"wrap around" clipping

h:nez · Post by **h:nez** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 6:46 pm

i mixed a track "close to the limit", i mean the maximum level reached 0 db sometimes, but i didn't observe clipping (used digicheck 4.0 from RME to check that). then i rendered the track (24/44100).
i imported the rendered track into wavelab and i heard a CLICK. i looked closer at the waveform: it was going up to +1.0 and when it reached this limit, one sample "wrapped around" to -1.0 causing the click.
i was expecting that when a waveform goes over +1.0 (clipping) it will be clipped back to +1.0 and not to -1.0. Because a jump from +1.0 to -1.0 is the maximum possible jump in a waveform doing the most harm (loudest click).
i know you absolutely have to avoid clipping in the digital domain but on the other side - clipping one sample back to the limit over which it went and not to the opposite one maybe would not be audible and you could avoid a new mix or using the pencil tool of wavelab for correction.
is my expectation right or do i have to learn more about the mathematics of clipping to understand the wrap around effect?

robbmasters · Post by **robbmasters** » Thu Jun 24, 2004 9:52 pm

Different systems handle clipping differently. Live handles it pretty badly. I've seen what you describe before and now make sure anything I do in Live is *below* 0dB.

giobnery · Post by **giobnery** » Fri Jun 25, 2004 12:23 am

did you have the normalise function set?