Levelizer - a question re. keying

[AlanH]

For mastering stereo orchestral concert recordings with typical huge dynamic range, I normally use manual fader automation (actually that sounds odd...) followed by Levelizer limiting / normalising to control wayward percussion peaks.

On my latest project, the music is up and down in volume almost from bar to bar, so I thought I'd be lazy and use the Compressor built into the Levelizer. To cut a long story short, I couldn't find how to mono the key when self-keyed. My old hardware compressors called that 'stereo linking'.

I ended up having to clone the audio onto a separate track, mono it, load a 'dummy' levelizer so that I could assign it to Mix Bus A and then 'lose' the key track by routing it to a muted virtual output.

The approach worked, but seemed a little messy. Am I missing an easier way to do this?

Cheers,

[Bob L]

The Levelizer peak limit and normalize algorithms do each channel independently and there is no internal way designed in to attempt mono keying.

The peak limit works on a unique algorithm that only adjusts the data from zero cross to zero cross data points and that needs to be handled on a channel by channel basis.

Bob L

[AlanH]

Hi Bob,

Although wobbly L/R imaging could stem from either the compressor or the limiter, I guess the latter function - being instantaneous and operating cycle-by-cycle - is less likely to give a noticeable shifting effect than the compressor, which has a deliberately longer time-constant. I had never noticed image-shifting before when using Levelizer peak limit/normalise functions alone.

Setting a mono key and backing off the compressor release time to 1.6s seemed to square up the image quite nicely, which makes me fairly confident that the stereo compressor key was my problem in this particular case.

I had assumed that the key source related only to the compressor/gate sections of the Levelizer, and that the peak/normalise function was a separate "self-keyed" function, acting after the comp/gate function. Have I got that right?

Thanks,

[Bob L]

Yes, I think that is correct.

Bob L

[AlanH]

Thanks, Bob!

[DominicPerry]

Alan, you could try the JMS compressor, it has a mono/stereo link switch. The demo runs for 12 minutes, so you it can get a good idea from that. Native plug.

Dominic

[Naturally Digital]

Alan, you could try the JMS compressor, it has a mono/stereo link switch. I know this deserves a dedicated thread or better, a PM to Jon but in case he's lurking... The last time I tried to run the JMS Comp in dual mono/unlinked mode, it didn't seem to work properly. There appeared to be a 'loose' link between left/right. OTOH, in linked mode it works perfectly! :cool:

[AlanH]

Dominic, David,

Thanks for your suggestion and note of caution - was not looking at the forum the last couple of days. Will look at the JMS version - I have some of his other SS plugs and am very happy with them.

Cheers,