Mix with the Masters
Choosing and automating the limiter
Chris Gehringer demonstrates the use of Izotope Ozone 11's dynamic limiter to achieve a cleaner and more balanced master for Dua Lipa's track. He emphasizes the importance of selecting the right limiter settings to enhance the song's character and movement. Gehringer uses EQ to subtly boost the bass, complementing the limiter's inherent color and character. He explains that limiters can alter the frequency balance, so EQ adjustments need to reflect the limiter choice, and vice versa. To address specific sections where distortion or artifacts occur, Gehringer advocates for automating limiter settings. By adjusting Ozone's parameters like the transient setting and character speed, he ensures the song maintains its integrity and vibrancy throughout, highlighting the significance of tailoring limiter settings to different parts of the track for optimal results.
Produce Like A Pro
Combining hard clipping with limiting for clean loudness
Marc Daniel Nelson demonstrates how to achieve clean loudness by combining hard clipping with limiting. He uses the SIR StandardCLIP to distort signal peaks before they reach the FabFilter Pro-L 2 limiter, allowing the limiter to work less aggressively and maintain transparency. By monitoring the limiter's effect on the mix, Nelson identifies areas where distortion occurs and adjusts the clipper to handle these peaks. This multi-stage processing approach helps retain the punch and clarity of transients, particularly in the snare and kick, while achieving higher loudness levels. The limiter breathes more easily, resulting in reduced artifacts. The monitoring of limiting artifacts is a built-in feature of the FabFilter Pro-L 2, but it can also be achieved by listening to the limited and unlimited mix simultaneously, with levels matched for loudness and phase flipped on one of the two.