SM
★★★★★
This clipper has left my jaw hanging on the floor. So simple, yet blows so many other clippers out of the water. It just sounds so so good when other clippers are falling apart.
STABILIZING A/D CLIPPER · THE ENGINE OF P21 ATLAS AHEAD OF THE RAIL
P22 RAIL
Commercial loudness with a character you choose, not a threshold you babysit.
A time-domain A/D clipper with the stabilizing engine of P21 Atlas riding ahead of the rail. Pick a flavor, set DRIVE, listen. Three converters in spirit, near-zero latency, transients left exactly where the recording put them.
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TWO EDITIONS, ONE ENGINE
Same stabilizing clipper, same three flavors. The edition sets how many channels RAIL drives.
RAIL STEREO
The full engine and all three flavors on mono and stereo buses.
MONO · STEREO
$179
ACQUIRE STEREO
RAIL IMMERSIVE
Every channel format RAIL supports, from mono through 9.1.6, clipped as one coherent program with the soundfield held in place.
MONO · STEREO · LCR · QUAD · 5.0 · 5.1 · 7.0 · 7.1 · 7.1.2 · 7.1.4 · 9.1.6
$225
ACQUIRE IMMERSIVE
If a RAIL Stereo license loads on a multichannel bus, the plugin recognizes the unsupported layout and passes the audio through unchanged. Multichannel and immersive work needs the Immersive edition. The free demo is the Immersive edition.
A clipper with a stabilizing engine in front of it.
“A converter driven past full scale does not ask for attack, release, or knee settings. It has a character, and the engineer drives into it. RAIL works the same way. Choose a flavor, set DRIVE, listen.”
Ziad Sidawi, preface of the P22 RAIL user guide
Ahead of the clipping stage sits a stabilizing engine, the same thinking that drives P21 Atlas, working in a narrow window just below the rail. As peaks approach the clipping point it rides them down, so the clipper shapes only what the engine could not catch instead of flattening everything that crosses the rail. Transients keep their impact, the character stays the same peak after peak, and the program holds together as you drive it.
The panel is short on purpose. FLAVOR picks the converter in spirit, DRIVE pushes into it by up to 18 dB, TRIM brings the output back down to where you want it, and MATCH gives you a level-matched A/B against BYPASS, so you judge character rather than loudness. Place RAIL after Atlas on the master, alone at the end of any chain, or on stems and groups that want loudness and edge on part of the mix. At three samples of latency it is fast enough for live front-of-house work.
THREE CONVERTERS IN SPIRIT
MODERNTransparent, uncoloredThe clean path: transparent peak control with minimal coloration, for material that is already balanced and needs to come up. Clips soonest.
SHARPDefined, edged, presentA defined edge that adds presence and transient focus, a quicker and more decisive bend into the clipper. For rhythmic, produced material that wants snap. Moderate drive tolerance.
VINTAGEWarm, rich, wideAsymmetric warmth and harmonic richness, shaped over a wider zone before the rail. For programs that want body and a rounder sound as they get louder. Holds the most drive.
- ENGINE · RAIL
- The stabilizing engine prepares how peaks arrive, the flavor sets the tone going into the clipper, and the clip itself adds the final harmonic character at the rail. Engine and flavor carry the identity across the whole program; the clip is the fingerprint at the peak.
- DRIVE · TRIM · MATCH
- DRIVE from 0 to 18 dB into the rail, TRIM from unity down to −30 dB after it, MATCH for a level-matched comparison, BYPASS to judge it, A and B slots to keep two settings side by side.
- IMMERSIVE
- RAIL Immersive treats every main channel as one program and clips them consistently, mono through 9.1.6. The LFE channel is monitored but never clipped and passes through time-aligned with the mains; CLIP BAL shows how the clipping lands across front, surround and height.
- READOUTS · DELIVERY
- PK IN, CLIP DEPTH, CLIP %, TP, TP MAX, LUFS-I and LRA on the panel. RAIL reports true-peak but does not guarantee it: keep a dedicated true-peak limiter last for delivery.
Trusted in the studio.
1 / 1
“Such a great clipper. Easy to use, and it sounds great. It lets me deliver a louder reference mix to a client without changing the tone or internal balances of what I would normally send to mastering. The ability to use it in 5.1 for film scores and 7.1.2 for Atmos is huge. I finally have something I love for that spot.”
Alex Venguer
Multi-Grammy-winning recording engineer and mixer
Sting · Lady Gaga · John Legend · Yo-Yo Ma · Herbie Hancock · Ryuichi Sakamoto
What owners say.
5.0
★★★★★
Based on 5 reviews
Sort
PM
★★★★★
the companion to Atlas, rail is definitely in the same simplified vein when it comes to the controls. There really isn't much you can do to mess it up. Using in conjunction with atlas on an atmos mix rail does an excellent job of further shaving peaks while adding some more extra level. Or at least that's how you may at first perceive it, as PM put it (“The engine prepares peaks rather than slamming them“) which is probably why you can push it quite hard without totally wrecking the transients. Set the trim to the desired level and drive into it, its that simple. Love the gui on this one, there's a lot going on visually without looking too busy
DR
★★★★★
I demoed this in combination with P21 as suggested and I just smiled. I like the different Modes/Flavors it has, very noticeable in a very pleasant way. Definitely I am getting this one too.
At this point, I have almost the full collection of PM products except the synth.
I have been using PM plugins since the first version of Climax, is to show that I love. They are very organic sounding. And this one is no exception.
B
★★★★★
P22 is amazing! My personal favorite is the Vintage mode. Easy to use and the meter panel is extremely useful.
AL
★★★★★
I just tried this in place of my go-to clipper (after P21 of course) and I now have a new go-to clipper! Vintage was swimming with character, great imaging! Bravo!
Downloads.
Quick guide
Hover any control on a working panel and read what it does. The fastest way to learn RAIL before opening the plugin.
Five Minutes
A short guided pass that lands a strong, loud setting you can trust, step by step on familiar material.
The technical bits.
TYPE
Time-domain A/D clipper with a stabilizing engine ahead of the rail.
FLAVORS
MODERN, SHARP and VINTAGE: three converters in spirit, each with its own drive tolerance.
CONTROLS
FLAVOR, DRIVE 0 to 18 dB, TRIM unity to −30 dB, MATCH, BYPASS, A and B slots.
READOUTS
PK IN, CLIP DEPTH, CLIP %, TP, TP MAX, LUFS-I, LRA; LFE PEAK and CLIP BAL on immersive buses.
IMMERSIVE
Mono, stereo, LCR, quad, 5.0, 5.1, 7.0, 7.1, 7.1.2, 7.1.4 and 9.1.6 as one program. LFE monitored, never clipped.
STEREO
Mono and stereo buses. A Stereo license on a multichannel bus passes the audio through unchanged.
LATENCY
3 samples, fast enough for live front-of-house use.
FORMATS
VST3, AU and AAX. macOS on Apple Silicon and Intel, Windows 10 or newer on x64.
DELIVERY
Reports true-peak but does not guarantee it. Place a dedicated true-peak limiter last for delivery.
LICENSE
One-time challenge and response, up to 2 machines. Demo: thirty days, fully functional, on two computers.
Thirty days on two computers.
Fully functional, no card required. Start the demo, complete the checkout and your authorization code arrives by email. The demo is the Immersive edition.
Already tried RAIL and ran out of time? Email us through the support page and we will reset your trial.
The three flavors of P22 RAIL are three converters in spirit, not models of any single device. Dolby Atmos is a trademark of Dolby Laboratories.
AAX and Pro Tools are trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. Audio Units is a trademark of Apple Inc. VST is a trademark of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.