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Located in the heart of Poland, Hum Audio has been making high-end boutique studio gear since 1999. Founded by Krzysztof Tonn, Hum Audio offers a variety of fully-discrete tools for recording, mixing, and mastering.
You may recognize Tonn's name from TONN Studio, which has specialized in fully analog recordings for over 25 years. In fact, all of Hum Audio's products are tested during real sessions at TONN Studio, including the brand's popular Look Ahead Analog Limiter (LAAL).
Tailor-made for mastering engineers, Hum's LAAL combines an innovative detection circuit with a fully analog delay line, offering users genuine analog “Look Ahead” limiting. Continue reading to learn more about the standout features of the LAAL and how it can enhance your mastering workflow.
For decades, mastering engineers have relied on digital limiters to increase RMS levels—until now. Hum Audio's dual-channel Look Ahead Analog Limiter sets a new standard for mastering, allowing engineers to remain in the analog domain throughout the whole mastering process.
Unlike other "analog" limiters, LAAL does not use soft clipping to artificially increase RMS levels. Instead, all of the magic is thanks to LAAL's sophisticated detection and gain stage circuits. In fact, you can even see the results. Soft clipping often causes waveforms to become blocky and lifeless, while tracks mastered using LAAL are louder but more dynamic.
Now that you've got a better idea of what LAAL can do, let's take a closer look at its controls.
The first thing you're likely to notice about LAAL is its mirrored design. Much like the logo, which features a backwards "L" at the beginning, LAAL's controls are mirrored, which may take some getting used to. Aside from flip-flopping the Input and Output knobs, this also allows the internal audio paths to remain perfectly symmetrical.
LAAL's Input and Output controls are rotary switches with steps of +/- 2 dB, making it easy to accurately set levels or quikcly recall settings. The Trim knobs allow you to fine-tune your input and output levels with an accuracy of up to +/-0.2dB.
The Output controls effectively set the headroom for the recorded track after LAAL processing. Be sure to check the input meters on your DAW when setting these levels to ensure the best results.
The second thing you'll probably notice about the LAAL is that there's no Attack controls. Thanks to its innovative analog look ahead design, LAAL's attack time is "below zero," according to Hum Audio. However, each channel has a Release knob with six fixed release times to choose from: 2ms, 5ms, 10ms, 20ms, 50ms, and 100ms.
In between the two mirrored channels, LAAL's center section is where you'll find advanced features like the Stereo Width controls. Simply press the Stereo Width button to engage the effect, then select one of six rotary switch positions to control the amount of stereo widening.
Unlike other stereo widening effects, LAAL adds more space to your track without pulling all of the low-end energy out of the center channel. Plus, it's fully mono compatible, so you can rest assured knowning your mixes will translate seamlessly.
Earlier in this blog, we mentioned that LAAL is able to effectively increase RMS levels without causing your track to become blocky and lifeless. That's all thanks to LAAL's Dynamic Transient feature, which regenerates the transients of a waveform proportionally to the limiting level. Essentially, this effect allows you to increase RMS levels without sacrificing dynamics.
Each channel also features a dedicated Transformer button, which engages LAAL's high-end audio transformers, subtly adding warmth and body to any source.
Last but not least, the center section features dedicated buttons for Detect Link, Hard Bypass, Limiter Bypass, and Power. The Detect Link button allows you to link the left and right detection circuits together for stereo processing.
The Hard Bypass button bypasses the whole limiter by physically connecting LAAL's inputs and outputs via relay switches, while the Limiter Bypass button only bypasses the limiting circuits, allowing you to use the Stereo Width and Transformer functions without applying limiting.
The Power button in the center is used to turn the unit off and on, of course. It's worth noting that LAAL has a "soft start" feature, that ensurres there is no "thump" in your monitors when power cycling.
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