I start out with a pound per gallon, often add more when I rack, some batches have ended up 1.5 lbs per galon of juice. This does make what purist brewers call "apple wine" rather than traditional "hard cider". I just call it hard cider and don't care what people think. It generates a wine around 13-14% ABV. The key with this cider is, like wine, it needs time to age, so there is no instant gratification. Paitience is key. My cider ends up being almost a year before it's really hitting it's prime, and the apple flavor does come back with bottle aging, but yes, as some have mentioned if you open a bottle a week after you bottle it, it will taste more like a mixed drink with lots of alcohol burn...but if you leave it in the bottle for 4-6 months, that taste mellows a lot and the apple flavors come back. I'll leave in the fermenters for almost six months (2-2.5 months in primary, 3 months in secondary, and around 2 months in a tertiary to really get it crystal clear). I start right about this time of year, and won't end up bottling until early May, and then wont start drinking that until late July or August, and the dryer wines from last year are only just starting to get really good right now. I make a cider champagne that's great and I'm just barely starting to crack open the 2011 batch right now.
And champagne yeasts that I've used have fermented all the way down to .996, last year I had two batches get down to .992, that's BONE dry! If you're looking for sweetness to remain, you might want to consider using an ale yeast or an English Cider yeast. I go dry and use champagne and dry wine yeasts (Red Star Champagne and Lalvin D-47 are my go-to's, though I might start experimenting with a few other Lalvin wine yeasts)
So if you're looking for something you can drink much quicker, go for the lower sugar recipe's that end up more like a beer ABV, around 5-7%. They, like beer, are ready to drink much quicker. But if that's what you're already doing and want an experiment batch, go big! And if you're racking, freeze a couple half gallons of fresh cider to top off the carboy with when you rack.