Ableton Pre-Mastering Channel Strip Chain?

[buckman]

I'm working on a dance/EDM project and typically use tight, punchy compression in my tracks—it's a style choice I feel really brings out the fullness and drive of the genre. In the past, I’ve done my own mastering, pushing for that "full" sound with a certain amount of compression, but now I need to deliver -6 dB pre-masters because everything will be mastered in-house.

Here's where I'm seeking advice: How can I maintain that signature compressed sound while still delivering a pre-master with adequate headroom at -6 dB?

I've done some exporting tests and found that setting a very soft limiter on the master channel with a -6 dB ceiling and a minimal threshold seems to control the peaks well, keeping them around -6 to -6.5 dB without flattening the waveform or killing dynamics.

Would this approach be optimal?

Or is there a specific settings chain in Ableton for pre-masters that might retain that tight compression sound, ensuring it's ready for additional mastering? I’m mindful of avoiding a "bricked" waveform but also don’t want to lose the compressed energy the track needs.

[[jur]]

Parallel compression could probably come in handy here.