Do you copy and paste parts/riffs when tracking?

[KingAenarion]

Completely depends on the song and artist!

If they're shit and I have to edit guitar stems... then hell to the fucking yes will I copy paste.

Or if it's a bit that needs to be tight as balls I'll sometimes copy paste it.

Otherwise no, because I often automate tempo changes.

 

[ThrustTony]

I prefer not to copy and paste as I believe the second chorus/verse etc may be played diffently to the first one as the track builds. Copy and paste might kill dynamics in some tracks.

I think it would be easy to start copy pasting more than just guitar and end up with large blocks of manufactured sounding parts as well.

 

[Amonihil]

As long as I played something perfectly and the parts I´m copying doesn´t have a different riff before or after, I will copy and paste.

 

[The Uncreator]

Completely depends on the song and artist!

If they're shit and I have to edit guitar stems... then hell to the fucking yes will I copy paste.

Or if it's a bit that needs to be tight as balls I'll sometimes copy paste it.

Otherwise no, because I often automate tempo changes.

I think its more for your personal stuff, otherwise if someone gives you shit recordings with just a few spots of good material and dont want to record it over...shit out of luck for them and you it seems.

 

[jsaudio]

I copy and paste parts sometimes. But I get the best take for that part then edit it to perfection then copy an paste. In my opinion for heavier genres where consistency and tightness are paramount now there is much less emphasis on very minor details within playing.

For lighter more melodic genres I generally would not do this.

 

[KingAenarion]

I think its more for your personal stuff, otherwise if someone gives you shit recordings with just a few spots of good material and dont want to record it over...shit out of luck for them and you it seems.

Well for my personal stuff I'm often not the guitarist, but as I'm producing I slog them hard and make them work for it!

 

[fassaction]

Recording is one of my LEAST favorite things to do.....so about 95% of the time I will copy and paste all over the fucking place to speed the process up. I can only sit for a couple hours at a time before I lose interest, so when I do record I like to try and complete a whole song in one sitting so I do not forget any of what I wrote.

 

[hypotc]

Copy & paste all the way!

 

[Jamison]

I record both parts.

 

[C2Aye]

I usually just record a minor 9th chord, copy and paste that and hey, I have a song!

But in all seriousness, sometimes it takes me hours just to nail a 5 second riff just the way I want it and then, just to frustrate me, I nail the doubled take first time around. I just can't take that emotional toll on my soul if the riff turns up again in the song, so I copy and paste.

I guess that wasn't so serious. But yeah, I copy and paste for both speed and convenience and in my mind, the goal isn't to make it sound like a live one-take but trying to get the best possible sound throughout the track and record.

Although saying that, my song structure is often linear so I end up having to record a bunch of new riffs anyway

 

[SilverEvolver]

I copy and paste... as long as you can play it live and the riff is the same.. why waste the time recording it again only to make it sound exactly the same (but slightly different) as the last take? Do whatever you want to I guess...

 

[pushpull7]

This really depends. Sometimes when doing more "electronic" music where the guitar/bass part is kinda an after thought, then yes. Copy/paste/etc is a good thing.

Now, I'm not a purist, but I find doing many takes and then seeing how that works out is better. And doing things myself (and using sims instead of direct amp parts ) it's usually best to just go back and redo it if there isn't a take I like.

 

[Chiba666]

I copy and paste an initla guide track, and then do a complete run through of each section until I have the full song down then do that twice for each side.

Pain in the arse at times but well worth it.

 

[AliceLG]

As I was starting with electric guitar and recording I used to copy-paste a loooot. Now I track every riff for every guitar, or at least I try. Sometimes, if I can't nail down a riff that's already tracked somewhere else, and I've done too many tries, I'll copy-paste it, and then proceed to flog myself and repent and say things like "This is why you'll never make it you mediocre lazy fuck!"

 

[Mega-Mads]

i do it when i write the song. but i prefer to play it through n through when im actually recording.

 

[aB_EXT]

Honestly, I find myself copy and pasting a lot when recording other bands. You never know what skill level you're going to be working with and sometimes in order to get the tightest sounding track within a certain period of time it's best to work with the best sounding takes.

If you want the best feeling track, then it's best to record every part individually, imho. It's so subtle most of the time that you barely even notice it, but it makes a difference on some psychological level.

 

[Leuchty]

Control C

Control V

 

[Tuco Borborygmus]

first takes every time (the Zen Arcade way)

 

[Creech]

I only do copy/paste for demos and song ideas. I also use amp sims mainly for demo purposes. When I do it "for real", I like to mic up an amp and play along live with the track. Hopefully, by that point I have rehearsed the song enough to lay down a track with minimal punch ins and edits.

^^This

 

[ReneMoe]

I think copy and paste is best for repeating parts of powerchord-strumming. Is not really noticeable if you play it tight enough. Otherwise I would not recommend that