Audio Engineering

Expander Techniques: Eliminating Noise and Refining Sound

The Music Telegraph | Text 2025/02/17 [14:42]
Audio Engineering

Expander Techniques: Eliminating Noise and Refining Sound

The Music Telegraph| 입력 : 2025/02/17 [14:42]

▲ Enhancer and Expander/Gate on dbx 286s

© Wikimedia Commons 



Expander Techniques: Eliminating Noise and Refining Sound

 

An expander can serve both as a problem-solving tool—reducing ambient background noise and improving isolation—or as a creative effect, shaping the ADSR envelope of a sound. In this article, you'll learn how to use an expander to eliminate unwanted sound leakage and tighten up sound with excessive ambient reverb.

 

 

1) Remove the leakage by using the Threshold control

Let me assume that you use the expander to remove the leakage from the vocalist's signal using the threshold control. In this case, you use the expander to remove the background noises and headphones leakage by setting the threshold level so it is below the vocal but above the noise. When set correctly, the expander will allow the vocalist to pass through while attenuating the leakage by the amount you selected (e.g. 60 dB). To do this, adjust the threshold control setting that will allow the entire vocal group's envelope to pass through the expander.

 

 

2) Modify the reverb tail by using the Release Time control

Assume that the trailing decay of the vocalist's room tone seems clipped off. This is because the release time is set to its fastest and is probably too fast for this sound. Lengthening the release time will allow a more natural end to the sound of the singer. To do this, increase the release control to make the voice's decay sound more natural. Be careful, if you go too far, you will begin to hear the leakage before the expander has time to fully attenuate it.

 

 

3) Modify the reverb tail by using the Ratio control

Even after adjusting the release time, you may find that the trail off of the reverb doesn't seem natural. What is happening is that the ratio of the attenuation is set too high. The attenuation is simply happening too quickly. Slowing down the rate of the attenuation will help this problem. To do this, adjust the ratio control so that you achieve a natural sounding trail off of the reverb.

  

 

 

 

 

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