ATM BETTERMAKER User manual
The Bettermaker crew would like to thank all the people that were deeply
involved in the development of our first products, from
EQ230P till this day.
Thanks to all the Beta-testers that gave us hands-on tips and all people
involved in the conceptual stage. We hope we have listened to you carefully so
as to produce an ideal tool in the hands of every engineer.
Thank you guys!
I would like to personally thank my development team, the past and the
present as their passion to work and bright minds made all that happen. I
would not take all my wild concepts to the point they are now without you
guys.
Marek Walaszek
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
1. Company
2. Bettermaker Mastering Limiter
II. Important Safety Information
1. Turning the unit on for the first time
2. Safety Warnings
III. Construction of the Mastering Limiter
1. Analog section
2. igital section
3. Front panel and LC touchscreen
4. Internal signal path diagram
IV. General peration
1. Connecting the Mastering Limiter to your system
2. Level calibration
3. Main Menu
4. Settings
5. Presets
6. Limiter & Clipper
7. Color
8. Spectrum Analyzer
9. Analog-style metering
10. K-metering
11. Loudness measurements
12. Phase & correlation metering
13. Custom metering
V. DAW integration
1. System requirements and installation
2. AW automation and presets
3. Plugin operation
4. Firmware update
VI. Specification
I. Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the Bettermaker Mastering Limiter - all
analog sound with the flexibility of digital control! Welcome to the family! The hybrid
audio limiter, now in your possession, is the result of years of research and
development in emerging digital control technologies. The final hand-built unit is
currently glowing happily in your rack (lucky you). The Mastering Limiter brings the
flexibility, ease of use, and instant recall ability of software plugins to the realm of
high fidelity analog processing like no other analog Limiter on the market.
1. Company
Addicted to Music began in 2004 in Warsaw, Poland as a recording and mixing
studio. Long before it was a hardware company we were deeply involved in the
international music and recording scene. This is not a company run by scientists who
crunch numbers all day, we are a company run by engineers who live, eat, and
breathe music (like you do). We know good sound, and know first-hand what it takes
on both sides of the glass to capture the perfect take. We developed the Mastering
Limiter to go from the perfect track, and make it even better!
2. Bettermaker Mastering Limiter
The Bettermaker Mastering Limiter was designed to have the greatest flexibility
of any analog Limiter while still allowing absolute recall and repeatability. We often
found the strengths of software plug-ins wasn’t their sound, but the ability to quickly
audition different settings. This allowed us to make faster, better informed musical
choices. The ability to jump back and forth between (sometimes vastly different)
settings allowed us to keep a clear vision of the sonic goal in mind, while quickly
making decisions on the best setting to use. However, we recognized the sonic
superiority of our analog gear compared to their digital counterparts. In countless
shoot-outs, the analog versions always won. Since we’re a company that cares about
better sound over processing speed, our engineers would take the extra time to use a
full analog chain, because it simply sounds better.
In the traditional analog world the time spent in the act of having to set and
reset knobs and buttons to audition between settings often skewed our choices. More
time was spent tweaking knobs trying to recover an earlier setting than was spent
listening. The limited resolution of the mechanical parts often meant only very coarse
adjustments were possible (previously only solvable by very expensive mechanical
switches). A difficult situation, to say the least, but the greater fidelity, openness, and
depth of the analog gear was always worth.
Even after years of advancement in digital algorithms, the older analog versions
always sounded better. With these goals in mind, we strove to create a hybrid
Mastering Limiter that was the best of both worlds: A true analog limiting based on
classic designs, but with the repeatability, fine resolution, and consistency of digital
plug-ins. Choosing modern components and design practices over older traditional
methods helped maintain the transient response and low noise-floor necessary for
today’s recording practices. Wherever possible we choose over-spec’ed components to
ensure trouble free operation and a long product life. Most importantly we listened
first, tested, and then listened again.
The Bettermaker Mastering Limiter is designed according to international
standards, and is fully functional in any location with proper mains power available.
This includes, but is not limited, to studio, stage, video post, on-location, festival,
corporate, and both installed and temporary audio solutions. This limiter is excellent
in festival situations as its instant recall makes it perfect for fast resetting between
multiple stages. Once you grow accustomed to the amazingly quick recall and
flexibility of this unit, we believe you will find new uses and applications for it in your
professional workflow.
We hope you enjoy your Mastering Limiter. Now, go make some music Better!
II. Important Safety Information
1. Before you turn the unit on
Before turning the unit on for the first time, remember to set it to correct AC
voltage (115V or 230V) depending on your location. Always use quality AC power cord
with safety (earth) pin and ensure that the power outlet in the wall has the earth
connection too. It is important for safety reasons but also helps to keep the unit’s
noise levels low.
2. Safety Warnings
- do not operate this unit in the presence of rain, liquids or condensing moisture.
Liquid entering the product enclosure presents the risk of electric shock injury.
- do not operate the Bettermaker Mastering Limiter in any place near water. Always be
sure to protect the unit from dust, particles, water, beer, groupies, and stage divers.
- for normal operation it is not necessary to access the interior of the Mastering
Limiter. The only user serviceable part is the AC fuse located in the compartment
below the AC mains socket. Chapter VI “Troubleshooting” explains what to do in case
of the unit’s failure.
Always remove the AC power cord from the socket before attempting to
change the fuse (0.63A slow-blow fuse).
III. Construction of the Mastering Limiter
This basic overview with internal signal path diagram will help you to understand the
functionality of the Bettermaker Mastering Limiter. The sound of the limiter is of
course based on the quality of its hardware design. But all the control and user
interactions are performed in the digital domain. This allows us to incorporate options
and possibilities not found in any standard analog limiter:
- Save and recall presets
- Instant reset of all parameters
- Rapid, precise and repeatable adjustments
- Precisely linked stereo operation with the ease of a single control
- AW automation
- Comprehensive metering operations based on high quality A/ conversion and SP
1. Analog section
Great care and thought went into the development and implementation of the
analog section of the Bettermaker Mastering Limiter. High quality capacitors and low
noise op-amps are used in the analog path. Relays were used, whenever creating the
shortest path for the audio signal was necessary.
The analog section consist of high quality input/output buffers capable of
passing thru high level audio signals (up to +23dBu, balanced, TH <0.1%),
independent odd and even harmonics generators (colors) with adjustable band-pass
filters, M/S matrix, VCA limiter (ratio ∞:1), clipper section (combination of soft and
hard clipping) and output level attenuator. Additionally, the 24-bit A/ conversion
circuit collects the audio data for measurement purposes.
All these modules are controlled by the digital section of the Mastering Limiter,
so no mechanical switches or knobs are required to adjust any of the parameters.
2. Digital Section
The digital section of the Mastering Limiter is based around two high speed, 32-
bit micro-controllers, with dedicated firmware programmed into their memory (with
the possibility of updating the firmware via USB connection). One of them is
responsible for controlling the VCA limiter, when the other watches over the user
interface, presets management, audio measurement, USB connectivity and other
Mastering Limiter functions.
The use of separate ground planes for analog and digital section results in
perfect noise isolation between these two worlds. The linear power supply was used
instead the switching one to improve the sonic qualities even further.
3. Front panel and LCD touchscreen
The front panel of the Mastering Limiter is build around big LC touchscreen,
that allows you to control almost all functions available in the device. Apart from that,
you can also monitor input/output levels, amount of gain reduction (and clipping)
applied by the limiter, perform advanced measurements (FFT, LUFS, K-metering), use
on-screen QWERTY keyboard for naming your presets and more. You can even display
fully configurable, analog style VU meters!
On both sides of the LC screen you will find four knobs placed on endless
rotary encoders. These knobs are labeled INPUT, UTPUT, P1 and P2. While the
purpose of INPUT and OUTPUT knobs is self-explanatory (but they also have other
functions, like scrolling thru the presets list), the assignment of P1 and P2 knobs may
vary, depending on the currently selected screen. Smaller knobs also have push-
button functionality and they are velocity-sensitive, resulting in coarse changes when
spun quickly, and very precise fine increment/decrements when turned slowly.
The ENGAGE button allows you to turn the audio processing on (the button is
lit) or bypass the unit (relay based true bypass). When you turn the Mastering Limiter
off completely (with the MAINS switch) it will still pass unprocessed audio. Please
note that all measurement functions will stop when the unit is in bypass mode.
4. Internal signal path diagram
IV. General peration
The guide below will walk you thru all the screens and functions available in the
Mastering Limiter.
1. Connecting the Mastering Limiter to your system
Apart from selecting the correct AC voltage and connecting AC plug to the wall
socket (with grounding pin) you will also need:
- to connect the USB LINK to your MAC/PC. It is recommended to use quality
USB cable that is no longer than 1.5m or additional USB hubs might be required. The
Mastering Limiter works with USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 standards. The USB LINK will allow
you to control the unit from your favorite AW via VST/VST3/AAX/AU plugin and
perform the firmware update in the future.
- to connect XLR inputs and outputs. Using balanced, quality cables is essential
here to provide best possible signal quality with very low noise floor. Markings on the
back of the unit will make this process very straightforward.
2. Input and utput Metering Calibration
IMP RTANT! Please allow the unit to warm up for at least 20 minutes in
studio environment, to be sure that all parameters are stable.
The Mastering Limiter is prepared to
work straight form the box. In most
cases the metering will be accurate and
the limiter will behave perfectly.
However if you would like to calibrate
the internal metering to match your
A / A readouts, please perform simple
calibration procedure. Make sure you
always calibrate input metering first and
then output.
Form the main menu you can enter the Settings (gear icon) screen. Then
choose Metering IN CAL. or Metering UT CAL. and follow the steps shown on the
screen. Please note that the calibration is for metering only – it will not affect audio
levels during normal operation.
3. Main Menu
Straight after powering the unit up you will be transferred to the Limiter &
Clipper Window. Tap in the bottom right corner of the screen to go to the Main Menu.
Here, you can either go back to
the Limiter Window or go to the
COLOR screen and adjust the
settings of odd/even harmonics
generator. You can also choose
one of the measurement tools
like FFT analysis, LUFS, K-
metering and other that will be
explained in following chapters of
this manual.
As the Mastering Limiter has build in memory of 399 presets, this screen also
displays the last loaded preset and warns you if the preset was changed by your
adjustments and needs to be saved again. And finally the bottom row of buttons:
BACK (jumps back to the previous screen), SAVE/L AD (presets) and SETTINGS
(gear icon). The USB icon shows that the unit is connected with your PC/MAC and you
can control the Limiter with dedicated AW plugin.
4. Settings
This screen allows you to adjust
the BRIGHTNESS of the screen
(touch and drag the virtual slider
on the screen), check the
firmware version of your unit, see
the number of power cycles (how
many times the unit was turned
off and on), but also to CLEAR
presets memory and perform the
METERING CALIBRATI N
procedure (it has to be done only
once when you connect the Mastering Limiter for the first time. However if you change
your /A converters you might need to calibrate the limiter again. We’ve talked about
the calibration procedure on the previous page).
IMP RTANT! If you decide that you want to erase presets memory, you need
to remember that you can’t undo your action. All your presets will be gone!
If you wish to clear the presets memory simply tap on CLEAR and confirm your
choice. You will see the progress on the screen. When the procedure is over you will
be asked to restart the Mastering Limiter. If you wish to RESET SETTINGS like
metering source (input or output) or RTA settings – you can do it here as well.
5. Presets
All adjustable parameters of the limiter, clipper and color (harmonics generator)
can be saved as presets within the unit. Each preset also remembers configuration of
measurement tools (for example LUFS limits or type of analog meters you have been
using). To save new preset or overwrite the old one, tap on SAVE button in Main
Menu window.
You can scroll the presets list with the
OUTPUT knob. Once you choose the preset
number, tap on SAVE button - you will be
asked to confirm your choice (if you are
overwriting an existing preset) or you will
be transferred straight to the on-screen
keyboard, that will allow you to give your
new preset an unique name.
You can also DELETE existing preset to
free some space in the internal memory.
When you are overwriting an existing
preset (in most situations it means that
you loaded a preset, made some changes
and now you need to save it again) the
PRESET NAME field will preload the name
for you. You can change the name (CLEAR
and BACKSPACE buttons will help you to
do so) or just press SAVE straight away. If you are saving preset into “(empty preset)”
cell, PRESET NAME field will be blank.
Loading presets is very simple too. Just
Press L AD in the Main Menu, choose the
preset and hit LOA in the LOA PRESET
window. The Mastering Limiter will recall
all the settings and activate the ENGAGE.
Press BACK or scroll thru other presets to
find the one that suits your needs.
On the preset list you might notice the
RED or GREEN dot beside the preset
number and name. The dot shows up when some preset was loaded or saved. If
you’ve loaded a preset, but haven’t made any changes to it, the dot will be GREEN.
But if any changes were made to the loaded preset the dot would turn RE . Also you
will get UNSAVE ! warning in the Main Menu – that is a sign that you should save
your preset again before you turn the unit off.
6. Limiter & Clipper
This is the screen that you will probably see the most. It contains all limiter
related controls and list of “color” settings (you can enable or disable harmonics in the
top right of the screen or edit it by pressing COLOR).
Most of the screen is occupied by the UTPUT LEVEL meter (it can be
switched to the input monitoring mode), the GAIN REDUCTI N meter, that shows
the amount of reduction applied to the signal by the VCA limiter, and CLIPPER meter
showing how much of the signal amplitude have been “cut” by the clipping circuit
(only if the Clipper is enabled).
It is worth to understand the internal signal path of the Mastering Limiter
(presented a couple of pages earlier) as it helps to understand the behavior of the
limiter while different settings are changed. The Bettermaker Mastering Limiter is a
fixed threshold type limiter. It means that applying more signal to the input results in
more VCA compression (and clipping). The thresholds of the VCA limiter and clipping
circuit are set approx. 3dB apart, so the VCA limiting takes place first. Any transients
that pass thru the VCA stage (due to limited attack time of the VCA type limiter) will
be “caught” by the clipping circuit. The input gain can be boosted with the INPUT
knob and up to 20dB of gain can be added here.
If you are not using the CLIPPER (you can switch it on and off with CLIPPER
N/ FF button in the bottom of the screen) you can adjust the ATTACK and
RELEASE times of the VCA limiter with P1 and P2 knobs. If the clipping circuit is
enabled then the CLIPPITER value is introduced instead of usual attack time. The
Clippiter value is simply the ratio between the VCA limiting and signal clipping. In fact,
you are still adjusting the attack time of the VCA limiter – set longer attack time
(higher ratio) and more transients will be passed to the clipping circuit; set shorter
time (lower ratio) and the VCA will do most of the job. If you set the Clippiter value to
100% the VCA circuit will shut off completely and the Mastering Limiter will start to
reduce the signal amplitude only by using the clipper circuit. The amount of clipping
can still be adjusted with the INPUT knob.
If you don’t wish to adjust the RELEASE time manually, you can use IREL
(intelligent release) mode, enable by pressing IREL button in the bottom of the
screen. In this mode the release time is set automatically based on the musical
content of the signal and amount of gain reduction applied.
The UTPUT knob adjusts the output level of the Mastering Limiter (check the
internal signal path diagram). Using it will allow you to set proper output level of the
device and ensure that you are not overloading your A/ converters with the signal
coming back from the limiter.
The Mastering Limiter can work in stereo or mid-side mode. Use M/S button to
toggle between. When the device is working in M/S mode, the labels beside the Gain
Reduction meters will change. It is typical to see most of the reduction take place in
the MI part of the signal, but of course it all depends on the musical content of the
signal being processed. Working in M/S mode allows you also to change the WIDTH
of the signal (side gain). This can create very spacious, big soundings effects, but also
almost completely monophonic sound. To adjust, tap on the WI TH value on the
screen (it will become highlighted) and turn the OUTPUT knob. To give the OUTPUT
knob its previous purpose of controlling the output level, simply tap on OUTPUT value
on the screen again.
There are three additional buttons on the bottom of the screen:
LEVEL (INPUT/ UTPUT) – lets you select the signal source for the level
metering (see the internal signal path diagram). Choose either the input of the device
(before harmonic generator circuit) or output (after the output level circuit).
RESET – this button will set all limiter, clipper and “color” (harmonic generator)
settings to their default values. You can also double click on P2 knob.
PREFS – let’s you choose between peak/RMS metering, different widgets
(COLOR or real-time momantary LUFS readout) and other.
7. Color (harmonic generator) window:
There are two stereo harmonic generators build into the unit. One of them is
responsible for creating odd harmonics (3rd, 5th, 7th etc.), while the other one – even
harmonics (2nd, 4th, 6th etc.). There is an adjustable band pass filter before each of the
generators. All this functionality corresponds to two sets of controls: DRIVE,
FREQUENCY and AM UNT. You can only adjust one generator at a time. You choose
which one by taping on the left or right side of the screen.
Use the ON/OFF buttons on the bottom of the screen to enable or disable one
or both of the harmonic generators (colors). Press RESET to set the generators
settings to their default values. Use METER to switch to GR metering.
The P1 knob adjust the RIVE parameter that changes the character of harmonics
being generated (from soft to really distorted, depending on the input level of the
signal being processed). The P2 knob adjust the FREQUENCY response of the band
pass filters. This allows you to add color to the specific part of the frequency spectrum
of the sound. And finally use the big OUTPUT knob to adjust the AMOUNT of created
harmonics to be added to dry signal.
This allows you for example to add small amount of odd harmonics to the low
frequencies of your mix, and lots of even harmonics to the top end.
If you wish to change the limiter’s input gain (big INPUT knob) without leaving
the color window – go ahead. The yellow bubble with the value will pop up on the
screen. This is very handy feature as adding harmonics might change the signal level
and amount of VCA (and clipper) gain reduction.
8. Spectrum Analyzer window:
The spectrum analyzer window gives you a
great, real-time insight into the current
frequency content of the processed signal.
By pressing the STYLE button you can
choose two types of graphical
representation to fulfill your needs. BARS
style with 30 animated meters and peak
hold functionality (you can personalize this
feature by pressing the PEAKS button) or
GRAPH style with movable frequency
pointer (just drag your finger across the
screen to see how it works). You can
choose the point of measurement between
input and output of the Mastering Limiter
(S URCE button). By pressing RESET you
can reset the peak holds.
9. Analog-style metering
There are 4 types of analog-like level metering available in the Mastering
Limiter – PPM, VU meter (in two styles) and linear dBFS moving-coil meter. They all
serve different purpose and have different ballistic. You can scroll between different
types of meters by pressing M DE (PPM, VU1, VU2, IGI) button.
PPM – Peak Programme Meter has a 4dB spacing between the scale marks (with
0dBFS on mark 6). The TYPE1 PPM has an integration time of 5ms (return time of
20dB in 1.7s) and the TYPE2 PPM - 10 ms (return time of 20dB in 2.8s). The T.PEAK
type provides almost instant integration time (return time of 20dB in 1.7s).
VU – Volume Unit Meter,
calibrated to show 0dB when
0dBFS 1kHz sine signal is
present. The fall time is the same
as the integration time - 300 ms.
DIGI – digital full-scale meter
with true peak response and
adjustable fall time (use PEAK
button to select preferred fall
time).
10. K-metering
K-metering system build in the
Mastering Limiter supports K-12,
K-14 and K-20 standards. It
helps you calibrate your studio
monitoring levels and produce
more consistent music content,
while still maintaining high
dynamic range.
Please refer to excellent paper “An integrated approach to Metering, Monitoring and
Leveling” by Bob Katz for further details.
11. Loudness measurements
This section of metering helps you to monitor programme’s loudness
(momentary, short and integrated/long term), dynamic range and maximum true-
peak levels to ensure that they meet EBU R128 standards issued by the European
Broadcasting Union. All algorithms are based on ITU-R BS.1770 and EBU Tech 3341
recommendations.
There are two types of layouts to
choose from in PREFS window.
You can also change integration
time for LRA (20 or 60 secs of
collecting samples before LRA
value is given), change LUFS and
LKFS units and set the timeout
for warnings. If INFINITE
WARNING HOL is ON then
every value that is above or
under set limits will stay red until
the end of the measurement.
Once you press PLAY the
Mastering Limiter will start
analyzing audio. You will see the
clock counter start and history
graph move. Tap on the graph to
change its speed.
You can PAUSE the measurement (and resume again) or ST P to end the
measurement. Please note that if you press PLAY on this stage, a new measurement
will start and previous results will be lost. As the loudness measurement is gated and
it will not include silence in the results, you can start measurement first and then play
the programme from AW/tape. You can also go back to main limiter window, even
when the measurement is in progress, however you will not be able to change the
metering source (input or output of the Mastering Limiter) until you stop the
measurement.
LIMITS window allows you to set
targets for the analysis. If any of
the values goes above or under
this limits it will turn red. You can
set desired range for short term
loudness, maximum momentary
loudness, maximum TruePeak
level (the limiter uses 4x
oversampling to calculate the
level) and most importantly – the
target for Integrated Loudness
(default value is -23 LUFS). If the result is more than 1 LUFS away from the target
the value will turn red, indicating that the programme’s loudness is too high or too
low.
12. Phase & correlation metering
Press PHASE in main menu to display the Goniometer and Stereo Phase
Correlation Meter. It is very useful tool for checking mono compatibility of your mix.
Pressing FADE button will toggle
between different fade timeouts.
CLEAR will reset the correlation
graph.
13. Custom metering
The Bettermaker Mastering Limiter allows you to display three independent
and fully configurable sets of measurements. It will free your main computer
screen and provide convenient way of monitoring levels of your mix/master.
By tapping on different parts of
the screen you can scroll thru all
available measurements. The
Limiter will remember your
choices. As there are three
CUSTOM sets available you can
use them for different jobs, for
example: mixing, TV mastering,
audio stream mastering.
The list of available measurements include:
•input and output peak and RMS levels
•VCA gain reduction
•amount of clipping applied by the Limiter
•TruePeak level
•K-metering (peak or RMS)
•Goniometer for phase correlation check
•Loudness measurements (note that integrated loudness value will be available
only if the measurement is running in the background)
•and more..
V. DAW integration
The Bettermaker Mastering Limiter can communicate with your AW via USB
connection. The unit appear as a HI device and can be managed via Bettermaker
Mastering Limiter Plugin.
Please download the latest version of the plugin installer form our site:
https://www.bettermaker.com/downloads
Everything you set on the hardware will appear in the plugin and every change
of the plugin will be followed by the Mastering Limiter. All the settings will be stored in
you session every time you save the project in your AW.
The plugin appears in your AW as an audio effect plugin. You can open it as an
insert or anywhere in your Host (on mix bus for example). We recommend to keep the
plugin on the track that you are currently editing, so it will be obvious for you what
track is affected. Notice that the plugin only sends and receives parameter changes of
the Mastering Limiter, it does not affect the sound by itself - you need to insert your
analog limiter physically via your /A & A/ converter. The plugin will connect
automatically with the limiter as soon as you load the session (you need to power up
the unit first).
VI. Product Specifications
Maximum input level: +21,5 dBu (balanced)
Maximum output level: +23 dBu (TH <0.1%)
Operating Level: +4dBu
Maximum gain reduction: 20 dB
Makeup gain: automatic
Attack time: 0.1 – 250ms
Release time: 0.01 – 1.3s + IREL (intelligent release)
Input impedance (differential): 48kΩ (for balanced signal)
Output Impedance: 50Ω + 50Ω (electronically balanced)
Frequency response 5Hz to 30kHz; +/- 0.1dB
ynamic range: 106 dB @ +21 dBu, 20 kHz BW
TH +N: <0.04%, +4 dBu, unity gain, 20 kHz BW
CMRR: max 80 dB @ 3 kHz, min 55 dB @ 50Hz, 20 kHz BW
Crosstalk: min -90 dB @ 1KHz, max -55 dB @ 30Hz, +18 dBu, 20 kHz BW
Maximum power consumption: 30W (uses 630mA slow blow fuse)
Shipping weight: 5.5 kg
Other manuals for BETTERMAKER
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