Mastering Sound Mixes: Tips to Refine Your Recordings (Just Like a Pro)
Revamped Guide:
Crack Open the Secret Behind Crystal-Clear Mixes with Noise Gates!
Lost in the ins and outs of compressors? 😕 This guide's got your back! Let's dive straight in! 👇
Table of Contents
- Noise Gates Demystified
- Noise Gates vs Compressors
- Key Components of a Noise Gate
- When to Get Your Hands on a Noise Gate
- Sonic Peacekeepers
- Reverb Reducers
- Tail Trimmers
- Drum Elixirs
- Pulse-Pounding Tension
- 5 Killer Plugins to Get You Started
- FL Studio Fruity Limiter (Free)
- Ableton Live Gate (Free)
- Logic Pro Noise Gate (Free)
- FabFilter Pro-G (Paid)
- A1 Triggergate (Free)
- Noise Gates - Moving Mountains or a Molehill?
What's a Noise Gate?
A noise gate, or simply 'gate', is a device or software that controls the volume of a signal. If the signal goes below a specific threshold, the gate closes, and it reduces the signal by a fixed amount called "range." Once the signal goes above the threshold, the gate opens, letting the audio pass as is.
Remember when you were at a theme park and they had those height restrictions? Well, think of a noise gate like that. If you're beneath a specified height (threshold), you can't pass; if you're over, you can! 🎢
Noise gates come into play primarily when you're struggling to get rid of unwanted noise or bleed in your recordings, like breathing noises, background hum, hissing due to saturation units, and those pesky click tracks sneaking into your microphone.
Noise Gates vs Compressors
If you're already acquainted with compressors and limiters, then envision a noise gate as their melodramatic nemesis. In contrast to compressors that attenuate a signal based on its amplitude above a threshold, a noise gate behaves like a limiter's opposite—it keeps the signal at 0 if it fails to cross the threshold.
Although they're famous for their roles in mixing, noise gates can also be employed creatively in sound design! 🎨
In the realm of sound design, noise gates can serve as innovative gadgets that add a unique touch to your creations, acting as the melodramatic counterpart of compressors. While compressors attenuate a signal based on its amplitude, noise gates maintain the signal at zero when it fails to surpass a specified threshold.
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