How do you use two limiters in mastering?

The use of two brickwall maximizers in audio mastering is known as double or serial limiting. How you use this technique is you carefully chop off the transients. You set the first mastering limiter's recovery (or release time) to be fast. The second brickwall limiter's recovery time has got to be moderately slow to avoid distortion or hard clipping. But not too slow to start pumping. You don't want to lose the energy of the record single.

Ceiling settings​

For the first mastering limiter, the short answer is zero (i.e., 0 dBFS) so don't touch it. For commercial loudness levels, you set this at -0.2 dBFS or literarily -0 dBFS. Don't lose sleep about ISPs (intersample peaks). It's not really a big deal.

True-peak settings​

Turn it off. Embrace the crunchiness of ISPs.

Stereo-linking​

Instead of using stereo-width plug-ins completely unlink the limiter. But if you want a rigid monocentric soundstage don't unlink. Leave the knobs and sliders alone in peace where there are. That's if you hadn't touched them.

Gain reduction​

As for gain reduction levels keep calm about the numbers modern limiters can handle the pressure. Long story short: you can do 3 or 6 dB with the first plug-in. Consequently, you slap another one on your mastering chain. This time you are aiming roundabout for 3 dB or whatever arbitrary level that gets to an average sweet spot of -7 or - 8 LUFS.

Things to note:

• You are not going to reach an integrated loudness of -8 LUFS with only 3 dB of gain reduction. This may be common sense but common sense is sometimes not common.
• Once again, don't be too conservative with gain reduction. Mastering music to -14 LUFS is bad for business.

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