A simple alternative is to use something like..

Waves One Knob Louder

http://www.waves.com/plugins/oneknob-louder#oneknob-louder-demo

It is fairly transparent even when hitting something with 7 or 8 on the knob. You can download a demo to test it. $49 - they put it on sale at times. It could not be any simpler. Drop it on a mix file and turn the knob.