Waves L2 alternatives
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- KVRAF
- 2118 posts since 1 Apr, 2004 from Athens, Greece
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- KVRAF
- 14970 posts since 13 Nov, 2012
The alternatives you mention are some of the closest BUT really, waves L2 has its own sound.golemus wrote:Is there any good alternatives for waves L2 with similar interface?
I usually work so that I click and drag the button in the middle so that both the treshold and out ceiling sliders move simultaneously.
I find this the best workflow to evaluate if the limiting introduces undesired artifacts.
I know that Fabfilter Pro-L, Sonnox Oxford Limiter and Voxengo Elephant are pretty good but their UI is such that when you increase the amount of limiting (gain), the signal also gets louder. In my opinion it is more difficult to judge if there becomes undesired artefacts to the signal, when its level changes when you change limiting.
Or is it perhaps possible in some of these plugins to change a setting so that you have similar operation to L2...?
Of course there are several Waves plugins that expand on this technology that are also great.
Hard to beat the original.
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- KVRAF
- 42529 posts since 21 Dec, 2005
I'll tell you what. That one waves the L3-16 is freaking EXPENSIVE!! Man, that would have to be the greatest of the greatest and I'd have to need it bad. I think the L2 would serve my needs perfectly for the money. Not over the top (it's 89 bucks right now) and seems to be the most popular.
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- KVRer
- 17 posts since 28 Sep, 2004
From George Yohng website. Download free
http://www.yohng.com/software/w1limit.htmlCurrently W1 Limiter 2.0 is in beta. The final version will introduce limiting meters and a graph. Please also note, the OS X version is not backwards compatible, while Windows version is backwards compatible. However on both systems projects saved with W1 v2.0 will not load with the previous obsolete version.
W1 Limiter is a clone of Waves L1, with identical output, as well as an approximation of Waves L2.
This was accomplished without reverse engineering Waves products, and the result was obtained by adjusting 4Front YLimiter, by doing the following:
Simplifying release curve
Increasing release time 3 times (see notes below)
Altering softening circuit filter
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- KVRAF
- 2621 posts since 12 Sep, 2008
IMHO L2 is pretty good product still even by 2014 standards. Used reasonably it sounds perfectly fine. Even when abused, its distortion character is not as objectionable as some other more modern limiters.
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- KVRist
- 341 posts since 30 Apr, 2004 from France
If you are looking for a transparent limiter, please feel free to give a try to BW-LIMIT87.
It has been thought to avoid artifacts/distortion/... while being strict regarding its brickwall property.
This may explain why BW-LIMIT87 has been choosen by an important German TV production company.
As a test, you can try to feed it with an electric piano, set the release parameter to a minimum, set the input level to +50dB and set the threshold knob to whatever you want. It is then interesting to perform the same test with another limiter of your choice
On the other hand, those who are looking for "colour" will obviously not be interested by this limiter, unless they want to use a specific plug-in for this purpose (tape saturation, ...).
And if your are on a budget, you can also get FR-LIMIT87 for free (same algorithm but less flexible and not as paranoïd as BW-LIMIT87 during the look-ahead process).
BW-LIMIT87 is €29 though (no special sales to be expected).
It has been thought to avoid artifacts/distortion/... while being strict regarding its brickwall property.
This may explain why BW-LIMIT87 has been choosen by an important German TV production company.
As a test, you can try to feed it with an electric piano, set the release parameter to a minimum, set the input level to +50dB and set the threshold knob to whatever you want. It is then interesting to perform the same test with another limiter of your choice
On the other hand, those who are looking for "colour" will obviously not be interested by this limiter, unless they want to use a specific plug-in for this purpose (tape saturation, ...).
Not sure if the "Maximize" option of BW-LIMIT87 can work for you but it is probably worth a try.I usually work so that I click and drag the button in the middle so that both the treshold and out ceiling sliders move simultaneously.
I find this the best workflow to evaluate if the limiting introduces undesired artifacts.
And if your are on a budget, you can also get FR-LIMIT87 for free (same algorithm but less flexible and not as paranoïd as BW-LIMIT87 during the look-ahead process).
BW-LIMIT87 is €29 though (no special sales to be expected).
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- KVRAF
- 14970 posts since 13 Nov, 2012
The L3-16 is a fantastic tool and VERY under-rated.hibidy wrote:I'll tell you what. That one waves the L3-16 is freaking EXPENSIVE!! Man, that would have to be the greatest of the greatest and I'd have to need it bad. I think the L2 would serve my needs perfectly for the money. Not over the top (it's 89 bucks right now) and seems to be the most popular.
It is well worth the price, I have seen it on sale from time to time.
If I had to pick between the L2 and L3-16, my choice would be the L3-16.
