Disruptor Banks Musician's Manual

Performance, trivia & power-tweaking guide

CONTENTS: 

2 

A Sound Geek’s Guide to 

What’s Inside 

• Introduction 

• Disk Contents 

• How to Use This Disk 

• Vital Data! (Controllers) 

• Disclaimer 

• Patch Notes 

Bank 1 …….……....................................…13 

Bank 2 …………………………………...….39 

Easter Egg Patches ……………………….59 

• About This Manual ……………………...62 

• License Agreement …...........................63 

Data Dump 

…..….……..…………….03 

.………...……………..05 

……….…….…..10 

………………11 

….………..……….……….12 

Copyrights and acknowledgements 

• All Patches, Package, Data & Information copyright © 2015 

Kirk Slinkard 

• Copyrights of all 3 rd party systems, platforms & equipment 

are reserved & maintained by their respective owners 

• Musicians Manual Design and Layout …….. Mark Wynkoop

INTRODUCTION 

KIRK SLINKARD’S DISRUPTOR BANKS are two 

banks of SQ-80 sounds with (among other things) 

a few demo patches intended to show off 

unusual programming techniques. 

Per requests in my YouTube video comments, I’ve 

included several patches from them. You get a 

few all-new static waveforms, some moving 

waveforms, and now you even have access to 

all of the notorious hidden waveforms, even if 

you never got that hacked firmware upgrade for 

them. 

There's one patch that you can't play, and a 

couple you probably wouldn't want to. So, of 

course, feel free to think of any of these patches 

as starting points to make your own sounds. In 

fact, that's what the "demo" patches are all 

about. 

3

Several of the patches state the featured programming 

technique after the name (In the yellow “Featured” headline). 

Both banks of patches have less than 40 sounds each because 

some of them are layered and take up two locations. You make 

up for it in the Easter Egg patches, though. 

The patches with parenthesis around the title are part of a 

layer, not intended to be used by themselves. These 

“Parenthetical layers” are grouped together at the end of the 

bank. 

(Note that most patches contain more than one sound {in one case 7 

sounds!} and there are only a tiny number of necessary “parenthetical 

patches”, so the bank is not taken up with useless sounds. Also, with 

multiple modulators programed into these patches, you are actually 

getting MORE than 40 sounds per bank!) 

You can load the patch banks from the disk as a "BANK" for just 

the programs or as an "ALL" to include a few demo sequencer 

riffs. 

And if you don't know what "Easter Eggs" are in this context, here's 

a clue: “watch Doctor Who blink”… 

4

Banks 

Floppy Disk 

Contents 

01 SEQ BANK-01 

02 SEQ BANK-02 

. . 

11 DISRUPTOR 1. 


13 BLANK BANK 

Sequences 

Main Patch Banks for performance and 

programming. 

Although these banks are duplicated with the 

associated sequence banks (above), they are 

not “automatically” linked to the sequence 

banks: Changes you make to these main 

banks will not be mirrored to “SEQ BANK-xx”. 

Tip: Never write over these original banks!! 

Save your edits to new, self-named banks. 

Your purchase price does not include me 

sending you new disks every time you 

overwrite your main banks! 



Sounds/sequences linked together. 

“LOAD ALL” to listen to every sequence 

with associated patch examples. 

5

BANK CONTENTS 

11 DISRUPTOR BANK 1. 

Bank 1 

• This bank features a great variety of essential sounds taken 

to the next level with advanced programming techniques 

rarely (or never!) available in any other patchsets. 

01 ______ 02 KBRAS2 03 LEGEND 04 MELFLT 05 SPLIT 

06 6BELLS 07 SEVEN 08 CLAPS 09 1.THING 10 COWBEL 

11 PIANO 12 BRTHDY 13 RAYCHR 14 HPCD4' 15 HPCD84 

16 ORGAN2. 17 V3 8' 18 DISTRT 19 NORGAN 20 PIPE O 

21 TREMLO 22 MAXREZ 23 ENDER 24 BEATIT 25 TCH&GO 

26 HUMANA 27 SEQENC 28 80BASS 29 SEQBAS 30 SWEEPS 

31 WHTNOI 32 SG A N 33 MAMA 34 A-HA 35 EERIE 

36 SUPSAW 37 (SEVN) 38 (SPLT) 39 (BEAT) 40 (SUPR) 

6

BANK CONTENTS 

11 DISRUPTOR BANK 2. 

Bank 2 

• The second bank focuses more on unique timbres. As with 

Bank 1, patches are generally categorized within the bank. 

 

As an archeological note, both banks include patches created between 

1988 to 2015 for a variety of different purposes, which are listed in detail on 

the following pages. 

01 SCRACH 02 STRING 03 SYMPH1 04 HOLLOW 05 ZTRING 

06 WABASS 07 FUZBAS 08 ECHOBS 09 HLCPT1 10 APEMAN 

11 FX 01. 12 FLYBY 13 THEM 14 SPRNGS 15 SCANNR 

16 KRELL. 17 UPPER 18 WCHIME 19 PNOUNC 20 CHORUS 

21 TARBAS 22 TARTUB 23 TARTAR 24 SAWYER 25 LFOS&H 

26 VELS&H 27 WHIPIT 28 LETSGO 29 CYGNUS 30 STAR 

31 KIK2.SN 32 ETHERL 33 STRIKR 34 DRAGON 35 RADON 

36 REZ70S 37 (HLCP) 38 (CHRS) 39 (SAWR) 40 (ETHR) 

7

CONTENTS 

and the rest… 

The Blank Bank 

• The blank bank is a great tool for programmers. The obvious 

use is as an “initialization bank”, so that you can start from 

scratch putting together a special purpose bank. 

• One example I used recently - starting a bank of just 

percussion patches. 

 

 

I put BLANK BANK into a cartridge. BLANK BANK becomes 

the “TARGET” bank. 

I loaded up all the banks I wanted from disks to INTERNAL. 

The INTERNAL memory becomes the “SOURCE” 

• After that, I just copied the percussion patches I wanted into 

the BLANK (target) BANK. 

 

 

 

I always knew what positions I hadn't used yet. 

I also easily moved patches around within the BLANK 

BANK to categorize them. 

I was then able to simply copy blank patches back to any 

position I no longer needed. Using this technique, I was 

always organized. 

To get some additional utility out of the BLANK BANK: 

1. Use as a bank to load up just before you loan your ESQ/80 out to someone. 

2. I don't believe any authorized repairman has seen this bank so far. That opens up 

some possibilities. [evil grin] 

3. Load up this bank just before you’re anesthetized for a major medical procedure. 

When you can hear the patches, you know you're “feeling no pain”! 

8

CONTENTS 

(concluded) 

The “Easter Egg” Patches 

• The word lagniappe (pronounced “LAN-yap”) doesn’t get 

much use outside New Orleans & the misty “Scooby-Doo” 

swamp towns of Louisiana. A lagniappe is a small gift 

given by a merchant as thanks for a purchase. Aside from 

getting two banks of great sounds, the sound designer 

would also like you to accept these outstanding extra 

patches, our version of a “baker’s dozen” (remember 

those?) of great programming. 

In keeping with the Scooby Doo 

theme of mystery, you pesky 

kids are encouraged to poke 

around and discover these 

patches on your own… 

The Sequences 

• The sequences are simple riffs to briefly put a particular 

patch into a musical context. 

• Maybe one of the sequences will fire up your “musical 

memory bank” and you’ll say "Oh, yeah. Now I remember 

that!" 

FRANK BANK portrayed "Lumpy" Rutherford on the 1957– 

1963 American situation comedy “Leave It to Beaver”. 

As far was we know, he never used the BLANK BANK. 

Nevertheless the sound designer resisted intense pressure 

from the copy editor to rename it in his (Bank’s) honor. 

9

How to Load 

& Use This Disk 

• Let’s face it, there are only a handful of us 

hardware users left after the virtual instrument 

apocalypse… 

• I probably don’t need to teach you how to use 

your own disk drive after all these years, but for 

you inexperienced padawan learners loading 

these sounds on newly acquired instruments, a 

few procedural tips are in order… 

When you press the STORAGE (Disk) 

button, the Disk Load Page appears : 

DISK 

DISK -- SELECT DATA TYPE -- 

LOAD 

LOAD 

SYS-EX ONE/SEQ/ALL BANK PROGRAM 

You now have several options: 

1. You can choose to load SEQ/ALL to load the demo sequences with their 

associated soundbanks. 

2. You can load the BANK files directly -Banks 11 12 & 13 (remember that 

the first 10 banks are reserved by the OS for “sequencer associated 

patch banks”. 

3. Hunt for the “Easter Eggs”… 

We recommend you start by loading one of the two SEQ/ALL banks 

in order to audition the main sounds and their uses! 

10

VITAL DATA! 

External Controllers 

Be sure you hook up your MODPEDAL and at 

least one FOOTSWITCH before you load up 

these programs. 

Several of these sounds will not work 

properly without them. Plus any piano 

patch needs a FOOTSWITCH for the 

pedal sustain function anyway, and 

the MODPEDAL is too useful of a modulator not 

to take advantage of. 

There is an article at the ScoreForSale website 

telling you how to fix up almost any old volume 

or wah pedal to work here, and what kind of 

footswitch will work. 

Oh - and be sure you are playing through a 

stereo sound system. It does make a difference. 

11

DISCLAIMER! 

floppies only! 

12 

In technical terms, these banks contain patches that use “hacked” parameters 

which literally cannot be typed in from the front panel or stored/accessed via 

midi librarian software, which view non-standard parameter values as errors.

PATCHES: BANK 1 

UTILITY 

01. ______(HIDDEN WAVEFORMS) 

What? The 

first patch 

doesn’t do 

anything? 

This “blank”, silent patch has multiple functions: 

A. Use this patch as a place holder to show unused positions in the 

bank. The BLANK BANK is filled with this patch so you can load it into 

the internal bank or a cartridge bank and start from scratch whenever 

setting up new banks of patches. Great for keeping things organized 

without a computer. 

B. Plus it is set up as a "basic" patch, all you have to do to begin is to 

turn on one of the DCAs (1 through 3) and you will immediately hear a 

sound. You can go from there to create your own sounds or type in a 

printed patch. 

C. Notice that each OSCILLATOR comes up with "WAV250" in it so 

that you have the full set of "hidden waves" at your disposal even if you 

don't have the new software for it. 

Here is a photo of some other 

blank patches… 

Wrong! It has 

more utility than 

almost any other 

single patch! 

13

01. ______(HIDDEN WAVEFORMS) 

D. The LFOs are all set on different high speeds so that you can 

"play" briefly on this patch to scramble them so that they don't all start 

in phase like when you first turn on the instrument. This will give a 

random and more natural sound to 6BELLS and some other patches. 

Power Tip: 

Sounds that witness madness 

Since this is the first chance many of you may have had to listen to 

the hidden waves, this patch is your gateway to audition them. But be 

warned, many of them are truly Lovecraftian! Guard your sanity as you 

prepare to step through each of the more than a hundred new waves. 

Step 1 - Enable DCA 1 by selecting DCA 1 and 

turning the value to “ON” 

Step 2 - Play a key. You should now be hearing 

HIDDEN WAV 250 on OSC1. 

Step 3 – Step through each preceding wave by 

selecting the WAV parameter on OCS1 and 

using the arrow key to cycle 

through the previous waves. 

Step 4 - Surrender to the digital madness! Did a 

half-manifest Shoggoth just pass darkly 

through the very fabric of your being? 

(Yeah, don’t send letters about the 

picture. We know that’s a Cthulhu 

behind old Howard there… ) 

14


VARIOUS INSTRUMENTS 

02. KBRAS2. 

My attempt at a realistic brass patch. This Patch travels everywhere 

from Vangelis and Keith Emerson to a cinematic orchestra when used 

realistically. A hint of concert hall reverb can really make this one 

bloom into new colors. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL adds random stereo separation 

by a slow LFO. 

Mod Pedal 

The MODPEDAL darkens up the filter a little. 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE adds a tasteful amount of vibrato. 

15

03. LEGEND 

A breathy flute sound I made for a cover of some Tangerine Dream 

"Legend" soundtrack music. As with any woodwind sound, alter your 

technique to achieve phrases that a human could realistically play -- 

unless you know “circular breathing”! 

A decent multi-tap delay can work wonders on any flute sound. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL adds random stereo 

separation by an LFO. 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE adds vibrato. 

Mod Pedal 

The MODPEDAL adds the CHIFF attack wave. 

16

04. MELFLT 

Intended to sound like the flute samples 

from an early Mellotron. Any note held 

down longer than 8 seconds will stop 

sounding, just like when the original 

Mellotron tape strip reaches it's end and 

quits. 

So its “Strawberry Fields Forever”--or at 

least 8 seconds.… Unless you use a “rolling 

fingers” playing technique like a real Prog 

Rocker! 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the STRAWB demo song. 

05. SPLIT 

Two ways to split sounds(!), featuring Pulse width modulation 

This patch splits three different 

sounds across the keyboard by 

using the SPLIT function, and then 

again by using KEYBD2 in the 

DCAs. 

In the latter method, the DCA 

level setting determines the split 

key. Bass, Phased Clav, & PWM. 

The PWM sound is an LFO 

continuously moving the pulse 

width (the SQUARE wave 

converted here to a variable pulse 

wave using SYNC) for a big 

chorus-like sound. 

Check out all the PWM info at 

ScoreforSale. 

17


PERCUSSION 

06 6BELLS 

Featuring Long Envelopes 

This started as an experiment to 

see how long I could get the 

envelopes to last. I timed it at 1 

minute 38 seconds, so be patient. 

This is one of those where you 

just tap one key then let the 

ENVELOPEs and LFOs do all the 

work. Sort of like creating a 

sequence without the sequencer. 

It begins with 3 bells randomly 

chiming out of the right speaker. 

Then after they fade out, 3 larger 

bells chime from the left speaker. 

It's a very peaceful sound and 

almost seems to be telling a little 

story. 

07. SEVEN 

Featuring three ways to split sounds 

If you think three sounds split 

across the keyboard is impressive, 

how about seven? 

The last 5 waveforms listed in the 

owners' manual are actually drum 

maps with 3 to 5 transient 

percussion samples split across the 

keyboard. 

This patch combines one of those 

drum maps with 2 more percussion 

instruments. Now you can put 7 

completely different percussion 

instruments on just one sequencer 

track like on the A-HA and HPCD4‘ 

demo songs. 

It's mapped across the keyboard 

in this order: 

1. Kick Drum 

2. Hi-Hat 

3. Snare Drum 

4. Log Drum 

5. Tom Toms 

6. Tubular bells 

7. Crash Cymbal 

18

08. CLAPS 

A simple percussion sound you might find useful in your kit. 

KEYBOARD determines the stereo placement. 

09. 1.THING 

An imitation of that airy percussive sound from "One Thing 

Leads To Another" by The Fixx. KEYBOARD determines the 

stereo placement. 

10. COWBEL 

I got a fever, and the only 

prescription is more cowbell. 

KEYBOARD gives stereo placement. 

19


PIANO 

11. PIANO 

Featuring LFO as a control voltage attenuator 

Normally if you assign the 

MODWHEEL to an oscillator's 

pitch to get that honky-tonk 

detuned sound with a value of 

+01, you can only use about half of 

the wheel range - the rest is too 

extreme and sounds awful. 

This patch sends the 

MODWHEEL through an LFO to 

reduce the overall range, keeping 

even the maximum setting 

musical. 

There's an article on this at the 

ScoreForSale website. 

Mod Wheel 

A tasteful amount of honky-tonk throughout 

the entire range of travel of the MODWHEEL. 

20

12. BRTHDY 

Footswitch changes the timbre 

That sustainy processed piano 

sound from The Beatles' 

"Birthday". For this patch, you 

must plug the FOOTSWITCH into 

the "Pedal/CV" jack on the back 

panel. Yes, that's right. Once it’s all 

the way in, pull it back out 1/8” so 

the tip of the FOOTSWITCH plug 

hit’s both the ring and tip 

connectors of the input jack at the 

same time. 

If you hold down a note or chord, 

you should be able to tell when it 

lines up properly and changes the 

tone. 

Hit the FOOTSWITCH every 

time you want to change the 

tone during the verse …just like 

on the Beatles record. 

The WHEEL by itself can give 

you that additional third lower 

tone used at the very end, but 

doesn't transition quickly like the 

SWITCH. 

Yeah, I know this patch is a 

hassle. But it opens up a whole new 

way to control your sounds! 

This is the box → █ 

Think outside of it. 

Special Footswitch 

Plug FOOTSWITCH into "Pedal/CV" & pull back 1/8” to 

instantly change timber each FOOTSWITCH press 

Mod Wheel 

Fades in lower 3 rd tone. 

21

13. RAYCHR 

Featuring moving waveforms 

An imitation of an older Wurlitzer electric piano. 

Uses a moving waveform in OSCILLATOR 2 for more realism. 

Mod Wheel 

The MODWHEEL adds some tremolo 

(but not too much!). 

Mod Pedal 

The MODPEDAL adds a warm chorus effect. 

22

14. HPCD4' 

A four-foot harpsichord voice. 

Yes, the sound of a 4’ 

harpsichord “disposition” is 

different from an 8’ disposition, as 

you will soon discover. Most 

Harpsichord patches do not 

account for this, and you end up 

with a jingley-jangley metal sound 

as a compromise. This patch is 

specifically designed to model a 4’ 

Harpsichord for classical and pop 

situations. 

The MODWHEEL can be used in 

more than one way for this patch 

(see MOD WHEEL feature box). It 

should be noted that delicate 

application will simulate the way a 

real harpsichord loses its tuning 

after it is moved from one location 

to another. 

EXTRA: Listen for that final 

light pluck as you release the keys. 

Real Harpsichords have it, and it's 

part of this sound as well! * 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the HPCD4’ demo song. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL adds detuning. Even at full-wheel it will 

not go out of tune, just give a nice detuning effect. 

Keyboard Modulation 

KEYBOARD determines stereo position. 

* Trivia Tidbit: Both the ESQ-1 and SQ-80 transmit MIDI release 

velocity! — Now go find a receiving device that uses it! 

23

15. HPCD84 


An 8' harpsichord voice layered with HPCD4'. Builds upon the richness 

of the 4’ disposition (yes, that’s the real technical term for harpsichord 

registrations: now go impress your friends!). 

You’ll see that these full-voiced dispositions had certain characteristics 

that we would consider piano-like (minus the touch sensitivity). 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the HPCD84 demo song. 

A Note about pitch designations on these two harpsichord patches: 

The 4’ & 8’ nomenclature borrows pitch terminology from pipe organs. 

The 8' pitch (regardless of string length) corresponds to the pitch on a 

pipe organ which has an 8' long pipe for its lowest C, which is also the 

standard fundamental pitch for a piano. 

The 4' pitch is exactly an octave higher than the 8’ pitched pipe/string. 

As the Baldwin company explains it, their classic Solid Body Harpsichord 

(used in countless ‘60s recordings) has a set of strings tuned to 8'. 

24 

For example, Lurch's harpsichord from The Addams Family is played with 

both 8' and 4' voices together - the harpsichord equivalent of a 12-string 

guitar.


ORGAN 

16. ORGAN2. 

Featuring additional waveforms 

This is an organ sound using a waveform not listed in the owner's 

manual - obtained by SYNCing the STRING waveform and looping only 

a part of the original wave to get an all-new tone. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL adds vibrato for the groovy exotica 

stylings necessary for your hip space-bachelor pad. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL adds a standard waveform 

with a little chorus effect. 

25

17. V3 8' 

A simple, reverberant, hollow organ voice with an unusual stereo 

vibrato effect from the WHEEL. 

Mod Wheel 

The aforementioned unusual stereo vibrato effect. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL gives you a more traditional vibrato. 

18. DISTRT 

Featuring overdrive distortion 

A clean organ demo patch that goes into distortion when you turn up 

the PEDAL. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL gives you both vibrato & tremolo. 

Mod Pedal 

Cranks up the distortion (in a classic 60’s style) 

by overdriving the amplitude signal. 

For more info on distortion and the SQ-80/ESQ family of synths, 

visit http://www.scoreforsale.com/html/overdrive.html 

26

19. NORGAN 

Featuring unintended (possibly unnatural) use of waveforms 

An odd organ patch that completely doubles back on 

itself every two octaves, with partial foldback every few 

notes. The WHEEL slides the whole thing down an octave. 

Mod Wheel 

Drops the pitch up to an octave. 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE brings in a really ugly (delightful) tremolo. 

20. PIPE O 


KEYBOARD gives inverse stereo placement to add to 

the unnatural feel. Yog Sothoth was lurking at the threshold 

that day, --I blame him. 

Three pipe organ variations. WHEEL and PEDAL control articulations. 

WHEEL can fade to just the ORGAN waveform for a basic sound. PEDAL 

acts as a typical organ swell pedal, bringing in the big Full Organ timbre. 

Mod Wheel 

Subtracts 2 oscillators from the additive organ sound 

(like using drawbars) 

Mod Pedal 

Swell! Its like a gas pedal for music. 

27


SYNTHESIZER 

21. TREMLO 

Featuring LFO #4…What!? 

This demo patch is a 

reverberant reedy tremolo sound. 

What's unusual about this one is 

that the MODWHEEL changes the 

*speed* of the LFO, even while 

you're holding notes down. The 

owner's manual shows no way to 

accomplish this. 

Editor’s note (from a 3 rd party 

who has no financial interest in 

pimping this soundset): This 

patch is just plain genius, and the 

holy grail of this kind of technique. 

There was a point when I would 

have paid $30 just to know if this 

was possible or not. Many great 

designers have given up trying to 

produce this effect on the SQ80!! 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL changes the speed of the LFO…Live, for 

the first time on the SQ80-not just an “on/off switch” 

28

22. MAXREZ 

Featuring resonant filter oscillation 

This demo patch is a resonant 

filter sweep over a SINE wave pad. 

The way the ESQs & SQ-80 are 

designed, the filter chips never 

quite go into oscillation even at 

the maximum resonance setting. 

But this patch takes the 

resonance way beyond its limits 

for some nasty screeching, even 

with nothing but SINE waves 

going through it. 

Another 3 rd Party Editor’s 

Note: This is another $30 patch. 

You have heard other synthesizers 

produce this effect…but you 

probably never thought you’d here 

this synthesizer produce the effect! 

Again, I thought it was impossible, 

but here it is! 

23. ENDER 

A synthetic percussive sound. 

To ensure authenticity, an early version of this replica was prototyped via Rainer Buchty's SQ-80 List. 

24. BEATIT 

A layered buzzy bell patch, monophonic like the original 

Synclavier sound used at the beginning of Michael Jackson's 

"Beat It". See if you recognize this: In the middle octave slowly 

play G G E E G G D. 

29

25. TCH&GO 

The lead synth brass patch made for a cover of ELP‘s “Touch And 

Go“. Listen to the ELP demo song for an example of the main riff. 

When performing live, I would use the MODPEDAL for a volume 

boost to take it over the top. 

By the way, the ELP lineup that this patch and associated tune refers 

to is “Emerson, Lake and Powell”, not “Emerson, Lake and Palmer”! 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the ELP demo song. 

Mod Pedal 

Increase/decrease volume 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL transposes up an octave. 

Performance Tips, Tricks & Trivia: 

This is actually a patch I used for gigging, I had a bass split on the 

lower two octaves. The WHEEL transpose feature literally gives you 

an extra octave to work with at the end of the song! 

PEDAL changes between "verse volume" and "solo volume". 

30 

As a note of trivia, this was one of two songs where I would 

literally be playing 3 different parts at one time, out of 4 parts total, 

with a little help from the sequencer footswitch adding a choir 

chord. I was really grateful for all of the SQ-80's features.

26. HUMANA 

The Polymoog Keyboard "Vox Humana" preset heard on a lot of Gary 

Numan's early songs. 

WHEEL makes it brighter, more like one of the "Strings" presets. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL adjusts brightness 

Trivia Tidbits: 

• The Polymoog and Polymoog keyboard are actually different models 

with essentially identical hardware, a slightly different set of baked-in 

presets, and reduced programmability (in the case of the keyboard). 

• These models used divide-down oscillators to achieve “100% 

polyphony”, so they delivered a tonality hybrid somewhere between a 

traditional Moog and the “string synthesizers” and combo organs that 

were common in the late 70’s. 

31

27. SEQENC 

A fast echoey stereo blip created 

to be used as a sequenced sound in 

a cover of John Carpenter‘s 

“Escape From New York“. But this 

sound has more character than just 

a simple synth chirp. Use it as a 

doubled percussive element or 

even for sound FX work. 

28. 80BASS 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the ESCAPE song for a demo. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL fades out. See on my first YouTube 

video. (link jumps to song section) 

A popular synth bass sound in the 80s with two octaves of pitches. 

This one was copied from Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me With 

Science". 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL adds a bodacious 80’s vibrato effect. 

32 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL adds detuning.

29. SEQBAS 

A typical 80s sequenced synth bass sound. The LFO SAWTOOTH 

wave does all the work for you. Or you can do single notes with 

staccato playing. Copied from "Kids In America" by Kim Wilde. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL darkens the filter. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL adds some octave. 

Trivia Tidbit: 

• Until someone proves me wrong, the original "Kids In America" bass 

patch may have been another Roland Alpha Juno preset (even though 

I’ve pictured the ubiquitous Yamaha “Lately Bass” on the top of the 

page. My version was inspired by both the analog and digital 1980s! 

• For those of you with Alpha Junos, call up the stock P-11 “PolySynth1” 

patch and play a bassline. Now play the same bassline with this patch 

on the SQ-80. Pretty close, but call me biased: Which sound would you 

really rather have on your record? ☻ 

33

30. SWEEPS 

Begins with a slow resonant filter up-sweep. Play big wide chords to 

get different filters interacting with each other for a very thick sound. 

The VELOCITY makes sure they all sweep at different speeds to 

maximize the effect. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL shifts one of the sound elements 

by an octave 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE adds a specific type of vibrato. 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL adds a different type of vibrato. 


KEYBOARD gives inverse stereo placement. 

34

31. WHTNOI 

Featuring pitched noise 

This one uses nothing but white 

noise for the sound source, then 

it's given pitch by the resonant 

filter. 

This patch taught me that the 

most accurate filter tracking 

values are: 

• KEYBD=60 

• KBD=+120 

and 

• KBD2=+30 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL gives it some wacked-out tremolo 

32. SG A N 

A stereo sound that gives two "pulses" every time you hit one note. I 

made it to do a cover of "Sunglasses At Night" by Corey Hart - the 

FIRST famous Corey of the 80s. F, Db, C, Bb (repeat). The WHEEL gives 

it a touch more detuning and turns up the filter frequency to make it 

bright enough to do Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams". 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the COREY demo song for examples of 

more than one way to use this sound. 

Mod Wheel 

Brightness/Detuning 

35

33. MAMA 

A copy of a famous Synclavier sound. For Genesis fans, no 

explanation is necessary. For everyone else, no explanation is possible. 

3 rd Party Editor’s Note: If you’re not using this patch in your Bernard 

Herrmann tribute act, you're making a huge mistake. 

34. A-HA 

The percussive lead keyboard sound from “Take On Me”. 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the demo song “A-HA” for the famous riff. 

35. EERIE 

I made this one specifically for a copy of Animotion's Obsession, but 

it's also the exact same sound in Jerry Goldsmith’s “Explorers” movie 

soundtrack. It’s made various other appearances as well. 

Useful in new-age or soundtrack settings., this is the more ethereal, 

lyrical cousin to the “MAMA” sound. I felt that it was necessary to 

include both. Unlike the MAMA patch, this sound won’t frighten your 

actual Mama. 

36

36. SUPSAW 

A Roland Supersaw Event for your SQ-80! 

SUPSAW is a layered demo patch designed to give you the 

experience of using the SUPERSAW waveform introduced in the 

Roland JP-8000. The original comes with a MIX parameter and a 

DETUNE parameter. Here, the WHEEL gives you detuning and the 

PEDAL controls the mix level in a reverse volume pedal fashion. 

Mod Wheel 

Adjusts Roland “Detune” Parameter: Raise wheel to 

“spread” Saw Waves apart! 

Mod Pedal 

Adjusts Roland “Mix” Parameter: Adjust pedal to 

fade the Sawtooth mix. 

Performance Quick-Tip: 

To quickly get that fat supersaw sound, instantly 

turn the modwheel ALL THE WAY UP! 

37

PATCHES: 

BANK 1 

LAYERS 

As you read in the blue section of the introduction, these final 

patches (with parenthesis around the title) are part of previouslylayered 

sounds, and are not intended to be used by themselves. 

Even though you probably won’t want to solo with these 

“Parenthetical Layers”, they could work as the basis of other 

experiments. I have called out an example, but let your ear--and your 

imagination--guide you. 

Similarly, there is a collection of parenthetical layers at the end of 

Bank 2. Identical rules apply, so this information will not be repeated. 

37. (SEVN) 

38. (SPLT) Good for some really deep PWM sounds. 

39. (BEAT) 

40. (SUPR) 

END OF BANK 1 

Consider performing a coolant flushing 

procedure on your synthesizer before 

proceeding to the hot sounds in Bank 2!* 

*Disclaimer: Kidding! Do NOT put coolant (or any liquid) in your SQ80! 

38

PATCHES: 

BANK 2 

STRINGS 

01. SCRACH 

Featuring Cross-Wave Synthesis (aka Linear Arithmetic) 

This patch begins with the BOWING transient sound all by itself, 

which quickly fades out at the same time that the STRING waveform 

fades in. That’s what cross-wave synthesizing is all about. 

The MODWHEEL is not used because many applications of this 

sound would require both hands on the keyboard. 

02. STRING 

A basic orchestra sound. 

Can either be used 

realistically or as a pad. 

Mod Pedal 

MODPEDAL opens up the filter a little. 

39

03. SYMPH1. 

A larger layered symphony orchestra sound. Try 

widely-spaced 4-note chords. Place this in a quality 

reverb space to unlock surprising orchestral richness 

(example, a multifaceted symphonic convolution 

hall, or a good old Alesis “Bloom” preset). 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL subtly darkens the filter. 

Mod Pedal 

MODPEDAL opens up the filter a little. 

04. HOLLOW 

Created as a square wave string patch for a cover of Foreigner’s 

"Waiting for a Girl Like You". 

Musical Trivia that adds to the “cool factor”: 

Thomas Dolby created and performed the whole "Waiting for a Girl 

Like You" synth track for Foreigner uncredited. 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL opens up the filter. 

Mod Pedal 

PEDAL gives a sort of chorus/vibrato effect. 

40

05. ZTRING 

An alternate string sound intended for movie soundtracks. I made it 

to do a cover of some Tangerine Dream music from “Legend”. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL gives the chorus/vibrato effect. 

41


BASS 

06. WABASS 

I made this sound to do a cover of the theme song for "Friday the 

13th Part 3". Slightly more macho than the original Hot Ice sound. 

07. FUZBAS 

My attempt at a fuzz bass. Try playing "Five To One" by The Doors. 

The WHEEL slides the pitch down an octave for slides like in the intro of 

“Sugar The Road” by Ten Years After for example. 

08. ECHOBS 

Featuring LFO echo effects 

Mod Wheel 

The wheel slides the 

pitch down an octave. 

Did you expect a warm chorus/vibrato on something 

as raw and savage as a fuzz bass? You must be sick! 

A bass guitar through a tape echo, optimized for playing 

Pink Floyd's "One of These Days“. Listen to the demo sequence--I only 

played simple quarter notes on the beat and the echo effect gives it 

that complex triplets rhythm, just like on the original Pink Floyd song. 

The stereo separation can be removed by setting the DCA4 2nd mod 

amount to +00. 

42 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the PFLOYD demo song.


SOUND EFFECTS 

09. HLCPT1 

Featuring Long Envelopes 

A layered monophonic sound where you just tap one key and wait. I 

timed this one at 42 seconds. The envelopes fade it in and out as well as 

send it across the stereo field. 

Listen to the layer (ENG) to hear the diesel engine and the whining 

transaxle without the blades chopping. 

This patch has 

the option of 

reducing the 

volume of the 

"transaxle 

whine“ (see the 

“MODWHEEL” 

box), because - 

like in real life-it 

can be a little 

overpowering. 

This modwheel fade feature also applies to HLCPT1’s layer (patch 

37) leaving only the diesel engine sound, which might be useful in a 

number of other musical and nonmusical contexts. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL fades out the "transaxle whine". 

43

10. APEMAN 


Hit middle C and wait. Due to multiple 

modulators used, it only works properly on 

that one note. SYNC is used on the VOICE1 

wave to get a new waveform that sounds a 

little closer a man’s yelling voice. 

Not exactly the most 

spectacular patch here, but 

it was the most difficult 

one I ever came up with. 

You might try a Google 

search for famous sound 

designer Ben Burrt 

explaining to Turner Classic 

Movies’ Ben Mankiewicz 

how he reverse engineered 

the famous original sound. 

11. FX 01. 

A miscellaneous sci-fi sound effect. 

12. FLYBY 

44 

Another sci-fi sound effect.

13. THEM 

Featuring THEM! THEM! THEM! 

The basic sound of those giant atomically 

mutated ants from the movie of the same 

name. 

The KBD2 modulator is at slightly less than 

full value so you can have slightly detuned 

ants combined for a more ominous group 

effect. 

There is also a little VELOCITY used so they 

won’t all be exactly at the same volume. The 

WHEEL brings THEM closer... 



Mod Wheel 

WHEEL embiggens THEM! 

45

14. SPRNGS 


A springy sound effect from SYNCing the STEAM wave. This is 

layered to itself, something you would need to remember if you ever 

move this patch to another location. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL takes the sound way up in pitch. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL takes the sound way down in pitch 

15. SCANNR 

Featuring aliasing 

Tap one key and wait for the 

monophonic metallic sample-andhold 

sound to creep across the 

stereo field. It reminds me of 

something I heard in the movie 

"Scanners". It gets its random 

effect by using the METAL 

waveform at a higher pitch than it 

can work normally in, and it gets a 

digital distortion called "aliasing" 

which gives you a different tone 

and pitch than it is supposed to - 

in this case with many of the 

metallic inharmonics still intact. 

46

16. KRELL 

Featuring the brain-boosting 

power of ancient Krell 

musicians 

You have to hold the key down on 

this one. The WHEEL brings sort of a 

higher screech sound. This one 

reminds me of the soundtrack music 

from “Forbidden Planet“. 

Spring reverb and tape delay would 

be particularly apt as a treatment for 

this “electronic tonality”. 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL unleashes monsters from the ID 

(or at least a higher pitched Krell mystery tone!). 

47

17. UPPER 

A sci-fi AM sound effect that might be reminiscent of “The Day The 

Earth Stood Still”. 

18. WCHIME 

Tap a key and listen to delicate metal wind chimes. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL makes it too bright. 

48


VOICE 

19. PNOUNC 


A vocal patch with a dynamic “morph” capability using SYNC to 

change the loop point of the waveform. Some might draw 

comparisons between this technique and a primordial use of what 

Ensoniq would later term “transwaves”. 

Transwaves and wavetable scanning may not have been on Ensoniq’s 

drawing board when the ESQ-1 premiered in 1986. (PPG Wave and 

Prophet VS notwithstanding). But there is certainly no harm in 

comparing the two approaches considering how similar the end result 

sounds to the naked ears. And the ESQ/SQ-80 SYNC approach actually 

has better resolution than wavetables! 

Mod Pedal 

PEDAL gives you changing vocal sounds by sweeping 

across the loop point of the waveform. 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE gives you vibrato. 

Mod Wheel 

MODWHEEL adds a detuned VOICE1 wave 

for a more complex sound. 

49

20. CHORUS 

A full-voiced layered choir 

sound. I recommend using 4- 

note widely spaced chords to 

sound as authentic as 

possible. 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL adds some "digital sheen" 

by opening up the filter. 

Listen Live! 

Play the CHORUS demo song while moving the 

WHEEL (select track in the sequence to enable wheel). 

Mod Pedal 

MODPEDAL adds some random stereo 

separation by an LFO 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE gives you vibrato. 

50


SYNTH 

21. TARBAS 

The BASS preset from the original Moog Taurus pedals. 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL acts like the FILTER foot slider in reverse. 

22. TARTUB 

The TUBA preset from the original Moog Taurus pedals. 

Mod Wheel 


23. TARTAR 

The TARUS preset from the original Moog Taurus pedals. 

Mod Wheel 


51

24. SAWYER 

Featuring the combination 

of two (!) filters 

A layered monophonic resonant filter 

sweep that should sound very familiar 

to Rush fans. Crank up your monitors, 

hold down E2, and watch the framed 

artwork on your walls. You will 

definitely see Moving Pictures. 

25. LFOS&H 

Featuring Sample & Hold 

Sample & Hold used on an oscillator’s pitch is the sound effect that 

ushered in the computer age. The SQ-80 has no sample & hold function 

as such, so this patch fakes it with a little help from the LFO's NOISE 

waveform. 

26. VELS&H 

Featuring Sample & Hold 

This technique is actually a very important one. It gives you that 

random Sample & Hold sound, here on the resonant filter, at whatever 

tempo you want it even though the SQ-80 has no actual S&H section. 

This depends on velocity to give you the random levels. 

The inaccuracies of the velocity circuitry also help you here. Sure 

sounds like Sample & Hold to me. 

52 

In the demo song HENLEY, 

I played even eighth notes 

using alternating index fingers, trying to keep 

the velocity as random as I could. 

Listen Live!

27. WHIPIT 

A very basic bright percussive patch with two octaves of oscillators. 

Listen Live! 

For a demo of WHIPIT in context, play the DEVO 

demo song. 

28. LETSGO 

That sync sound made famous by The Cars. 

Listen Live! 

Listen to the THCARS demo song for the famous riff. 

29. CYGNUS 


A sustaining automatic wahwah 

sound that uses a moving 

FORMANT waveform for the 

wah effect. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL adds an electric piano component which 

doesn't have the wah effect. 

53

30. STAR 


A huge synthetic bass sound, from the SLAP transient being 

SYNCED, providing another waveform not in the owner's manual. Try 

the PEDAL and I think you’ll be surprised. Both tremolo effects and 

ping-pong effects were common in the 60’s and 70’s, but I can’t think of 

a single effects pedal that combined them into one box. Here, you get 

that effect for free. 

Technical Note: 

Any ping pong effect automatically converts to a tremolo unit if you 

only use one output. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL closes the filter to tame it a little. 

Key Pressure 

PRESSURE gives you some vibrato. 

Mod Pedal 

A quality tremolo effect ))) IN STEREO ((( ! 

54

31. KIK2.SN 


& moving waveforms 

The WHEEL forward gives you just the 

normal KICK 2 transient wave. But with the 

WHEEL in the normal position you hear it 

SYNCED for a huge synthetic bass sound. 

ENVELOPE 1 gives it some waveform 

motion. 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL DOWN: SYNC bass sound 

WHEEL UP: KICK 2 drum sound 

Mod Pedal PEDAL adds a SINE wave 

which gives more body (read “bass”). If you need a 

drum that’s a bass-monster, look no further. 

55

32. ETHERL 

Featuring the AM bug 

This stereo layered patch is one of the 

bugs associated with the AM function. 

Here the PLUNK transient gets AMed by 

the KICK 2 transient, resulting in what 

appears to be a variation of the VOICE3 

waveform. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL adds the detuned normal VOICE3 

waveform for a slightly more complex sound. 

Mod Wheel 

The MODWHEEL opens up the filter for a more 

“digital” sound. 

33. STRIKR 


A struck string instrument with a slight flanger effect that benefits 

from the SQ-80's ability to generate moving waveforms. 

Mod Wheel 

The flanger can be turned up with the WHEEL. 

Key Pressure 


56

34. DRAGON 

A square-wave synth keyboard sound that uses SYNC. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL adds a detuned square wave 

for a chorus effect. 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL gives it an extra "bite". 

Key Pressure 


57

35. RADON 


A fast sample-and-hold effect. Low-frequency noise modulation (like 

on the MINIMOOG) is optional via PEDAL . I remember in the seventies 

discussing the usefulness of that feature. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL makes it seasick. 

Mod Pedal 

MODPEDAL adds low-frequency noise modulation . 

36. REZ70S 

Created for a cover of the opening theme from the Warriors movie. A 

very popular synth effect in the 70s. Try holding a chord. As the 

resonant filter slowly sweeps, you can hear it respond to each individual 

note and major harmonic. 

PARENTHETICAL 

LAYERS: 

37 (HLCP) 38 (CHRS) 39 (SAWR) 40 (ETHR) 

58 

END OF BANK 2

PATCHES: 

EASTER 

EGGS 

001. KANAMT 

A weird muffled grumbly sound effect that’s hard to describe. 

Tap a key and wait. 

002. WEAPN1. 

Another sci-fi sound effect. Might remind you a little of the Martian 

heat ray 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL adds a noise component. 

003. ATAK 

A SYNCed synth keyboard sound that gets carried away if 

you play hard. 

59

004. COMBO 

A basic combo organ with 16’, 8’, and 4’ pitches. 

Mod Wheel 

The WHEEL gives you vibrato 

Mod Pedal 

The PEDAL gives you tremolo. 

005. BOIL 

Sounds a little like something big boiling. 



60

006. IDUNNO 

Sort of like a delicate harpsichord in the upper octaves and more 

“rubbery” sounding in the lower octaves. - OK, let’s see if YOU can 

come up with a good description for this one. 

Mod Pedal 

PEDAL lowers the filter and gives a 

nasal wah-wah effect 

Mod Wheel 

WHEEL gives a slow vibrato. 

61

So Long… 

Thanks for all the fish… 

(and Why the crazy manual?) 

Out in the wilderness, you run across 

two kinds of patches : 

1: you press a key & it sounds good, but 

then you apply a modulation source & 

it does nothing. The sound is halffinished: 

the programmer is unwilling or 

unable to exploit the capabilities of the 

machine. 

2: You press a key & it sounds 

underwhelming. You must be missing 

something...What was the programmer 

thinking? You’ll never find out. 

This manual was designed to 

address both of these problems. Most 

of these sounds utilize optional mod 

sources & benefit from specialized 

playing techniques. The only way you’ll 

know how to use these patches to their 

full potential is by using the information 

in this manual. 

Also, what makes a good patch 

bank today is different than it was in the 

80’s. Its not as important in the 21 st 

century that each-&-every patch fits 

perfectly in a musical context with your 

Dan Fogelberg cover band. In the 

1980s most musicians didn’t have 

literally hundreds of different sound 

sources available to them like you do 

today. In a 2 or 3 keyboard setup, the 

versatile SQ-80 would be required to 

both lead, & fill in the musical holes left 

by other keyboards. 

62 

SQ-80 owners in 1989 were not 

ready for a set of specialized patches 

with extreme programming techniques. 

— That’s why you’ll see most older 

commercial banks covering a similar 

spectrum: —What has come to be 

called “bread & butter sounds”. 

It should be obvious that the 

Disruptor Banks are not another set of 

pianos & pads. 

Even the disruptor bank patches 

that seem like “one trick ponies” are 

specially designed to demonstrate a 

new or unique aspect of sound design. 

You’ll find plenty of strings, brass, synths 

& keys, but they are all “maxed out”. 

As such, the Disruptor Banks are 

equally valuable to musicians, 

programmers & sound designers. 

Examine the patch parameters closely 

& discover new ways to enhance & 

extend your existing sounds. In that 

spirit, this manual is your behind the 

scenes construction kit to the sounds. 

Thanks for purchasing these patches 

& keeping radical sound design alive. 

These patches may not be for 

everyone, but you better believe that 

they were designed by someone who is 

just as serious as you are about 

uncompromising synthesis & 

consummate sound.

License Agreement 

“99% of all lawyers 

give the rest of 

them a bad name.” 

― David Gerrold 

By purchasing Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches you expressly agree and accept 

this license agreement. Please make sure you read the terms & conditions of this 

license agreement carefully. 

Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches are licensed, not sold to you for use in music 

productions only. The author reserves any other rights not expressly granted to you. 

Unlawful copying, duplicating, selling, lending, renting, hiring, broadcasting, 

uploading or downloading to any database, news groups, servers, computers, file 

sharing services or otherwise distributing of Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches is 

strictly forbidden. The single user license you purchase is non transferable. Any 

infringement of this license will be pursued to the fullest extent of international law. 

You may use Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches within your compositions for both 

commercial and non commercial use. 

The licensor will not be held responsible if the synth presets do not fit the particular 

purpose of the Licensee (you). The synth presets are licensed ‘as is’ without warranties 

of any kind. The licensor can not be held responsible for any direct, indirect or 

consequential loss arising from the use of any synth presets in whatever form. The 

licensor can not be held responsible for any and all infringements that may arise from 

the use of the synth presets within the licensees musical compositions and 

productions. 

Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches may not be used both individually and in 

combination with other sound files to create alternative patch banks, samples, preset 

packs or audio packs by the Licensee (you).. 

The licensee may use the synth presets in compositions such as, making demos, songs, 

albums, records, remixes, commercials, jingles, post productions, commissioned 

pieces, soundtracks for film, theatre, musicals, production music libraries, TV and live 

performances. 

You can not trade, resell, lend, copy, duplicate, upload or download to any 

database, servers, file sharing service any Disruptor Bank patches. The licensor only 

licenses the synth presets to a single user. 

The single user license agreement you purchase is non transferable. This means you 

can not sell any synth presets second hand. By the same logic you can not purchase 

Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches second hand. 

By completing the purchase of Kirk Slinkard’s Disruptor Bank patches means 

acceptance of all the terms of the User License Agreement. 

63

Disruptor Banks Musician's Manual

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