What podcast equipment should I buy?

[Chelseasounder]

Trying to put together a podcast that includes 2-4 microphones. I would start with two and add a third and fourth at a later date. What hardware should I be looking for? Trying to spend no more than $100. $150 tops.

[kozikowski]

You can't buy enough hardware for that, so we'll have to resort to internet trickery.

Each performer is at home and logs into the same Skype session (free). They perform to each other using headphones and the built-in microphone on each laptop (free), but the trick is they record their own high-quality voice, each on his own computer, during the performance. You don't use the bubbly, skipping Skype voice.

Then, at the end of the show. Each performer sends his high quality voice to one person who mixes it all together in sync to the final show using Audacity (free). Include music or other effects at this step. Don't send the voices in MP3 because you can't do good production in MP3. Use FLAC or other high quality compression.

If the voices are too big for email (I think Yahoo Mail limit is 25MB) then you'll need to cut each performance up into smaller files and email each one (free).

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This process substitutes time and hard work for money.

If you don't do something like this, the multi-microphone mixer will run you around $100 - $150 and each microphone will go for $50 to 100, plus headphones, amplifiers, etc, etc. and you'll still have to do music production in post -- after the show.

This mixer will do four microphones. It's the one we use at work.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PV6
http://www.kozco.com/tech/MicTests/studioLayout.jpg

Koz

[kozikowski]

Sorry. Missed a step. If you're on a Windows laptop, you'll probably need a way to get the mixer into the machine. Most Windows laptops do not have Stereo Line-In, so you'll either need the USB version of the mixer..

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PV6USB

or a stereo to USB asdapter like the UCA-202.

http://www.kozco.com/tech/audacity/wind ... rding.html

You may need to read through some of that anyway. Newer Windows computers don't make good recorders.
Koz

[steve]

Trying to put together a podcast that includes 2-4 microphones. I would start with two and add a third and fourth at a later date. What hardware should I be looking for? Trying to spend no more than $100. $150 tops.

About the cheapest that you can do that for is:
Behringer Xenyx 1204 USB ~ $165
3 x behringer ultravoice xm1800 ~ $35
1 x another microphone ~ $15

Total cost, a little over $200, and don't expect the quality to be great - this is bargain basement stuff.

Alternatively, get one reasonably good USB recording microphone which has a built in headphone socket, a "pop shield" (you may be able to make this yourself for next to nothing) and a pair of headphones (this should be possible within budget and you may already have some headphones that you can use). You can then record your multi-voice podcast by recording one voice at a time and then editing the parts together later.

[Chelseasounder]

Great info, guys, thanks. The skype deal may work quite well for what we're doing. Could you also use individual computers to record each microphone and then splice them together in post? I would guess that each mic would sound different and you may end up with echos on background noise. Have you ever tried that though?

I saw a mixer at radio shack when I was in there earlier today. About as basic as they come, but would something like this work? http://www.radioshack.com/product/index ... Id=2102920