What have you done that took the most amount of time workin

[Dhji]

The reason why I ask is because my own answer confuses me. I always hear people spending so much time working on a track and I wonder what happens during the longest periods of time during the entire beginning to end of track creation..

For me, it's the time BETWEEN working on a track. Recently, I have discovered that I appreciate what I've done the MOST when I have something to work with that I either forgot about, or did at a distant past; It's when my creations have accumulated TIME do I really find the value of what I've done because it's like there is a 'future me' leaving behind a trail... AS WELL AS HAVING TIME BETWEEN LISTENING because each new time I come back to a track I have a fresh pair of ears.

As for the ACTUAL WORK process, I would say I spend the most time organizing and preparing everything (FX racks, samples, sends/returns etc) for the actual influx of improvisational sound design, recording, sampling which I place and structure into something from seemingly nonsensical; taking desirable parts/artifacts and collectively forming them into a song.

The part that confuses me is how little time I actually spend on sound design (it kind of comes in a spurts of 1-4 hours) and how I take MORE time to have fresh ears IN ORDER to continue wherever I left off (I usually stop when I become lost or confused, or just generally stressed/irritable)

How about you? C:

[doghouse]

I also find that I work on something for a few hours, save it and come back to listen again weeks or months later to decide whether to finish it.

I'm not focused on sound design much, I grab a suitable preset and off I go in the initial stage of laying down parts. I save a rough mix with no FX unless they are baked into the presets.

When I decide to finish the song is when I worry about tweaking sounds and FX.

What takes the most time? Recording vocals and non-sequenced instruments like guitar and bass because I end up with lots of takes before I get something listenable I might jam over a loop for half an hour, chop the good stuff up into clips and then create the final part by jamming in session mode.

Disclaimer: I do this for fun so it doesn't matter to me how often I roll out a finished song.

[jestermgee]

It's a topic that comes up often.

Tarekith has a good guide summing things up here:

http://innerportalstudio.com/guides/

Read the "Chasing Inspiration" guide.

Basically it's a case of untrained focus. Apparent "ideas" all crammed in your noodle that you cant seem to put to paper. We all suffer from it so wouldn't stress.

If you can identify the issues such as what you have said, you spend time organising stuff instead of making tracks, change the habbit. Some times you just haven't got the drive/time/energy to make something but you could make tasks for yourself so when you get "something" done instead of nothing.

I do get stuck often, such as at the moment waiting for Push2 to arrive, I have a focus to tidy up all my library's and presets so for the next 3 weeks I have said I am NOT creating anything new or playing with the new features of Live until I get Push2.

What I also do is create tasks (I use windows sticky notes to force me to do things) so when I sit down and have no actual plan of things I get into something like:

- Create a new bassline preset
- Create a new drum kit (or maybe just a snare of BD style I have in mind)
- Build a template based on a style of song I like
- Design some soundscapes or effects
- Edit my field recordings and catalogue
etc....

I also have several levels of track completion I sort into folders so I have:

- Ideas and starters
These are the start of ideas, simple loops and kits that I pick away at and see if anything eventuates. These are in my main projects folder for Live

- In Progress Tracks
These are tracks that I am actually getting on with and have progressed past just a few clips. Once I get something in arrangement I am happy with as a start I migrate it to the In Progress folder as something I "should" be working on.

- Completed Tracks
This is where tracks move to when the main arrangement has been completed. From here I do not typically add any more ideas (unless I can hear something I really need) but spend time adding effects, adjusting levels, EQing and testing. I typically work on one part at a time such as drums, bassline, dynamics, EQ etc and I save as a new numbered version each time so I can take the file in my car, on the plane or anywhere I can check how it sounds and note any adjustments it may need. Because i'm no expert in this area tracks may sit "completed" but not mixed to my liking for months.

The last folder I have here is my "junkheap" where all the ideas I have had that sit for months but never gain traction go. I don't throw much away incase I actually have some ideas later on an idea.

Much of my workflow has been tweaked over the years based on the suggestions of many others and because I work a full time job (not in music), have my kids and family, active social life, hundreds of other interests and projects and just limited time to really fritter away I need to make sure at least some of my time is productive.

[stoersignal]

for me it`s the mixdown.
for most of the tracks i spend much more tracks on the mix than on the actual composition/sounddesign/production/arrangement.
i really hate it. it`s always like: yes! now i got it right! but a few hours or a few days later i hear something that disturbs me and i start again with adjusting levels/automation/eq/compression/reverb....
and then, over and over again....

so if possible i let somebody else do the mix for me, when time and money have nothing against it

[mrdelurk]

Singing. My voice doesn't cut through a mix well, it's too soft & deep. But that's all I got to work with.
So trying it for a track automatically means many dozens of retakes and edits until something useable comes together.

[Tarekith]

Usually the most time-consuming thing for me is doing all the fills and transitional elements after everything is recorded and arranged.

[Sternenlicht]

I spent to much time watching tutorials.

[Tagor]

listen & repeating good parts again and again until its boring and then leave it unfinished behind

while start something new

[[art]]

Been thinking about this thread in the back of my mind the last week I think.

And going through a lot of old sets. God, its a crime, I have so many unfinished tracks.

And I think I know the culprit... session view.

Session view is my absolute favourite way of getting started... but I have to say, I've never finished a track there.

And maybe its only really just become clear to me like *right now*...

The absolute best work I've done and the most complete work has all taken place in arrangement view...

Realising this, I think I've just discovered my biggest compositional error - failing to transition from session to arrangement.