We’ve been using “soft clipping" in mastering for over 20 years at this point, but it suddenly feels as if it’s all anyone is talking about ! New plugins, new suggestions about how to use it, and wild new claims about how amazing it sounds.

Except it doesn’t.

At least – not all the time, and not for all material.

In this episode Joe Caithness and I dig deep into the details and talk about:

• What clipping is, and what it isn’t
• The crucial differences between hard and soft clipping
• What makes a great clipping plugin (and why comparing them is a nightmare)
• Some of our favourite clipping plugins and how we use them
• The kinds of material that work best with clipping, and what type to use
• The golden rule to follow if you want to experiment with clipping yourself

Links

Joe Caithness Mastering

Must-watch: You don’t understand saturation

Pre and post-emphasis EQ

TMS #79 - Dan Worrall on non-linear processing

TMS #64 - Aliasing - is it digital audio’s Achilles Heel ?

DDMF Plugin Doctor

Plugins

TC Electronics Brickwall HD

Newfangled Saturate

Schwabe Gold Clip

Leapwing LimitOne

SIR Standard Clip

Kazrog KClip

MeterPlugs Perception AB