Sim cannot write music, does nothing instead

[AllThatJazzz]

Product: The Sims 4
Platform:PC
Which language are you playing the game in? English
How often does the bug occur? Every time (100%)
What is your current game version number? 1.51.75.1020
What expansions, game packs, and stuff packs do you have installed? Get to work, Get Famous, Seasons, Cats and Dogs, City Living, Strangerville, Parenthood, Dine out, backyard stuff & perfect patio stuff
Steps: How can we find the bug ourselves? My sim is level 8 piano and violin, I have had them try to write music on both instruments.
What happens when the bug occurs? When my sim tries to write a piece of music they do not try and write the music, instead a piece of sheet music appears in their inventory. When i click on this to continue writing the music they wont do it. Originally it was appearing in the queue and then disappearing but now it wont even go to the queue. I have tried rebuying instruments, restarting the game, getting the sim to try on a different instrument, removing my mods (i had mccommand centre but all of my other mods are visual like hair) , debugging the sim. My instruments are also not in my sims inventory so its not that and they are level 8 on both piano and violin neither of these work, Nothing has worked. I saw a similar thread and the response was that the bug had been fixed in 2015 but clearly not. see here: https://answers.ea.com/t5/Bug-Reports/Cannot-finish-writing-a-song/m-p/4836396/highlight/true#M16734
What do you expect to see? The sim should go to the instrument i have clicked on to begin writing their music.
Have you installed any customization with the game, e.g. Custom Content or Mods? Yes
Did this issue appear after a specific patch or change you made to your system? Yes
Please describe the patch or change you made. After the most recent patch on April 16th, I have never encountered this issue before and have previously managed to write music successfully multiple times.

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When my sim tries to write a piece of music they do not try and write the music, instead a piece of sheet music appears in their inventory. When i click on this to continue writing the music they wont do it. Originally it was appearing in the queue and then disappearing but now i can just hear the sound of it being added to the queue, no visuals and my sim doesn't move. I have tried re-buying instruments, restarting the game, getting the sim to try on a different instrument, removing my mods (i had mc command centre but all of my other mods are visual like hair) , debugging the sim. My instruments are also not in my sims inventory so its not that and they are level 8 on both piano and violin neither of these work, Nothing has worked. I saw a similar thread and the response was that the bug had been fixed in 2015 but clearly not.
See here

No pictures attached as nothing happens so its impossible to capture. 

[AllThatJazzz · Accepted solution]

Thanks very much, 50/50 method was very useful

Turns out I had downloaded the faster songwriting mod in 2017 and forgotten about it, since it was a .package file and my mods weren't sorted into folders i didn't see it when looking for mods. 

Thanks very much for your help! Game works fine with that removed. 

[crinrict]

Hi @AllThatJazzz 

I've just tried that in my game and it's working for me (although I tried Guitar cause that's the skill my guy currently has)

Could you test a fresh save that never saw any mods if that has the same issue ?

[AllThatJazzz]

Hello, 

appreciate your speedy response!

I just tried a new save and it wont work in that either.

[crinrict]

Try resetting your user files as described in the factory reset described in this post: http://answers.ea.com/t5/The-Sims-4/FAQ-Troubleshooting-Steps-amp-Known-Issues/m-p/3621199

You won't loose anything. Just make sure to not delete any files  and make a backup.

After renaming, repair your game by right clicking on the game in Origin.

Try on a new game with nothing added back first (start new game). If it works, put back your save game and try again. If it still works, you can start putting stuff back.

• Options.ini (or just re-set all your settings manually)
• Tray Folder
• Screenshots/Videos/Custom music
• Rest of the save games (leave out slot_00000001.save which is the autosave and no longer needed - if you still have it)
• Custom content like clothing, hair, skins, make up ....
• Mods (one by one, making sure they all still work)

The rest does not need putting back, cause they are mostly cache files that recreate or log files that are not needed for the game.

[AllThatJazzz]

It works when i use a fresh game, and even when I add my save games back in however when i add in my custom content back the bug returns. I deleted my most recent round of custom content and that didn't help. Is there anything else I can try? I have 4gb of custom content going back to 2015, it would take me hours to sift through it to find out which one is causing the break.

i dont understand how hairs and clothes can cause this kind of bug.

[crinrict]

Use the 50/50 method: http://modthesims.info/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:Finding_Problem_Custom_Content

It's the fasted way.

Start with mods, then work your way to the cc.

The patch probably broke something.
Here's also a lost of broken things since the last patch: https://simsvip.com/2019/04/16/broken-mods-for-april-19-patch-1-51-75/

[AllThatJazzz · Accepted solution]

Thanks very much, 50/50 method was very useful

Turns out I had downloaded the faster songwriting mod in 2017 and forgotten about it, since it was a .package file and my mods weren't sorted into folders i didn't see it when looking for mods. 

Thanks very much for your help! Game works fine with that removed.