Metric Halo x Make Believe Studios CGII — Free Download
CGII is a mastering processor designed to increase loudness and density while preserving clarity and low-end weight, featuring brickwall true-peak limiting, dithering, and comprehensive metering.
Purpose
CGII is built to master audio with additional loudness without sacrificing the original mix’s clarity, density, or low-end impact. It works even on already-loud mixes, adding presence without harsh distortion or flattening the material. The processor also controls true-peak levels to prevent inter-sample overs, making it a reliable final stage.
Beyond loudness, CGII includes dithering, a DC-block filter, and full LUFS/True-Peak metering, allowing it to serve as a one-stop final processor in a mastering chain. It is also versatile for mixing, with its loudness and density processors useful for harmonic excitation and transient preservation in various contexts.
Key Capabilities
The Density processor raises perceived level by bringing up previously masked low-level details without affecting higher-level peaks, adding bloom and clarity. The Loudness processor transparently increases RMS level while maintaining peaks below full-scale. The True Peak Limiter ensures the output never exceeds a specified ceiling, offering precise control.
User-selectable oversampling up to a high factor (stated as 16x in source) maintains signal fidelity. A DC-block filter removes residual offset, and dithering supports output down to 16-bit. The UI includes adjustable size and Nixie tube displays for reading LUFS values (integrated, short-term, momentary) and true peak levels, with hold options.
Workflow
Place CGII at the end of the master chain for loudness control, dithering, and metering in one pass. Use the Loudness processor to excite harmonics subtly for mix bus energy. The Density processor works well to bring up low-level details without affecting transients, ideal for adding presence to individual tracks or groups.
The true-peak lookahead limiter can be used standalone anywhere in your signal path for transparent output level control. With many presets and an adjustable UI, the plugin adapts to different screen setups. The MH Preset Manager offers cross-platform preset saving and recall, streamlining your sessions.
Practical Applications
In mastering, use CGII to achieve competitive loudness with minimal distortion, especially for mixes that are already loud but need extra density and low-end punch. The metering and dithering make it ideal for preparing final stereo files for delivery, ensuring true-peak compliance and proper bit-depth reduction.
In mixing, employ the Density processor on individual instruments or buses to raise clarity and perceived level without altering transient punch. The Loudness processor can add harmonics to synth lines or vocals for extra energy. The limiter is useful for controlling peaks on drum buses or full mixes before further processing.
Key features
- User-selectable oversampling up to 16x
- Density processor for raising low-level detail without affecting peaks
- Loudness processor for transparent RMS increase with peak control
- True-peak lookahead limiter with adjustable ceiling
- DC-block filter and dithering (16-24 bit)
- Built-in LUFS and true-peak metering with Nixie tube display
- Many presets and adjustable UI size
Best for
Mastering engineers seeking loudness and density with transparent true-peak limiting and metering, as well as mixing engineers needing harmonic excitation or low-level clarity without transient alteration. Its all-in-one design suits final stage processing where precision and reliability are key.
