Automatic Gain Staging/Loudness Compensation with Reaper

 

 Image from TB software

I have been a huge fan of Reaper since version 0.xx came out sometime in the mid-to late 2000s. I even had a short lived stint on the beta testing team until I blew it by getting into philosophy debates on the main channel. What can I say, I love philosophy almost as much as I love music!

For a while now, I've been looking for a way to level match when I'm comparing my music to reference tracks. The only options I've found cost hundreds or more. Plugins like Ian Sheppard's perception and others are great, but too expensive for this recording artist. 

That's why I was SUPER excited to find this little gem! It's called AB Level Match. 

OK so it doesn't have the most creative name, but it does what it claims, and then some!

All you do is install the plugin into the Reaper Resources Folder (found in options --> Show Reaper Resource Folder"), then put the AB Source plugin before all of your other plugins, and put the AB control plugin after. Set the autogain to "ON", and use the Prefilter to get more accurate results. Use SYNC PDC to compensate for latency.

You will get an automatically level matched track so that you can hear precisely what your EQ, compression and other effects are doing without the added loudness.

If you don't use Reaper, they offer a paid version for around $79 CAD which is compatible with any host that can run VST FX, as well as Pro Tools.

Why use this, or something like it? Because one of the golden rules of audio is that louder usually sounds better to our ears. This means that a track will generally sound more lush, full and defined if it's played back louder that it's unprocessed source.  This is especially true during Mastering and other critical listening stages of production.

Loudness Compensation Plugins
http://www.tb-software.com/TBProAudio/ab_lm.html
http://www.meterplugs.com/perception 
http://www.tb-software.com/TBProAudio/download.html (for the free Reaper Version of AB LM)