What it pays
Government survey numbers — not estimates, not ads.
Half of all Sound Engineering Technicians in the U.S. earn more than $73,130 a year — the middle 80% land between $37,570 and $137,370. About 13,080 people in the U.S. do this work. Figures are for the U.S. occupation group “Sound Engineering Technicians”. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey, published 2025.) In India, Professionals earn about ₹38,298 a month on average — around ₹4.6 lakh a year (government PLFS survey via ILOSTAT, occupation-family figure).
$73,130typical pay / year
13,080people in this work
$137,370+top 10% earn
₹4.6 lakha year in India (family avg)
Think you get this job?Six quick questions on how it really works — with a hint and the reason behind every answer.
Test yourself →The work, task by task
These are the real jobs-to-be-done, not a wish list. Each task shows where we found it, and the prompt underneath is written for that exact task.
Keeping the record4
Record speech, music, and other sounds
+Record clean dialogue, live instruments, and designed room tones for the short film today, set levels so no…
Record speech, music, and other sounds
+Record clean dialogue, live instruments, and designed room tones for the short film today, set levels so no clipping, note mic and take numbers on the slate, and deliver labelled WAVs to the editor by 6pm after a quick safety check of cables and stands.
The tools that do the workApple macOSjob descriptionsO*NET
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Assemble and operate sound equipment
+Assemble the boom, shotgun, lavaliers, DI for the upright bass and the mixing desk patch for the session at…
Assemble and operate sound equipment
+Assemble the boom, shotgun, lavaliers, DI for the upright bass and the mixing desk patch for the session at Studio B, cable-check and gel the stands, run a line check with the drummer and singer, and hand the patched inputs to the re-recording mixer before soundcheck at 10:30.
The tools that do the workApple macOSESCOjob descriptions
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Make routine repairs on equipment
+Inspect and fix the rattling mic stand, replace the worn XLR on the small condenser, re-tension the boom arm…
Make routine repairs on equipment
+Inspect and fix the rattling mic stand, replace the worn XLR on the small condenser, re-tension the boom arm and rewind spare cable onto reels, then test each repair with a tone and spoken pass to confirm no noise before the 2pm session.
The tools that do the workApple macOSjob descriptionsO*NET
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Keep logs of recordings.
+Log every take for Scene 7 and the music cues: note slate timecode, mic used, takes accepted or rejected,…
Keep logs of recordings.
+Log every take for Scene 7 and the music cues: note slate timecode, mic used, takes accepted or rejected, operator and performer initials, and any sync issues, then export the session log as a searchable file and send it with the day reels to post by COB.
The tools that do the workApple macOSjob descriptionsO*NET
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The daily work16
Regulate volume level and sound quality during recording sessions, using control consoles.
+Set and monitor gain, EQ and fader levels at the control desk during the session so footsteps and props sit…
Regulate volume level and sound quality during recording sessions, using control consoles.
+Set and monitor gain, EQ and fader levels at the control desk during the session so footsteps and props sit under dialogue without clipping, call for retakes if any channel exceeds -6 dB, and note adjustments in the session log.
The tools that do the workApple macOSO*NET
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Tear down equipment after event completion.
+Pack down all microphones, booms and props after the wrap, coil cables to industry standard lengths, label…
Tear down equipment after event completion.
+Pack down all microphones, booms and props after the wrap, coil cables to industry standard lengths, label cases, return mics to the rack, and log missing or damaged items before handing keys to the stage manager.
The tools that do the workApple macOSO*NET
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Create musical instrument digital interface programs for music projects, commercials, or film postproduction.
+Program controller mappings and sample patches for the upcoming spot so the synth responds like a brushed…
Create musical instrument digital interface programs for music projects, commercials, or film postproduction.
+Program controller mappings and sample patches for the upcoming spot so the synth responds like a brushed snare and bowed cymbal, test them through the monitor chain, and export the presets with version notes for the composer.
The tools that do the workApple macOSO*NET
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Convert video and audio records to digital formats
+Capture tapes and reels to high-resolution files, trim leader and tails, normalize levels to reference…
Convert video and audio records to digital formats
+Capture tapes and reels to high-resolution files, trim leader and tails, normalize levels to reference loudness, embed timecode metadata, and store originals and converted masters on the studio archive drive.
The tools that do the workApple macOSjob descriptions
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Synchronize sounds and dialogue with action
+Align footsteps and foley hits to picture, nudge timing to match actor weight and cloth movement, balance…
Synchronize sounds and dialogue with action
+Align footsteps and foley hits to picture, nudge timing to match actor weight and cloth movement, balance ambience under dialogue, and flag any sync issues for the re-record session.
The tools that do the workApple macOSjob descriptions
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Musical instruments
+Practice the part on acoustic and electric instruments, tune to session pitch, document mic placements and…
Musical instruments
+Practice the part on acoustic and electric instruments, tune to session pitch, document mic placements and sticks used, and prepare 2 alternate takes for use during the mix.
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Maintain sound equipment
+Inspect the recording cart, mic stands, cables and mixers, log any faults with photos, label broken items,…
Maintain sound equipment
+Inspect the recording cart, mic stands, cables and mixers, log any faults with photos, label broken items, replace worn XLRs and foam windscreens, lubricate fader rails, test each mic through the console and sign off the maintenance checklist by Friday.
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Technically design a sound system
+Draft the stage plot and speaker placement for the upcoming surround session, calculate SPL and cabling runs…
Technically design a sound system
+Draft the stage plot and speaker placement for the upcoming surround session, calculate SPL and cabling runs for each zone, place wall-mount and floor monitors on the plan, and produce impedance and power-load notes for the rental crew by Wednesday.
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Manage personal professional development
+Collect my training receipts, list workshops and new techniques learned this year, rate gaps in mixing and…
Manage personal professional development
+Collect my training receipts, list workshops and new techniques learned this year, rate gaps in mixing and instrument performance, propose two courses and one mentoring session to cover them, and email the plan and budget request to my studio manager by Monday.
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Work ergonomically
+Survey my Foley bench setup, note awkward reaches and static postures, reorder props and raise work surface…
Work ergonomically
+Survey my Foley bench setup, note awkward reaches and static postures, reorder props and raise work surface to keep elbows at 90 degrees, add anti-fatigue mat and schedule two ten-minute microbreaks each session starting tomorrow.
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Use personal protection equipment
+Put on the respirator, earplugs, nitrile gloves and steel-toe boots before I touch the footsteps props or…
Use personal protection equipment
+Put on the respirator, earplugs, nitrile gloves and steel-toe boots before I touch the footsteps props or pour hot wax for tomorrow’s shoot, then confirm fit and stamp today’s safety log entry at 10:15am.
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Follow safety procedures when working at heights
+Harness up and walk me through the fall-arrest checks for the rig above Stage B, confirm the anchor points,…
Follow safety procedures when working at heights
+Harness up and walk me through the fall-arrest checks for the rig above Stage B, confirm the anchor points, tag the inspection sheet and notify stage manager Alex that I will be on the grid at 2pm.
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Operate an audio mixing console
+Set the console to my 32-channel patch for foley playback, recall my channel strip presets, route the…
Operate an audio mixing console
+Set the console to my 32-channel patch for foley playback, recall my channel strip presets, route the footsteps mic to subgroup B and print a session snapshot before I hand the desk to the re-recording mixer at 4pm.
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Keep up with trends
+Scan industry feeds and the latest sound library releases, pull three trending foley techniques and draft a…
Keep up with trends
+Scan industry feeds and the latest sound library releases, pull three trending foley techniques and draft a one-paragraph summary for the team chat by end of day Friday.
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Fit up sound on stage
+Run a quick stage walk to set microphone blankets and cable ramps, test every prop for sharp edges, correct…
Fit up sound on stage
+Run a quick stage walk to set microphone blankets and cable ramps, test every prop for sharp edges, correct anything unsafe and sign the safety declaration before the first rehearsal starts at 9am.
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Work with respect for own safety
+Review the risk assessment and refuse any task that needs me to climb without a second rigger, log my…
Work with respect for own safety
+Review the risk assessment and refuse any task that needs me to climb without a second rigger, log my objections in the incident record and arrange a private briefing with production to resolve before noon.
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Says who?
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Activities this job lives in
The human activities behind the tasks — each with its honest AI ceiling.
The logs, files & records this job keeps
Shared with other careers — the same record means something different in each.
Related careers
Same family of work — each with its own tasks and prompts.
The LLOS Work Atlas is the world's largest evidenced task library — a map of human work, with a ready prompt behind every task. 1,774 careers · every task named by the sources that witnessed it — O*NET, ESCO, real job descriptions, Wikipedia — and the deepest tasks by several at once. And it is honest about limits: where AI cannot help, the map says so.
The rest of the map
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Built on public evidence: O*NET®, ESCO, Wikipedia, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ILOSTAT. All sources & licenses
Built on public evidence: O*NET®, ESCO, Wikipedia, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ILOSTAT. All sources & licenses