FAC Clipper

What it does

A clipper that shaves peaks off a signal to buy loudness and add harmonics on the way. Knee sets how soft or hard the clip is, shape controls the harmonic character, and a match function holds the output level steady so louder does not read as better. It runs full band or splits into two bands, letting the low end be crushed while the top stays clean, each band with its own solo and gain. A high quality mode costs extra CPU.

In the demo

Jade starts on a plain sine wave so the squaring off is obvious, then moves through a synth crickets pattern, a low drone and drums. She spends time on the two-band split, crunching the lows while soloing the highs, and shows the transfer curve changing as the knee moves.

Worth knowing

A clipper behaves differently from a limiter and will not replace one for glue on a mix bus. There is an optional tip purchase, and nothing else is locked behind it.