How much should I charge for a 3-song demo?

[xdarkknightx]

So I have a band interested in having me record them and are willing to pay(!). So I'm curious how much should I charge them. Here's an example of my latest mix and the quality they would expect http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5174638/james howlett final.mp3
I want to be fair, but I'd like to make a little pocket change lol. Any suggestions? Per song? Per hour?

 

[AHChris]

I can´t listen to your stuff right now, but IMHO it´s highly recommended to charge per song in your situation. When you charge per hour the band tries to finish everything ASAP and the quality suffers from that. And then you have a poorly played end result with your name on it which scares new clients off.

 

[arv_foh]

$200/day for 10 hours starting off I'd say

 

[ahjteam]

by the hour.

 

[LeSedna]

by the hour, so that they won't try to have you work 40 hours on one song. Tell them the average money it would cost, so that they have a fixed value in head, but still know they pay by the hour. With this fixed average value in head they won't try to finish fast.

 

[006]

Yeah the per-song route has you ending up making like really shitty wages. Do it per-hour. Tell them how much you think it will be total, hour and cost-wise, but remind them that it is per-hour and that quote is only for X hours.

 

[pipaguapique]

rates are pretty stupid here in mexico...but im asuming somewhere between $20 to $30 bucks an hour is good.

 

[Customisbetter]

I would charge based on how much work you put into the project. For some bands, a 3 song EP can take weeks, for other maybe two days. What is your time worth?

 

[guitarguru777]

Although the "per song" rate is shitty cause it means you make less, its still a better option as far as the band is concerned. you can be sure they do things right, not rush the project and turn out a better product.

My personal feelings on the matter are:

When you are first starting off do it per song. When the bands in the area start calling you to record them shift to an hourly rate. That means you are in demand and can tell them straight up ... OK if you want to get the product you are asking for its going to probably take X amount of hours at Y price ....

Worked great for me.

Did my first 2 demos for free, seconds two on a per song basis, and the next band coming in I am charging $25 an hour.

 

[Auroras]

alright so theres two sides to this 1 bands are broke and underequiped you wan't to do by the hour well they can't afford it and you make no money you do it by the song you get paid less but still are making $ but have to put in more work then its worth.

I'm actually doing what guitarguru mentioned and I did 2 free demos thought there not complete since the 1 of the two bands im tracking are rewritting the song and the other band well im producing them and the song isn't complete .

I also learned that in order to not end up spending 20 hours tracking a song you gotta make up a variable payment solution so do something like this a per song rate but it varys depending how many days it takes ill use my fees as an example ill do 60 per song if it takes one day to track but if its takes more then 1 day ill charge 120$ but keep the rate flat .


I think it works out pretty we'll it gives the bands a bit of a push to play well but also it gives them time and they don't break the bank

 

[xdarkknightx]

Thanks for the input guys. I think guitarguru and Fromgods have the method I'll lean toward. Especially since I know these guys aren't made of money, and I'm still learning. I think the per hour thing is more of a goal for me than a starting point.