Shared Band Equipment/Finances

vonLayzonfon

Hi Folks,

I'll be honest, my main reason for signing up here was so I could get an opinion from a demographic that might be a bit more appropriate than what I would get at Ultimate Guitar, where I used to hang out.  Hopefully it will develop into something more, but for now I wanted to ask this...

You're joining an established pub/covers band.  They have all the required performance gear and an agreement that they share the cost of such things - PA, lighting, etc. - between them.  So far, so sensible.  I'm sure we'd all be fine with chipping in for the next thing that cropped up ("Hey, let's get a smoke machine!").  The question is this: Would you expect to pay a contribution toward their existing equipment when you joined?  Buy a share in it, so to speak.

One of the bands I'm in is currently having this discussion.  We're about to replace the drummer and it's brought all the finance issues to a head.  Personally, I think it's a bit off asking a new member to stump a fairly hefty wedge for gear that's already bought and paid for.

Anyway, I'm interested to hear any opinions.  If it helps, we're talking of something in the region of £300 - £400.

Cheers,

Paddy

poopot

Tbh, I would say it’s a bit much asking the new member to chip in for existing gear... if they become a full member of the band long term then they can chip in for future stuff...

The existing core of the band own the current lot of gear between them... new member owns a stake in whatever is bought Moving forward IF they become a permanent member.

just my two pence

EricTheWeary

If someone left then they either did so amicably and bought him/her out and so the remaining members jointly own everything or they left in an unamicable manner and they've had to write off that money and they still jointly own everything. 
Not something I've ever been asked for but it's effectively a joining fee of several hundred quid. Yes, future purchases but, I don't think I'd do it. 

TheBigDipper

I think it depends on the type of band and the depreciation the gear will incur. When my casual covers band lost a bass player, we agreed the amount the other two of us would pay him to buy him out of his share. We ran the band for a couple of years without buying anything else, as we didn't gig that often, and the two of us continued to own it. The new bass player and new singer used it for free. 

If we'd been gigging three nights a week and wearing it all out, I think we'd have asked the newbies (at some point) to contribute and buy their share of it so we all lost something through depreciation. People joining partnerships generally buy their way in in some way or other. 

fftc

It would certainly show a level of commitment from the new member to the band!

John_P

I’d suggest the current gear is owned but the existing members and going forward new purchases would be a joint purchase.        
You could ask the new guy how he feels but imo it’s an extra complication when it can be hard finding the right person musically that you get on with.  

sw67

We. had a former member leave but only after filling his car with as much stuff as he could that we then had to buy out his share. We now have a much better set up
.
Equipment belongs to the band - if you leave or get sacked that's it

1/5 share of gig money goes to shared equipment and is held by one member - if you leave or get sacked you get 1/4 of cash in the band kitty only. New members would not be expected to contribute to current equipment

vonLayzonfon

Thanks for the feedback, guys.  I'll be honest, I'm a relative newcomer to this band - about six moths I think - and the subject of buying into the equipment was mentioned.  I was non-commital about it and no-one's brought it up since which, to me, suggests that it's not really a viable proposition.  I basically subscribe to John_P's viewpoint, although now the band's up and running (it wasn't quite when I joined) the idea of putting a percentage of earnings in a kitty had crossed my mind.

thomasw88

These days I just own the pa and mics and cables etc  I charge the band a tenner a gig for it.  Much less hassle and although it means it costs me a bit more in reality I find it is worth it.

robinbowes

When my band wanted to buy a PA, I was concerned they wouldn't spend enough to get a decent rig, and expect me to struggle with it every gig (I'm also a sound engineer). I was also concerned about the ownership wrangles that are being discussed here. 

My solution was that I bought the PA myself and I charge the band a fee to use it (a damn sight more than £10/night, I might add!).

I also do PA hire on the side - hit me up if you need a PA in the York area  

vonLayzonfon

thomas & robin, it's certainly more strightforward that way.  In the other band I'm in all the gear is owned by individuals (mostly me) but it's been built up gradually over the past 10 years or so.  The other lot evidently wanted a £1.5k rig straight off the bat from having pretty much nothing, and you'd be lucky to find an idividual to stomach that in one go.

robinbowes

vonLayzonfon said:

thomas & robin, it's certainly more strightforward that way.  In the other band I'm in all the gear is owned by individuals (mostly me) but it's been built up gradually over the past 10 years or so.  The other lot evidently wanted a £1.5k rig straight off the bat from having pretty much nothing, and you'd be lucky to find an idividual to stomach that in one go.

Heh, that would be me, except it's more of a £10k rig

R.

John_P

I did the same as Robin - I used to hire out PAs many many years ago so rather than get into the hassle of shared gear I just bought a decent rig and started hiring it out - the gear has more than paid for itself and I’m booked solid but that assumes you have the transport and storage space so I can see why bands share it between them.