What won't levels show clipping when recording is armed?

  • Thread starter Thread starter adam
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adam

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I am trying to set the levels on a track and suddenly the meter tops out at 0. It won't go into clipping. However, when I hit record it obviously clips b/c the signal is too strong.

It shows clipping during recording, on playback, but not when the track is armed, before I press record. Did some setting get switched?
 
Adam - I'm not too clear on the exact problem here. Are you saying the meter goes to 0db immediately when you arm the track WITHOUT any input. If so, then obviously it is going to clip when you start singing or playing anything.

When you arm a track without any input, the meter should be showing a signal equivalent to your noise floor. Depending on the quality of your equipment, this should be somewhere around -50 to -90 db (the lower the better). When you give it input, it should show you the signal strength. You want to adjust your input so the loudest passages peak in the -3db range.

Then again, perhaps you already know all of this and somehow just changed your record meter options to show an RMS signal rather than a Peak signal.

If so, look for Icon on the toolbar just above your Tracks which looks like a couple of pencils (I think they are actually supposed to be meters). It should be the furthest one to the right. Next to it you will see a drop-down arrow. Select the arrow and you'll get a choice for "record meter options" where you can select what the meters display.
 
thanks for the quick reply. The meter is selected for peak and changing it doesn't help the problem.

The meters work normally except for this problem. Meaning that when you arm a track it show the noise floor and when I speak into the mic the levels increase, as normal.

What I am saying is that the signal maxes out at 0 db, at the line that separates clipping from non-clipping. This is true even when the signal is clearly clipping and when you record/playback it shows up as clipping.

Any ideas?
 
Adam - Sorry, but I'm still not quite following. The meters in Sonar do not go above 0db. There is simply a virtual "red light" that is tripped if whenever you exceed 0db.

I've never checked whether this red light trips or not when the track is armed. However, it would seem to serve no particular purpose if it did. When you arm the track (prior to recording) you should be trying to establish some peak level BELOW 0db. If you can't tell that you are NOT clippping, you are probably setting your level too close to 0db.

However, upon recording or playback you would want the light to trip to let you know if you may have clipped.
 
Sorry to confuse you. The light above 0 is not lighting up when the track is armed.

It used to. Now it doesn't. I don't know why.

In setting levels I find this to be useful because I test the louded portion of a track to be recorded and back off from there, adjust compression, etc. This ensures that I am getting the hottest signal possible, no?

It makes me think that there is a bug or something b/c sometimes the meters decide not to come on at all when the track is armed, even when it says "audio playing".

Thanks for the help.
 
I'm not sure if this will help, but you might want to check your windows mixer settings. You might have your volume turned up to high.


Vice
 
The light above 0 is not lighting up when the track is armed
Click to expand...
Maybe the bulb burned out. :)

Seriously, I'm not sure why that is happening, but you should be able to work without it. As I said earlier, you want to set your peak levels to around -3db. Therefore you realy shouldn't need the clip indicator light to set your recording levels.
 
Maybe the bulb burned out.

lol!

Yes, I can work without it, but prefer not to. I will check with cakewalk support.
 
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