The only thing I don't get in your approach is how there are 30 takes that are worthwhile in such a short section. I can easily see doing a part 30 times with a less than great singer. But surely you don't end up with 30 takes that are worth keeping? There must be twenty you can delete right away?

I completely agree with your point about zooming and vertical scrolling by the way. I would really like some "temporary split screen" to line up tracks without actually moving them. Kinda like what VocalSync does.

Beepster
Now as a dude who creates a LOT of lanes I'd kind of like to address some things for those who don't think a good player should NEED that many lanes. When I see stuff like that posted I do find it a little offensive but I think in many cases the people posting that stuff just don't understand certain workflows or are not really producing hyper technical stuff and/or not exploring creatively as much. That ain't a slag at them either... it's just a different workflow/different style issue.

If you're referring to my post, you're missing an important qualifier: "So, I hardly ever go beyond 8 takes, and 4-6 is more common. If I don't feel I've nailed the part by then, I start over." It may require a lot more takes overall, but remember I've done a lot of production and part of that is knowing when something's not working with an artist. By knowing when something isn't working and editing as I go along, there are fewer tracks to evaluate and then speed comping becomes insanely fast.
 
Another reason for not doing too many takes at a time is I'd rather have a part with a few flaws that "tells a story" than worry too much about details. 
 
As to writing, that's a whole other topic...but I do a lot of getting parts down fast to write the song without being concerned if the sound is right, the edits are great, etc. After the song is done, then I'll go back and replace the parts with ones that are more thought out...not unlike what you do, in a way.

Anderton
 
If you're referring to my post, you're missing an important qualifier: "So, I hardly ever go beyond 8 takes, and 4-6 is more common. If I don't feel I've nailed the part by then, I start over." It may require a lot more takes overall, but remember I've done a lot of production and part of that is knowing when something's not working with an artist. By knowing when something isn't working and editing as I go along, there are fewer tracks to evaluate and then speed comping becomes insanely fast.
 
Another reason for not doing too many takes at a time is I'd rather have a part with a few flaws that "tells a story" than worry too much about details. 
 
As to writing, that's a whole other topic...but I do a lot of getting parts down fast to write the song without being concerned if the sound is right, the edits are great, etc. After the song is done, then I'll go back and replace the parts with ones that are more thought out...not unlike what you do, in a way.

Although your post got me thinking about it I was more referring to certain folks who are much less... erm... diplomatic than you were (essentially I'm talking about smarmy ding dongs who try to make it into a superiority thing... which you didn't).
 
As for the other thoughts... I'll scrap/delete anything I know isn't going to work immediately as I track (I've got the R - Spacebar - Ctrl + Z routine so ingrained in my muscle memory I've somehow gotten to the point where I catch myself reaching out and doing it without even opening my eyes even though my hands are on the guit). But if something may be useable or has an "interesting" mistake it stays for later inspection.
 
Hanging on to older stuff even if I think I'm getting better takes down has actually ended up garnering better results because every so often I'll go back to the very first takes and there will be a gem amongst them that I prefer (usually because of a looser feel or there was a part I had moved away from but end up liking it again).
 
Well I'm sure you have experienced all that. Point is I'm kind of a clip pack rat. I don't like getting rid of anything unless it truly is unuseable garbage. I can always go back and delete that stuff once the tune is done... then again I may want to do an alt version later on or maybe if someone wants to use the song for something I can offer up those other tracks for them to play with/choose from.
 
This of course hogs up my drive space but it's easy/cheap enough to move it off the system.

Sanderxpander
The only thing I don't get in your approach is how there are 30 takes that are worthwhile in such a short section. I can easily see doing a part 30 times with a less than great singer. But surely you don't end up with 30 takes that are worth keeping? There must be twenty you can delete right away?

 
Yes, you're absolutely right and I SHOULD delete those 20 or so unusable takes. But, in reality, I can't make that decision and do it. It's probably because I often notice one or two unsatisfactory parts (often just one word or one syllabl) in the comped vocal track several days/weeks after I completed it, and audition all takes in that section once again and, surprisingly, I find the best portion in one of those "unusable" takes. I know I don't have to delete them and can just move them to another track to reduce the number of lanes, and I may actually do that next time, since the vertical zooming is so inefficient.
 
 

Beepster
I don't like getting rid of anything unless it truly is unuseable garbage.

 
Oh yes. Exactly the same here.