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Clipping

Clipping happens when a signal is too loud and the peaks are cut off, causing distortion.

Level relevance: introduced at Nat 4; tagged for every later level where the same concept remains useful.

Explanation

Clipping occurs when the system cannot handle the level of the signal and the waveform is truncated. This often creates unpleasant distortion and loss of quality. Preventing clipping is one reason gain staging and sensible recording levels matter. Once a clipped recording is badly damaged, it may not be possible to repair fully.

Topics

RecordingLevelsTechnical accuracy

Curriculum statussupporting vocabulary

Review statusdraft

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Related terms

Gain

Gain controls signal level at the input or processing stage of the signal path.

View term

Amplitude

Amplitude is the size of a sound wave and relates to how loud it appears.

View term

Limiting

Limiting is strong compression used to stop peaks going above a set level.

View term

Distortion

Distortion changes the waveform by adding harmonic content, often producing a rougher or more aggressive sound.

View term