Thanks Bob. I realize this should be possible based on everything I've read before posting this question, I'm just not understanding why I can't seem to make it work (likely something simple I'm still missing).
I didn't utilize the method you detail above for evaluating the limiter. I was simply feeding a pure sinewave into my audio channel, putting it through a dynamics processor (RMS no gain), and then through a limiter. The only reason I added the limiter is because the 'limit' I was applying in the graph for the dynamics processor didn't seem to accomplish anything (never hit a hard limit). I was setting it at -20 dB, and still able to easily feed an input signal that could cause clipping on my output signal (viewed after one additional external pre-amp). I will look directly at the output of the 1701 tomorrow before the pre-amp to see if the 1701 is doing the clipping or not.
I think I'll need to simply things further and use nothing but the limiter in the configuration you are showing above so I can understand what it's doing.
On a related note for the same project, I'm trying to create my own AGC circuit, since the AGC in the library isn't available for the 1701. Any insight you could provide on that would also be greatly appreciated. I've been doing something very basic with the use of a crossover, and a dynamics processor as suggested by Brett in a different post, but that is proving in-adequate for the application. I have numerous different kinds of speakers which get used for not only producing a signal (only 1 at a time), but during the 'listen' portion of the half duplex conversation, the speaker acts as a microphone to pick up audio from a room. This means that the signal level coming back can be wide varying from one speaker type to the next. From everything I've seen to date about SigmaStudio, it's certainly capable of creating an AGC out of all the blocks, but my knowledge of the tool is proving insufficient so far to get it working properly.