Riding Faders

[crabtwins]

Hello Mr. Killen,

Thank you for your time here. I am not as seasoned as most of the people on this board but I have a question about riding faders. As I understand it, it is the art of adding some movement/feel/dynamics to a record by subtle (or drastically?) moving the faders of different instruments/subgroups what have you. My question has to do with how to better understand how to do it effectively. I guess my true ignorance is in the idea that you can ride the whole board at one time. Or is this an iterative process in which you ride the main element first and then relisten and go for the next sound to ride. Or is it all done at once. It just seems like you would go crazy trying to do this. Another thing Im wondering is do you ride subgroups (like your drum mix)? Wow i guess this question is causing me to have more questions. I guess as someone with knowledge if you can grab into what I've asked and offer any advice it would be appreciated.

thanks

[Kevin Killen]

Crabtwins,

The basic reason for riding faders is that you want to highlight or refocus a part or performance. You can do it individually or by sub groups. Either way is valid and just depends on how YOU want to operate. I think if you read the thread on "Mixing from the top down" you will understand this approach better.

It can be a time consuming process but most good mixes do take a day or slightly more depending on the complexity of the material. And if you are just picking up the project at the mixing stage, you will need to learn what all the parts do and how they interact.

Find an approach that best highlights your stenghts and work to those.

Hope this helps

Kevin