Why use a peak limiter instead of a compressor?

[maxhype]

I need to limit the signals of all kinds of keyboard tracks before they hit the converters. I use very careful gain staging and prefer not to record with obvious compression, but sometimes lose the "keeper" take I want because of spikes.

Why use a dedicated limiter (like say the Pendulum Audio PL-2) instead of a transparent stereo compressor set to a 10:1 ratio and high threshold? It seems like a great compressor will yield more uses - is there a design/concept difference?

Thanks.

[psycho_monkey]

Originally Posted by maxhype

I need to limit the signals of all kinds of keyboard tracks before they hit the converters. I use very careful gain staging and prefer not to record with obvious compression, but sometimes lose the "keeper" take I want because of spikes.

Why use a dedicated limiter (like say the Pendulum Audio PL-2) instead of a transparent stereo compressor set to a 10:1 ratio and high threshold? It seems like a great compressor will yield more uses - is there a design/concept difference?

Thanks.

Set your record level lower then.

Unless your sound has more dynamics than we can hear, you can afford to have your recording level way down (say -15 to -10 dBFs) and still not lose any audible resolution. Assuming you're recording at 24bit.

Using limiters on the way in is poor engineering/a safety net. If you've got the time to set up properly, just do it right.

[Vogon]

+1
If you're peaking at 24bit res, you're smashing the snot out of the converters. (Well that's the technical term...).