I'm wondering how much silence (if any) producers generally leave at the beginning of each song before the first sound in the song is heard. Is there a standard or usual length of time or number of measures of silence? Or are songs exported with the first sound heard at the first instant?
 
I generally leave the first twenty-four measures empty (in case an introduction, etc. might occur to me) and cut most of them before I export, but I'm never sure if I'm leaving the right amount of silence at the beginning.
 
Thank you for your patience,
LJ

I don't think there's any hard and fast rule about it - why not listen to a few CD's and see how they do it? You can see from the timer exactly where a song starts and how quickly the music starts. I think you'll find every variation - some songs will start right at measure 1, some will have a short gap, some will fade in etc. 
 
Personally I see nothing wrong with the first sound happening right at 00:00:00 - it's got to start somewhere! If you want a larger gap between tracks on an album you can always add a little silence on the end of the previous track. 

Thanks, sharke! I appreciate your answer. I'll play it by ear, then. :)
LJ

I never seem to leave enough silence. Usually 1 or 2 measures for a count-in, then later on I'll wish I'd left more room for an intro. I have one song where I squeezed a 2-measure intro into the silence, but SONAR (or Superior Drummer) refuses to play or export the first drum hit that occurs right at the start. One reason not to start a song at 00:00:00.
 
But for sending files out for mastering, you'd normally export from the first note, no leading silence. The ME will insert the appropriate silence between tracks, as per your instructions.

I generally start right at 0.  If an intro idea comes up... "select all"...and drag for as many measures you need.  I've never had problems with that.  Moves envelopes...the whole shootin' match. 
 
@ Bit.....I've had Toontrack almost always right at the beginning with something....and it always has worked for me.  My *rut* is typically a drum into...that gives me my countouff.  The only time I lose notes...and that's been my error...is splitting tracks and the MIDI note was anticipated by a hair... and then the note gets lost after the split.
 
 

Thank you, bitflipper. I didn't know that about songs you send out for mastering, so that information will come in handy some day, I hope.
 
The songs I'm doing are ones I am trying to master myself (hahahahaha ), so I'll try to judge how much time is appropriate.
 
Nodding in recognition of your experience of leaving/not leaving enough time at the beginning! I think my dreams of coming up with a great and long introduction and so leaving 24 measures available are grandiose, but I'm always afraid I'll be stuck with too few!
 
Thanks again,
LJ

Hi, mixmkr, and thanks for your response. That sounds like a very useful way to deal with the potential for an introduction.
 
I think I'm still stuck in an analog frame of mind, where the sight of the space available helps me to realize there's room for material before the spot I actually started playing!
 
I really should shift my imagination into this century! :)
LJ

yeppers... had to splice tape onto the 'head', for that intro previously...or record it separately and splice them together.
 
Honestly, I move my project around a lot as I'm typically really adding stuff on to the beginning quite a bit.  Then I move it back to zero, so my transport doesn't have to deal with music starting measures down the line.

mixmkr: Smiling at that answer - so true !

Set the now line where you want the extra time inserted, then Project>Insert Time/Measures and it will move all tracks simultaneously the selected amount.
No need for 24 measures at the start anymore.