5.5 Meters
The Vocalstrip input and output meter displays are, in fact, three meters in one. They offer various ways to easily read the Peak and RMS levels of a signal over time, and the ‘dynamic history’ meter allows you to see at a glance how the amplitude has been changing over the past second or so. A 30dB range from 0dB FS downwards gives ample information about the amplitude of the signal.
Peak Meter and Clip Indicator
The wide meter bar to the left is a responsive peak meter which allows you to observe the exact input level at any point in time. A red clip light at the top of the meters indicates that three consecutive samples are at maximum which is taken to mean that the input is higher than 0dB FS and is therefore clipping. It will stay illuminated for 1 second following clip detection, after which it will automatically clear. It can also be cleared at any point with a mouse click.
Dynamic History Meter
The thin white bracket on the far right of the meter gives an indication of the recent dynamic range of a signal. The top of the bracket measures the most recent peak level of the signal, where as the bottom of the line shows the smallest peak to have happened recently. If the bracket is long it indicates that the signal has a large swing in dynamic range, and if it is short the range is small. If the top and bottom points of the bracket are quickly moving around, it can be assumed that the dynamic range is quickly changing, which could be interpreted as an ‘energetic’ signal.
RMS Meter
The thinner bar to the right of this shows the RMS (average) level. This is useful in graphically judging the ‘loudness’ of the signal and when used in conjunction with the peak meter can give a good idea of the peak to RMS ratio (crest factor) of the signal.
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