To those who make music inspired by Autechre

Particularly those who make Autechre-esque percussion sounds, how do you go about doing it? Aside from max or puredata (I know they use max, but for various reasons I'm holding off on learning puredata since I can't afford max), are there certain VST synths or effects you favor? What sorts of parameter modulations do you find yourself using to emulate some of their sounds? Are there any processes or shortcuts to synthesizing percussion that help you save time in the long run?