MDX4600 Compressor

[shorter126]

Hi all,

Any views on the MDX4600 compressor and the best settings to achieve sound with as little hiss as possible.

[andrewzarian]

We use a DBX 286s and its great. We don't use to much processing but the Gate limiter is amazing

[mcphillips]

The honest truth is to eliminate as much of the hiss as possible before it gets into your equipment. Reduce fan noise, AC noise, add curtains or carpet or blankets around the room, use a dynamic mic. Noise removal is very difficult.

[JaseRossi]

Yeah I would say try to remove as much of the noises as possible. This can be tough with computer fans. That is why these new all in one liquid cooling kits that don't require maintenance is great! Plus they are extremely quite.

A dynamic microphone is a great way to remove a ton of noise from the room. I use one on my show and it stopped all of the fan noises and other stuff. They have great side rejection and they do require some learning to use but nothing too bad.

A gate is another great way to remove noise! Nobody can tell you the correct settings because it is different for each person's setup and or room. You just have to play around with it. Also the quality of the gate really matters. I had a MDX 4600 and the gate was REALLY slow to close no matter how you set it. It gave me this whooshing effect when I would stop talking. I tried every way till Tuesday to get it to work better and nothing.

I have a PreSonus 16.0.2 digital mixer now and the gate on this thing is a beast! It is so quick and everything is so quite now. I know not everyone can get a PreSonus but if you're running all dynamic microphones and ground loop isolators on all your computer inputs to remove that "HUM" that is famous in the internet broadcasting world, you should be good to go!

[shorter126]

That's some awesome stuff. I purchased the MDX as a recommendation from Cliff Ravenscraft. I do sometimes hear the opening and closing of the gate. I don't bother trying to use Auditions noise removal because it never sounds right. I'll play around with the gate some more and see what happens !

[sunkast]

I don't bother trying to use Auditions noise removal because it never sounds right.

I've never cared much for Audition's noise removal tool myself. But if all you are wanting to do is gate your audio, then I would recommend trying out GGate (http://www.gvst.co.uk/ggate.htm). It's a free VST plugin that works very well when set up correctly. I use it any time I record a voice over.

[shorter126]

I think my major problem is that the recording is fine , however post production compression in adobe audition raises the noise floor and introduces hissing

[MyTakeRadio]

I use an MDX2600 and it works amazingly on my audio.

[mtomlins]

Here's a my setting tip for the Behringer MDX:

Expander Gate Section:
Trigger: OFF in the winter because it's nice and quiet in the studio...no A/C running
Trigger: ON, with the Gate button engaged
...I turn on the noise source (A/C) and then I turn the trigger up until the gate trips (all red led's light up)

Compressor/Limiter:
Threshold: this depends on how exuberant I feel (loud spikes/dynamics) but generally I keep it between -20 and -10 db
Ratio: I generally like mild compression ratio (4:1) at the most...the MDX is quick attack so it's hardly noticeable
SC buttons - disabled
Attack: 20ms...compress quickly
Lo Contour: disabled
Release: 2sec...release slowly (works well with mild Ratio setting...if you had higher Ratio's...you'd need faster release)
Auto button: disabled (I like to control it myself)
Interactive Knee: enabled...dynamic detection of changing/variation in audio signal
Tube: enabled...why not?
Enhancer: enabled...why not?
Output: Zero...typically since my signal is not over-compressed...I don't need to boost.

De-esser Section:
db: 2
In/Out: Enabled
Male: Enabled...I am male.

Peak Limiter:
db: ~5 - just in case I drop the mic or an explosion happens

The nice thing with MDX is that it has an IN/OUT button (not a belly button or navel).

You should make a recording with the settings ON - and then OFF - on and off...to hear the difference.

Tweak to taste.

[MGadAllah]

The honest truth is to eliminate as much of the hiss as possible before it gets into your equipment. Reduce fan noise, AC noise, add curtains or carpet or blankets around the room, use a dynamic mic. Noise removal is very difficult.
What kind of fan that has no noise?
regarding blankets, you mean any particular type of blankets?

[Amnon]

Mhamad.
any fan in the room will produce noise. You can lower speeds, turn them off when you broadcast, or replace the ones in a desktop with quite ones (may be a challenge in Egypt, you may need a quick trip to Israel to find some :-)))).
hanging blankets, or like you said, anything, on the walls will reduce most of the noises and echos. covering the ceiling with same will help further. Like Mike said, it is real difficult to filter noise. A gate is a must.
Good luck Habibi.

[MGadAllah]

Mhamad.
any fan in the room will produce noise. You can lower speeds, turn them off when you broadcast, or replace the ones in a desktop with quite ones (may be a challenge in Egypt, you may need a quick trip to Israel to find some :-)))).
hanging blankets, or like you said, anything, on the walls will reduce most of the noises and echos. covering the ceiling with same will help further. Like Mike said, it is real difficult to filter noise. A gate is a must.
Good luck Habibi.
Thanks a lot for your fast reply.
I've got a power supply for my desktop that has a low noise some how but it is not silent :)
Does using a digital recorder may solve the noise problem from computer? I mean like using the mixer and microphone with DBX 286s and digital recorder will solve this problem?
Actually Mike Phillips is a legend and he recommended me some hardware to buy and I did bought it but the noise is a real pain to solve it so I was wondering if not using a computer software during recording and use a digital recorder instead will do any help.
Concerning blankets ... I am sorry for saying the word "anything" and I edit my previous post, and I would like to know if there is any blankets you know about it here in Egypt or I can search for that may help me to have a good recording environment ?
Thanks :)

[Amnon]

Any type of blankets, carpets, rags, whatever, on the walls will help with noise. Bookcases, furniture around the room etc. will help too. You were talking about a 'sound booth' in another post. that is much easier I think, and you can leave the equipment outside the booth for much less noise to begin with. You don't need any special foam or blankets to cover the booth with. if you can cover yourself in bed with them, you can use them for sound elimination :-)
You are invited to watch our live show every Sunday morning 9-12 in the morning Eastern time, where the legendary Mike is one of the hosts. computers2know.com :-)

[MGadAllah]

Any type of blankets, carpets, rags, whatever, on the walls will help with noise. Bookcases, furniture around the room etc. will help too. You were talking about a 'sound booth' in another post. that is much easier I think, and you can leave the equipment outside the booth for much less noise to begin with. You don't need any special foam or blankets to cover the booth with. if you can cover yourself in bed with them, you can use them for sound elimination :-)
You are invited to watch our live show every Sunday morning 9-12 in the morning Eastern time, where the legendary Mike is one of the hosts. computers2know.com :-)
Yes I was and still considering making a booth in my bed room where I am going to record my podcast and audiobook.
So you mean I can use only normal blankets around a PVC frame and cover the top and bottom of the booth as well and this will help a lot to eliminate the noise? and good idea to place the equipment outside the booth.

[Amnon]

Yep, that is it.