sfz+ went crazy in X3b 64 bit. +73 dB is all time high I have ever seen on a single track!
 

 
Noise was TERRIBLE and it could have blown unprotected speakers. Genelecs are made to stand anything..
 
Be careful with that synth!
 
 
EDIT: I just noticed (once again) that one sfz+ instance works OK but second instance always crackles badly.

Does it top the Pentagon patches that use the Valleys Simulation?

Have I missed another explosion?
IMO two sfz+ instances is easiest way to blow up your speakers.

The Pentagon patches are pretty crazy but not sure if they go as far as +73

So would a limiter on the master bus catch something like that? I wear headphones a lot and am terrified that some buggy software will blow my ear drums off one of these days.

<ouch>! That's a very nasty little bug!

Thanks for the heads up,,, nothing worse than being hit in the face by flying speaker material,,, lol. 

sharke
So would a limiter on the master bus catch something like that? I wear headphones a lot and am terrified that some buggy software will blow my ear drums off one of these days.

Yes... I was surprised to see this thread, not good at all! I have concrete limiter on my master bus out of habit just in case I ever encounter such a thing, but I tend to also use it for final mixes as well.

mettelus

sharke
So would a limiter on the master bus catch something like that? I wear headphones a lot and am terrified that some buggy software will blow my ear drums off one of these days.

Yes... I was surprised to see this thread, not good at all! I have concrete limiter on my master bus out of habit just in case I ever encounter such a thing, but I tend to also use it for final mixes as well.

I hunted around to see if there was such a thing as a headphone limiter which would handle any spikes going to the phones.  There are very few products but that may be changing.  There are active ones, which require a power source, are found in the broadcast industry and are expensive.
 
Beyerdynamic now has headphones with optional passive limiters (see the bottom of the page for the headphone models with this option).
 
Some things from Canford Audio in the UK based on research by the BBC. 
 
Glensound, also UK, has an exposure limiter, the GS-HL005, which takes into account the amount of time you spend at a given level, which may also be bad for your ears.
 
A consumer grade product Rock On Audio.
 
Another one by Peavey Peavey HB2 Head Phone Amplifier (with limiter).  Review here.
 
Some DIY design info here.
 

Nothing greater than 0dBFS goes anywhere - anything above 0dBFS gets clipped at the audio interface already. So trying to limit it is pointless unless you have a special limiter designed just for this purpose (I suppose you could create one in Reaktor or similar programs).
 
What you do get is ridiculously clipped, nasty sounding, MAXIMUM volume stuff at whatever playback level you have set - the peak and RMS levels are both 0dBFS. It might be more nasty sounding than harmful, particularly because you're liable to hit stop quickly. But since the RMS level is likely much higher than normal, it is sort of like just cranking the volume way up - how far up depends on how much peak to average ratio you had to start with.