CEILING — Free LUFS Limiter Plugin with Loudness Metering (VST3, Windows)
CEILING is a free lookahead brickwall limiter with built-in loudness metering for Windows 10/11 (64-bit), delivered as a VST3 and a standalone app. It meters BS.1770 loudness at both input and output, shows momentary, short-term and integrated LUFS, estimates true peaks and gives you streaming targets for Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, club and EBU R128. It is part of BSMT.DSP, the free suite by Dr.dawgOG from Anand, Gujarat.
What CEILING does
A limiter is the last plugin on a master: it stops peaks from crossing a ceiling so the track can be pushed louder without clipping. CEILING adds the piece most free limiters leave out, which is knowing how loud you actually are. It runs full BS.1770 loudness metering before and after the limiter, so you can read the integrated LUFS of the finished master and the exact gain you added to get there.
The meters show momentary, short-term and gated integrated loudness, the same three numbers streaming platforms and broadcasters use. True-peak estimation warns you when inter-sample peaks would clip a phone's converter even though the sample values look safe. Target guides for Spotify, Apple, YouTube, club playback and R128 sit right on the meter, so you master to a number instead of a guess.
Mastering a rap track with CEILING
Put CEILING last on the master bus. Set the ceiling to minus 1 dBTP if the track is going to streaming, then raise the input until the integrated LUFS meter lands on your target, usually around minus 14 for streaming normalization or louder for club and playlist competition. Watch the gain-reduction display: if the limiter is working hard on every 808 hit, the low end needs taming earlier, with BEDROCK or OVERBITE, rather than at the limiter.
Because CEILING meters the input too, it doubles as a loudness meter on a reference track. Load your favorite record in the standalone app or on a spare channel, read its LUFS and match your master to it. CEILING runs in FL Studio, Ableton Live, Reaper, Studio One, Cubase and Bitwig on Windows.
How to use CEILING
- Insert CEILING as the final plugin on the master bus and set the ceiling (for streaming, minus 1 dBTP is the safe default).
- Play the loudest section and raise the input gain until short-term LUFS sits near your target.
- Play the whole track once to get a gated integrated LUFS reading and compare it against the streaming guide.
- Check the true-peak readout; if it flags overs, back the input off half a dB or clip earlier with OVERBITE.
CEILING features
- Lookahead brickwall limiting for transparent peak control
- Full BS.1770 loudness metering at input and output
- Momentary, short-term and gated integrated LUFS readouts
- True-peak estimation to catch inter-sample overs
- Streaming and broadcast target guides: Spotify, Apple, YouTube, club, EBU R128
- VST3 and standalone for Windows 10/11 64-bit, free with no signup
CEILING vs the alternatives
How CEILING compares with the free and paid limiter + LUFS metering plugins producers usually shortlist. The row for CEILING is highlighted.
| Plugin | Price | Windows formats | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| CEILING (BSMT.DSP) | Free, no signup | VST3, standalone | Lookahead limiter plus complete LUFS and true-peak metering with streaming targets in one plugin |
| LoudMax | Free | VST2, VST3, AAX | Reliable, tiny brickwall limiter. No loudness meter |
| Youlean Loudness Meter 2 (free version) | Free | VST2, VST3, AAX | Excellent meter, but it does not limit; you still need a limiter |
| FabFilter Pro-L 2 | Paid (around USD 199 list) | VST2, VST3, AAX | Paid anchor: multiple algorithms, oversampling, full loudness metering |
Prices are vendor list prices as seen in August 2026. Formats listed for Windows only.
CEILING specs
| Plugin | CEILING (limiter + LUFS metering) |
| Category | DYNAMICS |
| Price | Free. No account, no email, no trial, no watermark. |
| Formats | VST3 (64-bit) and a standalone app |
| Operating system | Windows 10 / Windows 11, 64-bit. macOS build in progress (the download button switches when it ships). |
| Works in | FL Studio, Ableton Live, Reaper, Studio One, Cubase, Bitwig and any other VST3 host on Windows |
| Installer | One BSMT.DSP installer for all 27 plugins; tick the ones you want. It detects and updates older versions in place. |
| Version | Shown on the download button, fetched live from the releases repository. |
| Developer | Dr.dawgOG (BSMT.DSP), Anand, Gujarat, India |
| Support the project | buymeacoffee.com/dawgog (optional) |
CEILING FAQ
Is there a free limiter plugin with a LUFS meter?
Yes. CEILING combines a lookahead brickwall limiter with BS.1770 loudness metering at input and output, including integrated LUFS and true-peak estimation, and it is free with no signup as part of BSMT.DSP.
What LUFS should I master a rap song to?
For streaming normalization, an integrated loudness around minus 14 LUFS with true peaks under minus 1 dBTP is the conventional target, and CEILING shows that guide on the meter. Many hip-hop masters go louder, between minus 9 and minus 7 LUFS, accepting that platforms will turn them down; CEILING lets you make that call with the number in front of you.
What is true peak and why does it matter?
True peak estimates the analog level between digital samples. A file can show no sample over 0 dBFS and still clip when it is converted to audio or to a lossy format. CEILING's true-peak readout warns you before a streaming encoder does.
Is CEILING really free?
Yes. No trial, no account and no email gate. It is one of the 27 plugins in the BSMT.DSP installer on GitHub Releases, and you can install it on its own.
Does CEILING work in FL Studio and Ableton Live?
It does. CEILING is a 64-bit VST3 for Windows 10/11 and loads in FL Studio, Ableton Live, Reaper, Studio One, Cubase, Bitwig and any other VST3 host. The standalone app is handy for measuring reference tracks.
Install, SmartScreen and Mac questions are answered on the BSMT.DSP suite FAQ.
More from BSMT.DSP
See all 27 free BSMT.DSP plugins, the guide to mixing rap vocals with free plugins, and the list of free alternatives to paid vocal plugins. Need the vocal mixed by the person who built these? Mixing and mastering is open.