Improving timing - Doubling

[Pablo333]

Hi guys - No im not gonna ask which plugin will instantly double my GTR tracks without me playing twice LOL

Just thought I'd ask your ways of improving your timing when Doubling your parts - I HAVE to have the drums playing in Cubase along with a click - but i cannot do it to a click alone (dunno why)

I was thinking of just playing along to Puppets for an hour then taking a break before doing some recording (got some free time today wahey!)

Im fairly happy with my timing so far but do wish to improve ...

Tips!!!!

 

[Metaltastic]

I would say practice playing along to the click alone Since you can't do it now, that's probably the source of your woes!

 

[Pablo333]

CLICK -click click click CLICK - click click click......Aaaargh!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Metaltastic]

It's like eating your vegetables, it's good for you

 

[Pablo333]

But they also make me constipated!!

 

[wishtheend]

For some reason I don't like hearing the 1st take if I'm double tracking. I do one take, make sure it's tight as hell to the drums - then mute it and do it all over again. I know some guys like hearing their 1st take, but I just think it makes me notice more keeping the one muted.

 

[Metaltastic]

Nooooooooooooo, I totally agree, I HATE hearing the first take simultaneously, cuz I can't focus on what I'm playing or hear if there are any little mistakes I'm making. I usually track just to the click, sometimes to drums, but NEVER with another guitar!

 

[John_C]

i'm totally different, i HAVE to have the other guitar going, i'm never spot on to a click, but i can get pretty close to doing a perfect copy of an already recorded part.

Tracking to drums is always better than a click though IMO, unless you're going to have your drums quantized to the point of being robotic. The modern recording process takes so much of the communication between musicians already, i like to claw back what i can.

 

[musickey]

I would say practice playing along to the click alone Since you can't do it now, that's probably the source of your woes!

a big +1

 

[Metaltastic]

Tracking to drums is always better than a click though IMO, unless you're going to have your drums quantized to the point of being robotic. The modern recording process takes so much of the communication between musicians already, i like to claw back what i can.

Of course you're 100% right, I just always forget that not everyone works exclusively with programmed stuff like me

 

[Skinny Viking]

Nooooooooooooo, I totally agree, I HATE hearing the first take simultaneously, cuz I can't focus on what I'm playing or hear if there are any little mistakes I'm making. I usually track just to the click, sometimes to drums, but NEVER with another guitar!

+1

and also +1 to click or programmed drums. Even if you will record to real drums which will always have some level of variance in timing, playing to programmed drums is more fun than a click but forces you to be dead on

veggies aren't bad at all when roasted or stir fried

 

[John_C]

Accuracy is vital ofc, but sometimes i feel people equate it to musicality. Being perfect doesn't make you a good musician.

Then again most people (me included) need to improve their accuracy in order to unlock their musical potential

 

[Fox Mulder]

Click is better than sex.

 

[Fox Mulder]

Okay, maybe that was lame.

 

[Erkan]

^

Yeah, it was. Seriously.

 

[Erkan]

Oh and to say something on topic...

I like turtles!




err no, I was gonna say that playing to programmed drums is much more fun than playing to a click. You get the groove going much better. I usually program drums, not too detailed with all fills and stuff, just the basic groove and the most vital fills, then I lay scratch guitars on those. I try to get it as tight as possible, but I'm not worried to death about it. Although, it has to be tight enough so that it doesn't disturb me later, because I use those scratch tracks to play drums to, so I record real drums. Then I go back and record guitars to a click AND the live drum takes... it usually makes it tight enough for me. As for hearing the other guitars or not... I have to say I have been working WITH the other guitars enabled but I'm more inclined to just going one by one and muting the others. Hearing other guitars does really make you put less and less effort into your playing... well, atleast for me

 

[Moonlight_Seeker]

Just change the sound of the click?

 

[ahjteam]

click + midi drums for me

 

[Suicide_As_Alibi]

If you struggle with the click but your playing is reasonably tight, try half- or quarter-timing the click. That way, you still know you're in time but it's not as intrusive, and you might find you groove a little more between beats.

Steve

 

[exoslime]

for groovy & rocking parts, i always play to a full drum track, and for chilly (cleans, ) i play to cymbals only 1/4 rhythmn, i hate the sound of the click in the headphones, so i replace the click with a cymbal tone, its more comfortable to me,
and the drums have to be really loud in my headphone mix )

it really depends on the riff, but for demoing / arranging, song developing, i often do:
i play the same riff like 8-12 times in a row, then i listen to it, select the best one, and move that to Guitar Left Track,

then i move the remaining riffs from that track to the Guitar Right Track and listen to them together with the previous chosen one.

i usually end up with 2 or 3 tight double tracks.

i´m very comfortable this way, for me it works better to record the same riffs a couple of times in a row, instead of making a pause and start again the recording.

cheers
chris