With electronic music production, the difference between aweful and amazing is determined by thousands of subtle audio effects.
In most forms of electronic dance music, sub bass synthesizer sounds are used to produce huge, club-worthy bass tones. They are responsible for the stomach-shaking rumble in drum n bass, the smooth vibrations in deep house, and the fat boom in hip hop.
Most electronic music producers use audio distortion. For example, Chemical Brothers make heavy use of distortion on all of their records.