Gate/Expander block

Noise gate: in the owner's manual

• Axe-Fx II: 5.14 Gate/Expander [GTE]
• Axe-Fx II: 5.35 Input Noise Gate

Noise gate

• Cliff: "I don't use the gate at all. On the Ultra I would use the gate on high gain patches but I find I don't need it now. I did some measurements and the II is at least 10 dB better SNR." source
• Cliff: "The self-noise of your guitar is usually greater than the self-noise of the Axe-Fx. This noise will be amplified by the amp block. For high-gain tones it is almost always necessary to use a gate to control this noise. Adjust the noise gate in In/Gte to squelch the noise." source
• Cliff: "I prefer a fast attack and slow release and a ratio around 2." http://forum.fractalaudio.com/axe-fx-ii-discussion/87769-noob-question-noise-gate.html#post1061647 [source]

Noise gate: preset or block

• Each preset has a noise gate at the input. It uses CPU cycles, so switch it off (turn Threshold to Off) if you have no need for it in a preset.
• It's also advisable to set the correct Instr In setting. Cliff: "To get the best noise performance it is important that the Instr In trim is set correctly in the I/O->Input menu. Set this as high as possible without clipping the input." source
• The separate Gate/Expander blocks are useful for additional noise control.
• A different approach to keeping the noise low: try a Vol/Pan effect with its volume parameter tied to the Envelope controller. As long as you don't hit the strings, the (input) signal is off.

Noise gate: settings and parameters

• The Input Noise Gate on the II works different than on the Standard/Ultra. Adjusting Threshold won't do anything if Ratio isn't adjusted as well.
• Cliff (Axe-Fx II firmware 10): "I DID change the default attack time. For a guitar gate you typically want the attack time as short as possible and I don't think people realize this so I changed the default value." Source
• Cliff: "For guitar I recommend setting the Attack time very short (less than 10ms) and the Release time to 100-200ms. Ratio 2-3:1 and Threshold to taste." Source and Source
• Noise gate settings can be saved as global blocks. This applies to the preset noise gate and to the Gate block.
• The Level parameter allows sending a lower or higher level into the effects grid which can be used to compensate for guitars with varying output.
• You can use SCSEL (SideChain Select) to select the signal the gate is working with. If the gate is the first block in the routing there's no need to use SCSEL. But if the gate is placed after other blocks in the routing, it can be useful to use SCSEL to set an optimal source signal, such as Input 1. This is similar to the way the ISP Decimator operates. Source1 Source2
• For X/Y-switching in the Gate block you need the Axe-Fx II XL. Note that there's no MIDI CC available for Gate X/Y switching in the Axe-Fx II.
• Axe-Fx II firmware 16.02: "Improved Noise Gate. The noise gate now features two types: “Classic” and “Intelligent”. The Classic type is unchanged from previous firmwares and is a basic downward expander. The Intelligent type features faster and more stable gating along with a proprietary noise reduction algorithm."

Noise gate: global Noise Gate Offset

• Use the Global Noisegate Offset parameter in the Global menu of the Axe-Fx II to offsett the Noisegate threshold for all presets. This can be used to increase or decrease the threshold to compensate for varying interference levels. Note that if the Threshold parameter in the preset is set to “Off” the Global Offset will have no effect. NOTE: This parameter will default to -40 dB after installation of the firmware. Be sure to set to the desired value. The default value is 0 dB and is set to that upon System Reset.

Noise gate: more information and tips

• FX8 and Axe-Fx II effects threads: Compression, Volume, Gate (CMP, VOL, GTE)
• Noise gate in Wikipedia
• http://www.prosoundweb.com/article/noise_gates_101_what_they_do_how_to_use_them_optimally