Albums often come together from years of sketches, guest parts that arrive as files, and many rounds of mixing. Timestamping each stage gives you an independent, dated trail of how the record was made. Here is a simple routine that works on the free plan and scales up for bigger projects.
Disclosure: I’m Inna Hall, co-founder of TimeBinder, the file timestamping tool this guide uses. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Table of Contents
Why a dated trail helps
An album built over time leaves a lot of files: old voice memos and instrumental sketches, vocal takes from collaborators, alternate mixes, final masters. If a track is later copied, sampled without permission, or imitated with AI tools trained on released audio, the strongest thing you can show is the material that only the people who made the record have. Session files, sketches and raw guest takes are exactly that.
A timestamp records when each of those files existed. It doesn’t decide who wrote what, but it gives you and your collaborators a shared, checkable timeline.
The four stages to date
- Sketches. When you pick an old idea to develop, zip the sketch files and TimeBind them. The record shows they existed no later than that day, which is honest even if they’re years older.
- Guest parts as received. When a collaborator sends vocal takes, TimeBind the files exactly as they arrived, before you edit or comp them. It gives both sides a record of what was delivered and when. Agree on splits in writing too; our split sheet generator helps.
- Mix stage. A zip of the session folders and stems once a song is locked.
- Masters. The final WAVs exactly as delivered.
Step by step: TimeBinding the original files
Collect the exact files. For each stage, gather the files listed above. Zip anything that’s a folder.
Stop editing them. A timestamp covers the exact bytes of a file. Renaming a file is fine, but re-saving, re-exporting or letting an app write metadata into it gives it a new fingerprint. Keep a copy that nothing touches, and work on duplicates.
Bundle if you have more than 10 files. One TimeBind covers up to 10 files. For a big folder, make a zip of it and TimeBind the zip. Then keep that exact zip, because the record matches the zip, not a re-zipped copy.
Open the app and select the files. Sign in at app.timebinder.io (Google or an email link), start a TimeBind and drag the files in. Each file is hashed locally in your browser. The files are never uploaded.
Add a short Reference. For example: Album sketches selected for development, zip of 12 files. The Reference and Details text are hashed into the record too, so keep them factual and leave out anything private.
Choose Pooled or ASAP. Pooled costs 1 Token and is batched with other users’ fingerprints, usually within 24 to 48 hours, and often sooner, depending on Bitcoin network activity. ASAP costs 3 Tokens and gets its own transaction, which can be checked without relying on TimeBinder. ASAP vs Pooled explains the difference.
Download the Proof of Time Certificate once the TimeBind is confirmed, and store it next to the untouched files and in a second place, such as cloud storage or a backup drive.
Keep one simple text note listing each TimeBind ID, what it covers and where the files live. Future you will thank you.
Anyone you choose can check it later: open the TimeBind, click Verify File and select the file. It is re-hashed in their browser and compared. Verification explained walks through it. If you want to see a file’s fingerprint first, our free SHA-256 file hash checker shows it without uploading anything.
Which plan fits
The free plan gives you 1 Token a month, which is one Pooled TimeBind of up to 10 files. If you zip each stage, that’s one stage a month, or the masters plus a zip of everything else at the end.
A paid plan suits an album you want to date stage by stage. Essential is US$20 a month for 5 Tokens (5 Pooled, or 1 ASAP plus 2 Pooled). Expert is US$50 a month for 15 Tokens (15 Pooled or 5 ASAP), and unused Tokens roll over. Verification is free. See pricing.
What a timestamp does and doesn’t do
TimeBinder anchors each file’s SHA-256 fingerprint to Bitcoin and gives you a Proof of Time Certificate. That is verifiable evidence of when a file existed: it shows the file existed no later than the anchor date, and it makes later changes detectable. An ASAP TimeBind can be checked directly on the Bitcoin blockchain without relying on TimeBinder; a Pooled TimeBind is verified through TimeBinder.
It doesn’t show who made the work, it doesn’t stop anyone copying it, and it isn’t a registration. It also doesn’t replace registering the songs and recordings or your agreements with collaborators. Our guide on proving you wrote a song first covers those steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I timestamp files a collaborator sent me?
Yes. The record shows those files existed no later than that date. It says nothing about who owns them, so keep your written agreements.
Will Ableton or another DAW change my project file?
Opening and saving a project changes it. TimeBind a copy that you don’t open again, and keep working on another copy.
Do my files get uploaded?
No. They are hashed locally in your browser. Only the fingerprint leaves your device.
How do I check a record years later?
Open the TimeBind from the certificate or its QR code, click Verify File and select the file.
Plan details were checked against timebinder.io/pricing on 28 October 2026.
