Processing audio has never been easier thanks to FIRE, the new series of single-knob plug-ins from Acustica.
This series aims to create an ‘easy-to-use’ product line that encompasses Acustica’s top-quality alongside a very intuitive use with just a few simple clicks!
After a phase of careful design and thanks to our technical know-how, we are proud to present Fire The Clip, the second Fire series release, with the aim of creating one of the best and most complete digital ‘easy to use’ ‘ultra linear’ clipper.
Thanks to its features, you can achieve a competitive loudness level in mastering or make different tracks cut through the mix without introducing artifacts or unwanted distortion.
Fire The Clip, the best 'ultra-linear' clipper plug-in
Main features
• Four custom and superlinear clipping modes available.
• High quality oversampling, up to 1024x (the highest on the market) with perfect phase response.
• Hard and Soft knee functions with very low aliasing.
• True peak mode to prevent the inter-sample peaks.
• Low latency.
• Resizable interface*
• Auto-gain mode.
Controls
◯ STD Behaves like a traditional clipping algorithm but in a more linear way, where the tendency is to approximate the highest possible level while keeping below 0 dBFS to prevent any digital clipping. Specifically, it is an approximate hyperbolic tangent function (tanh).
▢ ACU1 ‘Custom’ Clipping algorithm by Acustica with low aliasing, exceeds ceiling by about +1 dBFS.
△ ACU2 Can be considered as an ‘analogue clipper’ in the digital domain as it features unfolding functionality that guarantees even less aliasing than in STD mode and a level compensation mechanism that ensures that the more you go beyond the canonical 0 dBFS, the more the nominal output signal level will be lowered.
✚ ECO Low CPU consumption mode, ceiling lower than the computed clip level
Hard/Soft Knee Slider
Switch between Hard (in cases where the signal is strictly limited at the threshold, producing a flat cutoff) or Soft (in cases where the clipped signal continues to follow the original at a reduced gain) clipping functions.
Oversampling drop-down menu
Change the oversampling rate to improve the audio quality by increasing the sampling frequency of the clipper and minimizing aliasing artifacts (from 2x to 1024x). The1x step bypasses the oversampling functionality.
NOTE: The plugin includes two different oversampling algorithms: ECO and HQ. The first mode has a less CPU consumption but is qualitatively inferior to the second version, which is heavier (more CPU usage) but has a better phase response.
Special Buttons
• IN Change the input level range from -/+ 5 dB to -/+ 20 dB
• CEIL (OFF/0/OL/TP):
— OFF In this mode the calculated clip level is above a defined threshold which is usually equal to 0 dBFS, it occurs after the oversampling stage and will create aliasing.
— 0 The standard ceiling, this ceiling is just a few dB higher than the computed clip level to prevent samples higher than a defined threshold under or equal to 0 dBFS. This mode is highly recommended if the clipper is being used at the end of the chain.
— 0L Custom ceiling that behaves similarly to the previous ‘0’ mode but with less aliasing.
— TP True Peak mode was added to offer the best performance without any compromise in terms of sound quality to confidently hit your loudness targets without leaving behind any artifacts and distortion-inducing inter-sample peaks. This mode is highly recommended if the clipper is being used at the end of the chain.
NOTE: In order to enjoy the full potential of the Fire The Clip, we strongly recommend using it before a limiter, possibly true peak, with CEIL button sets to OFF mode. ‘0’ and TP modes as well as consuming resources tend by their nature to deteriorate the audio signal.
• OUT (0/-5) In ‘-5’ mode the output volume is attenuated by -5 dB. In ‘0’ mode no attenuation is applied. This feature was introduced due to the inherent nature of clipping algorithms to the oversampling function, and the fact that the recommended processor chain would include the subsequent use of a true peak limiter.
• Auto-Gain Changes the behavior of the Input Gain control from a standard Input-Gain to an Auto-Gain. In this mode the input and output gain stages are linked with an inverse law which always ensures that whatever gain change is introduced at the plug-in input, the output level is automatically compensated so that there is no perceived level change.
Resizable interface
Choose between 3 magnification values (1x - 1.5x - 2x) from the top left ▼SIZE drop-down menu.
*Once the desired size has been selected, the plugin must be removed and re-loaded in order to apply the changes. This action affects the currently selected plugin. New instances of the same plugin will open with this magnification.
Technical information
• Plug-in Format(s): VST2, VST3, AU, AAX
• System Requirements
• Available sample rates: 44.1 - 48 - 88.2 - 96 kHz
• Windows 10 compatible
• M1 macOS Monterey compatible
Price and availability
List price: €49 Buy Now
The product is at an introductory period for the first four weeks after release or until the first official version is released; this implies that the product may receive improvements, changes, or fixes available through Aquarius Desktop updates during that time.
How to install the free 30-day trial
Fire The Clip user's manual
FIRE SERIES web page: https://www.acustica-audio.com/pages/sp ... ire-series
FIRE THE CLIP web page: https://www.acustica-audio.com/store/pr ... iretheclip
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