BUTE Loudness Analyser 2 Stereo is a loudness meter plugin from Signum Audio for mixing and mastering to broadcast and streaming standards. It features interactive history, alerting, presets, and compact read-outs.
Purpose and Core Function
BUTE Loudness Analyser 2 Stereo is a loudness measurement plugin designed as a reference tool for audio engineers. It helps you mix and master to specific loudness standards used by streaming platforms and broadcasters. By indicating perceived loudness levels, it supports quality assurance and helps prevent delivery rejections or unwanted distortion.
The plugin uses Signum’s proprietary algorithm to provide accurate loudness data on a fully interactive graphical interface. This interface highlights areas that require attention, making it easier to optimize mix and master quality. It serves as a practical aid for balancing music, dialog, and sound effects in stereo projects.
Key Capabilities
BUTE includes a smart history overview that displays up to 10 hours of loudness data. This allows you to navigate to any section of a track quickly. A custom alert system flags areas that fall outside a user-specified range, showing violations in red and warnings in yellow on the history overview. The settings panel lets you define user parameters.
The plugin features smart auto re-metering, which syncs on load-up and automatically reflects any adjustments you make in your DAW on the graphical display. This gives immediate feedback on how loudness changes will affect the mix without needing to re-meter the entire project. You can toggle between Absolute/Relative Scale, True Peak/LUFS, and Max/Live modes.
Workflow and Display
BUTE has a compact read-out view that is completely resizable vertically and horizontally. This helps optimize screen space while keeping key readings visible. Even in compact mode, you can switch display settings and obtain read-outs easily, which is useful when screen estate or CPU is limited. The interface is fully scalable.
The plugin auto-detects your DAW’s channel configuration, with a dropdown menu to select mono, stereo, or surround setups (though this is the Stereo version). It also includes an industry-standard meter bar fallback for a natural analog feel. Display settings allow switching between True Peak/Metering, Relative/Absolute scale, and Max/Live modes.
Practical Applications
BUTE is ideal for mixing and mastering music to meet the loudness specifications of platforms like Spotify, YouTube, TIDAL, and Apple. It includes built-in presets for major streaming and broadcasting standards, and user-defined presets can be saved. This helps ensure your music sounds optimal across different services.
For long-form content such as broadcasts, post-production, or games, the smart history overview makes it easier to manage loudness over extended periods. The alert system helps identify problem areas that might cause issues downstream. The plugin can also load, save, and export metering data for later reference or reporting.
Key features
- Interactive history overview up to 10 hours
- Custom alert system with red/yellow flags
- Smart auto re-metering synced with DAW changes
- Compact resizable read-out view
- Built-in presets for streaming and broadcast standards
- True Peak, LUFS, and RMS readouts
- Load, save, and export metering data
Best for
BUTE Loudness Analyser 2 Stereo is best for mixing and mastering engineers who need to meet loudness specifications for streaming platforms or broadcast. It’s particularly useful for stereo music production, quality control, and long-form content where monitoring loudness over time is essential.