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[Paul G. OBrien]

but my question is if one of the 2600 can drive it to it's reliable max? Cause it's supposed to be 1200/2400/4800 and I keep hearing to get an amp capable of a bit more than the program rating, but both 18s start clipping when I turn it to the max on the amp

Speakers don't clip amps do, but if you are getting metallic popping sounds from the speakers then you have already found their low frequency power limits. I suspect you don't yet have an appropriate low cut filter applied to these and that will help, but realistically you're not going to be able to apply more than about 1500w to those subs with bass heavy recorded music.

[Victor Estrada]

Victor,

How much you can charge is dependent on 3 things IMO, none of which are related to how much someone else in another location is charging.

1. what the local market can bear
2. what you feel your time is worth (sometimes this means less jobs at a higher rate)
3. perceived service level of the client (this can be game changer) 

That fact that you spent money doesn't necessarily mean you deserve more money. If you spent a lot of money and as  a result assembled a poor sounding system (and yes people do that all the time) your value to the client may have actually gone down, not up. You can also show up with the best system in the world but do a poor job of meeting the clients needs and that makes you less valuable then another with a lesser system who meets the needs of the client.

You need to decide how much your time is worth to you, then see if the market agrees. If it agrees you're gold.

 If it doesn't then you have tough decisions to make.

It mostly depends on who's doing the party, some got money, some don't. If I know them and know where they work, then I'll charge them less if it's a lower income job. But weddings, I try to charge as much as I can cause it's extra work and headaches as they're almost never well organized, and I'm pretty sure someone else is paying, and sometimes even 2 or 3 people. There's another guy that charges 450, and have been told multiple times that I do a better job with mixes and that my music is more updated and varied. But I suck at asking for money lol

[Scott Holtzman]

It mostly depends on who's doing the party, some got money, some don't. If I know them and know where they work, then I'll charge them less if it's a lower income job. But weddings, I try to charge as much as I can cause it's extra work and headaches as they're almost never well organized, and I'm pretty sure someone else is paying, and sometimes even 2 or 3 people. There's another guy that charges 450, and have been told multiple times that I do a better job with mixes and that my music is more updated and varied. But I suck at asking for money lol

In the Cleveland area decent DJ's start at $500+production for weddings.  The best are over 1 to 2k and insist on substantial production which is dependent on room, ethnicity etc.

Do you carry insurance?  That's a dividing line between hobby and business to me.  At $350.00 I can't imagine you are covering your expenses.

[Jeff Lelko]

Just wondering though, how much do you guys usually charge per gig? I've been charging 300, but been thinking about raising the prices cause of all the investment I've made

How much or little I charge depends on what I'm expected to provide, as I would assume to be the same in your case.  Rates will vary greatly depending on your market served but in my case, I make anywhere from several hundred to several thousand per event.  Raising your prices just because you've dumped a lot of cash into equipment won't go over well with your customers unless they've been requesting said equipment from you and understand there's a price to be paid for it.  Charging one customer more than another for the same service just because they have a bigger budget doesn't go over well either.  Certain people handle the financial aspect of their business differently, but I try to charge based on the service provided to do the job properly and not so much nickel and dime on specifics. 

What exactly are you providing for your customers?  What does it cost you?  What is your time worth?  What is fair market value?  Are there any specialized skills required from you or your crew that increase your value?  These are all factors that should affect your price.  In my case, simply providing a microphone and a pair of speakers for a 45min awards ceremony at the local community center will cost far less than a 3-day event that requires a larger rig and crew, overnight lodging, etc.  What level of professionalism and reliability is expected of you at your events?  There's a big difference in expectation between that aforementioned awards ceremony, a high school graduation party, and a corporate/municipal event for a city/organization you've heard of that happens to be one of their largest annual public outreach or fundraiser events.  We serve a unique role at these events in that the failure of our equipment or service can have severe, rippling consequences for the client.  Seeing as you mention DJing weddings - imagine your power going out or music skipping during the bride and groom's first dance.  Not good, and the consequences of that would be far worse than if you had to have a few seconds of dead air when providing simple background music at a generic company picnic or such.  While I treat all my work with equal professionalism, the tolerance of anything less than perfection varies by event and any proactive measures I need to have in place to ensure a positive outcome such as additional crew, backup equipment, etc., will add to my price as necessary.  Some events I work require me to pull on skills and licensing that took me years of training to obtain.  Hiring me in such an occupation to use said skills will cost the client more than a simple event that would not.  I would expect a rough basis of fee scheduling to be part of your business plan. 

Touching on what Scott said, if you don't have insurance, pay taxes, etc., you want to get this sorted out first before taking on more work, otherwise this can come back to bite you in the worst way.  Hope all this helps!

[Victor Estrada]

In the Cleveland area decent DJ's start at $500+production for weddings.  The best are over 1 to 2k and insist on substantial production which is dependent on room, ethnicity etc.

Do you carry insurance?  That's a dividing line between hobby and business to me.  At $350.00 I can't imagine you are covering your expenses.

What do I need insurance for? and as for taxes, do I have to do them even if it's under 11k every year? This is a hobby and only do 10 to 15 gigs per year, and some of them I don't even charge (friends), others I charge less (people in need).

[Ray Aberle]

What do I need insurance for? and as for taxes, do I have to do them even if it's under 11k every year? This is a hobby and only do 10 to 15 gigs per year, and some of them I don't even charge (friends), others I charge less (people in need).

Any responsible businessperson who is exposing themselves to potential liability needs to have insurance.

As for taxes (I am NOT an accountant nor a tax advisor. Your situation may vary. You should consult your tax advisor for information specific to your situation.) -- Typically, any time you're working/earning money, it's income. Naturally, if you're not charging for something, then there's nothing you'd be taxed on, but if you're being paid to provide a service, that's usually considered income and would therefore be subject to tax.

Now that you've publicly posted that you might not be fulfilling any required tax obligations, you may want to make damn certain you're doing things legally, otherwise it's no longer negligence- it's willful avoidance of income tax. The Internal Revenue Service doesn't really appreciate that.

-Ray

[Scott Holtzman]

What do I need insurance for? and as for taxes, do I have to do them even if it's under 11k every year? This is a hobby and only do 10 to 15 gigs per year, and some of them I don't even charge (friends), others I charge less (people in need).

Victor,  personal question, feel free not to answer.  How old are you?

[Jeff Lelko]

What do I need insurance for?

In addition to what Ray said, most venues and clients require it.  In fact, I can't remember the last time I booked an event where a COI wasn't required.  All that aside, given today's litigation-happy society, all it takes is one little accident to cause lifelong problems for you.  Not that insurance makes you immune to that sort of thing, but structuring your business properly (LLC, insurance, etc.) can help distance your personal assets from any litigation brought against your business entity.  I'm not a lawyer, so be sure to consult one if you need specific answers for your given situation, but you still need insurance.  Maybe your jobs aren't at the level yet where this is required, but you'll want to get this regardless.  That also might be in addition to insurance that covers the loss of your equipment.  You'll have to decide if your equipment is worth enough to warrant the annual premium for coverage...

All I can say regarding taxes is to consult a CPA or other tax professional to ensure you're following the laws.  What you personally consider your business to be may not fall in line with what the IRS considers your business to be...

[Lance Hallmark]

What do I need insurance for?

Here's one reason:
http://www.sptimes.com/2008/01/17/Southpinellas/Family_of_boy_injured.shtml

[Victor Estrada]

Any responsible businessperson who is exposing themselves to potential liability needs to have insurance.

As for taxes (I am NOT an accountant nor a tax advisor. Your situation may vary. You should consult your tax advisor for information specific to your situation.) -- Typically, any time you're working/earning money, it's income. Naturally, if you're not charging for something, then there's nothing you'd be taxed on, but if you're being paid to provide a service, that's usually considered income and would therefore be subject to tax.

Now that you've publicly posted that you might not be fulfilling any required tax obligations, you may want to make damn certain you're doing things legally, otherwise it's no longer negligence- it's willful avoidance of income tax. The Internal Revenue Service doesn't really appreciate that.

-Ray

You make it sound too complicated when all I wanna do is DJ. I charged a guy 20 bucks for transfering his iphone pictures to his laptop, IRS want me to file those too? Kinda dumb in my opinion to charge the guy an extra dollar for those taxes...

Why would the even care so much for those taxes? Say I do 10 gigs, and charge for only 5, ranging from 100-300, that's only about 100 bucks a year, and then I'll be claiming things like gas, food, tools (equipment spending) and all other things I can claim.

As for insurance, how much do they cost? And as for the example someone posted about a speaker falling on a kid, isn't that the parents' fault for not taking care of their kid and letting him run/play around the equipment? I always tell people not to hang around the sound system, and that if they do, they'd be responsible for any damages or accidents.

I also don't think my age matters, I've always worked for companies, and my taxes are alway taken from my check (ridiculous amounts for that matter, more than twice than what I pay for rent).

[ProSoundWeb Community]