For many online businesses, including my own, podcasting is the very heart of everything they do. When I had a large following of my blog, customers would call in and say “It’s so cool to be talking to you! I have read your blog forever…” Then, I launched a podcast. Since that day, customers no longer say they read my blog. Now, they say they listen to my podcast.
I hope the importance of that last sentence sunk in. It is likely that podcasting will not only be a part of your brand, but it very well may become your brand. That being the case, do not do a half-job of it. I want you to do your podcast right, but also at a level that you can afford. To that end, I have put together three podcasting packages at varying price levels. I have personally used each of these setups and reviewed dozens of other competing products, so I can say confidently that these setups will work for you.
In addition to the recommended equipment on this page, I’ve also put together all the best information I have on how to take your podcast and make it look and sound professional, how to get more listeners, and how to turn your podcast into a full-time income. If that interests you at all, check out Podcast Advance!
Notice: Many, but not all of the links on this page are affiliate links. This gives me a small commission but doesn’t cost you anything. I would get the same percentage by recommending other items on Amazon, but this is the actual setups that I use and have used in the past. I have tried tens of thousands of dollars of other gear and I have learned what works. These setups cost a FRACTION of what other Internet Marketing websites are recommending to their readers, and I think the quality is significantly better.
I have broken my podcasting setup recommendations down to three setups at various price points below…
Microphone – Rode Procaster. I feel very comfortable recommending the Rode Procaster as the best podcasting mic available–and even better that it’s only $230! The Rode Procaster is an analog dynamic microphone, which means it has an XLR connection on the bottom. Because it is not a digital mic, you won’t be able to record the sound directly onto the computer. You’ll get an XLR cable to go from your Rode Procaster to the Zoom H6, and then the Zoom h6 will record the audio onto an SD card. You may be tempted to skip the Rode Procaster and choose a simple USB microphone like in the Intermediate setup, but if your budget allows for it, you’ll see a significant improvement by choosing this mic.
XLR Cable – Planet Waves 6′ XLR to XLR mic cable. Unlike digital cables that make little difference whether you buy the cheapie or the expensive cable, analog mic cables are not the same. I used to use cheap XLR cables until one day I went to podcast and I could hear the local Spanish radio station through my headphones! Another time, I heard an intermittent zapping sound which I later learned was interference from the power cables in the wall. Spend just a little more on a nice XLR cable and you can prevent some really frustrating problems with your setup.
Many podcasters have used the Heil PR40 for years (including me), but the Rode Procaster was released not long ago and, in my opinion, is a better mic. Watch my Rode Procaster vs. Heil PR40 Review here.
Audio Recorder – Zoom H6. This audio recorder was released not too long ago and it completely changed the way I podcast. My previous setup included an expensive mixer and compressor and audio recorder, but the Zoom h6 is so good that it convinced me to sell off the unnecessary gear and just use this little device. The Zoom h6 is an audio recorder with 6 mic inputs. It allows you to record up to six inputs to a separate tracks (so you can mute one person while another is talking), has XLR, 1/4″, and 3.5mm inputs, comes with handy mics built-in, gain dials for each input, and a nice big color LCD screen. If you’re new to this, that may all sound intimidating but I assure you this is easy to use and does what you need it to do. No one has ever regretted purchasing a Zoom h6. It’s that cool. The Zoom comes with a 2gb SD card if you don’t have one.
A cheaper alternative to the Zoom H6 is the Zoom H4n. It’s an excellent recorder with similar audio quality, but the biggest difference is that you only get 2 inputs (one for mic and one for the computer to record skype interviews) so you wouldn’t be able to plug in a second mic to have a co-host or plug in a sound cart on your cell phone or tablet.
Mic Stand – Rode PSA1 Boom Arm. This is a nice looking boom stand and seems to get good reviews. I actually use the Heil Boom stand, but I would prefer switching to this one.
Shock Mount – Rode PSM1 Shock Mount. This is a good choice of a shock mount for your mic, but most people can skip this expense. For me, I podcast in a room alone and never touch the mic or stand, so there really is no issue at all with vibration. I notice no difference with or without it, but sometimes I think I would look cooler with it 🙂 If you don’t buy a shock mount, you can just use the little attachment ring that comes with the Rode Procaster to attach it to your boom arm. The shockmount is meant to prevent noise if you bump your mic, so if you skip this purchase… just don’t bump your mic 🙂
Pop Filter – BSW RE27POP. A pop filter is simply a piece of screen material that is placed in front of the microphone to keep your “p” from popping on the audio and your “s” from sounding too hissy. This pop filter looks really really nice and works well, but I still think it was dumb of me to spend $60 on a little pop filter. Probably wasn’t worth it. You can find one much less expensive that will do just as good of a job. This item is about the looks.
Media Hosting – Blubrry. A media host is totally different than your website hosting. A media host hosts the mp3 files from your podcast and lets others download them. The reason you can’t simply put the mp3 on your host is twofold: (1) Website hosting companies set up servers differently than media hosts, so downloads will be slow and may even fail frequently, and (2) I don’t know of any web hosting company that will put up with it. If you only have a few downloads you could certainly use your hosting provider, but most podcasts get thousands of subscribers fairly quickly, so they will definitely notice and not be okay with it. Just spend $12/month with Powerpress and it will be worth it. I promise.
Another option for media hosting is Libsyn. I am a long-time Libsyn customer but recently switched over to Blubrry and LOVE their download statistics and easier integration with the awesome Powerpress Plugin for WordPress.
Headphones – You have two options here depending on how much money you feel like burning. If you want to be a podcasting rockstar, then these are the headphones that Leo Laporte uses, and which I wish I used. If you are a mere mortal and have a spouse you need to face after this purchase, then I’d highly recommend the Audio Technica ATH-M30 headphones. These headphones are way more comfortable than the Sony MDR-7506 headphones that Cliff Ravenscraft recommends, and I can tell no difference in sound quality despite repeated tests (but that’s just my opinion–Cliff is THE podcast answerman for a reason).
When you are podcasting, you’ll want to keep your headphones on all the time. There is a 3.5mm port on the Zoom h6 that will allow you to listen to yourself as you speak. This helps you recognize if there is ambient noise making it into the recording, if you sound okay, if there is any hiss in the audio, etc.
Theme Music – AudioBlocks.com I spent hours and hours and hours researching places to find stock music for my podcast intro. Most stock audio websites had really lame music. Most others, like iStockphoto, specifically write into the license that you can’t use the music for a theme song. Ugh! AudioBlocks is very inexpensive and gives you a year to download music. It has some really good music at good prices. There are very royalty-free audio stores that allow music to be used on a podcast, so this is quite the good find. You can sign up for their free trial here.
Voice Overs – Fiverr. Okay, I’m sure there are lots of more “premium” options for getting voiceovers for your podcast intro, but the truth is I still like Fiverr. There are some extremely talented voice over artists on there who will get you an intro for just $5. This guy is really good.
Sound Cart – Soundbyte – $4.99. This is a way for you to play your intro music, recorded voice feedback from listeners, drops, and any other sound clips you may want to play during your podcast. If you have an iPad or iPhone, purchase an app called Soundbyte. This app allows you to load in a bunch of mp3s and then displays a graphic for each sound clip. There is also a desktop version of this software, but I had issues with it and wouldn’t recommend it. The thing I like about Soundbyte is that it allows you to adjust the volume of each clip individually, fade the sound with the touch of a button, and speed up the audio if someone sends voice feedback that is longer than you want it. If you use Android, then this app will do much of the same and it’s free!
Sound Cart Cable – Hosa stereo breakout cable. This cable plugs in to the headphone jack on your iPad, iPhone, or Android device and goes to the Zoom h6. You only need to plug in the red end of the 1/4″ to the h6. Just leave the gray end dangling loose. This took me about 10 trips to Radio Shack to find. I know this seems like a simple cord, it really isn’t. They were throwing around terms like “balanced audio, polarized wires, etc.” It was terrifying. Now I know this is the cable.
Audio Editing – Adobe Audition. Personally, I use Adobe Audition for podcasting. This is mostly because I already pay a monthly fee for the full suite of Adobe products on Creative Cloud, so it’s really only natural for me to use this professional tool. Adobe Audition has some really nice features for podcasters, but frankly, unless you’re a power user you won’t get any benefit out of using Audition instead of Audacity. Most podcasters will find the free program Audacity to be just as good of a choice.
Another tool I use for audio editing is Auphonic.com. It’s a free program that helps to normalize the sound from the podcast. If any parts of the show were louder or softer than the rest of the speaking, Auphonic will fix it. Even if you’re careful to keep audio levels consistent during your podcast, it really is worth it to quickly pass the .wav through Auphonic before editing the clip in Audition or Audacity. The program is no longer under development, but remains a free download.
Recording Interviews – I highly recommend just getting a second Hosa cable that I recommended above for the sound cart. This way you can plug the headphone jack from your computer straight into the sound recorder. By doing this, you don’t need to purchase software like Pamela for PC or Call Recorder for the Mac, and ALSO you don’t run the risk of a software glitch ruining your interview. Skype has excellent call quality, so most podcasters use it for recording interviews.
Transcripts/Show Notes – I personally don’t pay to have a transcript of my shows recorded, but my listeners do appreciate getting show notes. Sometimes I write them myself, sometimes my office manager does them for me. If you want to go the transcript route, you can use Speech Pad, which charges $1 per minute of your show. Personally, I don’t think transcripts are worth the cost because most podcasts cover more than one topic in a single show so it is unlikely Google will send traffic to that page, and reading a transcript is painful.
Album Art – 48hourslogo.com. Your album art probably has more to do with your rankings on iTunes than the quality of the content you put out (obviously that statement can be taken too far, but I think a “good” podcast can get TONS of downloads with great album art). Apple likes nice looking things, and so it is extremely picky about album art. I would actually try 48hourslogo.com for good album art. That is a logo design website where you pay $99 and then designers compete in a contest and you pick the winning entry and award the best design the money. Although it is for logo design, I’m sure nobody over there would mind if you used it for your album art.
As a side note, be sure to get your designer to send you the file at a resolution of 1400px X 1400px which is the resolution iTunes now recommends.
Premium Podcasting Setup – Approximately $600
This is the setup I use for podcasting. If you’re looking for a cheaper way to get started, check the other suggested setups below.