how much db gain for limiting?

The more gain reduction you have, the more you'll hear the artifacts of your limiter. In a good master, you don't want to hear the limiter working; therefore, ideally the gain reduction limit you have on the limiter should be no more than 2.5 dB.

1. How much should I reduce gain?
2. What is the threshold on a limiter?
3. Does a limiter increase volume?
4. Should you put a limiter on the Master?

How much should I reduce gain?

The amount of gain reduction we expect to see depends a lot on the dynamic range of the sound before we compress it. When we're mixing, we might use as much as eight or even ten dB of gain reduction at times on an individual instrument. In mastering, it's unusual to have more than two or three dB of gain reduction.

What is the threshold on a limiter?

Threshold determines when limiting begins, while output ceiling specifies how much limiting is applied. When the threshold is low, even relatively low-level signals will undergo gain reduction, while a high threshold will yield a more measured response.

Does a limiter increase volume?

As a creative tool, a limiter can boost the perceived volume of a certain sound. It can also be used to restrain unpredictable effects or automated sounds that have too much dynamic range.

Should you put a limiter on the Master?

You don't NEED to use a limiter on the master channel. Just drop your levels in the mix and ensure you have lots of headroom. When mastering the track (which is different from mixing altogether), then you can apply EQ, Compression (often Opto) and then a brickwall limiter to ensure nothing gets past 0db.