Just used it on an episode of the TV show I'm mixing. This one had a lot of very challenging audio - unscripted dialog recorded in noisy environments with an on-camera shotgun microphone, and a deadline that was all but impossible. WaveRider worked brilliantly. It probably saved me 4-5 hours of tweaking automation and I beat the deadline by about 20 minutes.
— Bryan Golder, L.A.
I'm addicted to Wave Rider... I own three copies. I can't mix a show without it now!!
— Jonathon L
I love mixing, but this thing is just more diligent, and far more accurate than I am. No, it doesn't leave me 100%, but 98% of it's automation, I leave untouched, and is far superior than any automation I would have taken the time to create myself.
I can't say it enough!!!
Try this plug-in, and stop buying every compressor plug-in out there! This is the sound you are looking for!!! Now, when I apply a compressor on vox, it is more for the color, and less the control. Not to mention, now the compression comes off WAY more consistent because I am always exercising the compressor in the same range, and not asking it to cover the huge expanse of the natural dynamic range. In the past, for a Pop style vocal, it was always, a few db at tracking, and even a stack of compression at mixing for a total of -12 to -20 db. And you can't avoid some artifacts doing this. But to get that in-your-face sound you have to do it. Not anymore. I am sure the pros who do intense hand automation are thinking "so what, that is old news.", but for those with tight budgets or hobbyists, this is a quick "ride" to some extremely professional results. I would also say, this plugin can ride a fader better than anyone. I don't care who you are.
— David Pasch, Texas
Wave Rider has given back DAYS of my life! I've made presets that I like for bass, guitar, vocals, snare, etc. When Wave Rider's working, it means I can take a break-- and still get better results than if I'd done it manually.
Wave Rider is one of the reasons I've stuck with Pro Tools all these years. It's the most transparent compressor you can get.
— David Pajo
Waverider is invaluable to me in my day to day workflow. It allows me to focus on what really counts - making my audio elements sound as good as they can.
I have found myself eq-ing and compressing much less because apparent differences in audio clips are smoothed out before I even reach for further processing.
The fact that it writes data directly to the Volume automation lane means I can still have the results and benefits on other systems that don't have Wave Rider installed. This puts Wave Rider right at the front of the pack.
— Daniel Nathan
I've been a waverider user since version 1. I bought it back in 2010. I kind of have to keep myself off the radar with using it though because of the circles I run in.
People automatically call it cheating, or "not mixing", when its really just a great tool that saves you a lot of time. Even though I use it, I have to keep a bit quiet about it unfortunately. I usually like to promote plugins I like and use, but Xxxxxx(major film studio) and my peers can be very unforgiving.
I'm a re-recording mixer for a major network series.
I've used Wave Rider on the past 2 seasons of this show, as well as on a recent feature film and Major network Pilot. On the second playback for the pilot in front of 9 producers, I had 3 notes.
The reason I decided to try it was because I don't like the way over compressed dialogue sounds. I can set my compressors and just tweak the threshold when I need.
So this allows my dialogue to breath more, has less noise floor and I can spend more time cleaning it up instead of getting the levels in place especially when there is a shorter time to get it done and still sound good.
— Anonymous, Los Angeles
Wave Rider is one of my "go to" plugins, in this era of shrinking budgets, and faster and faster turn around times. Sure everyone would like to have the luxury of mixing your entire project "by hand", but a lot of the stuff I see needs to be done "yesterday" before I even get it. Some might say, just slap a limiter on everything and move on, but you end up killing your dynamics that way... with a properly mixed track, your compressor is not working as hard, and you still maintain your dynamic range.
Wave Rider is NOT a compressor...
Wave Rider is intended to get a "more consistent" level to feed the compressor so you can use even compression on the whole track rather than use a compressor to squash the peaks.
It saves me time by saving me a step, that can be done while I'm on a meal break. In fact, as a direct result of the time Wave Rider saved me, I was able to go see my son's basketball game instead of tweaking dialog. Some might say that it's cheating, but if it saves me time, and let's me have more time with my three kids, then I'm all for it!!!
After I have viewed the project with the director, I just setup Wave Rider for my initial pass while I'm eating lunch. I come back and it is ready for me to start to fine tune. I think of it as my own personal assistant :-)
I am glad I tried this out before the Waves Vocal Rider, because this feels more Pro and usable, where the Waves one just seems a little gimmicky and a bit harder to fine tune, and YES I have both, but don't even touch the Waves one. If I had tried the Waves Vocal Rider before Wave Rider, I would just assume it was the same thing and not even give it a second look, but trust me when I say Wave Rider is a tool, and when used correctly, can give fabulous results... take the time to read the documentation that comes with it, and how to set it up properly and you will be glad you did.
I first tried out the initial release and thought it was a cool idea, and fun to tinker with, but I gotta say, this new version is head and shoulders above the previous ones... I'm glad I decided to try it again, and anyone who tried the first time and just didn't quite see it being useful enough, give this newer version a shot...
They obviously put some work into this one and are taking user feedback seriously!!!
For ANYONE who is on the fence before, try out the demo... you won't be disappointed (keep in mind I'm coming from a post environment, but could easily see leveling lead vocals with this, not just dialog).
Great plugin and a bargain as well. Their support is also second to none!!"
— J.C Richardson
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