There really is no magic, I hate to say, outside of possibly sample selection. If you get a good, high quality sample pack with clear recordings of ride cymbals or drum machines, it's just a matter of having it fit within the context of the mix.
The best advice I could give you would be to look for some songs that have ride cymbals as a prominent feature, and pull them into your DAW to analyze them. Put on a spectral analyzer and pay attention to how the frequency curve changes when the ride comes in. Use an EQ to try and isolate them. Most importantly, close your eyes and try to isolate the ride cymbals from the rest of the mix. See if you can pinpoint how they sound, and compare that with the samples you have. Think about what else is going on in the mixdown of those songs, and what they would have done to the sample to make it sound like that in that context. By studying that, you can find practical examples of techniques you can apply in your own sessions.
