I’m using Toontrack Superior Drummer with The Metal Foundry SDX. I load a midi groove from its own library (straight 4/4, hats open variation, variation 04), using the default configuration for everything and the signal output (I check the Cubase 5 channel strip input meter) is at -1.7db
Great!!!
Using the same midi groove with any of the presets of Andy Sneap, for example the one called “Legacy”, reaches 12.2db!!!! Above zero!!!!
And many of the presets included with The Metal Foundry SDX clip too!!! For example Jocke Skog, the preset called Stockholm 1990 reaches 5.3db above zero!!!
And a lot of the other presets reaches similar output levels.
How do I control this? ? ?
Given that the internal mixer from Superior does not have numerical readouts for the output of its channels (it only has faders and a blue line level indicating activity in the channel, but no real readouts), for mics, busses or outputs channels.
Even the “line level activity is only blue coloured. You can not “see” if it is near zero represented by yellow, or above zero represented by red!!!
What do I have to do to make the drums don’t clip the cubase channels (or its own output)? ? ?
Yes, I know, I have to lower the volume but in which way? ? ?
From the volume fader in every “instrument” windows in the “construction” window? ? ?
From every mic channel in the mixer? ? ?
From the output of the mixer? ? ? And If I have a multi out drum? ? ?
From the Master volume from the plug in? ? ?
Sometimes I noticed that what is clipping is one “instrument” for example, the snare. But if I lower the volume to the snare, the whole drum kit gets uneven, unbalanced in volume as a whole.
So, it does not seem a way to fix the problem.
If I lower the Master volume from the plug in to make the output below zero, then it sounds very weak, very low as a whole.
I guess that what is clipping are peaks in the signal, not an RMS signal at about 10db above zero.
So, when I lower the master by 10db to not to clip the signal, the RMS signal is very low, very weak.
Again, how do I “tame” this plug in, and how do you do about this “issue”? ? ?
I guess I should put a compressor to tame the signal, but compressors are already used in the different channels in the mixer by the author of the preset. And with the loudest ones, puting a preset in the cubase channel, makes the drum pump or add artifacts not desired.
And by the way, why most of the presets made by professionals, clip the output by default? ? ?
Thanks!
