The Digital Lifestyle Show: Daniel Fisher from Sweetwater on Synths, Sound Design, and Live Performance

The Digital Lifestyle Show

In this week’s episode of The Digital Lifestyle Show, I’m joined by none other than Daniel Fisher from Sweetwater. If you’re into synthesisers, programming, or live performance — this is a must-listen episode.

Daniel has had a long and fascinating journey through music and synthesis, and in this episode, he shares stories from his early musical experiences, how he got started with synthesisers, and how he became one of the most respected sound designers in the industry.

Listen Now:
Listen Here (download mp3)

We chat about:

• How Daniel learned music by ear and discovered synthesis as a child

• His first synth experiences with instruments like the Minimoog and DX7

• Transitioning from analog to digital synthesis

• Creating synth patches for tribute bands, including Pink Floyd

• The importance of learning one synth deeply vs collecting too many plugins

• Hardware vs software synths — and why he prefers a hands-on approach

• Daniel’s all-time favourite synth (spoiler: it’s a Kurzweil!)

Whether you’re a beginner or a synth veteran, Daniel shares brilliant insights and practical tips — especially if you play live or work with cover bands. He also talks about his amazing free Synth Clips series on YouTube, which walks through the fundamentals of synthesis step by step.

Timestamps / Chapters

00:00 – Introduction: Daniel Fisher joins the show
00:42 – Early inspiration and first encounter with the Magnus chord organ
02:50 – Taking B3 lessons, learning drawbars and 60s/70s pop
04:25 – Discovering music by ear, learning from bands like Styx and Kansas
06:06 – Switching to trombone and guitar as portable instruments
07:00 – Joining a bar band at 15 after a synth fix from his dad
08:00 – Starting on organ shaped approach to synthesis
09:00 – Rejecting weighted keyboards and loving synth-style playing
10:00 – The Motorola synth album and discovering sound design
11:00 – First synth experiences: Micromoog and performance memories
12:15 – Creating sound programming business: “Systems Exclusive”
13:30 – Learning to work with limited synths (DX7, M1) and evolving through constraint
15:30 – Advice: Focus on one synth/plugin to master synthesis
16:40 – Modwave, Wavestate, and learning deeply vs skimming presets
17:30 – Daniel’s Synth Clips series and sharing knowledge freely
18:30 – Favorite synths to program: DX7 and Korg M1 tricks
20:45 – MIDI glitches, hacking patches, and deep programming creativity
22:00 – From romplers to virtual analogues and the loss of knobs
23:45 – Return of real-time control and modern synth flexibility
25:00 – Plugins vs hardware: Daniel prefers hardware for live performance
26:00 – Vintage vs modern synths: reliability and modern enhancements win
27:45 – Current rig: no fixed setup, tailored for each project
28:50 – Pink Floyd tribute setup and theremin wind sounds
30:00 – How Daniel recreates Floyd’s complex sounds live
31:30 – Naming patches with key and FX cues for easy recall
33:00 – Saving patch versions incrementally for long-term refinement
34:10 – Long envelopes to replicate mix automation in songs
35:00 – Daniel’s favorite synth of all time: Kurzweil K2661
36:00 – No regrets on past synths; prefers modern synths with deep EQ
37:10 – Synth he wishes existed: flexible, layered, sample-capable synth
38:40 – Final thoughts, shoutouts, and appreciation for the community

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Watch the full episode on YouTube

Explore Daniel’s Synth Clips series
Search for “Synth Clips Daniel Fisher” on YouTube, or just type Daniel Fisher Sweetwater to find his full library of tutorials and demos.

(188) Synth Clips by Daniel Fisher – YouTube

Let us know your thoughts!
What synth did you first fall in love with? Do you prefer plugins or hardware? Drop a comment below or join the discussion in our Discord server.