Monitoring peak levels

The Channel Meters display peak meters that you can use to monitor your audio levels.

If the Channel Meters are not visible, you can select the Show or hide the right pane button or choose View > Meters. For more information, see "Arranging editing views."

The peak meters display instantaneous levels during playback to help you determine the loudest level in your audio signal and whether the signal is clipping.

To prevent clipping, keep an eye on your peak meters. Peak levels should never exceed 0 dB.


Display peak meters in the right pane

Use the transport controls to start playback. During playback, peak and VU/PPM meters are displayed in the Channel Meters. For more information, see "Using transport controls."

Click the arrow to show or hide the meters.

Resetting clip indicators

When clipping is detected, the peak meters display a red clipping indicator.

Perform any of the following actions to reset the indicator:

Changing the meters' display resolution

The peak meters display levels in dB FS. To change the resolution of the meters, do either of the following:

Choosing a wide range allows you to see low-level signals at the expense of precision display at high levels.

Change the meters' display options

You can choose whether labels, peaks, and valleys are displayed in the meters.

Do either of the following to change the meters' display options:

Change the meters' layout

Control-click the peak meters, choose Layout, and then choose a command from the submenu if you want to change the orientation of the peak meters. Meters can be presented horizontally or vertically, or they can switch automatically depending on the window layout.