 50% (indicative position)2/3
50%

AMP EG

ATTACK
AMP_EG.attack: 5 ms (indicative position)
5 ms
DECAY
AMP_EG.decay: 800 ms (indicative position)
800 ms
SUSTAIN
AMP_EG.sustain: 88% (indicative position)
88%
RELEASE
AMP_EG.release: 250 ms (indicative position)
250 ms

EG

ATTACK
EG.attack: 40 ms (indicative position)
40 ms
DECAY
EG.decay: 800 ms (indicative position)
800 ms
SUSTAIN
EG.sustain: 55% (indicative position)
55%
RELEASE
EG.release: 250 ms (indicative position)
250 ms

LFO

WAVE
LFO.wave: triangle (indicative position)2/3
triangle
MODE
LFO.mode: SLOW (indicative position)2/3
SLOW
RATE
LFO.rate: 0.15 Hz (indicative position)
0.15 Hz
INT
LFO.int: 6% (indicative position)
6%
TARGET
LFO.target: CUTOFF (indicative position)3/3
CUTOFF

MOD EFFECT

SELECT
MOD_EFFECT.select: —
—
ON / OFF
MOD_EFFECT.on_off: OFF (indicative position)
OFF
SPEED
MOD_EFFECT.speed: —
—
DEPTH
MOD_EFFECT.depth: —
—

DELAY / REVERB

MODE
DELAY_REVERB.mode: OFF (indicative position)3/3
OFF
TIME
DELAY_REVERB.time: —
—
DEPTH
DELAY_REVERB.depth: —
—

L.F. COMP

GAIN
LF_COMP.gain: 35% (indicative position)
35%
ON / OFF
LF_COMP.on_off: ON (indicative position)
ON

PERFORMANCE

PITCH
WHEELS.pitch: —
—
MOD
WHEELS.mod: —
—

FX & outboard

Chain A: DeepMind 12 — Lush Pads & Strings

Repatch required.

Default route & patching

Committed wiring: Prologue 8 → Mindprint T-Comp → AR22 inputs 13,14

Saved synth profile: Chain B: Korg Prologue 8 — Clean Textures & Atmosphere

Recipe chain: Pedal Chain 3 · The saved passive DI is a ProD2. Black Lion Audio Auteur is a separate mic preamp.

Review the route on Patchbay ↗
✓ use · × bypass · ? unresolved · + optional
Saved settings outside this route
  • dbx1066: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
  • tl-audio-c1: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
  • mindprint-tcomp: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
  • behringer1273: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.
Notes

Kavinsky / Nightcall · Bass

A heavy, legato saw-and-sub bass that holds each chord root for bars under Nightcall's slow drums: dark at rest, with a slow filter swell and a driven, compressed edge.

Panel view: Simple shows the sound core, Used every section used in this sound, Full the whole panel.

Primary · Primary

Research confidence: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Chain A: DeepMind 12 — Lush Pads & Strings: for Korg MS-20 Mini · Korg Prologue 8. Saved devices outside the active scope: dbx1066: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it. tl-audio-c1: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it. mindprint-tcomp: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it. behringer1273: saved values exist, but this unit is not confirmed in this chain. Repatch before using it.

Research & sound notesRead the write-up +

Research confidence: 0/100 · unsourced (recall). This legacy write-up has not been re-researched.

Nightcall Sustained Root Bass

A heavy, legato saw-and-sub bass that holds each chord root for bars under Nightcall's slow drums: dark at rest, with a slow filter swell and a driven, compressed edge.

  • Class: mono — one note at a time
  • Category: Bass
  • Sound id: signature-kavinsky-nightcall-sustaine-6bc1de90
  • Requested as: "Kavinsky — Nightcall: Sustained root bass"

Identity

What it is. The floor of Nightcall. Unlike the pulsing eighth-note bass of other Kavinsky tracks, this part holds long root notes under the slow, heavy drums and moves only when the chord moves. It is monophonic, low (around the bottom octave of a bass register) and felt as much as heard.

Recalled traits (from the recording, not transcribed): long sustained notes; legato changes; a thick saw-family tone with strong sub weight; slow filter movement across phrases; a driven, compressed character that pumps with the kick.

Inferred (labelled): oscillator mix, cutoff, envelope, glide and drive values in The Sound. Class: mono.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

The Sound

Reconstruction. Recalled items describe what is heard; inferred items are this pack's patch guesses.

  • Oscillators - recalled: saw-based with heavy sub weight. Inferred: sawtooth at 16' plus a square or sub-oscillator one octave below at about 50 %; detune 0-4 cents, kept tight.
  • Filter - recalled: dark, slowly moving. Inferred: 24 dB low-pass, cutoff about 250-400 Hz, resonance 10-15 %, filter-envelope amount +20-30 %.
  • Filter envelope - inferred: attack 30-60 ms, decay 600-900 ms, sustain 50-60 %, release 250 ms: a slow bloom rather than a pluck.
  • Amplifier envelope - recalled: full-length sustained notes. Inferred: attack 5 ms, decay 0.8 s, sustain 85-90 %, release 200-300 ms.
  • Glide - inferred: 30-60 ms, legato only, for the slur between roots.
  • Modulation - inferred: very slow triangle LFO (0.1-0.2 Hz) to cutoff at small depth, or manual cutoff rides.
  • Drive - recalled: driven edge. Inferred: 25-35 % saturation on the synth or downstream.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

History & Provenance

Nightcall was released in 2010 on Record Makers. It was produced by Kavinsky (Vincent Belorgey) with Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo of Daft Punk and mixed by SebastiAn; the chorus is sung by Lovefoxxx of CSS and the verses are a vocoded male voice. It opened the film Drive (2011), was included on the album OutRun (2013), and returned to wide attention when Kavinsky performed it at the Paris 2024 Olympic closing ceremony (recalled, medium confidence). SebastiAn's mix is recalled as heavily compressed, which is a large part of this bass's weight.

Gear note (unverified): this research knows of no published instrument or patch list for the session. Every setting in The Sound is an inferred reconstruction from the recalled recording, and this pack does not claim the original patch.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Heard In · Adapted By

  • Kavinsky - Nightcall (2010): enters with the drums under the first vocoded verse and holds the roots through the choruses (recalled).
  • Drive (2011) opening titles: the bass arrives as the title sequence settles into the verse (recalled).
  • Kavinsky - OutRun (2013): same recording.
  • Contrast: Testarossa Autodrive (2007) and ProtoVision (2013) use a pulsing eighth-note bass instead, which is why this pack treats the Nightcall bass as its own part.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Performance & Technique

control gesture effect
note length hold each root for its full chord, legato into the next the sustained floor (recalled)
glide 30-60 ms, legato only the slur between roots (inferred)
filter cutoff slow manual ride or LFO swell across each phrase slow movement (recalled shape, inferred amounts)
velocity flat consistent weight
octave drop an octave for the last chorus inferred

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

FX & Chain

  • No chorus, delay or reverb: the low end stays dry and mono.
  • Tube or tape saturation for the driven edge.
  • Firm compression (about 4:1, slower attack to keep the front of the note), then sidechain ducking against the kick (recalled pumping, inferred settings).
  • EQ: a little lift around 60 Hz, a small cut in the low mids.

research: 0/100 · unsourced (recall)

Renditions

Auto-generated from the create-preset fan-out mapping outcomes; regenerated each run.

  • Korg MS-20 Mini — "Nightcall Root Bass (MS-20)" — confidence medium — 23 control(s) — The shared EG2 means the amp sustain follows the filter envelope's 55 % rather than the researched 85-90 %, so long notes sag slightly; the studio compressor saved with this rendition evens that out. The 12 dB low-pass is softer than the 24 dB target, and the drive comes from the studio tube stage.
  • Korg Prologue 8 — "Nightcall Root Bass (Prologue)" — confidence high — 40 control(s) — The 2-pole filter is a little less weighty than a 24 dB ladder; VCF drive, the mono-mode sub voices and L.F. COMP make up the bottom. Legato-only glide is a menu setting.

Lore

<!-- append-only: ask-about-sound appends dated entries below this line; never edit or reorder existing entries -->

Updates

The saved research and rendition history.

  1. Re-researched

    No write-up sections changed.

    Research: unsourced (recall) → unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  2. Rendition added · Korg Prologue 8

    Revision 1 · source version: primary

    Request this revision

    Copy into your connected Codex or Claude conversation. Review the differences and give a restore reason before saving.

    First saved rendition. Write-up unchanged.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  3. Rendition added · Korg MS-20 Mini

    Revision 1 · source version: primary

    Request this revision

    Copy into your connected Codex or Claude conversation. Review the differences and give a restore reason before saving.

    First saved rendition. Write-up unchanged.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.

  4. Researched

    First research write-up · sound-research@v1.

    Research: unsourced (recall)

    Stated reason: Research the Sustained root bass part in Kavinsky's track Nightcall. Heavy legato saw/sub bass holding the chord roots with the kick, with slow filter movement (recalled from the recording). Declared class: mono. Use this track as the research direction and this part name as the role. Distinguish documented traits from inferred settings. Use the original recording as direction; clearly label recalled musical traits and inferred patch settings.