hissing samplers

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jeffmaher

jeffmaher

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I use an XV 50/80 and Kerzweil K2000 synths...old gear... to record audio from midi data.

Problem: the audio samples from both are accompanied by an audible, white-noisy hiss whenever a note plays. Not a problem with drums...but it ruins any strings, horns...anything with a sustained sound. I never noticed it before...escaped my attention, My sampled tracks just never sounded 'clear'. Now that I'm focused on it, it's all I can hear. The levels are full-up to get the best s2n ratio. Not good enough.

Question: is this just a normal thing with old synths?

Any solution, other than buying a new puter and sample software??

I can't filter it out....crosses the spectrum.

Not a problem in my pre's or soundcard, I think...miked stuff makes clean tracks.

TX
 
If I recall, these things were the go for that...

Behringer SNR2000

Stereo or dual mono single ended noise reduction unit. Long discontinued now. I've got one floating around that has only got one channel working. I'll fire it up and see if it tames the hiss on my old Yamaha CS-30 analog, it's as noisy as all hell. If I remember last time I used it, it was pretty effective at hiss removal.

I've been meaning to pick up another one.

You still see them come up on eBay if you keep an eye out for them.

:)
 
When a note triggers on the synth, it sounds like a gate opens...and a hiss comes with the triggered note. The silence between triggered notes is complete. I just want to know if the high noise to signal ratio is normal for my old synths, or if I have a problem, possibly, elsewhere.

I think the unit you mentioned is a noise gate....and it wont effect the hiss that accompanies sound....just stomp on in-between floor-noise, right?

TX
 
Not just a noise gate Jeff. True that it's got an expander on it that works like gate but it also has a hiss removing filter circuit that works on the signal itself. It's quite effective in removing hiss from the actual signal. The expanders and the hiss filters can be switched in and out independently of each other. I picked mine up to use as a tape hiss remover for my mixdown tape deck (which was another thing they were used for) but with one channel dead it wasn't going to be able to do that. And I found it unecessary anyway. I believe most of them were used in their day as denoisers for synths and samplers.

I'll still give it a go on the old CS-30 and see if I can put some audio samples up so you can hear it doing it's thing.

:)
 
Way cool, bruddah! The average price seems to be around $80. If it works, that'd save me $5000. And I don't wanna wait and save and stop work. Kinda dispiriting when I reach a gear-wall. My recordings never sounded clear when using samples....and I have a HF hearing deficit. Took me a long while to discover the hiss. But I can hear it, now.
Appreciate the time you took to help. XO, so to speak...
 
Here you go mate. This is the noisiest synth I've got - an old 1977 mono analog Yamaha. The first passage is without the SNR2000 on and the second passage is with it on, just on it's default settings. It's a Soundclik 128 kb mp3 unfortunately. I did record it originally at 88.2/24. You might want to listen to it through headphones to see if you can hear the difference or download it so you can boost up it's volume then listen.

Cheers

synth no denoiser / denoiser

:)
 
http://www.yousendit.com/download/OHo0clVORkVubHcwTVE9PQ

This is a few notes played on the XV.

I didn't hear any noise on either of the two samples you made.

On my test, I can hear a loud white noise floor as long as the gate is open. The transient masks it, but during the decays of the piano notes, it flourishes, until the gate is closed [finger off the key].

I think if the fault were patch cords, the floor would be present when the synth sent no signal. Both of my synths do this. Making me nuts...my orchestra is whack.

Then again, maybe it's some artefact of my damaged left ear....give a listen and tell me if you hear what I'm talking about. I have little HF left in the left ear, and that's where I'm hearing it. Maybe I need new nerve endings in my head? But trying to filter it out with a para EQ, I note that a large...or the largest...componant of the sound is midrange....so I think it is there...I can hear that with my left ear. [my right hears it...and everything else, about 12db down....maybe I should get another hobby?] TX
 
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I ran it through the denoiser. See if you notice any difference between this denoised one and your original?

denoised

:)

This one's been normalized to 100%. You might want to match them?
 
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Yeah, that's a major uptick in quality...major!

I thank you again for getting me a fix.
Cheers!
 
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