Hawk
Loudness Meter
★★★★★
(84)
LUFS Meter & Spectrum Analyzer
Overview
Hawk Loudness Meter is a professional-grade VST3 loudness analysis plugin built for mixing engineers, mastering engineers, and producers who demand accurate, real-time insight into their audio.
Combining industry-standard loudness metering with a powerful spectrum analyzer, Hawk gives you everything you need to make confident mix decisions and hit streaming platform targets — all in one focused, dark-themed interface.
4LUFS Windows
4×True Peak Oversampling
3Spectrum Modes
VST3Windows 64-bit
Loudness Metering
Hawk implements the full ITU-R BS.1770-4 standard and EBU R128 recommendation, giving you broadcast-accurate loudness readings across four measurement windows.
Momentary (400ms)
Catches fast transients and short dynamic events — the most responsive meter in the panel.
Short-Term (3s)
Balances responsiveness with stability — the most useful meter for active mix decisions.
Mid-Term (10s)
Tracks sustained loudness over a longer window for section-level and arrangement-level reads.
Integrated (gated)
Full-track loudness for streaming platform compliance. Includes a status chip: On Target, Too Loud, or Too Quiet for Spotify/YouTube (−14 LUFS) or EBU R128 (−23 LUFS).
Each meter shows a large numerical readout, a peak hold indicator, and a live bar gauge.
True Peak & LRA
True Peak
4× oversampled inter-sample peak detection per the BS.1770-4 specification. Catches peaks that standard sample-level meters miss — critical for streaming delivery. Colour-coded status: Safe, Caution, Near Clip, and Clipping.
Loudness Range (LRA)
Measures the dynamic spread of your track. Status indicators flag over-compression, healthy dynamics, and highly dynamic content so you can make informed decisions about limiting and dynamic range.
Spectrum Analyzer
Spectrum Analyzer — Stereo, Mid/Side, and slope views.
Flat Response
No artificial slope correction by default. True energy at each frequency, referenced to 0 dBFS with a +3 dBFS ceiling to catch inter-sample peaks.
Stereo, Mid & Side Modes
Switch between stereo and full Mid/Side view. Mid displays in orange, Side in purple — toggle each independently to isolate centre vs. edges of your stereo field.
Slow-Release Peak Line
A blue peak hold line sits above the live green spectrum with a 2500ms release, giving you a clear reference for where your spectrum has been.
Smoothing
Log-proportional octave blur — bass frequencies retain shape while high-frequency spikes round naturally. Both live and peak lines follow the smoothing setting.
Slope
Tilts the entire spectrum ±9 dB/oct around 1 kHz with snap points. All lines follow slope simultaneously — useful for pink noise reference checks.
Goal Line & Frozen Peak
Goal Line
Set a yellow target anywhere from −72 to 0 dBFS by clicking and dragging directly on the spectrum display — your personal loudness target for any frequency range.
Frozen Peak
When your spectrum exceeds the goal line, Hawk captures a permanent grey snapshot of the highest level reached. Never decays — only updates if a new higher peak arrives. A translucent grey fill makes the problem area immediately visible.
Mid/Side Tracking
In M/S mode the frozen peak tracks only your active channels — isolate whether it's your mid or side content pushing past the target.
Reset
Clears the frozen peak for a clean measurement window without affecting your loudness meters.
Phase Correlation & Loudness History
Phase Correlation Meter
A horizontal meter shows the stereo relationship of your signal from −1.0 (out of phase) to +1.0 (mono-compatible). Colour-coded green for healthy correlation, yellow for borderline, and red for phase issues that may cause problems on mono playback systems.
Loudness History
A scrolling graph showing the last 60 seconds of short-term LUFS as a blue waveform. Reference lines at −14 LUFS (Spotify/YouTube) and −23 LUFS (EBU R128) are shown as dashed overlays. The current integrated LUFS appears as a continuous orange line.
Workflow
01Loads in LUFS view by default — no distractions on playback
02Switch to Spectrum with one click — smoothing and slope sliders appear automatically
03Tabs, goal line position, smoothing, and slope are all accessible without any menu diving
04Reset is mode-aware: resets loudness meters on the LUFS tab, resets the frozen peak on the Spectrum tab
05Resizable window from 520×400 to 1400×1000
Technical Specifications
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Standard | ITU-R BS.1770-4 / EBU R128 |
| Momentary window | 400 ms |
| Short-term window | 3 s |
| Mid-term window | 10 s |
| True Peak oversampling | 4× polyphase FIR |
| FFT size | 4096 points |
| Spectrum update rate | ~43 Hz |
| UI refresh rate | 20 Hz |
| Peak hold release | 2500 ms |
| Format | VST3 |
| Platform | Windows (64-bit) |
System Requirements
DAW
Any VST3-compatible DAW — Ableton Live 11+, FL Studio 20+, Bitwig, Reaper, Cubase, Studio One, and others.
OS
Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit). Mac support coming in a future release.
Format
VST3 only. No iLok, no internet connection required after activation.
Version
Current release: 1.0. Free updates for all future 1.x releases.
License Info
Personal & Commercial Use
Use in any personal or commercial project — music production, mixing, mastering, post-production, broadcast, and live performance.
Single User
One license per user. Install on up to 3 machines you personally own or operate.
Free Updates
All 1.x updates are free. Your serial activates the current version and all future updates in the 1.x release line.
No Redistribution
The plugin binary may not be shared, resold, or redistributed. Each user must obtain their own license.
Free