There is a train of thought that says the timer has a sweet spot. If ya synth on the correct spot it will be more successful than if ya synth elsewehere. For instance if i synth as soon as the timer starts more ofthen than not it will fail but if i synth for the white orb after about 5-10mm it will succeed. same goes for yellow when the bar reaches the writing and red seems to be a little after half way. this works for me and ive heard many others in my crafting ls agree