Volume Dealer: Free True-Peak Mastering Limiter

M Media Audio has officially launched Volume Dealer, a powerful and completely free true-peak mastering limiter. This new software tool is designed to simplify the intricate process of achieving specific loudness targets, which has historically been a time-consuming task for audio engineers. Volume Dealer introduces a unique one-click loudness targeting workflow, aiming to remove the guesswork and iterative adjustments commonly associated with mastering for various platforms.

Traditionally, hitting a precise loudness target involved repeated adjustments, meter checks, and bounces. Volume Dealer streamlines this by measuring integrated LUFS in real-time during playback. Once the measurement stabilizes, users can set their desired Target LUFS—for instance, -14 for streaming or -16 for podcasts—and simply click “Set Level.” Consequently, the plugin automatically calculates and applies the exact corrective gain offset in a single step, eliminating manual arithmetic and back-and-forth adjustments. This efficient process ensures that the desired loudness is achieved quickly and accurately.

Streamlined Loudness Targeting

The core workflow of Volume Dealer revolves around its intuitive “Measure. Target. Click.” approach. Users load the plugin last on their master bus and play their track from the beginning. As the track plays, the integrated LUFS accumulates. After the measurement stabilizes, users can input their desired Target LUFS. Subsequently, a single click on “Set Level” causes the plugin to calculate the necessary gain difference and apply it before the limiter. The “Gain Applied” readout confirms the precise offset, providing immediate feedback on the adjustment made. Furthermore, a “Reset measurement” option allows for quick re-measurements after any changes, ensuring accuracy.

Advanced Limiting and Peak Control

Volume Dealer features a true-peak lookahead limiter that maintains a brickwall ceiling throughout the mastering process. A crucial aspect of its design is the optional High Quality mode, which employs 2x oversampling. This advanced feature utilizes an IIR half-band polyphase filter to accurately detect and catch inter-sample peaks that might otherwise slip through at native sample rates. Such peaks can cause clipping on playback systems, even if the digital signal remains below 0 dBFS. By oversampling, Volume Dealer ensures that every inter-sample peak is visible and controlled, providing a robust true-peak guarantee. Moreover, the limiter’s character can be adjusted using the “Edge Rounding” control, which allows for shaping the softness of the limiter knee from a hard brickwall (0%) to a softer, more transparent reduction for dense material.

Comprehensive Metering and Features

Beyond its limiting capabilities, Volume Dealer integrates a full BS.1770 LUFS metering suite. This includes real-time readouts for Integrated, Momentary, and Short-Term LUFS, offering a complete overview of the track’s loudness characteristics. Users can also switch between BS.1770-3 and BS.1770-4 metering standards without interrupting an ongoing measurement. In addition, dual analog-style VU meters provide a visual representation of post-limiter output levels with classic 300ms ballistics. Other controls include pre-limiter Input Trim, noise-shaped dithering for export (24-bit or 16-bit), and detailed readouts for Gain Applied, Gain Reduction, Output Peak, and Latency.

Features

• One-click Set Level workflow for automated loudness targeting.
• Full BS.1770-3 / BS.1770-4 LUFS metering suite (Integrated, Momentary, Short-Term).
• True-peak lookahead brickwall limiter with adjustable Edge Rounding knee (0-100%).
• High Quality mode with 2x oversampled true-peak detection via IIR half-band polyphase filter.
• Pre-limiter Input Trim, -12 to +12 dB.
• Dual analog-style VU meters, 300 ms ballistics, post-limiter output.
• Noise-shaped dither (off, 24-bit, or 16-bit).
• Gain Applied, Gain Reduction, Output Peak, and Latency readouts.

Price
Free

Volume Dealer is available completely free of charge, requiring no account, license key, or activation. It is compatible with Windows 10/11 (VST3 64-bit), macOS 11 Big Sur or later (VST3 + AU 64-bit, Universal Binary), and Linux (VST3 64-bit). The download link is provided via email after entering your address on the M Media Audio website.

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More info: M Media Audio | Volume Dealer