Show Your Setup

[theFerf]

I was just thinking...it would be really cool if podcasters could show their setup, and/or them using it. Here is what I would like to see (because I am a bit nerdy): a list with descriptions of hardware you are using (mics, amps, computers, stands, headphones, etc), software you are using (recording, editing, playing, mastering, compressing, etc), and any other conditions you may want to offer. Would also like to see a photo of your gear...just for fun :)

[PodcastExpo]

My podcasts are generally interviews over the phone. After a lot of grief and trial and error, here is what I have settled upon:

1) Standard phone line (an ISDN line is best but I haven't taken that step)
2) phone line splitter plugged into the wall - one phone cord into the hybrid and one phone cord into a phone
3) JK Audio Innkeeper 1X Digital Hybrid
4) Berringer Euriorack MX 602A Mixer
5) ElectroVoice RE 20 microphone
6) External USB Sound Blaster Audigy Sound Card
7) HP Pavilion zv5000 laptop
8) Cool Edit 2000 software (now called Adobe Audition)
9) Assorted cables (see instructions below)

Yes unfortunately this setup is a bit pricey, but the Radio Shack phone coupler just doesn't cut it in terms of professional quality. If you want to sell audio ads or sponsorships with your podcast and make it a business, you've got to step up. If you want to podcast your hobby phone conversations with your buddies - use the lame phone coupler.

Now, here's how it works - step-by-step. Forgive me if this is too elementary but I want this information to be clear to everyone.

1) Plug the phone line into the "Line" jack on the back of the hybrid
2) Using an "female/male" XLR microphone cable, connect the RE-20 to the "Send" mic jack on the back of the hybrid. Be sure the "Line/Mic" button is set to "Mic" (in other words, not pushed in, if you are using the inkeeper.
3) Using an "1/4 inch / female" XLR mic cable, connect the female XLR end to the "Mix Out" outlet on the back of the hybrid. Connect the 1/4 inch end to a "Line In" on the mixer
4) plug headphones into the headphone jack
5) Using a 1/4 "Y" cable to "1/8 inch" cable, connect the Y end to the "LineOut" on the mixer and the 1/8 inch end into the "Line In" on the external sound card.

That's it - you can now dial your phone, hit "Call" button on the front of the hybrid and hang up the phone. Play with the dials on the front of the hybrid until your caller can hear you and you get a strong signal into Cool Edit for recording.

Using a standard phone line, there's going to be some low hum, but you can minimize it by playing with the gains on the mixer and also use Noise Reduction on Cool Edit to eliminate most of it in the recording.

Editiing and Reocroding into Cool Edit is a whole 'nother subject I 'll get into later.

You can hear the quality of the audio using the above setup at http://www.EnduranceRadio.com

I'm constantly tweaking it to get better quality, but it's pretty darn good for a standard telephone line.
=-=-=-=-=-=-

That's great, but for those of you who can't afford Tim's setup, here's a much more economical (though less-professional-sounding) solution:

1) Standard phone line
2) Radio Shack Mini Recorder Control ($15; part no. Radio Shack 43-1237)
3) Swapmeet or yardsale-discovered cassette, microcassette recorder, or, ideally, minidisc recorder (also check your storage closet for forgotten recording devices)
4) Computer (okay, we have to be reasonable here--we're not going to get much done on an Apple ][e or anything)
5) Soundcard; most modern computers (and all Macs) come with one of these
6) Audacity software (free, assuming your computer is up to the challenge, and available for Mac, Windows, or Linux; otherwise, Pro Tools FREE is available for most older Mac and Windows systems)
7) Cable to plug recording device into soundcard

Yes, this setup is a bit cheap and may not produce the most professional sound, but it will do quite nicely for those on a shoestring budget--and it's especially attractive if you already have some of the components listed. Here's how it works:

1) Plug the phone handset line into the only available input on the Mini Recorder Control, the "Handset" jack. The Mini Recorder Control itself is to be plugged into your phone's handset input. Be sure to set the Control to the "REC" setting (rather than the "PLAY" setting).
2) Plug the Mini Recorder Control into your recording device. (No cable required; the cable is built-in to the Control).
3) Place your phone call and record the interview by using the appropriate recording mechanism on your recording device.
4) When you are finished recording, plug your recording device into your soundcard using the appropriate cable. Digitize the recording by recording using Audacity (or Pro Tools FREE or whatever software app you prefer)

That's it! Remember, you're not necessarily going to get Radio Industry broadcast-quality sound using this setup--your voice will probably sound about as good as your caller's. Still, I've heard many a good audio recordings using this setup!
_________________
Harold J. Johnson
Something that Happened
http://www.somethingthathappened.com

[kndy]

Hi everyone,

For our two podcasts: Metro Media Complex and J!-ENT my setup (you can find a few photos at www.nt2099.com/MMC) are the folowing:

- I have two mic's: SHURE SM58 and SHURE SM57-LC / Two Mic Stands
- The Mics are on a small Behringer EURORACK MX-1002 which I also have my "non-RIAA" music coming from a Roland MC-303 Groove Box and a KORG EA-1 and ER-1 Electribes. I have a Roland SR-5 that I often use for sound effects and also a sampler if needed.
- The unit that is pictured in red on the center are pretty much an Electrix WarpFactory Vocoder if I want to tweak vocals via the Mic. I haven't used this yet.
- Although I have a Behringer Composer Pro, Ultraflex Pro to a PreSonus Blue Tube I decided to make things easier and make the mixer->to another Presonus BlueTube (Pre Amp) and BlueMax (Smart Compressor).
- All these plugged into a Furman PL-8, using an 8-space roto rack
- They are wired to my MAC G4 through M-Audio's Delta.
- Headphones I use are several AKG HP40's and K-44 using a Powerplay Pro (last unit on bottom)

As for Software, I use a basic audio program from felttipsoftware.com for the Mac OS X called Sound Studio for the recording and where I add the reverb afterwards. I like it because it's cheap and easy to use and includes many filters such as compression, reverb and many more.

Save to an AIF and then go to iTunes and encode to MP3 ala 40kbps.

So, far I'm still experimenting with sound though and the use of the mixer. One thing I like about certain podcasts is the quality of the recordings where as I'm trying to figure out if using presets on my BlueMax, settings on the mixer, gain, drive settings on the BlueTube for a better sound so you can't hear me breathing or hear spitting sounds and all that groovy stuff.

But that's pretty much my setup, not as great or expensive as many others but definitely an interesting challenge in learning to use the equipment.

- daa

[mastermaq]

Here is our "mobile setup" for BlogosphereRadio.com (http://www.blogosphereradio.com). We also use a USB headset (not pictured) in conjunction with the studio mic and sound mixer with our desktop computer for "studio" recording:

http://www.blogosphereradio.com/images/equipment.jpg (http://gallery.mastermaq.ca/photos/28/460.aspx)

[The Skinny]

Our setup for The Skinny on Sports (http://www.andyskinn.com/skinny/) is very simple. We actually have a link to it on our website at:

http://www.hoydnewsnetwork.com/skinny/podcast-setup/

To summarize here though, we just use a mini-jack splitter and plug two very basic Labtec headsets into the front panel on my Soundblaster Live Drive. We use Audacity for all recording/editing, and Lame within Audacity to make the 64 kbps MP3 file. We then post the file to our blog using Wordpress 1.3-alpha4 which supports enclosures in the RSS files.

Simple yet effective!

[Craig]

I've played with two different setups as far as mics are concerned. One a Sony ECM-MS907 straight into a Griffin iMic, the other a Shure SM58 through a Behringer Eurorack MXB1002 into the iMic. All equipment I already owned. The SM58 setup sounds better but I can get close with the Sony (a great little mic) and it's a lot more portable. If Apple ever removes the recording handicap from the iPod I'd use the Sony and an iTalk on the iPod in a heartbeat for portability, but I'd stick with the Shure in the "studio."

Anyway, the iMic goes into my flatscreen iMac where I use GarageBand to record and mix in music and anything else. Good for basic effects as well. Anything less than basic comes from free plugins in Amadeus II (but could just as easily be Audacity). Amadeus also does the MP3 conversion using LAME and then it's into iTunes for a quick tag fix and addition of artwork before it gets uploaded.

Forgot to mention that I'm monitoring with Sennheiser eH1430 headphones. I'm looking forward to seeing if the rumors of a $150 Firewire breakout box from Apple are true...it would be nice to be able to monitor the mic with no latency.

Craig

[camilian]

I am using a VERY simple setup. I record everyting live to my outdated Dell Inspiron 8100 lap top using Audacity. After finding it very hard to take off my pants, lift the toilet seat, and wipe while holding a stick microphone I purchased a cheap Audio Technica Lav mic. I am also using some crappy Jensen ear phones to listen to playback. Next I am trying to find a good way to record Skype... I am thinking of using total recorder, or just outputting to a mini disc. Any tips? I would love to do some live interviews while on the john.

[Mark]

camilian

My setup is very much like yours. PC, current but eventually moving to Linux, with Audacity running. The mic is worth all of 6 dollar I think, Yes I know it sounds like it. ;-) And for a monitor, I don't use one since I do it in parts. I use what ever Dell speakers I have lying around to do the mixing phase.

Very low dough but fun hobby.

[JeffreyT]

Since "The Good Beer Show" is being recorded in a hostile enviroment, namely a bar. I opted for keeping it simple and rugged. I use a Peavy PV6 mixer (small) recording to a Samsung Yepp. A 900mz compaq which I bought and fixed for $15 supplys the mp3s, sweepers and sound effects. A cheap-*** omnidirectional Radio Shack mic tops it off. When the show is done, I stick the yepp into my pocket and pack the rest of the gear into a little 40 year old suitcase.
At home I snap the yepp on my PC and unwrap the MP3 to a wave with winamp. I use Audacity to compress, normalize and amplify the show before I turn it into a 96 kbs mp3.

JeffreyT

[GunForHire]

Next I am trying to find a good way to record Skype... I am thinking of using total recorder, or just outputting to a mini disc. Any tips? I would love to do some live interviews while on the john.

There's a plugin for Windows Media Player called Windows Media Encoder. You can use it to record anything playing on your screen or soundcard, so as long as the Skype audio feed is going through your sound card, Encoder should be able to pick it up.

Get it HERE (http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5691ba02-e496-465a-bba9-b2f1182cdf24&DisplayLang=en)

[camilian]

Thanks for the link. I have been using a minidisc and a mic mixer with some sucess, but this would make for less setup.

[radioclash]

After finding it very hard to take off my pants, lift the toilet seat, and wipe while holding a stick microphone I purchased a cheap Audio Technica Lav mic.

you do know that in the UK one of the slang words for toilet is Lav as in Lavatory....I had a double take on the Lav mic :D

I am thinking of using total recorder, or just outputting to a mini disc. Any tips? I would love to do some live interviews while on the john.

Total Recorder works fine recording anything - not tried Skype but it basically works as a virtual soundcard driver, which then passes to your card. I own a copy of TR 4, very useful. As it's a driver tho is a bit of a pain to uninstall but you can just switch the soundcard setting to your proper card in the meantime otherwise you might get playback/latency issues.

I think we should start getting sponsorship from Behringer as I too use a Behringer mixer - Eurorack UB802 - brilliant little mixer...also have a Sennheiser e835 mic - I thought it sounded better than a Shure, and better at pop/handling noise, and record onto my iRiver IFP890T live now. Monitor on Sennheiser HD25SP headphones - the ones the Beeb use as they are cheap and portable.

I started tho with just a tie-clip mic taped to a tripod, and Audition, and my Sennheiser phones which I bought for mastering last year...you don't need a lot of gear, even a cheap mic sounds fine.

I just record onto my iRiver to avoid latency.crashing issues...means I can do podcasts away from the computer...and thought I'd better get a good mic because cheap ones transfer a lot of handling noise.

I like lo-tech approach; still use my frying pan splash pop-shield and my tripod as a mic stand...well it works? :D[/quote]

[Ifthensoft]

Good topic!

For our PodCasts (The Just Julie Show & Mr. X's Morning Commute) we are keeping it pretty simple:

For The Just Julie Show:

‚Ä¢¬â€*iMac flat panel with built-in microphone
‚Ä¢¬â€*2 headphones so we can both monitor
‚Ä¢¬â€*Audio Hijack Pro to record
‚Ä¢¬â€*Line-in & Soundflower software to reroute the audio to Hijack Pro

For Mr. X's Morning Commute:

‚Ä¢¬â€*iPod 15GB
‚Ä¢¬â€*Belkin line-in recorder
‚Ä¢¬â€*Radio Shack headset/microphone

That's about it--the sound quality of recording into the iPod is horrible, but it's a great mobile solution.

[radioclash]

That's about it--the sound quality of recording into the iPod is horrible, but it's a great mobile solution.

Maybe try the iRiver - I talk about here in a thread...not perfect (yet) but just as a recording device it produces really good recording quality (the Belkin is 8 or 16Khz is it?), works on 1 AA battery, and can handle external unpowered mics. Or the Neuros but it's line-in only AFAIK.

And no I'm no employed/sponsored by them, just a fan...wish they'd solve my niggles tho.

Maybe they should be my anti-sponsor? I keep hassling them on the show until they solve the few minor issues with the iRiver (just around software/flash disk functionality) :twisted:

hugs

Tim

[notyourusualbollocks]

Hi,

Does anyone else have problems with background noise when recording via a Mic. I currently don't use voice recording for that reason. I have an Athlon 3500+ which is greedy and power hungry and makes a lot of noise. Any tips (apart from throwing the PC out the window)?

MK

[MinisterOfStripes]

Hi,

Does anyone else have problems with background noise when recording via a Mic. I currently don't use voice recording for that reason. I have an Athlon 3500+ which is greedy and power hungry and makes a lot of noise. Any tips (apart from throwing the PC out the window)?


Your machine can be significantly quieted. I don't know how technically adept you are, but simply replacing the power supply and heatsink/fan with quieter components should bring the background noise down to a manageable level.

Consider looking at a Fortron Source power supply, the FSP-300-60 can be had for about $30 and a Zalman ALCU-7000 will set you back about $40. If you can manage to get a Podcast out, I'm certain you can install these components.

Other than that, you might want to look at a unidirectional mic. I can only assume you're using an omnidirectional if you're picking up that much background noise.

[Ian]

http://freetalklive.com/images/studiopanorama.jpg

[daxxon]

Hi,

Does anyone else have problems with background noise when recording via a Mic. I currently don't use voice recording for that reason. I have an Athlon 3500+ which is greedy and power hungry and makes a lot of noise. Any tips (apart from throwing the PC out the window)?


What I use is a compressor/limiter which has a noisegate. I also experienced the noise from my computer when recording, but if you set the treshold to cancel out that noise with a noisegate you won't have too much problems with that.

My studio setup is as follows (slight overkill for podcasting, but I also use it for voice recording for FM radio stuff)

Shure SM7B microphone
Behringer VX2000 Voice Processor (great device, only 99 bucks)
Yamaha 12/4 mixing console
SCom+ stereo Compressor Limiter

I use Mp3Tunes to play music and jingels for the podcast, it's a free program, download at http://www.mp3tunes.nl - the thing has a great jingle player where you can program your 1 - 0 keys to play 10 different jingels on push.

[Craig]

Put your computer as far away from your mic as possible and drape a heavy blanket or comforter between the computer and the mic (when you're recording). You can accomplish the same thing in a more professional way if you want but this is a lot cheaper.

Here's my setup (courtesy of Associated Press!):

http://www.godcast.org/images/apphoto.jpg

There's a dbx 286a mic preamp/processor on the desk behind the mic that you can't see and a Griffin iMic hidden behind the computer. The mic is an Audio Technica AT3035, the headphones are Sennheiser eH1430's, the iPod is a 40GB Photo, the little 4-track on the desk is a Tascam PocketStudio 5, and the iMac is running GarageBand. The penguin is a nod to Unix and my daughter, the little stuffed bear on the side of the screen is from a Starbucks bearista. I do have a thumb on my right hand and all four fingers on my left and yes, that's the first time in 3 years my desk has been that clean. :D

Craig

[Cookiepuss]

That's about it--the sound quality of recording into the iPod is horrible, but it's a great mobile solution.

Maybe try the iRiver - I talk about here in a thread...not perfect (yet) but just as a recording device it produces really good recording quality (the Belkin is 8 or 16Khz is it?), works on 1 AA battery, and can handle external unpowered mics. Or the Neuros but it's line-in only AFAIK.
. . .



The best thing I have found for mobile recording is the older Creative Nomad Jukebox 2&3s. They record in WAV format for better sound quality. You can find a lot of info on them in the taper community since they are the best deal going for recording live concerts. The best place to find one is on Ebay for around $100-$150. The beauty of them recording in WAV is if you are recording music you can convert them to lossless (FLAC, SHN, etc.) and preserve the sound quality. So for voice audio recording it is more than ideal. . .

[jeffoest]

I don't have a 'live' pic of the studio (it's usually awash in cords and guitars)... and unsuitable for nice pictures! LOL

However the equipment that I use with some description of it can be found in my music webpage's studio page:

http://www.jeffoestreichmusic.com/studio.htm

[mjewell]

No pic here either (my desk's mad at the moment), but a quick list...

Hardware:
Mics: 2 Rode NT5s for the majority of recording (done in a soundproofed room), AKG C2000B for the rest (in a normal room)
Audio interface: M-Audio Firewire 410
Computers: Powerbook for recording, G5 for production

Software-wise it's Logic all the way (with Audio Hijack for a few random recording bits). Love it to bits :)

[yaz]

hey craig, i bet if it wasn't for that penguin, you wouldn't be able to do your show...HEY! turn around, your blinds are on fire!!!

[Chip]

I run a very basic setup... Short background, I didn't start with podcasting, just sort of intigrated it as a way to distribute my broadcast of two shows I do....

I have 4 radio shack 33-3018 microphones
Behringer Eurorack MX 802A
AT&T 2 line speakerphone miked with one of the RS mics

from the Behringer I go into the Line-In of my onboard soundcard. From that sound cards output to a SoundBlaster Audigy Line-In. The purpose for this is that two of my host are located in other states and I use TeamSpeak to bring them on the show. The use of two soundcards takes away feedback to them over voicechat.

I am, however, in the market for some used equipment.... Phone hybrid, microphone preamplifier, audio compressor/limiter, and studio mics...

Chip

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