The industry-standard noise gate now in the 500 Series. The DS101 is the first noise gate designed specifically for the 500 Series rack system and joins Drawmer's renowned line of professional gates, including the DS201, DS501, and DS404. Anyone familiar with those units will feel immediately at home.
Based on a single channel of the DS201, the DS101 is a sophisticated noise gate incorporating Drawmer's key innovations such as variable high- and low-pass filters for frequency-conscious gating.
It provides full envelope control with attack, hold, decay, and range, plus other advanced features that make it one of the most capable processors in its class.
When two or more DS101s are used together, they can be linked via an infrared triggering system. Each gate maintains its own envelope settings while sharing the trigger pulse - ideal for creative envelope follower effects.
Setting up noise gates can often be challenging. When isolating a signal from unwanted noise or spill, gates can be falsely triggered by nearby instruments (for example, hi-hat bleed opening the snare drum gate). Raising the threshold may help but risks missing quieter hits and compromising the performance.
The DS101 solves this with two variable filters - high-pass and low-pass - acting on the side-chain keying circuit. By engaging key listen, you can monitor the filters' effect and fine-tune them to reject unwanted spill, ensuring the gate opens only for the desired frequencies.
With an exceptionally fast attack, the DS101 opens in microseconds, preserving the natural transients of the source. Its envelope controls allow the gain response to be tailored precisely to the material. For vocals, a fast attack keeps consonants clear, while a slower release avoids cutting words short and ensures smooth, natural fades. This prevents the abrupt level changes that the ear finds more distracting than steady low-level noise.
The DS101 also functions as a powerful sound-shaping tool. It can modify the attack or decay of recorded material, hide noise tails in samples, and reshape sounds from drum machines or samplers - effectively operating as a triggered envelope shaper.
A key input allows external triggering; for example, a snare signal can open a gate on an ambient mic for natural gated reverb effects.
Multiple DS101s can be linked, with each independently switchable between Gating and Ducking modes - ideal for voiceover work or the removal of clicks and pops.
