Going bench rate for Amp techs?
- Thread starter joelap
- Start date
the guy who invented fire
Fuzzy. Guitars
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
I see a wide range of hourly charges but I am always worried about the guys charging $30 or $35 an hour...the guys charging big bucks have a name and a rep that goes with the big price.
I'd say a good rate is in the $55-65 range. Maybe $65 for the first hour and $55 per after that.
Or have set blanket rates for special, pre set jobs...
I see a wide range of hourly charges but I am always worried about the guys charging $30 or $35 an hour...the guys charging big bucks have a name and a rep that goes with the big price.
I'd say a good rate is in the $55-65 range. Maybe $65 for the first hour and $55 per after that.
Or have set blanket rates for special, pre set jobs...
glassman
Electron Herder
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
My bench rate is $40...and it's about to go up due to increased overhead.
Starting out, you may want to go with a lower rate to entice new business; you can always raise it later once you have established a reputation locally.
Remember, there is gonna be a ton of learning curve ahead; you will going from a few select (probably familiar) amps to being at the mercy of whatever comes through the door. You will get amps in that have no available schematic (many vintage amps meet this criteria) with bizarre issues and you will have to navigate essentially blind...and you can't charge the customer for your education. Be prepared to eat a lot of your time initially until you get your chops.
If you plan to turn away work you aren't comfortable with or choose to "specialize" in a particular brand, expect a tough time establishing a good reputation; though I admit it seems a lot of folks tend to buy in to the techs that claim to "specialize" in a particular brand. I personally don't buy it...if someone can supposably troubleshoot a Fender, they should be able to do the same with an old Hiwatt, Estey or Tiesco Del Ray.
Best of luck!
My bench rate is $40...and it's about to go up due to increased overhead.
Starting out, you may want to go with a lower rate to entice new business; you can always raise it later once you have established a reputation locally.
Remember, there is gonna be a ton of learning curve ahead; you will going from a few select (probably familiar) amps to being at the mercy of whatever comes through the door. You will get amps in that have no available schematic (many vintage amps meet this criteria) with bizarre issues and you will have to navigate essentially blind...and you can't charge the customer for your education. Be prepared to eat a lot of your time initially until you get your chops.
If you plan to turn away work you aren't comfortable with or choose to "specialize" in a particular brand, expect a tough time establishing a good reputation; though I admit it seems a lot of folks tend to buy in to the techs that claim to "specialize" in a particular brand. I personally don't buy it...if someone can supposably troubleshoot a Fender, they should be able to do the same with an old Hiwatt, Estey or Tiesco Del Ray.
Best of luck!
joelap
Red&Goldologist
Going bench rate for Amp techs?
40 was what I was thinking to start out with as well. I've had enough education between a masters degree in electrical engineering and years of doing this for free for people or for significantly reduced flat rates. I'd love to see some oddball amps, it keeps things interesting!
40 was what I was thinking to start out with as well. I've had enough education between a masters degree in electrical engineering and years of doing this for free for people or for significantly reduced flat rates. I'd love to see some oddball amps, it keeps things interesting!
H
H8Red442
Guest
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
I had my Dual Recto serviced over the summer, bench fee was $70.
I had my Dual Recto serviced over the summer, bench fee was $70.
St_Genesius
New member
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
IIRC, the amp tech I used to work with charged $75 for the first hour, then something like $50/hr after that. May, if not most, jobs were completed in that first hour. It usually took more time to fully and properly diagnose a problem than to fix it.
IIRC, the amp tech I used to work with charged $75 for the first hour, then something like $50/hr after that. May, if not most, jobs were completed in that first hour. It usually took more time to fully and properly diagnose a problem than to fix it.
D
DLT
Guest
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
Bbbbbut, Glassman...what about us POE musicians. We is broke! :17:
Bbbbbut, Glassman...what about us POE musicians. We is broke! :17:
J Moose
New member
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
One of the best guitar techs in my area charges $35 an hour and works out of his house. He used to rent space at a music store (now semi-defunct) which charged I think, $60 an hour for the same labor. Difference is that the music store used to take about 1/2 that rate and pocket it as "rent". So now even though this guy is charging "less" he actually makes MORE on each job.
Its all about the overhead... overhead also includes insurance and things like having a selection of parts on hand.
Honestly, for techs I've paid anywhere from about $30 an hour to $125 and have found there's little correlation between price and skill level. Expensive isn't always better. Once, many years ago with the 2" 24-track analog deck, I actually had to call ANOTHER guy to fix something the first guy botched.
The really great techs can fix anything... guitar amps, mixing consoles... cable boxes... whatever 'ya got.
One of the best guitar techs in my area charges $35 an hour and works out of his house. He used to rent space at a music store (now semi-defunct) which charged I think, $60 an hour for the same labor. Difference is that the music store used to take about 1/2 that rate and pocket it as "rent". So now even though this guy is charging "less" he actually makes MORE on each job.
Its all about the overhead... overhead also includes insurance and things like having a selection of parts on hand.
Honestly, for techs I've paid anywhere from about $30 an hour to $125 and have found there's little correlation between price and skill level. Expensive isn't always better. Once, many years ago with the 2" 24-track analog deck, I actually had to call ANOTHER guy to fix something the first guy botched.
The really great techs can fix anything... guitar amps, mixing consoles... cable boxes... whatever 'ya got.
glassman
Electron Herder
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
Precisely.
And that overhead isn't necessarily a bad thing. For instance, my insurance covers loss of customer equipment for any reason (fire, theft, etc) and my large inventory makes it possible to turn around 95% of what comes in the door on the spot if necessary.
Precisely.
And that overhead isn't necessarily a bad thing. For instance, my insurance covers loss of customer equipment for any reason (fire, theft, etc) and my large inventory makes it possible to turn around 95% of what comes in the door on the spot if necessary.
GuitarStv
Sock Market Trader
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
Rate per job is probably a better way to start out . . . if I'm bringing my amp in for repairs, I want to know how much it's going to cost me in the end, not "I went looking for your problem for 8 hours and then realized that I forgot to turn it off standby so it'll be 800$". If you can't tell me what you want for the job (or at least a pretty good ballpark figure), I'll likely take it somewhere else.
Rate per job is probably a better way to start out . . . if I'm bringing my amp in for repairs, I want to know how much it's going to cost me in the end, not "I went looking for your problem for 8 hours and then realized that I forgot to turn it off standby so it'll be 800$". If you can't tell me what you want for the job (or at least a pretty good ballpark figure), I'll likely take it somewhere else.
glassman
Electron Herder
Re: Going bench rate for Amp techs?
If you walk into my shop with a non-fuctioning amplifier and want an estimate on the spot and expect me to stick to that price, you are going to get a worst case estimate that is going to be very high. The bench fee includes diagnosis...and in my case, a call to the customer if the repair is going to be over $100. You can elect to not fix it and just pay the bench fee; you will, at the very least, leave knowing exactly what is wrong with it.
If you are speaking about modifications, then yes, a fixed price would be appropriate. 95% of a tech's business is fixing broken or mis-behaving amplifiers though; modifications are rare. Requests for mods are more frequent but generally it is to correct an amp that has an issue and/or a poor setup...I generally advise the customer to hold off on mods until they get to know the amp in a properly functioning state. Very few proceed with a mod once they hear the amp as it is supposed to sound.
If you walk into my shop with a non-fuctioning amplifier and want an estimate on the spot and expect me to stick to that price, you are going to get a worst case estimate that is going to be very high. The bench fee includes diagnosis...and in my case, a call to the customer if the repair is going to be over $100. You can elect to not fix it and just pay the bench fee; you will, at the very least, leave knowing exactly what is wrong with it.
If you are speaking about modifications, then yes, a fixed price would be appropriate. 95% of a tech's business is fixing broken or mis-behaving amplifiers though; modifications are rare. Requests for mods are more frequent but generally it is to correct an amp that has an issue and/or a poor setup...I generally advise the customer to hold off on mods until they get to know the amp in a properly functioning state. Very few proceed with a mod once they hear the amp as it is supposed to sound.