A synthesizer makes sound using electricity rather than physical vibration

A synthesizer (synth) is any device — hardware or software — that produces sound using electricity rather than by physically vibrating a string, membrane, or air column. Synths come in many forms: standalone hardware instruments played on stage, embedded noise-makers inside toys and electronic devices, and software running on a phone or computer. What unites them is that the sound originates electrically and is shaped through controls rather than by an acoustic body. This is the entry orientation for all sound design: you don’t need prior experience, equipment, or music theory — the simplest interaction (dragging in a box and hearing the result) is enough to begin. A common orientation misconception is that synthesizers are necessarily complex or hardware-only; in reality a browser app and a stage keyboard are both synths by the same definition.

Examples

A hardware Korg Minilogue on stage, a software synth VST in a DAW, a sound-chip inside a toy, and the browser monosynth at learningsynths.ableton.com are all synthesizers — all make sound electrically.

Assessment

Describe three different physical forms a synthesizer can take, then explain what makes all of them synthesizers despite their differences.