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Sound Recording Engineer Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

EQL Tech

Founding Engineer

Palo Alto, CA · On-site

Cross-stack debugging - a track record of operating across the stack and untangling complex systems. * Engineering judgment - sound instincts on trade-offs, not just technical breadth. Nice to have ...

EQL Tech

Founding Engineer

Palo Alto, CA · On-site

Cross-stack debugging - a track record of operating across the stack and untangling complex systems. * Engineering judgment - sound instincts on trade-offs, not just technical breadth. Nice to have ...

Pacific Fusion

Senior Structures Engineer

Fremont, CA · On-site

$114K - $157K/yr

Conduct risk assessments and develop sound mitigation strategies. What You Bring * Bachelor ... Proven track record of developing and launching successful mechanical designs. * Excellent ...

Power Integrations

Staff Device Engineer

San Jose, CA

$133K - $200K/yr

Proven track record of independently designing and taking into volume production of high-voltage ... Sound understanding of semiconductor device physics, especially WBG * Proficient in TCAD simulation ...

TYPSA INC

Senior Traffic Engineer

Irvine, CA · On-site

$130K - $170K/yr

Track record providing high-quality technical design deliverables, meeting scopes, schedules, and ... Analytical - Uses sound data, and procedures, and follows all laws, rules, and regulations but is a ...

TYPSA INC

Senior Traffic Engineer

Irvine, CA · On-site

$130K - $170K/yr

Track record providing high-quality technical design deliverables, meeting scopes, schedules, and ... Analytical - Uses sound data, and procedures, and follows all laws, rules, and regulations but is a ...

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All JobsSound Recording Engineer JobsSound Recording Engineer Jobs in California

Sound Recording Engineer information

See California salary details

$12

$55

$79

How much do sound recording engineer jobs pay per hour?

As of Aug 12, 2026, the average hourly pay for sound recording engineer in California is $55.26, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $39.62 and $73.56 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a sound recording engineer?

A Sound Recording Engineer is a professional who operates and manages audio recording equipment to capture, mix, and edit sound for music, film, television, or other media. They work closely with producers, musicians, and other audio professionals to ensure high-quality sound recordings. Their responsibilities often include setting up microphones, adjusting audio levels, using digital audio workstations, and applying effects to enhance the final product. Sound Recording Engineers require strong technical skills and a good ear for detail.

What is the difference between Sound Recording Engineer vs Sound Technician?

AspectSound Recording EngineerSound Technician
CredentialsAudio engineering degree or certificationTechnical training or certification in audio equipment
Work EnvironmentRecording studios, post-production facilitiesLive events, broadcast, or studio setups
Employer & IndustryMusic, film, TV, and commercial productionBroadcast stations, live events, and venues
Common Search & ComparisonFocuses on recording and mixingFocuses on setup and operation of audio equipment

While both roles involve working with audio equipment, a Sound Recording Engineer primarily focuses on capturing, mixing, and producing high-quality recordings in studio settings. In contrast, a Sound Technician handles the setup, operation, and maintenance of audio equipment during live events or broadcasts. Understanding these differences helps clarify career paths and job expectations in the audio industry.

Is there a demand for sound recording engineers?

Sound recording engineers are in demand in the music, film, television, and live event industries, especially as audio technology advances. Employment opportunities depend on industry growth, location, and technical skills such as proficiency with digital audio workstations and mixing equipment.

What are some common challenges sound recording engineers face during live recording sessions, and how can they be addressed?

Sound Recording Engineers often encounter challenges such as unpredictable acoustics, equipment malfunctions, and balancing sound levels among multiple performers during live sessions. To address these, engineers typically conduct thorough sound checks, prepare backup equipment, and maintain clear communication with performers and the technical team. Flexibility and problem-solving skills are essential, as quick adjustments may be needed to ensure optimal sound quality throughout the session.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a sound recording engineer?

To thrive as a Sound Recording Engineer, you need a solid understanding of audio engineering principles, acoustics, and music production, often supported by a degree or certification in audio engineering or a related field. Proficiency with digital audio workstations (DAWs) like Pro Tools or Logic Pro, as well as familiarity with mixing consoles and studio equipment, is essential. Strong attention to detail, creative problem-solving, and effective communication skills help you collaborate with artists and producers. These skills ensure high-quality audio production, efficient studio sessions, and the ability to meet artistic and technical expectations.

Do audio recording engineers make good money?

Audio recording engineers' salaries vary based on experience, location, and the industry they work in. Entry-level engineers typically earn lower wages, while experienced professionals working in major markets or high-profile projects can earn significantly higher incomes, often supplemented by freelance work or additional skills such as mixing and mastering. Overall, the profession offers potential for good earnings but can also be competitive and project-dependent.
What are popular job titles related to Sound Recording Engineer jobs in California? For Sound Recording Engineer jobs in California, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Sound Recording Engineer jobs in California look for? The top searched job categories for Sound Recording Engineer jobs in California are:
What cities in California are hiring for Sound Recording Engineer jobs? Cities in California with the most Sound Recording Engineer job openings:
Sound Recording Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Sound Recording Engineer job openings in California as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 88% Full Time, 5% Part Time, 2% Temporary, and 5% Contract. Highlights an 86% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 9% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $114,938 per year, or $55.3 per hour.

Founding Engineer

EQL Tech

Palo Alto, CA • On-site

Full-time

Re-posted 17 days ago

Job description

The Opportunity

EQL Tech is partnering with PhormAI to hire an exceptional Founding Engineer to join its team as the company builds Darwin, its Physical AI platform for Health & Wellness, into the technical backbone of a multi-vertical health intelligence business.

PhormAI is building Darwin to ingest multimodal sensor data - wearables, video, IMU, ECG - and generate clinical-grade insights through agentic AI. The platform is already live with paying customers across two distinct verticals: animal health (equine cardiac monitoring) and human health (tele-ICU intelligence deployed across multiple hospitals), with the architecture designed to extend into further verticals by swapping domain-specific ontologies rather than rebuilding the stack.

The Role

You'll be PhormAI's Founding Engineer. Reporting directly to the founders, you'll own the technical foundation of the product - the data and model pipelines, cloud infrastructure, developer tooling, and the application layer built on top.

  • Data pipelines: Build the pipelines that ingest, process, and transform data for the models.
  • Cloud infrastructure: Stand up and operate compute, storage, networking, and deployment from scratch.
  • Orchestration: Build the layer connecting ingestion, training, inference, evaluation, and serving.
  • Operational foundations: Establish CI/CD, monitoring, logging, and alerting from the ground up.
  • Application layer: Contribute to APIs, services, and user-facing surfaces on top of the platform.
  • Technical strategy: Make foundational architectural decisions in direct partnership with the founders.

Requirements

Seniority isn't the bar here - what matters is a first-principles understanding of the stack and a track record of building end-to-end systems. You don't need a decade of experience.

  • Python and SQL fundamentals that are genuinely strong, not just familiar.
  • Production data pipelines - hands-on experience with Airflow, Dagster, Prefect, or similar.
  • Cloud proficiency - AWS, GCP, or Azure, including provisioning, IAM, and networking.
  • Containers & orchestration - Docker and Kubernetes (or a managed equivalent).
  • Infrastructure-as-code - Terraform, Pulumi, or CDK.
  • Backend API design - REST, GraphQL, or gRPC, with working knowledge of auth.
  • Relational database design - Postgres or similar, including query optimization.
  • AI developer tooling - proficient with Claude Code, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, or similar.
  • Cross-stack debugging - a track record of operating across the stack and untangling complex systems.
  • Engineering judgment - sound instincts on trade-offs, not just technical breadth.

Nice to have: real-time streaming systems (Kafka, Pub/Sub, Kinesis, Flink); open-source contributions; experience with health or clinical data; full-stack product experience shipping user-facing web applications.

Benefits

  • Founding equity - meaningful ownership of the technical roadmap.
  • Competitive base salary.
  • Small, high-trust team - your work directly shapes the product.
  • Build it right from day one - no legacy debt to inherit.

Apply