BlueCat FREQANALYST...noise floor tool

[CoolCat]

Doing comparisons and rack gear and mics and rooms...the Noise Floor always comes up.
The REAPER channel goes to -60db and that seemed ok, but the noise floor wasnt registered or seen.

A quick google and BlueCat FREQ ANALYST popped up for FREE.

Without doing anything really other than a simple download and into my VSTfolder the "tool" plugin was in Reaper for selection.

It came on line and shows the real noise floor deep into the ocean of noise of -120!! and showed that low freq hump at -90...real time.
I slapped a 100hz HPF on the track and the noise hump was gone taking the track into the -110 db range, not bad for a HR room with a MXL V67G plugged in. The other was to see the noise level difference between the ISA with or without the KT2A and now I can see what my ears were hearing.
Not sure what the upper wave is representing, its fixed and doesnt move but the lower line is active and measuring real time.

anyway...I thought it was a cool enough FREE plugin to toss in this thread.

 

[TalismanRich]

Nice find CC. I'll have to pull that one down and play with it. Its always nice to have tools in the box. I think you can do something similar using ReaFIR in the subtract mode. Knock the limit down to -120dB and you can watch the noise floor dance around based on frequency.

I wonder about adding the 100hz filter tho. Yes, you knock down the noise floor, but aren't you also knocking down your desired signal's <100Hz content? If the noise is coming from the room, then I would rather use the display try to find a way to lower it (like moving the mic around the room to find a null, or turning off the clothes drier!).

 

[TalismanRich]

BTW, you know you can change the scale on your volume meter under Options/Preferences/Appearance/Track Control Panel. You can set it to -120. If you run the mixer in a second monitor, you can expand it to actually SEE the scale!

 

[CoolCat]

wow thats really helpful to have it right in reaper. thanks!

geez years gone by and thought -60 was max which didnt capture the noises. dont have the dual monitors but will note that.

I agree with the 100 HPF being a bit bold, thats a Reaper default; the HPF on the ISA One is easy to actually see visually when its engaged and its a softer less drastic HPF. If I do a HPF it would be on the vocal mic noise to be "reduced" and not totally cut out.

Im going to update my Project template to -120. ..so I can keep an eye on the noise floor.

 

[CoolCat]

weird Im getting -72 in reaper with some white noise and the BlueCats reading -90?

 

[TalismanRich]

RMS vs Peak???? ...although 18dB seems like a lot. I doubt that the meters are doing any weighting. Not sure about why there would be a discrepancy.

 

[CoolCat]

I havent figured it out. I like having the Reaper on though, -120 or even -100 captures the noise floor...so if it gets worse I can figure that out.
Also when test driving gear its an interesting thing, or gain staging gear.

I think my ears seem to pick it up at -70 or so and its unacceptable, can be heard...where as -90, -100, -110 I dont hear it.

My ISA One is quiet the KT2A adds plenty of noise floor with gain, but around 20 setting the noise floor stays <-80.

Lol...I have a ceiling fan downstairs under me that wreaks havoc in my small HR room. The Blue Cat shows the frequency range too!
Fans, Air Conditioners...when all OFF, I can hit a respectable value in the -100 or less. The big improvement was getting the PC+fan out of this small room, poked a hole in the wall and ran the USB cable through it, huge noise improvement.

That BlueCat as it reads DB and Frequency could show effects of Bass traps and Foam and blankets too I would think?

Still not sure why the Reaper is higher than the BlueCat? is there a internal volume difference between the two?
I tried Peak and RMS no change.