Is there such a thing as a brick wall limiter or is that just a descriptive term for a setting on any limiter?
And what would be my best choice for a final limiting available within sonar x3 pro?
(I also have sony sound forge 11 p but this isn't the proper for um)
tthank you.
WSS

My understanding is that the term Brickwall Limiting means that once the signal hits the threshold it is stopped dead right there and the limiter does not allow it to exceed that threshold. A compressor allows it to go above the threshold to varying degrees based on the ratio.
 
A good plug in in Sonar to see this in action is the Sonitus Compress. You set it to it's extreme and you'll see the graph show a straight line at the top indicating nothing is being let through above that level (and I think the interface actually changes to say Limiter somewhere).
 
And in Sonar X3 Producer you get the Blue Tubes Brickwall Limiter. It's pretty nice. There is also the Boost 11 limiter (I think it is still included) but it is harsher sounding to my ears.
 
The one that most people seem to like and I agree now that I own it is the Cakewalk Concrete Limiter but you have to buy that separately. You just missed a sale on it.
 
Cheers.

I always thought brickwall limiter was a bit of an oxymoron.
 
It either limits, or it doesn't... 
 
A brickwall compressor is...  a limiter.

Karyn
I always thought brickwall limiter was a bit of an oxymoron.
 
It either limits, or it doesn't... 
 
A brickwall compressor is...  a limiter.

Yeah... once I learned about the definitions/functions of the two tools I thought the same thing. Probably just something that slipped into the lexicon from people mashing Brickwall Compressor (which is a redundant/misleading term as far as I can tell because it is no longer a compressor... it's a limiter) in with Limiter. Thus brickwall limiter.
 
Werds r hard. :-/

I think the Concrete Limiter might be the most useful thing I've ever bought from Cakewalk, aside from SONAR itself. 

You can set any limiter worth its salt to a brickwall setting.
A limiter with a ratio of 12:1 and a thrshold -10dB, an attack of 200 msecs, soft knee & a release of 1000msecs is not a brick wall limiter. Because with those settings, peaks will get across the threshold setting. Now when you set it according, then it can become a brickwall limiter
 
Cj

If it were up to me I would say a "brick wall" limiter implies an infinity to one ratio.

CJaysMusic
You can set any limiter worth its salt to a brickwall setting.
A limiter with a ratio of 12:1 and a thrshold -10dB, an attack of 200 msecs, soft knee & a release of 1000msecs is not a brick wall limiter. Because with those settings, peaks will get across the threshold setting. Now when you set it according, then it can become a brickwall limiter
 
Cj

But isn't what you describe actually a compressor? If not then what would be the distinction?
 
Seriously, this is something that has confused the heck out of me for a while and I thought I had it figured out... however if a limiter CAN allow some noise above the threshold how is that different than a compressor? Or is this one of those interchangeable terminology things?

drewfx1
If it were up to me I would say a "brick wall" limiter implies an infinity to one ratio.

This is also my understanding of it.

...wicked
I think the Concrete Limiter might be the most useful thing I've ever bought from Cakewalk, aside from SONAR itself. 

+1 Wish they would do a VST3 version.