Mercenary Audio - Pendulum Audio PL-2 JFET/MOSFET 2 Channel Peak Limiter

The circuit was originally designed for the 4th section of the Quartet II Mercenary Edition but is so cool it had to be put in its own 1 RU / 2 channel chassis so you can run more than just the one channel during your recording process. The PL-2 is a brick wall limiter that will allow you to set the ceiling on exactly where the wall is in terms of your level... then it will give you the option of which kind of brick wall element you would like to employ to keep your audio from clipping your converters. The J-FET and MOS-FET gain reduction elements do indeed sound different though they accomplish the same brick wall limiting chore. If you like to work fast [which can mean an "over here or there"] then having a PL-2 at the end of your chain, especially on transient prone signals like snare and even vocals... can be the difference between capturing a great take, losing a great take, or having to manipulate a take so much after it has been recorded that you end up losing the magic.

Pendulum Audio PL-2 features

The PL-2 is a stand-alone two channel version of the very popular peak limiter in our Quartet II Tube Recording Channel. It uses a novel approach to brick wall limiting in the analog domain, one that is fast enough to prevent digital overs without using time delay or phase-shift delay techniques. This allows us to keep the analog signal path short, and keep the limiting circuit 'switched out' of the signal path below the peak limiting threshold. Distortion for all levels below the the limiting threshold is low, and does not rise as the threshold for limiting is approached. Unlike analog peak clippers, which chop off the top and bottom of the waveform, our limiter retains dynamic information at the top of the peak.

The PL-2 has two modes of peak limiting, using either junction field-effect transistors (JFET) or metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFET) as the control elements. While both are equally capable of brick wall limiting, each type has its own characteristic sound. The JFET tends to be a stiffer, harder mode of limiting, while the MOSFET has a softer, more compliant response. The resulting waveforms look different, and each device has its own characteristic sound.

In addition, Input and Output gain controls allow the user to scale the gain structure for a wide range of applications, from driving the front end of an A/D converter at +22 dBu, to inserting it as an effect into a +4 dBu patch bay. Each channel also has an expanded 13 segment LED display which accurately indicates peak reduction.

JFET (hard) or MOSFET (soft) peak limiting modes
Two independent channels with stereo link
Precise readout of peak reduction
Stepped input and output controls - ideal for mastering or session recall
Limiter circuit out of the signal path when below threshold
Transformerless Class A solid-state design

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