Of all the products vying for the biggest buzz at Javits Center, the most labor-saving was almost certainly Vocal Rider, a new plug-in from Waves. Vocal Rider simplifies the job of mixing by automating the normally hands-on process of adjusting the faders on vocal tracks. Instead of manually riding the levels or painstakingly drawing automation data in your multitrack recording software, all you have to do is set a range of levels and let Vocal Rider do its work. It compensates for any variations from the target range, raising or lowering the volume as needed. That should leave a lot more time to focus on recording or other aspects of perfecting your mix.