Harmonic instability of digital soft clipping algorithms

In this paper several different digital soft clipping algorithms are described and analysed. It is discussed how the quality of each algorithm can be estimated. A testing methodology is devised to show the levels of nonlinearities produced as a function of the input signal amplitude. It is proposed that, while all soft clipping algorithms produce higher order nonlinearities, the instability of the produced harmonics plays a crucial role in the transparency of the effect. Existing and novel clipping algorithms are thus compared and classified based on their measured properties, including total harmonic distortion and inter-modulation distortion estimates. This paper proposes a conclusion related to the quality and properties of different algorithms