Using the MClass Maximizer

Although you don't want too much compression, you still want to ensure that no distorting peaks are getting through the mastering process. For this task you need a special kind of compressor, called a limiter. This acts as a gatekeeper at the end of your mastering chain.

The MClass Maximizer is a limiter/compressor designed to sit between you and the vast void into which your music will journey once it leaves your hands. It has the highest detail of level metering available in Reason and it is easy to use.

To limit your final mix

1.	Start your song and set the MClass Maximizer Bypass switch to On (Figure 11.15). Figure 11.15. The MClass Maximizer is a limiter/compressor.
2.	Activate the Limiter enable button (Figure 11.16). Figure 11.16. Activate the limiting on the Maximizer.
3.	Use the Input Gain knob to adjust the basic volume of your mix (Figure 11.17). Figure 11.17. Set the Input Gain amount.
4.	Activate the Look Ahead button (Figure 11.18). It introduces a delay of 4 milliseconds, which increases the Maximizer's resolution for detecting and dealing with tiny peaks. Figure 11.18. The Look Ahead function increases your protection against peaks. There is no penalty for using it, and it should always be used if you are boosting your signal a lot at the input gain stage.
5.	The Output Gain should be set to 0 dB (the default), though it can go as high as +12 dB. The maximum value for digital audio is 0 dB (Figure 11.19). Figure 11.19. The Output Gain knob is set to 0 dB by default, and must remain there for digital audio.
6.	Set the Attack switch to Fast (Figure 11.20), especially if you are using the Maximizer at the end of your mastering chain. When Look Ahead is enabled, the Fast setting will give you total peak protection, or brick wall limiting. Figure 11.20. Setting the Attack switch to Fast with Look Ahead enabled gives you brick wall limiting.
7.	The Release switch sets how long the limiter takes to stop limiting peaks. Set Release to Auto if you want the Maximizer to intelligently adapt to the sound (Figure 11.21). Figure 11.21. Set the Release switch to Auto for adaptive limiting.
8.	Enable Soft Clip to protect against hard clipping distortion (Figure 11.22). Figure 11.22. If you enable Soft Clip, you must also increase the Amount. If the soft clip Amount knob is set to 0, hard clipping may still occur, so make sure you turn it up when using this feature.
9.	Set the meter response mode: Peak mode is the fastest, and will show small peaks; VU mode will show the average levels.