Drawmer Drawmer Dynamics for Pro Tools - Manual (Page 20)

Drawmer Dynamics Plug-Ins Guide 16
Adjusting Attack Time Effectively
The Attack control has a very wide range. At its
fastest, it can open instantaneously. Conversely,
setting the Gate attack time too fast on material
with a slow or moderate attack can cause clicks,
particularly if the Threshold has to be set high
because of excessive background noise.
This is a common problem with noise gates, es-
pecially when processing low-frequency audio
such as bass guitar or bass drum. With a high
threshold, a low frequency sine wave will be ig-
nored as the signal starts from its zero level
point.
As this wave climbs towards its peak, the level
will suddenly exceed the threshold setting. At
this point a very fast attack rate will switch the
signal through the noise Gate with such a steep
(almost vertical) leading edge that the low fre-
quency sound will have a single high frequency
square wave added to its first cycle, causing a
click.
In cases like these, start with a fast attack time
and moderate threshold, then gradually
lengthen the attack time until the click disap-
pears when the Gate opens.
Performing Ducking
Probably the most common form of Ducking is
that used by radio announcers, whereby the vol-
ume of the background music being played is
dropped, enabling them to speak over it. In
Duck mode the Gate module can perform this
effect. The music signal is routed to the input
and the announcer's microphone signal is fed
into the key input. (Be sure to set the key input
to Side-Chain.)
The Range control is used to set the level to
which the music will drop when the Ducker is
triggered from the key input. The envelope con-
trols determine the rate at which the level will
drop and then recover. It is usual to select a me-
dium to fast Attack time, so that the music level
drops rapidly as soon as the announcer begins
to speak—with a slow Release time of a second
or so.
This will bring the music level back up slowly
and smoothly. Some Hold time will help pre-
vent chattering, when the voice on the key in-
put pauses to breathe. This technique can also
be used to reduce the level of other instruments
during a solo.
Besides voice over applications, the Duck func-
tion of the Gate module can also be used to treat
a signal where the peaks are too loud and re-
quire attenuating. In this application, Duck and
Side-Chain key input modes should be selected,
and the Range control adjusted to give the de-
sired attenuation to signals above the Threshold
setting. In extreme cases, the ducking action
may be used to attenuate signal peaks, and by
careful use of the filters, it may be possible to re-
move a snare drum from a drum mix or clicks
and pops from a recording.
For most ducking applications, the lowest prac-
tical Threshold setting must be used.
Using a Stereo Gate
When using the Gate on a stereo signal, be
aware that the control signal is derived by aver-
aging the left audio channel with the right au-
dio channel. Where one channel differs signifi-
cantly from another in a stereo track, better
results may be obtained if the channels are
treated as two mono channels. (For a side-chain
key signal, the control is always a mono signal.)