A limiter is a compressor with a stronger ratio. Two commonly accepted definitions are that more than 4:1 or more than 8:1 ratios are limiting, anything less is compressing. They are no different in process. Soft and hard limiting are also differences of degree. The "harder" a limiter, the lower its threshold and the higher its ratio.
Soft and hard limiting are also differences of degree. The "harder" a limiter, the lower it's threshold and the higher its ratio.
"''Brick Wallwall Limiting",limiting'' means that NOTHINGnothing passes the threshold. In practice, this is a ratio of 50:1 or possibly 100:1 or greater. The sonic results can be undesirable, unless applied to only the loudest transients, ; Itit is most appropriate as a safety device in live and broadcast applications.
== Side-chaining ==
Some compressors implement '''side-chaining'''. This feature uses the dynamic level of another input to control the compression level of the signal. This is used by [[disk jockey|disk jockeys]] to lower the music volume automatically when speaking, for example (known as ''ducking''). Another use is in music production, to maintain a loud bass track, while still keeping the bass 'out of the way' of the bass drum when the drum hits.
