core gate "Pops and crackles" in the Core Gate in Sonar?

[Edward Allen]

Hi there

I recently upgraded to the paid version of Sonar, and was really pleased to see the updated "Core plugins" replacing the Sonitus VST3 plugins. However when I uploaded a pretty standard set of drum tracks and had the Core Gate applied to the toms I heard all sorts of pops and crackles coming from the Gate plugins. 

The only way I was able to remove these sounds was to move the "Depth" dial from its initial far left (-40Db) to @ -30Db. So 2 questions if I may:

Is this normal? I don't recall having an issue like this in the Sonitus gate.

IF it's normal, could you please help clarify how the "depth" function works and why it might be causing this kind of issue?

Many thanks in advance

[mettelus]

I am not familiar with the new layout, but I assume the depth is the threshold (no idea, hopefully someone can chime in with the real answer)? That is simply what causes the gate to open and allow the signal to pass, so will vary depending on the level of the signal in. I am not sure what "pops and crackling" entails, as that seems more like a buffering issue (not sure), but what does stand out is the release time being so low for toms. I tom needs to ring out, or it will get chopped off (is that what you are hearing?). This is a nice "cheat sheet" I just found for gating drums, and without numbers on that "Release" knob I am assuming it is fairly low in value, which will make it chop off the tom unless the input gain is jacked up so it is basically always open.