Fair price for sound engineer
in [Live Sound]
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From: Richard Webb on 16 Jun 2010 23:56 George writes: >> a 4 pc band making 400. or less a show, I have no idea what the pay should >> be. Thanks. > who transports , sets up, tears down, stores rig, do you provide > a ride to the gig IMportant questions. > you can get a guy like me to walk in to a set up rig for a small > club run it then leave it for someone else to pack it up for > 200$ a night, MUCH more for theaters and "real" shows I was going to say about the same. IF I'm not providing my own transport to-from the gig and you pick me up I might knock some off the gig. IF I like your band I'll probably even help strike and load and go the extra mile. IF there's regular work from you I'll probably discount that, depending on who you are, and how easy you are to work with. Lots of factors go into whether or not you get a discount, and, *if* you tell anybody else what you're getting me for that discount then becomes void. But, George's figure is pretty much the ballpark. Regards, Richard .... Remote audio in the southland: See www.gatasound.com -- | Remove .my.foot for email | via Waldo's Place USA Fidonet<->Internet Gateway Site | Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.
From: Sean Conolly on 17 Jun 2010 00:18 "JWald" <wldj4(a)grics.net> wrote in message news:hvbh4n010jl(a)enews2.newsguy.com... > It finally happened for us. We did a multi band gig and the sound was > provided. It was wonderful. So much so that now we don't want anything > short of that again. Unfortunately, we aren't going to be able to afford > that. My idea is to pay the guy to run my rig, and or, show me how to run > my rig better. What is a fair price to pay when the gear is supplied. For > a 4 pc band making 400. or less a show, I have no idea what the pay should > be. Thanks. Here's the problem at the bottom end of the scale (which I know very well) Will a sound engineer make the band sound better? Yes. Will the venue make more money because the band sounds better, at least enough to cover the cost? Probably not: are more people going to walk in the door, or spend more money, because you have an engineer? One could argue that you can charge more for a better show, but in practice that's not going to happen until you have your own crowd packing every show, just to hear you. Below that level bar bands are basically a commodity. I had an owner tell me once that he wouldn't book a band unless they could guarantee at least 100 people would come with them. I told him if I could guarantee that many at every show I'd be choosing the clubs, not the other way around. Sean
From: bob on 17 Jun 2010 00:59 On 6/16/2010 4:53 PM, JWald wrote: > It finally happened for us. We did a multi band gig and the sound was > provided. It was wonderful. So much so that now we don't want anything short > of that again. Unfortunately, we aren't going to be able to afford that. My > idea is to pay the guy to run my rig, and or, show me how to run my rig > better. What is a fair price to pay when the gear is supplied. For a 4 pc > band making 400. or less a show, I have no idea what the pay should be. > Thanks. > well, a guy breaking into the business would be at 50/75 a gig. a guy that been around 100/150 to? the more money in the pot, the more the sound guy is going to want if he is good. There is always a supply of wannabe's bob
From: Steve M on 17 Jun 2010 06:28 "JWald" wrote: > What is a fair price to pay when the gear is supplied. For a 4 pc band > making 400. or less a show, I have no idea what the pay should be. I think you'll have a hard time finding someone competent that you can afford. What you describe is called a briefcase gig. No gear supplied or handled. Just set the mics, tweak system, do sound check, and mix show. My rate for friends is 150/show. Maybe 100 if it's just a solo acoustic act. Cases where it's a call out of the blue from a complete stranger (band or promoter) I get 200-250. While this might seem like a lot of money to some, keep in mind that I was getting 150/night in 1985 to do the same type of work. It's my opinion that the pay rate for sound guys has not kept pace with the cost of other services over the years. -- Steve McQ
From: Denny Strauser on 17 Jun 2010 07:54
JWald wrote: > It finally happened for us. We did a multi band gig and the sound was > provided. It was wonderful. So much so that now we don't want anything short > of that again. Unfortunately, we aren't going to be able to afford that. My > idea is to pay the guy to run my rig, and or, show me how to run my rig > better. What is a fair price to pay when the gear is supplied. For a 4 pc > band making 400. or less a show, I have no idea what the pay should be. > Thanks. For a band at your level, you could probably find a young soundman who would be willing to work for a cut of pay equal to each band member. I might have done this when I was starting out. The band members & soundman should all help load in & out of gear. The soundman should wire up the sound system as the band sets up their stage gear. This would give the soundman a possibility of making more money if the band makes more money, and it won't break your bank on low paying gigs. - Denny |