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VU Meter screenshot

VU Meter

by Funkatronics

An Ableton-esque VU meter that tries to model the behavior o...

View on maxforlive.com

Type
Audio Effect
Author
Funkatronics
Version
1.0.1
License
None
Live version
10.0.3
Max version
7.3.5
Downloads
12,463
Updated
2018-09-13

Description

An Ableton-esque VU meter that tries to model the behavior of older analog VU meters while adding some more modern features.

It is essentially an RMS meter with a long attack/release time that is useful for gain staging and quick leveling of tracks. Features a channel split mode for viewing the left/right or mid/side channels simultaneously, nominal (reference) level adjustment, adjustable attack/release, a floating window, and a proper L/R phase correlation meter.

Note: this is not a loudness meter and therefore not the proper tool for measuring the loudness of your mixes. For loudness measurements, check out my Loudness Meter device here: http://www.maxforlive.com/library/device/5005/loudness-meter

Changelog

1.0.1 - 2018-09-12

Fixed

- Issue where the device would hijack/corrupt Live's undo history

1.0.0 - 2018-04-03

Added

- Initial Release

The above format is based on Keep a Changelog (http://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/) and this project adheres to Semantic Versioning (http://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).

Comments (16)

  • ekaku · July 17 2018
    No way, this is fantastic! :D Such a great tool to help with proper gainstaging. I will keep it as a default on my master.
    Thanks a lot for sharing your work. :D
  • Funkatronics · August 10 2018
    Thanks @ekaku! Its always a pleasure to see my work being used. Good luck your productions!
  • bubbleandsquawk · August 19 2018
    This is really useful. Unfortunately, when it is running it fills up the undo list in Live with Change "live.numbox[8]".
  • bonkorama · August 24 2018
    Hey, love love love the meter, but its as Bubbleandsquawk said, when running it somehow is hooking into the UNDO function. so while its running, say if you delete a clip or anything that should be undoable by command /control -Z, you are unable to because the undo buffer is filled with the VU meter activity.
    Can u take a look sometime? Its a brilliant and super useful max device, but ruined by this one bug.
    thanks in advance!
  • Funkatronics · September 12 2018
    @bubbleandsquawk and bonkorama, sorry for the delay, I will look into this issue ASAP!
  • Funkatronics · September 12 2018
    I believe I have fixed the issue with the undo history getting borked. Try out version 1.0.1 and let me know how it works for ya.
    Sorry again for the delay on this bug fix!
    Funkatronics
  • Crampe · April 15 2019
    There's still a numbox filling up the undo
  • BigWitch · August 03 2019
    Hey, great device! I use it for gain staging.
    Noticed a possible bug though. When extending the plugin to split the left and right channels it seems like the right channel is giving an incorrect reading when viewing from the rack. However, it gives the correct reading when you open the plugin itself... Here's an example. Using version vu-meter 1.0.1 with Live 10.1 on MacOS 10.14.5.
    https://imgur.com/a/OFyT1l5
  • BigWitch · August 03 2019
    Same for mid/side too actually.
  • Funkatronics · February 09 2020
    Hi @bigwitch. Sorry for the bug you are experiencing. I have been trying to reproduce this issue so I can find a fix, but I am not able to replicate what you are seeing. Without reproducing the problem, it can be really difficult or impossible to debug these sorts of issues. Also, I am a Windows user, and don't have access to a Mac for testing/debug. Hopefully this isn't a Mac specific problem.
    Could you send me a simple Live set that reproduces the issue using stock Ableton plugins (just to make sure I have the right instruments to run the set)? You can send it to my email at [email protected].
    Sorry I can't be of more help at the moment, I would like to get this issue fixed for ya. Thank you for the feedback and for using my device! I really appreciate it!
  • BigWitch · June 05 2020
    Hi @Funkatronics,
    Just tried to make a Live Set for you but I was unable to reproduce the error. Everything seems to be running perfectly now. Must have been something to do with my version of Live as that's the only thing I have changed (I'm now running 10.1.14). Unfortunately, I did not give the subversion number last time so unsure which version might have been causing the issue so sorry about that.
    Thanks again!
  • dukeeastwood · October 09 2021
    Great idea but the reading is not accurate; i know it says it's an RMS meter... yet it also displays an old type of VU meter... well neither are accurate as compared to SPAN, Ozone, or Abletons own in program readings; so really I don't know what this device is reading
  • Soundart001 · February 24 2022
    This device is fantastic, I needed something native for the gain stage in ableton and not have to open multiple plugin windows for staging within each channel in ableton, just I would like to know if the funkatronic guys still give support in case of having problems in new live 11,1
    I would even pay for this small device to have support today, thank you guys :)
  • Nordskog · June 29 2022
    Hey there! Just tried out this device today, and it is absolutely brilliant and handy. However, right now it's not showing the same levels as Ableton's own gain meters, and it's more than 6db difference. Is this a bug?
    I tried a couple things, but haven't been able to make it give the same values.
  • AzizKay · July 15 2025
    i need to try it
  • vams · November 25 2025
    Hi, can you make this bit more interesting UI like TBProAudio VU meter & also improve the readings to hit accurate. Nice device though.

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