02) Overview of HiFAL
HiFAL has two processing sections: the Main HiFAL and the Parallel Limiter. Each can be turned on or off using the power button in the bottom right corner of its section.
Main Limiter
When only the Low Frequency Crossover Flag is active, everything below the flag passes through unprocessed, while frequencies above it are processed by the Main HiFAL section. When the High Frequency Crossover Flag is also active, processing is limited to the range between the two flags. Frequencies below the low flag and above the high flag are left unprocessed. The processing band is shown with a soft blue halo, while the unprocessed signals appear in grey.
Parallel Limiter
When only the Low Frequency Crossover Flag is active, any signal below that point is muted, and only the signal above it is sent to the Parallel Limiter. When both the Low and High Frequency Crossover Flags are active, only the signal between the two flags is processed. Everything outside that range—both below the low flag and above the high flag—is muted. The output includes only the limited signal from the selected frequency range.
Processing Breakdown
The Main HiFAL section processes the core signal, while the Parallel Limiter acts as an additive layer—filling in high-frequency gaps with frequency-specific limiting. You can apply anything from light dynamic support to aggressive parallel compression, depending on the mix. This setup gives you precise, bottom-up control to reinforce clarity or texture without overwhelming the main signal. The draggable blue halo shows exactly what’s being processed, and right-clicking (or control-clicking) lets you momentarily solo that range as you sweep to find the band that needs attention. This makes it easy to isolate and fine-tune the area you want to control with HiFAL or fill in using the parallel limiter. Check out the signal flow below for more details.
Be well,
Ryan Schwabe
Grammy-nominated and multi-platinum mixing & mastering engineer
Founder of Schwabe Digital
