This is major issue if I think about it. I hope you all reply. Usually you put a synth sound over the top of techno track and it's very hard to make it sound right. I remember that for years, it'd either sound too trancey or just to dominant. But that was when I used presets :=]

For hard techno, I find it good to do a step pattern (1/16 quanitse) and really mash around with a preset that sounds OK - resulting in something that sounds absolutely positively different from a trance preset.

FAVE KNOBS WHILST MASHING: Key Follow, FM Amount, Detune and Ring Mod - used in a good combination I get great results. In fact... there's loads of other combinations you can use - what's yours?

It can also be good to record a load of different contoller movements into the loop sequence to make it sound less musical.

How do you all use synths to make your specific style of techno?