Forum: music.stackexchange.com
Tags: <sound><performing>
Title: How much to pay sound person?
Question: My band plays events in small and large venues like a bar to a bike night outdoors. We pay for sound at large events which they bring sound equipment to setup and tear down. is paying 30% of our pay is a little high. That would be $210 for a $700 gig with each of the four member making $122.50. Is this a typical fee for bands?

Answers:
sents: text: It really depends and most sound guys will tell you what they charge per gig.
text: Personally I would not go for the cheaper option, I would go for the better sound guy as a good sound guy
text: always makes you sound your best.
text: It may seem strange to pay a sound guy more then a member of your band, but really do a lot for band including: Setting up and tearing down equipment for you.
text: Providing a sound check to adjust the sound for the room.
text: Providing monitors for musicians and being able to adjust them for you while preforming.
text: Mixing sound live and adding effects like delay and reverb.
text: Most typically have lights to enhance the the look of your performance.
text: I would talk to bands in your area to see if they have certain sound guys they would recommend (or avoid).
text: I look at it this way, while you probably can find a cheap sound guy a better sound guy will make you get more gigs and make your overall show better.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/7222/Dom
score: 8
sents: text: I've been lucky enough to work with monitor and FOH engineers who were being paid multiple thousands of dollars per week.
text: The value they add is ridiculous.
text: Having to go back to standard house engineers or beginners is really painful after that.
text: Your sound guys are pretty much the most valuable item/thing/asset a touring band can have.
text: In answer to your question: Pay what you need to if the guy makes you sound great (offstage and onstage).
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/26565/Lyrical.me
score: 3
sents: text: The sound guy is not a band member.
text: He may be friendly with a good attitude and have a cool job
text: but: it is a job.
text: He's not part of the musical creation process and unless he's been accompanying you to the studio and on residency for your show, there won't be much creative production on his side either.
text: He's not a producer (His salary is not dependent on the gigs revenue; as opposite to a manager or a booking agent who make a bet on you).
text: It's a profession , not a hobby.
text: It's what he pays his bills with
text: He'll be there long before and after the band members He works in the dark, not on stage with all the perks and glamour that may bring.
text: I read somewhere something very interesting
text: : nobody will have trouble hiring a musician who works part-time in a bar.
text: The general public knows how hard it is to make it as a musician.
text: But who will hire a sound engineer working in a restaurant to make ends meet?
text: No one, because he would be seen as unprofessional.
text: And if you think hiring professionals is expensive, hire an amateur and put him in front of your best customers.
text: Also, standard rate is a minimum of 250 EUR per gig in Belgium (usually calculated on a 10hr shift) or 300 CAD (obviously in Canada).
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/44853/Matteo
score: 2
sents: text: This isn't about 'fair shares', it's about what it costs to hire in sound gear and an operator.
text: Negotiate the best price you can for what you need.
text: If this is more than the whole band is making, consider going into the sound-hire business instead!
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/17003/Laurence Payne
score: 1
sents: text: I think the problem stems from the fact that most people think the "sound guy" or "Technician" is not part of the band.
text: Just because I'm not on stage and under a spot light doesn't mean I have any less part of creating the picture and vibe of the band.
text: Your instruments don't sound like any recording you'd buy today and
text: my instrument ( Console and Speakers ) doesn't make any sound without you.
text: typically when you're putting together a band you try to get the best players you can because you know it makes a difference.
text: You need to consider the Mixer as part of the equation or part of the band.
text: Someone in this thread said " the sound guy is NOT the producer".
text: In the traditional sense of the studio that sounds right on the surface, but I am doing this a bit.
text: It's very difficult if not impossible for a musician on a modern stage (especially with IEMs) to be cognizant of every aspect of the sound and music that is happening while they're trying to play.
text: I often will go to the stage and ask if a drum can be retuned to a different pitch or ask a bass player thin out a few notes in a couple bars because its fighting the floor tom part that's being played.
text: I'll ask guitar players to back off reverbs or delays a bit because they're getting lost in the mix.
text: I've had times where I'll tell the band leader a note that the keyboard player is playing is conflicting with a guitar part.
text: Sometimes the band doesn't catch it.
text: I won't do that on the first pass but if it happens a couple times in sound check and its obviously a mistake then I'll speak up.
text: I have the advantage of a kind of third person perspective listening to the whole picture.
text: One thing to keep in mind is a lot of the time the band (volume wise) is not appropriate for the venue.
text: This effectively takes away the ability of the mixer to do his job.
text: A second part of that equation is most club systems are not adequate for the job.
text: What should you pay?
text: What should a pro baseball player get paid?
text: What should a rock star get paid?
text: It's the same question.
text: How good are they, what do they bring to the table?
text: It's a free market.
text: The idea that any of us is more or less critical to the process is just uninformed.
text: This is a huge topic and these few words cannot address all the scenarios and nuance it deserves.
text: These are a few things I've learned from doing this for 30 years.
answer_details: author: music.stackexchange.com/users/60975/DANIEL CANFIELD
score: 1

Summary of the answers:
It is a good idea to talk to bands in your area to get recommendations for sound men. Negotiating the price is possible but you need to have an idea of the going rate for your area. 
The answer to this question will be subjective and will depend on how good the sound man is. You might want to consider asking the opinion of other bands in the area. For reference, in Belgium, the standard rate is 250 EUR and in Canada, the standard rate is 300 CAD.