A Crude, 4 Step Guide to Applying A Limiter on a Mix

Correct use of a Limiter requires lots of time and practice, and using it excessively can make
your mixes sound awful. However, competing with commercial releases everywhere is a fact
of life for most musicians, and there are times when you have to send a rough demo off in a
hurry and don't have time to give it the time and attention you would like to. For these
occasions, and to give a simplified view of the process which we will explore later in the
lesson, here is a very crude 4 step guide to how to apply a Limiter on a mix.

1) Make sure your mix does not at any point exceed -6db on the
Master output. If it does, turn your tracks down until it the level on
the Master output hovers around -6db.

2)Go to your Master Output, click on the insert effects tab- go to

Dynamics- Limiter(Stereo)

3) Gradually turn the "Gain" slider up until the Gain reduction meter
on top hovers at the number 2 or 3 at the most.

4) Bounce your track down to a WAV file or MP3