smart:gate: Content-Aware Gate Plugin by sonible Free Download

smart:gate's core idea is target detection. Instead of reacting to the full input, it tracks the chosen source, which the developer says makes the gate more stable and easier to set than a conventional gate. The developer also states that the gate can still work when background signal occasionally exceeds the level of the target.

With the No Target option, the plugin can be used as a conventional, non-AI gate. Threshold, Attack/Release, Hold and Tolerance give familiar control over the gating response.

The visualizer traces the level of the detected target rather than the entire input, which helps with setting parameters. Instant Replay previews how a parameter change affects the full signal history.

Level Bias adjusts how closely gating follows the detected signal, which suits transient material such as drums. Impact scales back the gain reduction applied while the gate is closed. A ducking mode reduces the selected target instead of passing it through, and a three-band suppression control lets you weight gating across the frequency spectrum.