True peak is the real maximum level of the analog waveform a DAC will reconstruct, which can sit higher than the loudest digital sample. Between samples the smooth reconstructed signal can overshoot — inter-sample peaks — so a track that never exceeds 0 dBFS in the sample domain can still drive a converter or a lossy encoder into distortion. True-peak meters estimate this by oversampling before measuring, and the result is reported in dBTP. This is why loudness standards set true-peak ceilings (-1 dBTP for EBU R128, often -2 dBTP for lossy delivery): the margin absorbs inter-sample peaks and the extra overshoot that encoding to AAC or Opus can introduce.
The book · Volume 4 of 7
Audio for Video: A Complete Guide to Sound in Video Products: From PCM and Codecs to Loudness, Accessibility, and Real-Time Voice Processing
True peak is where loudness-compliant masters still clip once a codec or DAC reconstructs the waveform. Volume 4 covers true peak in detail together with sampling, bit depth and dynamic range, loudness and LUFS targets, and how AAC and Opus encoding pushes inter-sample overs above 0 dBFS. Written by Nikolay Sapunov, CEO at Fora Soft.
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