Whether you’re recording a complete drum kit or have a sub-optimal recording you need to fix, noise is always a factor we need to consider. In this article, I will cover noise gate and noise reduction in-depth.
These might seem like intimidating subjects; I am here to demystify any misconceptions you might have about the two and teach you how to discern whether you need to use noise gating or noise reduction in your day-to-day workflow.
So let’s get started! What are the differences between noise gating and noise reduction, and when should you be using them?
Related Readings:
Complete Guide To Noise Gate – What It Is, What It Does & How To Use It?
Top 10 Noise Gate Plugins (And 6 FREE Free Gate Tools)
Top 6 Noise Reduction Plugins (And 3 Best Free Tools)
How To Remove Background Noise From An Audio Recording?
Top 6 Noise Reduction Guitar Effect Pedals (On Any Budget)
-
Contents show
Noise Gating
A noise gate aims to remove unwanted noise/s in a recording, leaving purposefully recorded audio completely intact. More specifically, targeting only areas when the desired sound in your recording is not playing. To put it plainly: A noise gate will block all unwanted sounds from being heard.
For example, a snare drum mic recording some of the cymbals, toms, and kick drum. Let us assume the snare drum is the loudest part of the recording. We would set the threshold of our gating plugin or hardware unit to allow the snare through, and when it isn’t playing, the track is silent.
You could also use a noise gate while recording to prevent these unwanted noises from even being recorded. This technique, however, is not recommended as you might end up gating out audio that you want.
Noise gating is a powerful tool that, when used correctly, will improve the quality of your audio immensely.
In the above diagram, the Output Level is what you will hear.
-
Noise Reduction
Noise reduction is distinctly different from noise gating as you would most often use it on a sub-optimal recording with a constant or ‘static’ noise present. Typically, this process would target the entire recording. As an example, a podcast with white noise or buzz throughout.
A noise reduction program or plugin is needed to reduce the noise to the point where it is inaudible relative to the loudness of the spoken words. We do this by telling the program what it should consider noise and then telling the program to reduce that sound only.
One might also consider closing a window or turning a fan off as noise reduction. For the sake of this article, noise reduction will refer to the process of removing unwanted sound from a recording, specifically when the desired sound is present.
Note how this process reduces the noise, and the desired sound is essentially untouched.
So how exactly do we go about working with a noise gate or a noise reduction program? What do all the controls on a noise gate plugin or hardware unit do? How will you be able to tell if a recording is ‘fixable’ or not? I will be answering these questions and more in the following article.
How does a noise gate work?
A noise gate works by setting its parameters to remove unwanted sections in a recording and allowing the desired parts to play. If the gate is closed, the recording is inaudible. Any noise gate worth using will have four basic parameters you can tweak: threshold, attack, release, and ‘hold’ or sustain.
- Threshold
Arguably the most important control is the threshold. How much of the signal we will hear is determined by it. The audio won’t come through if it is set too high, and if it is set too low, no gating will occur. Finding the correct level to use is entirely dependent on the loudness of the audio signal. You’ll need to experiment a bit to find the sweet spot. - Attack
The attack parameter will determine the speed at which the gate opens. Sounds with natural transients will typically use a faster setting, while smoother sounds will often use a more liberal one. - Release
The release of a noise gating plugin controls how fast or slow the gate closes. A slower release time will allow the sound to fade out naturally, while a faster release time will shorten the tail of the sound. What to set the release to will depend entirely on the audio and what effect you want. - Hold
The hold function determines how long the gate will stay open before the release function takes effect. While this function isn’t as crucial as the others, it is essential to note that setting the hold to a higher value will allow audio below the set thresholds loudness through. ‘Hold’ could work well for a recording that has a high dynamic range.
When should I use a noise gate?
Ideally, you want to use a noise gate on any recording with unwanted noises in it. Whether it’s sound spilling from the headphones of a vocalist, or your neighbors speaking loudly, a noise gate used correctly will drastically improve the quality of a recording.
You’ll see the best results when using a noise gate on a ‘dry’ signal. i.e., Before you place effects like reverb or delay in your signal chain. There are cases when you might use a gate after ‘wetting’ effects like reverb to control the reverbs tail; or if the recording has reverb embedded in it.
You could also use a gating plugin to achieve a ‘stuttering’ effect. In this case, the gate will ignore the signal and act according to parameters set by the user. Listen to the intro of the following video for a practical example of this effect.
Stuttering effect in use:
How does noise reduction work?
Noise reduction works by attenuating unwanted noise/s or sounds that are audible simultaneously as the desired audio. It can reduce high-frequency hissing, component buzz or hum, or even the sound of a computer fan (as a few examples) to the point where the signal-to-noise ratio is acceptable.
For this process to be effective, a passage in the recording where only the noise is present is needed so that the program can correctly identify what it should consider noise. The program will then attempt to attenuate only this sound for the entire recording, leading to a better signal-to-noise ratio.
Note: This process can be quite taxing on the quality of your audio, as it might attenuate similar sounds that share the same frequency range as the noise. For example, High-frequency mouth sounds such as F’s, H’s, and S’s will share some of the frequencies with a hissing sound.
So be careful! Always be conservative with this process, and it will more often than not serve you well in day-to-day applications.
What is a signal-to-noise ratio?
Simply put, the signal-to-noise ratio is the difference between the level of the wanted and unwanted sounds in a recording or environment. The higher it is, the better. The decibel (dB) is the typical unit used to express this ratio, and you calculate it by subtracting the noise level from the signal level.
In real-world scenarios, a perfect ratio is virtually unattainable as there will always be some degree of noise in a recording.
When should I use noise reduction?
If there is audible noise in a recording while your desired audio is present, it’s time to consider using noise reduction. Let’s say we recorded some killer vocals, but we recorded the ceiling fan in the process. If the fan is too loud, to the point where it’s audible while the vocalist is singing, the signal-to-noise ratio is unacceptable.
Our options at this point are to either re-record or use noise reduction.
‘Constant’ noises (such as buzz or hum) aren’t the only sounds that noise reduction can target; It can also reduce mouth ‘clicks’ or even guitar ‘squeaks’ (sliding your fingers along the strings rapidly). Check out the following video for a quick tutorial on removing guitar squeaks.
How to tell if a recording is fixable?
‘Fixing’ a recording is never ideal, as obviously, sound quality is paramount. However, if you’re working with a podcast, mobile phone recording, or any sub-par audio, a lower signal-to-noise ratio is more often than not something you’ll need to address.
As a solution, we could use noise reduction to improve the sound quality to the point where the signal-to-noise ratio is acceptable. Suppose the signal-to-noise ratio of a recording is less than 1. In that case, the desired sounds are relatively softer than the noise, and the recording is approaching the point of being unfixable.
When it comes down to it, you need to ask yourself one question: What is the recording’s final destination? Is it a record label? Perhaps it’s a podcasting platform? Or is it simply for personal use? The answer will help you determine if you can get away with less than flawless sound quality.
Recommended Noise Reduction Tools
iZotope RX 9 Advanced
Audio Restoration enterprise – comes with features including ambiance match, dialogue isolate, guitar de-noise, spectral recovery, wow & flutter control, dithering, and other essential tools like – de-click, de-crackle, de-hum, de-plosive, de-wind, de-reverb and more.
The marketplace for this type of plugin or program is brimming with options for you to consider. I’ll briefly be going over a few paid and free options to get you started on the road to better sound quality.
Read more about RX9 in this post including photos of its individual features here.
New – Waves Clarity Vx Pro
More Info & Price (Trial Available)
Most advanced noise reduction plugin on the market right now for vocals with the best quality and minimum artifacts and side effects.
You can get more information about this plugin here.
Acon Digital Extract: Dialogue
More Info & Price (Trial Available)
Designed exclusively for noise reduction in vocal recordings, Dialogue can effectively reduce any noise in interviews, podcasts, or even singing. This plugin is ideal if you don’t want to do too much tinkering, as it does most of the work for you.
Sonnox Oxford De-noiser
More Info & Price (Trial Available)
The Oxford De-noiser has a much more hands-on approach. Everything will need to be adjusted manually to achieve your desired outcome; having said that, you can get quite surgical with targeting specific types of noise.
Audacity
Audacity is a separate program that functions independently from your DAW. While not as powerful as some paid options, it does the job regarding noise reduction. As far as free programs go, Audacity is a reasonable choice if your budget is a little tight.
Check out this tutorial on how to remove noise in Audacity:
Bertom Audio De-noiser 2
Denoiser 2 is a plugin designed specifically for podcasts, post-production, and music. It has an easy-to-learn interface, with intuitive green vertical bars to show you the occurring noise reduction. If you’re looking for a quick and straightforward answer, Denoiser 2 is the plugin for you.
Cockos ReaFIR
ReaFIR is an all-in-one noise suppressor, equalizer, and compressor. This plugin requires you to create a noise profile for it to work as intended, and in that way, it is similar to Audacity. It also consumes a relatively low amount of CPU, so it’s excellent for lower-end PCs.
Whichever program you decide to go with, you’ll be well on your way to producing better audio.
Recommended Noise Gate Tools
1. Oxford Drum Gate (Best For Drums)
More Info & Price (Trial Available)
The plugin comprises 3 tabs – each tab consisting of options relating to a separate characteristic of drum processing.
Get more information about the plugin here.
2. FabFilter Pro G (Best All Round)
More Info & Price (Trial Available)
FabFilters Pro-G comes includes all features that you need for advanced gating of your signal. From basses, vocals, and drums,
Pro G comes equipped with six different algorithms, mono, stereo, or mid/side processing, adjustable parameters, and it has low CPU usage.
3. Nembrini Audio Analog Rack Noise Gate (FREE)
The most minimal, yet effective gate plugin ever. Great for minimalists that don’t like tweaking much. It’s very low on CPU and it’s free!
What could cause unwanted noise in a recording?
There are many different types of unwanted noise you could encounter in your recordings; however, we can divide them into two main categories: External and internal. These two categories are separated by whether a noise occurs inside or outside your electronic setup.
- External noise
Noise appearing in the audio that the microphone has physically recorded. Whether it’s Bass rumble or wind sounds, these external sounds all have one thing in common: they all occur outside your electronic equipment.
- Internal noise
Noise appearing in the audio that the microphone has not physically recorded. From grounding loops to faulty computer components, all these types of noise occur inside your electronic setup.
For a more detailed list of what could cause unwanted noise, check out this article.
Tip: If you’re having trouble telling if noise/s in a recording occur/s internally or externally, listen for reverb. Internal noise will be ‘dry’ sounding, while external noise will more often have a roomy or spacious character.
Conclusion
So to summarize: Noise gates target noise/s occurring when the desired audio is not playing, and noise reduction targets noise happening when the preferred audio is playing.
Hopefully, by now, you know the difference between noise gating and noise reduction and when to use each. In a perfect world, noise gating and reduction would never be necessary. All we can do is use the tools available to us to produce the best audio quality possible.
Readings that you may like:
DAW Related:
Best DAWs For Musicians Available (With FREE DAWs)
What’s The Most CPU Efficient DAW? – 5 DAWs Compared
How To Make Music Without Using A DAW?
Pro Tools Guide: How To Use AutoTune & Pitch Correction?
Ableton Review: Is It Worth The Money? (Cons & Pros)
Logic Pro X Review: Is It Worth It? (Cons & Pros)
How To Use Auto-tune & Pitch Correction In Cubase?
How To Fix Ableton Crackling, Crashing & Freezing? Step By Step
Plugin Related:
What Are Audio Plugins? Different Types of Plugins Explained
What Are The Best Tools To Develop VST Plugins & How Are They Made?
Cost of Developing Audio VST Plugin: Several Factors (With Table)
VST, VST, AU and AAX – What’s The Difference? Plugin Formats Explained
Complete Guide To Noise Gate – What It Is, What It Does & How To Use It?
How To Clip My Drums? Here Is How & Audio Teasers (Before/After)
Complete Guide To Limiter: How To Use It (+ Best Plugins & Analog Limiters)
Mixing With Reverb: How To Add Life To Your Mixes
Linear Phase vs Minimum Phase EQ – Full Guide
Difference Between LUFS, RMS & True Peak Loudness Meters
How And When To Use Algorithmic And Convolution Reverb In Your Mix?
Difference Between Active EQ, Passive EQ and Dynamic EQ
Headphones & Studio Monitors:
Do headphones get worse with age?
Monitors vs Studio Headphones For Mixing & Mastering
Top 10 Room Calibration & Headphones/Speakers Correction Plugins
Are Noise-Canceling Headphones Good For Music Production?
Can Headphones Break in Cold Weather?
Why do headphones & cables get sticky?
Can Wearing Headphones Cause Hair Loss?
How Do I know If My Studio Monitor Is Blown?
Side Effects Of Sleeping With Your Headphones On
Do You Need Music Amplifier For Studio Monitors or Studio Headphones?
Do Headphones or Earphones Damage Your Brain?
Can Headphones or Earphones cause Deafness or Toothache?
FarField, MidField & NearField Monitors – Their Uses, Pros & Cons
MIDI & Synths:
Should I Buy A MIDI Keyboard Or Synth? (Are Synths Worth It Anymore?)
Why Is Audio Gear So Expensive? (Especially Synths)
Top 12 Synth Brands – Analog, Digital & Modular Synth Manufacturers
11 Tips How To Choose MIDI Keyboard
Should I Buy MIDI Controller Or Keyboard? Cons, Pros & Tips
Guitar/Amp Focused:
Can I Put Nylon Strings on a Steel-string Guitar?
Do Electric Guitars Sound Good Unplugged?
Buying Your First Guitar: 2 Things To Know
Are Tube Amps Worth It? (Tube vs Solid-State Amps)
How Often Does A Guitar Need a Setup?
Can I Play Classical Guitar On A Steel-String Guitar?
How often guitar necks need reset?
Can You Play Two Guitars Through One Amp?
Can a 6 String Bass Be Tuned Like A Guitar?
Can I leave My Guitar Tuned Down a Step? Yes, But Is It Safe?
Should I Learn 4, 5 Or 6 String Bass Guitar & Why?
How To Know If your Guitar Amp Is Broken?
How To Fix Distorted Bass Guitar Sound?
Do Fender Guitars Appreciate In Value?
Should You Put Stickers On A Bass Guitar?
How Acoustic And Electric Guitars Are Made?
Is Electric Guitar Too Loud for an Apartment?
Does a Preamp Improve Sound Quality?
If I Learn Acoustic Guitar Can I Play Electric Guitar?
How Many Hours A Day Should You Practice Bass Guitar?
Do I need an AMP/DAC To Run Bookshelf Speakers?
How to Record Electric Guitar Into Logic Pro X?
Do headphones get worse with age?
Recommended Gear:
Top 12 NearField Studio Monitors On Any Budget
Top 10 Midfield Studio Monitors For Home Recording
Best Biggest Studio Monitors (FarField Monitors)
Top 10 Guitar Pickups for Low Tunings
Top 10 Analog Compressors For Mixing & Mastering (On Any Budget)
Top 12 USB Audio Interfaces Under 150$, 200$, 300$ 400$ (Any Budget)
Top 12 Hardware Equalizers (Analog EQs For Mixing & Mastering)
Top 6 Analog Hardware Limiters
Top 6 Solid State Bass Amps (On Any Budget)
Top 6 Ribbon Mics On Any Budget (For Vocals, Drums & Guitars)
Top 6 Cheap Dynamic Mics For Vocals Under 50$, 100$, 200$ & 300$
Top 6 Chorus Guitar Pedals (On Any Budget)
6 Best 61-Key MIDI Keyboards (On Any Budget)
9 Best 49-Key MIDI Keyboards Under 100$ & 200$
Top 5 Best 25 Key MIDI Keyboards (On Any Budget)
Top 12 Acoustic Drums (Best Kits/Sets On Any Budget)
Plugin Roundups:
Genre Focused:
Top 10 EDM Plugins (And 10 Best FREE Plugins For EDM)
Top 10 Plugins For TRAP Beats (And 5 Best FREE Trap Plugins)
20 Best Plugins For Rock Musicians (+ 6 FREE Plugins)
Top 14 Trance Plugins (Uplifting, Tech, Progressive, Vocal, Dream, Hard)
Top 10 GOA & PsyTrance Plugins (Best Psychedelic Trance Tools)
Top 7 Plugins For Dubstep (With 10 Best FREE Effects & Synths)
Top 20 Synthwave Plugins (+ 11 Best FREE Plugins)
Top 15 Plugins For Techno, House, Electro, Tech House, UK Garage
Top 6 Plugins For Latin Music (And 4 FREE Tools)
Top 12 Plugins For Hip-Hop (+ Best Kontakt Libraries)
Top 7 Plugins For Game & Film Scoring (+ 6 Best Kontakt Libraries)
Top 10 R&B And Pop Music Plugins & KONTAKT Libraries
30 Best Free Plugins For DnB, EDM, IDM & Experimental Music
EQ Plugins
Top 12 Free EQ Plugins For Precise Mixing & Mastering
Top 9 Mid/Side EQ Plugins For Mixing & Mastering (+ 2 Free Tools)
Top 7 Graphic EQ Plugins (With 3 Best Free EQs)
Top 7 EQ Plugins For Mastering In | And Best FREE Mastering EQs
Top 6 Passive EQ Plugins (Klevgrand, SPL, UAD, Waves, IK Multimedia)
Top 11 Plugins For Making Metal (Best Guitars, Drums & Effects)
Metering:
Top 5 Audio Metering Plugins (LUFS, RMS, LRA, True Peak)
Top 6 Spectrum Analyzer Plugins – Spectral Analysis Tools
Top 6 Oscilloscope Plugins To See The Waveforms
Top 5 Key Detection Plugins & Software (+ Best FREE App)
Kontakt Libraries
20 Best Kontakt Libraries For All Categories (Synths, Drums, Vocals)
Top 7 Drum Libraries For KONTAKT (And 4 Freebies)
Top 7 Trap Music Kontakt Libraries (And Best Lo-Fi Kontakt Library)
Top 7 Metal & Rock Kontakt Libraries (Best Guitars & Drums)
Top 10 Guitar Libraries For Kontakt (Acoustic, Electric, Bass & Freebies)
Top 7 Trailer Scoring Plugins & Kontakt Libraries
20 Best Free KONTAKT Libraries For Various Instruments
Top 9 Piano Kontakt Sample Libraries (And 5 Best Free Pianos)
Top 10 Percussion KONTAKT Libraries (And 3 Freebies)
Top 7 Kontakt Libraries For Horror & Thriller Scoring (No VSTs)
Audio Restoration, Calibration & Utility:
Top 6 Noise Reduction Plugins (And 3 Best Free Tools)
6 Best Audio Restoration Plugins & Software
Top 7 Phase Alignment Plugins To Fix Your Bass & Drums
Top 10 Room Calibration & Headphones/Speakers Correction Plugins
Instrument Plugins:
Top 6 Vocoder Plugins (Effects & Synths + FREE Vocoder)
11 Best Rhodes VST Plugins (AND 5 Free Rhodes Plugins)
Top 12 Randomizer Plugins Including FREE Plugins
Top 6 Kick Drum Plugins (Best Kick Designer Tools)
Top 12 Woodwind Plugins (And KONTAKT Libraries)
Top 10 Double Bass Plugins (Best Upright Basses)
Top 5 Strings VST Plugins (AND 4 Best Free Instruments)
Top 6 Sampler Plugins (And 3 Best FREE Plugins)
Top 6 Classical Guitar Plugins & Kontakt Libraries (And FREE Guitars)
Top 12 Sub Plugins (Best 808 & Bass Tools For Massive Low End)
Top 10 Plugins On PluginBoutique (And 7 Best Free Plugins)
Top 11 Plugins On Plugin Alliance
Top 7 Acoustic Guitar Plugins (And 4 Best Kontakt Libraries)
9 Best Bass Guitar Plugins (And 2 Best Freebies)
Top 6 Electric Guitar Plugins (Best PAID & FREE Picks)
Top 10 Arpeggiator VST Plugins (Best Synths, MIDI Effects & Tools)
Top 10 Modular Synth Plugins (And 3 Best FREE Plugins)
Top 6 Choir Plugins & Sample Libraries (And 3 Best Free Plugins)
11 Best Percussion & Drum VST Plugins (And FREE Plugins)
Top 8 Piano Plugins (Best Sounding Pianos & 5 FREE Piano Plugins)
Top 6 Organ Plugins Ever Made (And 3 Best Free Organs)
Top 14 VST Plugins For Beginners (And 9 FREE Plugins)
Top 9 Drum Machine Plugins (And Groovebox Plugins)
4 Best Banjo Plugins (Best Banjo Instruments)
The 5 Best Ukulele Plugins & Kontakt Libraries
Top 13 Synth Plugins (And 5 Best FREE Synths Plugins)
Top 13 Sequencer Plugins (Synth, MIDI & Step Sequencers)
The 10 Best Multi-Effect Plugins (And 3 Best Free Plugins)
Top 12 Plugin Bundles For Musicians (Synths, Mixing & Mastering)
Processing & Sound Design:
8 Best Lo-Fi Plugins (PAID & FREE)
Top 11 Plugins For Mixing Vocals (For Home Studio)
Top 12 Saturation Plugins (Best Mixing & Mastering Tools)
Top 6 Pitch Shifter Plugins (And 3 Best FREE Pitch Shifters)
Top 6 Chorus VST Plugins For Musicians (And 3 FREE Plugins)
Top 6 Limiter Plugins For Precise Mastering & Mixing
The 8 Best Filter Plugins For Precise Cuts & Boosts (+ 5 Free Filters)
6 Best Autotune Plugins To Improve & Enhance Your Vocals
Top 10 Transient Shaper Plugins (VST, AU, AAX)
Top 7 Enhancer Plugins (For Bass, Drums, Vocals & Harmonics)
Top 6 Flanger Plugins (And 5 Best FREE Flanger Emulators)
Top 7 Phaser Plugins (And 3 Best FREE Phasers)
Top 10 Plugins For Mixing Drums (And 3 Best Free Plugins)
Top 7 Bitcrusher Plugins (And 4 Best FREE Bitcrushers + 3 Bonuses)
Top 6 Plugins For Voice-Over & Dialogue Cleaning (Post Production)
Top 10 Stereo Imaging Plugins (Best Old & Modern Picks)
Top 5 Multiband Limiter Plugins
Top 7 De-Esser Plugins For Better Vocals (And 4 FREE Plugins)
Top 7 Clipper Plugins (Best Limiter Alternatives)
Top 6 Chord Generator Plugins That Inspire Melodies (+ FREE Tools)
7 Best Exciter Plugins For Mixing & Mastering
Top 7 Channel Strip Plugins (And 2 Best Free Plugins)
Top 11 Distortion Plugins (And 4 Top Free Plugins)
Top 5 Comb Filter & Resonator Plugins | Melda, Kilohearts, Tritik
The 7 Best Vibrato VST Plugins | Audec, Audiority, Melda
The 7 Best Tremolo Plugins | Eventide, Melda, SoundToys, Kuassa…
The 7 Best Harmonizer Plugins | Eventide, Melda, Aegean Music
7 Best Sidechain Plugins (VST, AU, AAX) | Xfer, Cableguys..
Top 10 Noise Gate Plugins (And 6 FREE Free Gate Tools)
The 6 Best Ring Modulator VST Plugins | KiloHearts, Melda
7 Best Autopan VST Plugins | CableGuys, Melda, Waves, Soundtoys
The 6 Best Frequency Shifter VST Plugins
Top 11 Granulizer Plugins For Future Sound Design
29 Best Sound Design VST Plugins
Compressor Plugins
Top 11 Free Compressor Plugins (VCA, Vari-Mu, FET, Digital)
Top 7 Multiband Compressor Plugins (And 4 FREE Plugins)
Top 5 Diode-Bridge Compressor Plugins
Top 6 Mastering Chain Plugins: Complete VST Solutions
The 7 Best VCA Compressor Plugins (VST, AU, AAX)
Top 11 Mastering Compressor Plugins (And 2 FREE Plugins)
Top 10 Opto Compressor Plugins For Transparent Sound
The 7 Best Vari-Mu Compressor Plugins (And 2 Best FREE Tools)
Reverb & Delay Plugins:
Top 12 Reverb Plugins (And 5 FREE Reverb Plugins)
The 6 Best Spring Reverb VST Plugins | AudioThing, GSi, u-he, Eventide
Top 12 Delay Plugins For Music Production In (VST, AU, AAX)
Top 10 FREE Delay Plugins (VST, AU, AAX)
The 10 Best Convolution Reverb Plugins
Amps & Preamps:
Top 10 Guitar Amp Plugins (And 5 Best FREE Simulators)
Top 10 Bass Amp Plugins (And 5 Best Free Simulators)
Top 9 Preamp Plugins (For Vocals, Guitars & More!) + Free Preamps
Cameron is a practicing sound engineer and music producer with over a decade of experience. Based in South Africa, he is also one-half of the production duo 2wice Shye. When in between writing songs,
he loves to create sound effects and soundscapes and tinker with production technique ideas.