Every drop at the same level, without re-mastering your whole library. CueGate fixes only the tracks your auto gain gets wrong, masters only the tracks gain can't save, and leaves everything else exactly as it is.
Two tools, one decision per track. Measure first, then do the smallest thing that fixes it.
CueGate finds each track's drop (its loudest 3 seconds) and measures it with ITU-R BS.1770, the loudness standard TV and streaming services use. A long intro or breakdown doesn't skew it.
Serato already sets an auto gain for every analyzed track. CueGate checks where that leaves the drop compared with the middle of your library, and double-checks the misses with an independent model of hearing (ISO 532-1).
Auto gain already has it right. CueGate doesn't touch it.
The rules CueGate follows, in plain words.
Two tracks can have the same average loudness and very different drops. DJs blend drop into drop, so CueGate matches the loudest 3 seconds, measured with ITU-R BS.1770 / EBU R128, the same standard Spotify, Apple Music and broadcasters use.
We tested re-gaining every track against Serato's auto gain on 4,114 tracks, judged by an independent model of hearing (ISO 532-1). Over the whole library they came out even. So CueGate doesn't replace auto gain. It fixes the specific tracks auto gain gets wrong.
Gain Check writes a correction into the track's own gain field in Serato, next to the auto gain. Not one sample of audio changes. Gain you set by hand is skipped. In continuous mode, if Serato re-analyzes a track and resets it, CueGate puts the correction back the next time Serato is closed.
If a drop needs more than 6 dB of boost, more gain just runs the channel hot. Those tracks get a mastered copy: a true-peak limiter (4x oversampled, peaks at -0.3 dBTP), lined up to the sample so your cues and grid stay put, with every tag and the cover carried over.
Compared with leaving it all to auto gain, re-gaining every track, or running everything through a one-click mastering tool.
| Auto gain alone | Re-gain everything | One-click mastering | CueGate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tracks it changes | None | All of them | Every file you feed it | Only the ones that need it (about 1 in 100, plus weak masters) |
| Acapellas, DJ tools, intros | Often way off | Measured, but no safety check | Processed like a full song | Flagged and fixed on their own rules |
| Your audio files | Untouched | Untouched | Re-processed | Untouched, except weak masters you approve |
| Cues and beat grid | Kept | Kept | Depends on the tool | Kept: copies are lined up to the sample |
| Proof it helped | No built-in check | No built-in check | No built-in check | Checked by a second, independent loudness model |
| Undo | n/a | Depends | Keep your originals yourself | One click |
Results are from one working DJ's library of about 76,000 tracks (Serato, October 2026). Your numbers will differ: CueGate measures your library, not ours.
Gain Check doesn't change your audio at all. It only changes the gain number Serato uses on the deck. Waveform Repair does make new audio, but only for tracks you choose after hearing the before and after.
Auto gain gets most tracks right. The handful it misses are the ones that catch you mid-set: an acapella that jumps out, an old record that sinks, a tool that was never analyzed. Gain Check finds exactly those.
Gain Check works with Serato's gain today, and rekordbox support is on the way. Waveform Repair copies are normal audio files, so any DJ app can play them.
No. It's level and loudness only: a true-peak limiter that brings a weak master up to club level. No EQ curves, no "enhancement", no pitch changes.
Yes. Gain Check records the original numbers and puts them back in one click. Waveform Repair keeps your original file backed up and can be reversed track by track.
Gain Check and Waveform Repair are in testing with working DJs now.