Podcasting equipment

[egghead]

I am thinking about podcasting, has anyone tried podcasting, what equipment/tools do you use? I can use my phone or computer, but I am not sure bout output quality.

[Grungie]

You just need to get a quality microphone, USB mics are good for mic noobs, especially because you don't need to buy an interface. Most good microphones usually have a slider that lets you adjust the gain (aka recording volume) of the mic. 

[Empire]

You do not need to go crazy regards buying expensive gear. You can start small then just grow slowly and as you become better and bigger you can update your hardware as you go alone. End of the day any cheap PC can recard the vlice sounds using a good software recording program and a very good microphone, can be XLR or simple as a USB. 

 

 

[killamch89]

For Podcasting, you can start off with a Blue Yeti microphone and work your way up. You'll also need an audio mixing board as well but I don't know about the rest of the equipment besides stuff like pop filters. There are quite a few beginners guides on YouTube so you might want to check those out.

[Grungie]

On 6/15/2022 at 2:50 PM, killamch89 said:

For Podcasting, you can start off with a Blue Yeti microphone and work your way up. You'll also need an audio mixing board as well but I don't know about the rest of the equipment besides stuff like pop filters. There are quite a few beginners guides on YouTube so you might want to check those out.

Mixing boards aren’t necessary, you’d be surprised at how many podcasts do not use them.

[killamch89]

1 hour ago, Grungie said:

Mixing boards aren’t necessary, you’d be surprised at how many podcasts do not use them.

You could be right but that's what someone said to me a few years back because I was also looking into it at the time.

[Grungie]

1 minute ago, killamch89 said:

You could be right but that's what someone said to me a few years back because I was also looking into it at the time.

It definitely wouldn't hurt, but it's not necessary. It depends on how you're doing it too. I'm sure there's a way to do it, but it's kind of a pain if you're recording a Skype or Discord call. If you had both you and your co-host(s) in the room, it'd be a lot easier.

Most USB mics have a dial to adjust the gain/volume on the microphone, so you don't need any additional hardware for that.

There are also audio interfaces, but that's more so for XLR mics, where those exist as a medium between the microphone and your computer, and those don't tend to have gain dials on those. My Shure SM57 does not have one.

[killamch89]

26 minutes ago, Grungie said:

It definitely wouldn't hurt, but it's not necessary. It depends on how you're doing it too. I'm sure there's a way to do it, but it's kind of a pain if you're recording a Skype or Discord call. If you had both you and your co-host(s) in the room, it'd be a lot easier.

Most USB mics have a dial to adjust the gain/volume on the microphone, so you don't need any additional hardware for that.

There are also audio interfaces, but that's more so for XLR mics, where those exist as a medium between the microphone and your computer, and those don't tend to have gain dials on those. My Shure SM57 does not have one.

I see - thanks for the information.

[harleyqbx]

On 4/8/2022 at 11:16 AM, egghead said:

I am thinking about podcasting, has anyone tried podcasting, what equipment/tools do you use? I can use my phone or computer, but I am not sure bout output quality.

Start with whatever you have on hand or can afford, because starting at all is better than waiting until the equipment you have is perfect. Make sure you can keep at it regularly before you invest any real $ into it, because eventually it becomes work to keep at it, and not everyone sticks with it once it gets to that point. Also, it's going to take awhile for you to build up enough of an audience to get sponsorships. So, don't break the bank on something you're not going to see a return on for awhile.  But if and when you're ready to, sound is the most important part, even if you're doing video. So, go for that good mic first. 

I've heard good things about the blue yeti mic. I use the samson meteor. 

https://www.amazon.com/Samson-Meteor-Studio-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B004MF39YS

 

Edited June 24, 2022 by harleyqbx

[killamch89]

On 6/24/2022 at 5:58 PM, harleyqbx said:

Start with whatever you have on hand or can afford, because starting at all is better than waiting until the equipment you have is perfect. Make sure you can keep at it regularly before you invest any real $ into it, because eventually it becomes work to keep at it, and not everyone sticks with it once it gets to that point. Also, it's going to take awhile for you to build up enough of an audience to get sponsorships. So, don't break the bank on something you're not going to see a return on for awhile.  But if and when you're ready to, sound is the most important part, even if you're doing video. So, go for that good mic first. 

I've heard good things about the blue yeti mic. I use the samson meteor. 

https://www.amazon.com/Samson-Meteor-Studio-Condenser-Microphone/dp/B004MF39YS

The Samson Meteor is one that I've seen recommended for podcast especially for beginners along with the Blue Yeti which I currently own. It must be said though that the Yeti tends to pick up almost every little sound which has its pros and cons.

[harleyqbx]

I participated in a friend's D&D podcast recently and had a little bit of an issue with it picking up, I assume, the laptop hum, which I was able to fix by reducing the decibels. But this was being recorded by a different service than I've used before. I used to use Skype with an external program to record everyone's audio with no issue on the same mic. I had a friend recommend using Discord and the multi-track voice channel recording bot, Craig. He said sped up his workflow a lot. If I start my own podcast back up, I'll probably use either Discord with Craig or try listnr.fm. I'm curious to see if I have any mic issues on those.

[The Blackangel]

I've got a headset that I've been thinking of using for a podcast, but haven't tried it as of yet. I don't know where to go or how to do it so that people could find it. Is it something I would do over YouTube? I don't know where the hell to broadcast from, or how to do it in the first place. That's been my problem this whole time. I don't know how or where to broadcast. Otherwise I probably would have started one up. Also i wouldn't be on cam, only on audio, so I would have to come up with something to deal with that.

[Grungie]

14 hours ago, The Blackangel said:

I've got a headset that I've been thinking of using for a podcast, but haven't tried it as of yet. I don't know where to go or how to do it so that people could find it. Is it something I would do over YouTube? I don't know where the hell to broadcast from, or how to do it in the first place. That's been my problem this whole time. I don't know how or where to broadcast. Otherwise I probably would have started one up. Also i wouldn't be on cam, only on audio, so I would have to come up with something to deal with that.

You can do it on Youtube, or you can look at one of these sites:

https://www.wix.com/blog/2018/11/podcast-hosting-sites/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=12188669214^114296906861&experiment_id=^^530595868227^^_DSA&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIzrrq072y-QIVA8LCBB1x5QvtEAAYASAAEgKG3fD_BwE

You don't have to do the show live, you can just record it and, then upload it somewhere. With Youtube you just need to make it into a video format, which isn't hard. You just need to get use some basic video editor, and add an image over the entire recording, and you're good to go.

[The Blackangel]

If that's all there is to it, then I am already doing a podcast. I have a YouTube channel that I just rant on. I record videos and post them. I'm not giving anyone the channel name or link, because I want to keep it separate from the forum for anonymity purposes. And everyone here knows me. So I'll keep up with that, and see if it gets any kind of following.

[Clasher]

I think what hinders many people from starting their podcast or YouTube channel is because they feel this need to get really expensive equipment and that without them they wouldn't be able to give out quality contents.

Podcasting requires a good microphone but if you can't afford an expensive one you could go for a less expensive one and if you want to record even with an expensive microphone you still need to in a really quiet place for a more clearer sound. When I did my podcast I had to do it in my closet because all the clothes around gives it some form of accoustic treatment with closet door closed.