Length of time spent on a project

[valaB]

More specifically, how long (hours) can you work on a project before you start getting "numb" and making bad decisions?

[ToxicBass]

About 4 hours. Then i go and do something completely different for a couple of hours and come back to it later. However if the ideas are flowing like crazy I'll just persevere through the 'numb' stage and try and get the basic outline of what I want to do templated out first before the inspirations gone.

[nowaysj]

It varies. Just getting to the level of maturity where I can recognize the numbness and close the project, rather than trying to be a tough guy and totally fucking everything up. I can listen to old projects and it is stark. I can spot the moment the numbness set in. That one bad decision that started the complete destruction of anything of value.

Just man up, take it on the chin, and walk away. Come back when you're ready.

It can literally be 15 minutes or 8 hours. Really varies.

[wub]

More specifically, how long (hours) can you work on a project before you start getting "numb" and making bad decisions?

It depends. But tbh, I can't remember the last time I sat down and decided to work on a 'project'. I usually just low up FL and do sound design/sample maniupulation and if something clicks that makes me go "hey...." then I'll develop it into a tune.

[FuzionDubstep]

forget hours it takes me weeks to make a track suppose its hard, the more known you get the more is expected of you and its a ballache :/ ...
but yeah sometimes ideas flow out the 'base' of a track can be put together in and hour or two but then going from there its a matter of perfecting everything .. but you know what they say 'the more you put in, the more you get out'.. not quite sure who says that but fuck it ive said it now

[nnny]

I can put together an idea for a tune from anywhere within half an hour to a few days, but the time it takes to get a tune even half finished is depressing. Takes weeks to get a song to the stage where I like it, and know what direction I want to take it to completion. Being an amateur producer I suppose that might be normal, but I reckon if I busted out more tunes more frequently I would get a lot more practice in, and progress faster, learn more, than trying to perfect one song which won't happen with my limited experience and knowledge

Not trying to promote myself, and I encourage you's not to listen to it, but the tune in my sig took me a good month to get to the stage where I felt it could be completed. And to be fair, i don't think it is.

[daft cunt]

Usually a couple of (full) days to make 80 % of a song, then at least 2 more weeks to finish it.

[valaB]

Thanks for reply's guys....I like the comment about owning up to when you've reached the end productivity

[Basic A]

More specifically, how long (hours) can you work on a project before you start getting "numb" and making bad decisions?

totally depends what Im doing...

Most of whats on my soundcloud and the stuff people hear in my mixes, ect. comes together really fast... Im talking scary fast, like, 30mins-hour kinda fast... Im really new-project happy and if Im not feeling something after 20-30mins, its usually deleted... bad strategy, I know, but, people do seem to be pretty happy with my little one hour slap-together projects lol.

Ive been making an EP the past few months which Im really taking my time on... Had some artists I really respect tell me they've spent as long as 6 months in the studio before calling tunes done, and it kinda inspired/motivated me... I figure, if people support the music I make that comes together really fast, if I dedicate myself to making 3-4 tunes to the fullest extent of my ability, like, make them a sort of production-thesis, they'll be bound to go far, alot further then what I slap together. One of these EP tracks i started last month-ish when I had someone approach me about a release, and Im only just getting out of the initial skeleton-design phase and really digging my teeth into the basslines... I tihnk its kind of a misconception that pro's just bust out a million tunes a minute... you can hear when thats what they've done, and you can hear when they poured themselves into a project, and the sales stat's reflect it everytime.

A big part of it is what im making and how Im making it as well... If Im making hiphop a large portion of it is done using recording on the FPC and from my CDJ's, so the dynamic workflow makes things come out really quick... If Im making dubstep/dnb/idm, usually basslines come really easy to me and then I spend forever and a day worrying about drums and melodies... So my dubstep tends to take alot longer.

Basically, it depends on the project. but really, IMO, if you want to do things right, totally devote yourself to a single set of projects for 5-6 months and then release an EP afterwords. Remember, hits arent made overnight.

[paravrais]

It varies. Just getting to the level of maturity where I can recognize the numbness and close the project, rather than trying to be a tough guy and totally fucking everything up. I can listen to old projects and it is stark. I can spot the moment the numbness set in. That one bad decision that started the complete destruction of anything of value.

Just man up, take it on the chin, and walk away. Come back when you're ready.

It can literally be 15 minutes or 8 hours. Really varies.

This. Except for me it's more like 15 seconds or 18 hours.

[serox]

I have to make a track in one setting. I can come back and clean up the mix but the ideas and everything needs to be down or the moment has passed.

I am learning now that it is nearly impossible to do this if I am starting from scratch every time. What I need to start doing now is saving my noises and drums so I have them ready and can just jam. Will need to spend a good day saving all bass hits, pads, leads and drums. I think its best if I save a dry/wet version of each.

Once I have this i should be able to get a track down quite fast.

[Filthzilla]

20 minutes. :L

Depends on my mood... and how the track is going.

Sometimes I finish a track in 3 days, spending a few hours a day. Sometimes a month.

[flatfaced]

its nice when you 're makin breaks to prevent your ears from any noises (a clock, toilet flush etc..)

the other thing is to hear it from different perspective - drunk or smthn...

[hutyluty]

think of it as spending as much time as you would if you were robbiong someones house

[Altron]

For me, it varies quite a bit. There have been times where ive opened up Ableton and proceeded to minimize it after 5 mins of trying to program in my drums. Then there are other times where I will sit behind my computer for 12 hours straight practically and get the majority of a track finished. Sometimes I might sit behind my computer for 4 hours at a time, then go listen to other tunes to search for some inspiration. Ive really been getting into the more minimal/trippy/old school style lately and my ideas flow much better when im not spending the majority of my time trying to make facemelting basslines and resampling things nonstop. Resampling is very useful, but im learning to make more changes to my basslines beforehand, then resample the bass when it already sounds decent.

A helpful tip I like to incorporate is this; If you have a song that you are happy with the results of. Save a seperate copy as a template, rename it, and remove all your sounds from the song. Now start a new song with the same layout. You wont have to worry about routing things as much, considering everything is already routed the way you like. Adjust or remove anything that doesnt fit with the track(eq's, delays, reverbs, compressors,sends, etc...). Now its as easy as making sounds and laying them in place. For example I have roughly 6 different bass tracks, sfx tracks, vocal tracks, and a few tracks for my drum rack, and even 1 in case I decide to layer a sub in. I also have multiple sends, some with effects, and some for splitting my bass into low, mid, high. Pretty much when I open up my DAW, its ready for me to be as creative as possible, and it cuts the time I spend on projects down quite a bit. Needless to say, the longer you spend on a track, the more intricate and amazing it will turn out in the end. Dont limit yourself of try to rush things. Its kinda like a painter trying to make a masterpiece. If you throw a few splotches on a canvas and try to sell it for $1000 its probably not gonna happen. But if you put your time, heart, and soul into your art/music, people will notice and be willing to buy the hard work you created.

[ascent]

thrown away too many tunes cause of this.. usually survive a few hours of good production then it turns to shit. end up starting again.

[psychedelicatessen]

I've spent a lot of time on tunes... Got to the point one day where I was making a lead one night, and woke up in my bed the next moment I know. I had a bout of insomnia, and I'd just use 606 drums, and sine waves to compose all of my music. I'd have a tune done in a few hours, then I'd replace the sines with instruments, and the drums with whatever I felt like. This would take some time, but at the point where I started replacing stuff, I would save it as a different project. On one, I'd develop the song by choosing instrument I feel would fit the song and kind of mix everything as I went, and in the other project, I'd use that to experiment with effects, making pads and basses from scratch etc.
It's a more time consuming process at first, but now that I think about it, it's similar to saving a copy as a template, like Altron suggested.

But I honestly just throw the first drumkit that catches my eyes on, and work with sine, saw, and square waves. All my tunes sound like old school video games at first

[victor w]

Usually a couple of (full) days to make 80 % of a song, then at least 2 more weeks to finish it.

This

[zerbaman]

I swear this thread already exists?

I do things in a few hours usually. Occasionally I overrun and spend days/weeks on stuff, but generally speaking 5-15 hours per tune.

[Cubicle]

I can put together an idea for a tune from anywhere within half an hour to a few days, but the time it takes to get a tune even half finished is depressing. Takes weeks to get a song to the stage where I like it, and know what direction I want to take it to completion. Being an amateur producer I suppose that might be normal, but I reckon if I busted out more tunes more frequently I would get a lot more practice in, and progress faster, learn more, than trying to perfect one song which won't happen with my limited experience and knowledge

Not trying to promote myself, and I encourage you's not to listen to it, but the tune in my sig took me a good month to get to the stage where I felt it could be completed. And to be fair, i don't think it is.

Exactly.
I usually take like 3 weeks +-. At that point I'm STILL wondering if it's alright to wrap it up.
Even after it's wrapped up I think to myself that I could've done way better.

It's always an agony for me to tell myself "this tune should be ready"