Clipmax by Chokehold: Your Tool for Maximum Loudness and Peak Control
In the world of modern audio production, where the battle for every decibel of loudness is a reality, effective control over signal peaks becomes extremely important. The Clipmax plugin by Chokehold is designed specifically for this purpose – it’s a powerful and extremely useful tool that allows you to achieve impressive loudness and density of sound in your tracks, while maintaining signal clarity from unwanted digital clipping on the output.
Clipmax functions as a hard / brickwall clipper. Unlike limiters, which mainly compress the signal when reaching the threshold, the clipper physically “cuts off” any parts of the audio wave that go beyond the set “ceiling.” This process, although it sounds radical, is controlled and can not only prevent oversights, but also add harmonic saturation to the signal and subjectively increase its density and loudness without significantly compressing the dynamic range, as compressors do. With aggressive clipping settings, it can even act as a form of distortion or saturation, giving the sound a unique character.
Key Control Elements
The Clipmax plugin has a simple but effective set of controls that ensure flexible adjustment of the clipping process:
- Pre Gain (Input Level): Adjusts the signal level that enters the clipper processing. Use it to prepare the signal: reduce it if it is too loud, or increase it to “cut” it into the clipping threshold more intensely.
- Ceiling: Sets the maximum level that the signal can reach. This is the “ceiling” above which the signal will be cut. The indicator to the right of the regulator visualizes the intensity of clipping.
- Auto (Automatic Compensation): When activated, automatically calculates and applies gain compensation (make-up gain). Intelligently maintains the natural loudness level, rather than simply amplifying to the maximum, helping to maintain balance after clipping.
- Post Gain (Output Level): Allows you to finally adjust the loudness level of the signal after processing. Use with caution to avoid clipping at the output of your DAW.
Clipmax Usage Options
Clipmax is a universal tool and can be useful at different stages of music creation:
- On the Master Bus: As a brickwall clipper, it is ideal for the final mastering stage, allowing you to achieve high overall loudness and control peaks, preventing exceeding 0 dBFS.
- On Individual Tracks: Works great on drums to add punch and control transients, on bass for saturation, or on vocals to smooth out dynamics.
- As a Saturation Effect: With stronger clipping, Clipmax adds harmonics, which can be used as a creative effect to add warmth, aggression, or a unique timbre.
Compatibility
The Clipmax plugin is available in VST and AU formats, making it compatible with the vast majority of modern DAWs on Windows (32-bit and 64-bit support) and MacOS operating systems. This guarantees easy integration into your workflow regardless of your chosen platform.
Clipmax by Chokehold is not just a clipper, it is an effective tool for shaping loudness and dynamics, which will help your tracks sound more powerful, denser, and more controlled.
