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Spark Limiter

Catch the peaks. Keep the movement. Look ahead to incoming transients, set your ceiling and shape how the level recovers.

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Windows 10 and 11
64-bit
VST3

Actual Spark Limiter editor with a graphite faceplate, Input and Ceiling knobs, gain reduction history and level meters. — Actual Spark Limiter 0.1.7 interface.

8× FIR oversampling
Adjustable output ceiling
Mono and stereo
8 factory presets
30-day free trial

The last stage.
Under control.

Use a little reduction to catch stray peaks, or push the input for a denser sound. Listen for what the music needs.

Finish a mix

Place Limiter after your mix processing. Set the ceiling, then raise Input until the loudest sections receive the reduction you want. Check quiet passages as well.

Start gently

Compare at the same listening level so a louder signal does not hide changes to the sound.

Catch a transient

Keep an occasional snare hit, pluck or vocal peak from jumping out. Leave room below the ceiling so the limiter works only when needed.

Watch the reduction

A few isolated peaks call for a different response from a dense, sustained passage.

Keep stereo centered

The stereo channels share their gain reduction, so centered vocals and low end move together. Both mono and stereo tracks are supported.

Check the balance

Compare the image before and after limiting, especially when one channel contains a louder transient.

See the level.
Shape the response.

A focused layout puts peak control and gain reduction in view together.

Input

Add 0 to 24 dB before the limiter. More input produces more reduction when peaks reach the ceiling. Input starts at 0 dB.

Ceiling

Set the output ceiling from -12 to 0 dBFS, starting at -1 dBFS. An internal 0.3 dB reserve accounts for reconstruction, so sample peaks can sit below the setting.

Release

Set recovery from 10 to 1000 ms, starting at 120 ms. Adaptive Release adjusts the recovery to the material and is enabled by default.

Lookahead and oversampling

Lookahead gives the limiter time to respond before a peak reaches the output. Always-on 8× FIR oversampling processes the audio at eight times your project’s sample rate.

Character

Choose Transparent or Punch to change the limiting response. Compare both on the loudest passage at matched listening levels.

Gain reduction

See six seconds of reduction history above the Input and Ceiling knobs. Eight factory presets give you starting points for different sources.

Leave the music
room to move.

A limiter can control peaks. It cannot fix every balance problem earlier in the mix.

Fix the source first: If one kick hit or bass note makes the whole mix dip, control that track before it reaches the limiter.
Listen through the release: Pay attention to what happens immediately after a transient. Adjust Release when a sustained vocal or cymbal seems to swell or lose its place.
Compare the export: Check the rendered file as well as live playback. Any processing or encoding after the limiter can change the final peaks.
Changing the ceiling: The ceiling applies after the setting settles. Abrupt changes can briefly produce reconstructed peaks above a newly lowered setting. Bypass passes the original dry signal.
Read the meters: Input Peak and Output Peak show sample levels in dBFS. They do not measure true peak or loudness.

Specs

Stereo-linked lookahead peak limiting for mono and stereo tracks. Processing latency is reported to your DAW for compensation.

Go to support

Format: VST3 and optional standalone app, 64-bit
System: Windows 10 and 11, 64-bitNo macOS version yet.
Controls: Input, ceiling, release, character and Adaptive ReleaseFive automatable parameters and eight factory presets. Stereo-linked processing.
Processing: Always-on 8× FIR oversamplingLookahead peak limiting with Transparent and Punch characters.
Latency: 433 samples at 48 kHz, about 9.02 ms415 samples at 44.1 kHz, 673 at 96 kHz and 1153 at 192 kHz. Includes lookahead and filter delay; reported to your DAW for compensation.
Availability: Version 0.1.730-day free trial. Account activation required.

Spark Limiter.
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Spark Limiter