Limit normalized audio db without hard limiter?

Report · Sep 25, 2023

So currently my workflow involves normalizing all peaks of the dialogue audio track to -6 and using a mutiband compressor on that track to try to get the audio more leveled out. For a majority of the audio this is fine, but if there are extra quiet sections that the normalizer raised more than about 4db it starts to sound very noticeably different. This means going through every bit of audio and checking to make sure it is not raised more than 4db and this audio is normally cut up into hundreds of pieces.

I tried, instead of normalizing, just raising all audio by 3db and then applying a hard limiter at -6db but the limiter doesn't just lower the db, which becomes apparent when you raise the db by rediculous amounts for testing and gradually becomes more distorted. Is there a way to normalize audio to -6db while telling premiere to never raise the db level of the track more than +3db? The hard limiter seems to be the only limiter available. The equalizer has its own brick wall limiter but it is very limited in its db range. Essential audio also doesn't seem to have anything for this.

I've been doing manual checking of every clip for years and it is the most time consuming and frustrating aspect of editing for me and I would really like to make this part of my workflow more automated.

Report · Sep 28, 2023

If you open up the options for the hard limiter (double clicking on it) you can set the dB level at which it works. It's the first option, Maximum Amplitude.

Please try this and let us know if you got the desired result.

Report · Oct 05, 2023

"I tried, instead of normalizing, just raising all audio by 3db and then applying a hard limiter at -6db but the limiter doesn't just lower the db, which becomes apparent when you raise the db by rediculous amounts for testing and gradually becomes more distorted."

I did set the dB level on the hard limiter but it is somewhat deceptive to call it a dB limiter when that isn't all it is doing.