Podcasting: A How to Guide

Studio 2B and the Digital Media Studios are great recording locations, but if you'd rather record on your own, here are some things to consider: 

• Try to find a place where you can control as much of your environment as possible.
  • Check for background noises and possible interruptions
  • Record about 30 seconds of "silence"- what do you hear?
    • Keyboards?
    • Computer fans?
    • Random buzzing or crackling of furniture or electronics?
    • Fluorescent lights?
    • HVAC Equipment?
• Look for soft spaces that have fewer hard surfaces for sound to bounce. A room with acoustic panels or foam is ideal. 
• Be sure to find someplace where you can be comfortable as you record.
• Consider booking one of the Central Parks Pods on the first floor of the library.

Your microphone pick-up pattern matters! There are three main types of microphone pick-up patterns:

• Unidirectional – recording audio from a single direction.
  • Works best for single speakers, small rooms, and sound coming from one direction
  • Cardioid pattern microphones are the most common type of unidirectional microphones
• Bidirectional (or Figure 8) – recording audio from two directions.
  • Pick up sound from two opposite directions
  • Works best for two hosts sitting side by side
• Omnidirectional – recording audio from every direction.
  • Works best when you want to record the entire room and all that is happening
  • Great for getting that "living room feeling" common in a panel or roundtable style podcast.

• SET MIC RECORDING LEVELS: the optimal recording level (the decibel level where you want most of your audio to reside) is -12db. This level ensures that your recording will be loud enough to hear clearly without too much risk of peaking (having the audio near 0db, at which point the audio will begin to distort. Every recording software or standalone recorder has different methods of adjusting the mic level. 

If you have more than one person involved in your podcast, chances are you'll need to record remotely. There are multiple ways to handle these types of recordings.

• Video Conferencing Software such as Zoom, Google Hangouts, or Microsoft Teams
  • These are typically easy to use
  • Recording is already mixed in one audio file upon download
  • Audio quality varies depending on the speaker's computer/mic
  • Best Zoom settings:
    • Record a separate audio file of each participant
    • Enable "Original Sound"
    • Turn on High-fidelity music mode
    • Turn on echo cancellation
    • Turn OFF video
• Remote recording software
  • This is software designed specifically for podcasting and other audio/video recordings
  • Studio quality sound
  • These are all paid services, and prices vary.
  • Recommended software includes Riverside.fm, Squadcast, or Zencastr
• Discord
  • Discord is a great option for recording a podcast if you use a Stage Channel and a bot for recording
  • If everyone you want to record is already a Discord user, this can be a very easy option for everyone.
  • Offers the opportunity for listeners to chat and interact

• Recording a Double Ender
  • This is a bit more difficult but provides studio-quality sound.
  • Both users will need recording software and equipment.
  • Both users record their own audio separately and then they are combined in post production.

This section covers a few different audio software applications to edit your audio files. Even if you have a completely flawless recording session with nothing you want to cut out, you may still have music, sound effects, ambient sound, archival sounds, or narration that you want to add to your podcast episode.

WHEN EXPORTING YOUR COMPLETED PODCAST AUDIO: export it as a .mp3. These files take up far less space than .WAV files (which is probably the format you recorded and edited your audio in). While the compressed audio of .mp3 files is of slightly lower quality, most untrained ears would never notice a difference. Depending on which podcast host you choose, having smaller file sizes is an advantage. 

REMEMBER: the ultimate goal of a good audio editor (in most situations) is to not be noticed. Whatever cuts and edits you make, always try and make these as seamlessly as possible. 

Editing Software

This is by no means a complete list. These are merely the most commonly used audio editors for podcasters:

• Audacity: a wonderful open-source audio recorder and editor that works on PC or Mac. Small footprint yet surprisingly robust audio editor; a great choice for beginning podcasters.
• Garageband: a great option for those more familiar with Mac applications. Very user-friendly and intuitive for recording and editing audio. Mac only; there are also versions for iPad and iPhone. 
• Adobe Audition: for more advanced users, Adobe Audition gives you complete control over every aspect of the audio recording and editing experience. 
• DaVinci Resolve: Davinci Resolve is a full editing suite for both audio and visual materials. It is available in the Digital Media Studio and computers in the Catalyst.