Godcasting 101: Tools of the Trade
November 1st, 2007 Posted in Godcasting 101, PodcastOne of the things that can really confuse people is what kind of hardware or software to purchase when starting a podcast. Well, I’m hopefully going to help make that decision a little bit easier by providing you with 3 categories of equipment and software for podcasting: Simplistic, hobbyist and professional.
Let’s start by defining each of these categories:
A simplistic setup is one that involves very little equipment or knowledge about how audio works. It’s also really cheap.
A hobbyist setup might include a basic mixer and some additional editing software to fine-tune your audio. This setup balances cost with performance.
A professional setup goes all-out with a in-home or in-office studio and an separate rig for recording on-the-go. No expense is spared.
Now that we’ve got the definitions down, let’s talk about what each of these setups looks like.
A simplistic setup consists of a USB microphone or two plugged into you computer and recorded in an application like GarageBand, Audacity or CastBlaster. You simply plug in and hit record. When you’re done, you export the file and upload it to your server. No mess, no fuss. This is how a majority of the podcasts out there are recorded. basically, everything at this level is done through software: mixing, leveling, effects, etc. This kind of setup is also very portable. The cost of this setup can run from $20 to $150 depending upon the microphone(s) you purchase.
A hobbyist setup would include a 2- or 4-channel mixer that you could plug multiple microphones into or other devices such as a computer or CD player. All of your levels would be set on the mixer, rather than through software and depending upon how fancy you want to get you may also throw in some effects or tie in a telephone hybrid/monitor for recording interviews. Most of the heavy lifting is done by hardware rather than software. The software is just there to digitize the audio and create a mix-down. You can still use Audacity or Garageband for recording and mixing the podcast. A setup like this is semi-portable but you won’t be running around and doing interviews on a convention floor with a setup like this. So you may want to find an inexpensive portable digital recorder to get those “man on the street” interviews. Look to spend in the neighborhood of $250 - $750 depending upon the equipment.
A professional setup is one that very few people can afford or need. This type of setup goes all out, you’re looking for a package like Pro Tools, some high-end microphones, pop-filters, awesome headphones and high-end monitors so you can hear exactly what’s going on in the audio. Don’t forget to throw in a digital hybrid from JK Audio to get the best recording of telephone interviews. This kind of setup shouldn’t be moved so you’ll want a portable rig to carry around with you. Something like a Marantz PMD660 so that the audio you record on-the-go will be high-quality. You really need to know what you’re doing with a setup like this. Again, the hardware does all the heavy lifting and very little editing is done in software that comes with your hardware. This is what the pros use and if you get it right it will sound awesome. Expect to pay at least $1000 for this kind of setup if you’re buying “budget” items, $2000 or more if you want high-quality equipment.
For some great deals on some great podcasting equipment, check out BSW’s website.
Feel free to leave comments or send feedback to geek{at}jesusgeek{dot}info. You can call and leave voicemail at 206-666-3209. This podcast is released under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
Jesus Geek is a Christian technology podcast providing news, tips and information you can use in your homeschool, church or ministry. It is a member of the My Life Ministries Network: a community of ministries that views the everyday Christian life as a ministry and seeks to encourage Christians in their daily walk with Christ.
