Earnings of a Sound Engineer

[Daytona_Squared]

Don't know if this is the right place to ask, but some of you dudes seem pretty knowledgeable so thought I'd go ahead and ask.

I'm planning on going college when the next term starts, and I'm leaning towards going to a local-ish college and studying some courses there. However the courses I will end up taking don't really jump out at me, but they will set me good for University and a decent job in the future. One course that does appeal to me is a Sound Engineering course, but it's at a college that is 20-25 miles from where I live.

Now I was wondering, do anyone here know how much, on average, a Sound Engineer makes per year? Because when it comes down to it, I want a career that will allow me to live a (fairly) comfortable life money-wise. I could take the first option knowing that will satisfy what I want, but the Engineering course is awkward being so far away but it would mean I am doing something not just for money but something that I enjoy, and if it pays, then I'll go for it.

Think I explained about right, any questions feel free to ask, and help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Kontents]

Check this out its got a whole thread of info:
https://www.illmuzik.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22646&highlight=Wage

Your looking at 30-40k a year which is meh average. Overall it depends on what you get to work on and who you get to work with and how often.

 

[hanayalator]

Ya I'd say that being an engineer is like being anything else. Take producers for example, some dont make shit, and some make tens of millions a year, just matters how good you are. Engineers are the same way. The top list studio guys get hired all the time for major record releases, and majors labels pay big money, but that doesn't mean that everyone is going to make that much.

H

 

[Relic]

Like anything you will have to make your way up the ladder, but this way you may enjoy doing it. The higher you go though you have to be prepared to have your whole life revolve around being in the studio at crazy ass hours, think about that.

 

[Da IllFellaz]

the market is over-saturated........ i know some REALLY good engineers sitting at home twiddling their thumbs..... and like relic said, crazy crazy hours......

 

[Relic]

DJ Swivel on this site engineers for big name major cats like JZ and P diddy and others. He can tell you its nutty. lol

 

[God]

Daytona Squared:

1. You have to really LIKE it. It's NOT glamourous at all. I suggest you intern first in a studio to see what it's really like. I used to want to be a trial lawyer back in the day and worked as an assitant to a lawyer to see what it was REALLY like. It sucked and I chose another path.

2. Get a regular degree or something that involves learning about electrical circuitry, etc. You'll be useful as an assitant when the engineer asks you to fix a piece of equipment, and you know what you're actually doing.

3. The market is oversaturated with "Pro-Tools certified" graduates who don't know shit from SAE or Full-Sail. Be reasonable in any of your decisions. I wouldn't drop 30K for "engineering school."

4. Don't believe what I said? Go ask the pros at http://www.gearslutz.com. They'll basically tell you what I said.

5. A mastering engineer has the most stable and reasonable hours.

 

[djswivel]

Havent been on here in a minute. Just checked a few threads. As mostly everyone already said it varies. Some make good money, and others dont make shit. You basically work freelance, so if you're booked everyday, you make great money. I havent had a day off in weeks, so I'm one of the fortunate ones. I also get to work on projects that most ppl dream of. There's only a handful of people in my boat tho, and far more graduates than successful engineers. Average mixes for record labels are $2000/mix. And for recording engineers, $50/hour. If you mix 2 songs per week, you can pull 16k/month. Or if you spend 2 weeks and mix a whole album, thats about $30 grand. Not bad.

As far as going to electrical school, i would say thats not the brightest idea if engineering is your passion. Go to an audio school. most studios wont hire you unless uve been to an audio school. Like any other shcool you learn your shit in the workplace, not in the classroom. It takes time after graduation to get your weight up.