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'''Noise Gates''' are devices that attempt to minimize noise in the signal. Most focus on muting the signal while you are not playing. They detect the volume level of the inbound signal and compare it to a threshold value which can be dialed in for your guitar, playing style, and setup. If the signal is below the threshold, it is expanded (opposite of [[Compression|compressed]]), reducing its volume. In some cases, devices known as '''expanders''' and noise gates are the same thing; but in practice devices marketed as expanders are usually more configurable similar to, or even a feature of, a compressor. Noise gates typically feature a fixed, high '''expansion ratio''', causing any signal level below the threshold to be silenced.

Using a noise gate is a good idea any time your rig produces audible noise and possibly hum while you are ''muting '' your guitar. ''Most'' of the time the source of the noise is the nature of electric pickups, which when and if heavily ''distorted'', ''compressed'', and/or ''amplified'' create fairly loud noise relative to signal volume. In [[Rock]] and [[Djent]], where the guitars are often highly distorted but also need to abruptly rest, noise gates help create greater contrast between rests and accents. But they can be used in any style that seeks to exterminate inherent noise from pickups or other devices during rests.