Hood created acid-style lines using a Roland Juno 106 rather than a TB-303, demonstrating tool-agnosticism

On ‘Acrylic,’ Hood made acid without a Roland TB-303 — the canonical acid synth — using a Roland Juno 106 instead. He never used a 303 on Minimal Nation. This illustrates an important creative principle: sonic character is not bound to specific hardware. The distinctive squelch and movement associated with acid bass can be approximated with other synthesizers through parameter choices (resonance, filter sweep, modulation). Tool-agnosticism — creating sounds without the ‘correct’ equipment — often produces more distinctive results than using the canonical tool.

Examples

Program an acid-style bassline on any synthesizer you have — not a TB-303 or emulation. Use filter cutoff automation, high resonance, and envelope modulation to chase the character. Note how the result differs from a 303 in interesting ways.

Assessment

What synthesizer did Hood use to create the acid character on ‘Acrylic,’ and what does this choice demonstrate about the relationship between specific gear and sonic style?