03) Gain Staging in Gold Clip Pack
Don't be intimidated. While the internal gain staging of GOLD CLIP is complex, the functionality on the interface is very simple. Once you understand it, you'll be ready to use the plugin in any scenario.
There are four elements that affect gain and they flow like this:
Input Trim --> Clipper Ceiling --> Parallel Mixer --> Output Trim
The Input Trim affects the input level, and Output Trim affects the total plugin output after the parallel mixer. They both float over the I/O meters and look like this.
The I/O Trims are linkable by clicking the 🔗 symbol above the waveform display shown below.
Linking the I/O Trims lets you alter the internal gain staging of Gold Clip and maintain perceived loudness. Basically, when you turn the Input Trim up 1dB, the Output Trim automatically goes down 1dB.
Trim Link Offset
Trim Link Offset allows you to change the gain relationship between the linked input and output. Set your input and output levels, click the link button and your IO Trim relationship is maintained.
- Shift-Drag either fader to change the offset.
- Shift-Option-Click a fader, and the offset is reset to 0 dB.
- Or, turn linking off, make an adjustment, and then turn linking back on.
It is as easy as that. Trim Link Offset is also available in Orange Clip.
The Clipper Ceiling control moves the clipper ceiling, and the knee of the Gold and Alchemy processors down from 0.0dBFS to as low as -36dBFS. This control is most useful when processing lower-level signals like individual tracks in a mix.
The Parallel Mixer allows you to blend wet and dry signals like every other plugin. However, what sets Gold Clip apart is the option to unlink dry and wet signals and blend them separately by clicking on the 🔗 symbol.
For instance, you could put the dry signal at full volume and blend in the clipped signal in from the bottom up! Then adjust the Output Trim to maintain perceived loudness.
In a previous video, I talked about how Gold processing relies on the input being as close to the clip point as possible in order to get the most out of it. In that example, we used the linked I/O Trims to get the signal to the clip point, but now let's use the clipper ceiling.
Two Ways to Clip & Process
1. Link the I/O Trims with the 🔗 above the waveform display
2. Push the Input Trim up so you get exactly 0.0dB of clipping.
3. Take note of the Input Trim level required to get there.
4. Reset the Input Trim to 0dB by option-clicking the fader.
5. Pull the Clipper Ceiling down by the same dB value that you used on the input fader.
You’ve just achieved the same internal gain staging in two different ways. Linking the I/O Trim lets you adjust the signal by ±12 dB, while the Clipper Ceiling allows Clipping, Gold, and Alchemy processing on signals as low as -36 dBFS.
When you use both the Clipper Ceiling and linked I/O Trims together, you can process tracks with levels as low as -48 dBFS, all while maintaining perceived volume.
I generally use linked I/O Trims when Gold Clip is inserted on the master fader, and the Clipper Ceiling control when it is inserted on instrument tracks and buses.
Check out this video to hear this in action.
Give it a try and hit reply to let me know what you think. Or, tag @SchwabeDigital in an instagram story and show us how you are using it. We'll repost.
Next time, we'll dig into Gold Processing and unpack how it works.
Be well,
Ryan Schwabe
Grammy-nominated and multi-platinum mixing & mastering engineer
Founder of Schwabe Digital
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