how do you know when to stop tweaking?

Words · Post by **Words** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 7:46 pm

for the first time ive finished a track im not completely ashamed of but the problem is i cant stop fiddling with it, trying out different snares, tweaking the levels etcetera, i guess in the hope something i do will magically take it to the next level. seriously spent about three times as long fiddling with minor shit as i did actually laying it down and i dont like it any more/less than i did when i started

a) is this normal
b) for you does the moment ever arrive when you know you're ''done''? or do you just force yourself to draw a line somewhere and call it a day?

sigbowls · Post by **sigbowls** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 7:51 pm

i think thats normal

ChadDub · Post by **ChadDub** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 7:55 pm

Well once I'm done a track I'm usually bored with it so I go fuck with something else, but like, it can always be better so I spend some time at the "end" just tweaking stuff to see if I can improve it at all.

sixth sense · Post by **sixth sense** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 8:17 pm

I never stop tweaking this is probably why I never get anyting done OCD is not fun

Sine69 · Post by **Sine69** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 8:32 pm

I usually hit a point where I'm happy with everything in the track, so I decide to stop fucking with things.

jaimelee · Post by **jaimelee** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 11:04 pm

If it sounds good, let it roll.

If not.. RESAMPLE!

Or just leave it for 10 minutes and come back to it.

Heartless · Post by **Heartless** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 11:16 pm

Have a few producer friends that don't mind having a listen.

kaiori breathe · Post by **kaiori breathe** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 9:43 am

Like Heartless said, best option is just to have a few fresh sets of ears who know what they're talking about and are willing to spare some of their time to give a bit of crit, alternatively, just have a good idea of the sound you want in your head before you start, take 15 minute breaks every hour to keep your ears fresh too and it won't seem like such an endless chore.

FuzionDubstep · Post by **FuzionDubstep** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 6:22 pm

kaiori breathe wrote:Like Heartless said, best option is just to have a few fresh sets of ears who know what they're talking about and are willing to spare some of their time to give a bit of crit, alternatively, just have a good idea of the sound you want in your head before you start, take 15 minute breaks every hour to keep your ears fresh too and it won't seem like such an endless chore.

yeah that's what I do, but you need to find someone who isn't afraid to be honest as sometimes I send tracks over to a producer and they say yeah sounds good, and I'd rather someone tell me 100 things wrong with it to be fair.

Atac · Post by **Atac** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 7:45 pm

For some reason I thought this thread was going to be about drug use

But yeah it's always good to step away from the computer for a while and come back with fresh ears.
Sometimes hearing something you've created a while back will spark new inspiration to build it from there.

symmetricalsounds · Post by **symmetricalsounds** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 7:55 pm

you stop tweaking when it's the sound you want but it usually takes years of tweaking til you (possibly) know what that is

rob13572468 · Post by **rob13572468** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 3:32 am

problem is after hours of editing and mixing and listening to the same parts over and over again it becomes difficult to tell the little differences... alot of times i will stop for like 6-8 hours and just go do other things... then when i come back its alot easier to listen objectively..

kikaruu · Post by **kikaruu** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 3:58 am

I stop when I can find nothing else to improve. The trouble is, it takes me the better part of a night (and morning) to reach that stage. So I have to mentally force myself to quit before it gets too late and return to the song the next day.

narcissus · Post by **narcissus** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 5:49 am

"how do you know when to stop tweaking?"

when you've been up 5 days straight, the dogs haven't been fed, and there is trash and fecal matter everywhere -- THAT's when you know to stop tweaking

youthful_implants · Post by **youthful_implants** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 6:09 am

its called commitment.

like when you've been dating a girl for a while and you think she's alright but she's got buck teeth and bad breath.

you could say "hey hon do you want to make this official?" or you could say "jog on bucky"

tunes are the same. you decide whether its right, and you stand by it.

rob13572468 · Post by **rob13572468** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 6:53 am

youthful_implants wrote:its called commitment.

like when you've been dating a girl for a while and you think she's alright but she's got buck teeth and bad breath.

you could say "hey hon do you want to make this official?" or you could say "jog on bucky"

tunes are the same. you decide whether its right, and you stand by it.

lol but on that note what about the guys that take a girl like that and send her to the dentist and then to get implants and make her totally hot... by that measure one could argue that tweaking is always going to get you a better product than what you started with...

Manic Harmonic · Post by **Manic Harmonic** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 7:14 am

You stop tweaking when your teeth fall out, you're living on the streets, and you get arrested for possesion of crystal meth.

But really, i just run the song by my musician friends, and try to take into consideration what they say, and just work on it until there's nothing i feel like i can do in my power to make it better, as brian of trifonic put it. i dont feel like i really go over the top unless over the top is what im going for.

youthful_implants · Post by **youthful_implants** » Mon Jul 11, 2011 8:05 am

rob13572468 wrote:
youthful_implants wrote:its called commitment.

like when you've been dating a girl for a while and you think she's alright but she's got buck teeth and bad breath.

you could say "hey hon do you want to make this official?" or you could say "jog on bucky"

tunes are the same. you decide whether its right, and you stand by it.
lol but on that note what about the guys that take a girl like that and send her to the dentist and then to get implants and make her totally hot... by that measure one could argue that tweaking is always going to get you a better product than what you started with...

it doesnt though. simplicity is key.

Gurnumsbug · Post by **Gurnumsbug** » Tue Jul 12, 2011 12:23 pm

Electric_Head · Post by **Electric_Head** » Tue Jul 12, 2011 12:52 pm

I have a friend that generally hates anything I do.
One of those guys that has to be better than everyone.
If he tells me my tunes are crap. I know I`m on the right track.

how do you know when to stop tweaking?

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