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Typical pay/day rate for live sound engineer in SF bay area

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Ryan Wilson:
Hi all, I am an engineer based out of Reno, NV who is considering making the move to the San Fran Bay area and finding an audio gig. I was wondering if anybody out there can share some info regarding the "typical" day rate or hourly pay for a live sound engineer in a club or concert venue. And maybe in other areas of audio as well. I have heard from other engineers that the market is over saturated with experienced engineers and pay is relatively low compared to the cost of living. I was one of two of the main staff engineers at a well known club/venue here in Reno and made only $125 a show. No matter how many hours I worked in that day. Sometimes I only worked 8 hours, but usually it was around 12 and never got paid overtime. Needless to say, I left that place and have since discovered other opportunities.

I really want to move to the bay area but was hoping someone could tell me a little about being a live sound engineer (FOH, Monitors) in this region and I guess being an audio guy in general and how difficult it is to find work and most importantly...THE PAY. Has anybody worked for a medium to large club/venue in SF bay Area who wouldn't mind sharing what they made?? Obviously the name of the venue could be omitted. Any help or answers would be greatly appreciated!! Cheers!

Charlie Zureki:

--- Quote from: Ryan Wilson on August 24, 2011, 08:52:01 PM ---Hi all, I am an engineer based out of Reno, NV who is considering making the move to the San Fran Bay area and finding an audio gig. I was wondering if anybody out there can share some info regarding the "typical" day rate or hourly pay for a live sound engineer in a club or concert venue. And maybe in other areas of audio as well. I have heard from other engineers that the market is over saturated with experienced engineers and pay is relatively low compared to the cost of living. I was one of two of the main staff engineers at a well known club/venue here in Reno and made only $125 a show. No matter how many hours I worked in that day. Sometimes I only worked 8 hours, but usually it was around 12 and never got paid overtime. Needless to say, I left that place and have since discovered other opportunities.

I really want to move to the bay area but was hoping someone could tell me a little about being a live sound engineer (FOH, Monitors) in this region and I guess being an audio guy in general and how difficult it is to find work and most importantly...THE PAY. Has anybody worked for a medium to large club/venue in SF bay Area who wouldn't mind sharing what they made?? Obviously the name of the venue could be omitted. Any help or answers would be greatly appreciated!! Cheers!

--- End quote ---


  Hello Ryan,

   I made a couple of calls to techs in the SF area...It seems (as everywhere else) that the rates are all over the place.   

    I would make a suggestion that if you have the experience, forget about clubs and move up to Theatre sized venues (900+ cap), or,  getting on the day-list with the Iatse (if they're looking for extras), SF Sound Providers, (single?) look for smaller Tour gigs, Corporate Event S/V/L providers, or, Hotel A/V companies.

   SF is an expensive town, you'll need to make decent bucks just to pay the rent.

   Good Luck,
   Hammer

Ryan Wilson:

--- Quote from: Charlie Zureki on August 25, 2011, 12:04:26 PM ---

Hey Charlie, thanks for the info! Yeah good advice. I imagine that I will be continually screwed over as long as I remain a house guy at a small club. I will start the process of contacting the big guys and get something I can survive on. Thanks!
 
 :)
Hello Ryan,

   I made a couple of calls to techs in the SF area...It seems (as everywhere else) that the rates are all over the place.   

    I would make a suggestion that if you have the experience, forget about clubs and move up to Theatre sized venues (900+ cap), or,  getting on the day-list with the Iatse (if they're looking for extras), SF Sound Providers, (single?) look for smaller Tour gigs, Corporate Event S/V/L providers, or, Hotel A/V companies.

   SF is an expensive town, you'll need to make decent bucks just to pay the rent.

   Good Luck,
   Hammer

--- End quote ---

waldo [Casey Williams]:
Hey, Ryan--

I would start with Ultrasound. They're large and have a lot on their plate. The other day an engineer asked me if I'd be interested taking shifts there, but I'm committed.

I don't have a particular contact for you but their website is: http://www.promediausa.com/

Yes, $$ are all over the map.

good luck!
waldo

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