with that being said, what benefit is there in being a sound man in comparison to a producah?
producah's make more @ the end of the day?
no wonder the studios are shuttin' down!
nobody wanna be a sound man because da beetMan get paid more!
right?
(in the most basic of terms...)
a "recording engineer" (not a "sound man"... That is the guy who works the board at live events) is theperson who actually sets up the mics and works the studio gear...
A "mix engineer" is the person who knows how to, well, make the sounds sound the way they are supposed to sound...
The "producer" (I think you made a typo in your post) is the person who directs how the song should sound...
The "songwriter" writes the song...
The "beat maker" makes a beat (by the way, this role barely exists anymore) which the "producer" would take and do the work to make it into a usable song, and a "songwriter" or "lyricist" would add the words...
The "singer" sings...
The "musicians" play their instruments...
...these roles can be held by multiple people, or they can be held by the same person...
They are different roles that require different skills...
...and none of your reasoning has anything to do with why studios are shutting down.... They are shutting down because as technology improves, there is less and less need for a big studio...
And to say "why be an engineer when you can be a producer?" is like saying "why be a portrait painter when you can design more efficient automobile engines?"--- they are 2 different things and you may only have the skill and ability for one (or, most likely, none... Because most people cannot do either)