Gate/Expander block

User contributions

More information about the 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
• Firmware 5 release notes: "New gate uses dynamic filtering in addition to downward expansion."
• Wikipedia

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 (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
• Firmware 11: noise gate settings can be saved as global blocks.
• Firmware 11: "Added Level parameter to Noise Gate. This allows sending a lower or higher level into the effects grid which can be used to compensate for guitars with varying output."

CPU utilization

• The Noise Gate uses CPU cycles, so switch it off (turn Threshold to Off) if you have no need for it in a preset.

Alternatives

• The Axe-Fx II has additional noise gate blocks: Gate/Expander (block).
• A different approach to keeping the noise low: try a Vol block with the volume parameter tied to the Envelope controller. As long as you don't hit the strings, the (input) signal is off.