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Noise profiling gate

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  • Noise profiling gate

    Working a lot with cleaning up noise in voice recordings got me thinking. Traditional noise gates just function with a threshold trigger. If the input signal drop below the threshold, the gate clamps shut.
    But in programs such as Adobe Audition, you can actually profile noise and then have the software filter out the offending frequencies, leaving the rest of your audio track more or less intact.

    Are there any gates that actually work that way? Seems to me with modern processing power that would be a possibility, no?
    --------------------------------------------------------
    1973 Aria 551
    1984 Larrivee RS-4 w/ EMG SA/SA/89
    1989 Charvel 750 XL w/ DMZ Tone Zone & Air Norton
    1990's noname crap-o-caster plywood P/J Bass
    1991 Heartfield Elan III w/ DMZ mystery pups
    1995 Aria Pro II TA-65
    2001 Gibson Les Paul Gothic w/ PG-1 & SH-8

  • #2
    Re: Noise profiling gate

    Rocktron's HUSH (and the improved digital versions of it), worked by combining a filter with a gate. The filter variably reduces "non-guitar" frequencies, increasing over time.

    Then there's their Guitar Silencer, where they have a loop controlled by the gate, and you put your gain pedals in the loop (including compressors). Great way to use insane amounts of gain without the noise, though it can't help with wah, treble boosters or fuzzes that need their input impedance to interact with the guitar output in order to sound right.

    ISP Technologies Decimator technology is I believe descended from both those techniques, and considerably improved since. I think there's a few other companies working in the area, but I can't recall them at this hour.

    Frustratingly, most multi-effects companies have settled for simple noise gates, even though the patents have expired on HUSH and the original gate/loop combinations.

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    • #3
      Re: Noise profiling gate

      I have HUSH X2 which work by filtering the noise in some fashion as Despair mentioned. I have it set to minimum threshold and it works perfectly that way.

      Much better than ISP Decimator I had previously, which worked more like regular noise gate.

      On the other side of the coin, HUSH is not perfectly transparent, but adds bit of coloration to tone. However I actually think it improves it: Everything sounds clearer and more defined, it seems to bring out subtle differences and dynamics.
      "So understand/Don't waste your time always searching for those wasted years/Face up, make your stand/And realize you're living in the golden years"
      Iron Maiden - Wasted Years

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      • #4
        Re: Noise profiling gate

        The ISP Decimator II G-String pedal is a better noise gate pedal to buy than the normal one, especially if you use the guitar in/out jacks to help control the gate triggering. I got one when I had a noisy amp and it's critical to my rig and getting those tight start-stops to be silent, especially with lots of gain.

        As for something that uses DAW-like software, I'd imagine that's rackmount territory.

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