20 people says things!

1. Hey there.
   I am just started podcasting (actually making first one now), and I use “Audacity”. It’s totally free. I have also heard good things about “Soundforge”. I am a PC user, so not sure about mac.

   I would definately like a Whitespace podcast, that would be great! Not sure if you were in that first 9rules podcast, but that was pretty good.

   Good luck!

   By Alexander K on March 21, 2006 2:06 pm

2. Yeah, I have read that Audacity works pretty well for that purpose if you are a PC user. Glad to see it was confirmed once again, thanks Alexander.

   By Scrivs on March 21, 2006 2:53 pm

3. Audacity is awesome, along with being cross-platform. Never tried doing a podcast, though.

   By Veracon on March 21, 2006 2:53 pm

4. Here’s how we record the Sand Trap podcasts:

   This show was recorded with Audio Hijack Pro over a Skype connection. We then used Soundtrack Pro to edit the show and GarageBand to produce the AAC file from the AIFF file, to add the artwork, and so forth. Feeder was used to create the XML file.

   In other words, we record it in the highest quality we can with AHP. Then we remove silences, “uhm”s, and other things using SoundTrack Pro, then we add the artwork and other things in GarageBand.

   By Erik J. Barzeski on March 21, 2006 3:16 pm

5. Scrivs -

   For the Mac I would try the new GarageBand that includes the “podcasting studio.” I used it to create a fun FM-style sampler back when it came out. You can hear it here (from an entry on audio quality):

   http://www.podcastfreeamerica.com/past/podcast-audio-quality-sampling-abc-of-podcasting-q/

   Also, give Audacity a shot on the Mac. It’s a good program, but just not user-friendly for the average person. But you should do fine with it.

   If you don’t want to do any of the recording on your end at all, you can try out the web-based tools, which I push heavily for non-technical users (which you’re not, I know). It’s amazing what people like Odeo have done with their recording tool.

   Personally, I use Audio Hijack Pro for podcast recording and, if needed, I pull it into Audacity for editing. I’m starting to move away from it and more towards a traditional recording setup like GarageBand or other higher-end applications, like Soundtrack Pro. But that’s just me.

   For Windows, I recommend people start with Audacity, if they’re technically inclined and the web-based tools, if they’re not.

   Let me know if I can help out.

   By Ryan on March 21, 2006 3:21 pm

6. I actually have been using the new GarageBand and that’s been quite fine for me for the last five episodes of my program. And you’re already 2/3 of the way there with the iSight.

   Hit me up if you have any questions. ;)

   (Dude, it would be awesome to hear “the Scrivs” on the air.)

   By Bryan Veloso on March 21, 2006 3:46 pm

7. I use Audio Hijack Pro for recording, and GarageBand/Audacity for editing.

   By Tom on March 21, 2006 7:17 pm

8. I would use garageband cause its all there. You got podcast artwork, jingles and sound effects, iChat interview recording, and this Radio Engineering feature. So now you need a mic. So you get this from
   M-audio.
   ttp://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/MobilePreUSB-main.htm

   lIts a usb interface for garageband. Its got to mic input jacks and then there are other jacks. ( i found it on the garagbenad section of m-audio.com)http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=products.filter&ID=garageband

   plus these guys have been recognizied by steve jobs

   and then you get a mic heres one or you could go cheaper
   http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Nova-main.html
   (i dont think it comes with a cable)

   PLUS…Just look at Garageband compared to these other programs…its well designed and its got lots of features

   so now you just go into iTunes music store click podcast and then submit podcast it talks about some technical stuff there. basically you just give it a rss feed ( feedburner or odeo should do the job) and then apply the name and some tags.

   And yea I think a Whitespace podcast would be sweet. You already got a whole network of people to interview.

   That about does it. Use garagband, m-audio equipment, iChat and the G5, and the iTunes and rss feeds.

   Good luck feel free to contact me with any questions.

   By Ethan on March 21, 2006 7:30 pm

9. You know what would be a great podcast? One about how hard it is to get your own podcast up and running. I’m sure it’s been done before but hey, I don’t read those sites but I do read Whitespace. (Just an idea)

   I think podcasting is new enough that you can meta-podcast without looking lame. Meta-blogging is so yesterday though.

   By Jack on March 21, 2006 7:41 pm

10. Great entry, I’ve been trying to get ideas on what to use for podcasting software as well for a client. I was checking out Webpod Studio, but I’m not sure what it’s like. Has anyone used that?

    By Lindsay on March 21, 2006 7:59 pm

11. The only tip I can offer is to use audio compression on any spoken word. This should be available as a filter or plugin in most any audio editor. For example, in Adobe Audition it’s under Filter > Amplify > Dynamics Processing.

    The analogy here is to watching a DVD on your home theater. You know the problem: whispers are too quiet so you keep turning the volume up, but the effects are loud enough to wake your neighbors so you have to turn it back down. This is why many receivers have a “Night Mode” which compresses the dynamic range so you don’t have to keep fiddling with the volume.

    With unfiltered speech you have the same problem, and it’s incredibly annoying. It’s nearly impossible to find the volume you want. Most of the time, you end up listening to unpleasantly loud audio so that you do not miss the whispers and places where the person trails off.

    So yeah, run audio through a compressor on a speech preset.
    [/rant]

    And I’d listen to you if you had a podcast. I’d like to hear what you have to say about, well, stuff. Plus I’ve never heard your voice before, so I’m curious.

    By Bradley on March 21, 2006 8:31 pm

12. Seems as though Garageband might be the default choice for Macs. I will give that a shot first to see how things turn out.

    By Scrivs on March 21, 2006 9:02 pm

13. Any recording software will work for posdcasting. I use Audacity (http://audacity.sourceforge.net) simply because it works, is drop-dead simple and it’s free.

    I write my RSS feed by hand. Once again it works, is drop-dead simple and it’s free.

    Should you do a podcast? That’s up to you - but before you start my advice would be to sit down and think long and hard about what you want to accomplish.

    I started podcasting because I was curious to see if the technology could be used effectively for teaching music (in our case, acoustic blues guitar and five-string banjo lessons) and so far the results have been interesting. The trick, in our case at least, was finding a balance between entertaining and providing information. Teaching somebody the basics of acoustic blues guitar via audio could be tedious to listen to and produce, so we had to look at how we presented the material just as carefully as what we were presenting.

    By Patrick Costello on March 21, 2006 9:07 pm

14. So is GarageBand available as a stand alone package or is it only available as part of an iLife bundle?

    By Mark on March 21, 2006 10:32 pm

15. Not long ago, my firm launched a service called Podbasket (http://www.podbasket.com/) that allows you to quickly whip up a podcast feed. Might be useful for you.

    By James Archer on March 22, 2006 12:10 am

16. I bought my new Mac just for podcasting. I said screw the whole trying to find the right windows app, messing around with skype, then moving to Gizmo Project…then all the other crap you gotta do.

    GarageBand makes everything easy, and fun. I love the jingles and the sound effects you can put in it.

    Other than that, i just bought basic equipment like a headset and an iMic. I made my intro music from a couple of years ago so I can’t tell you how I made that.

    But yea, I’d just stick with GarageBand since you really don’t need something fancy if you’re just going to be starting out. I’ve found that it’s the quality of your content, and not how expensive your software is. You could be recording it off your cellphone and if it’s good, people will listen.

    By Dustin Diaz on March 22, 2006 3:36 am

17. Hey again, I just found this great article about Feedburner and podcasts. They have some good links at the bottom! http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/popup-quickstart-podcast

    By Alexander K on March 22, 2006 7:43 am

18. I produce a podcast and host a couple. I’d have to say that Audacity is good for PC users to start off with. It’s what I first used, I’ve invested in Adobe Audition 1.5 since I started though. Audacity has major stability problems and their default format for saving audio takes up a ridiculous amount of HD space.

    Most Mac users I know use Garageband.

    Hope this helps, feel free to send me an email if you have a question. closetgeekshow [at] gmail.com

    Cheers!

    By Brent Morris on March 22, 2006 9:56 am

19. I’ve tried Audacity and found it both confusing and unstable. If you don’t have GarageBand or can’t afford AudioHijack Pro, then I guess it’s okay. Just be prepared to have it crash occassionally in the middle of a session.

    Either of the other programs is fine. GarageBand is pretty processor intensive so it wants a newer Mac. AudioHijack works on about anything. GarageBand make is much drop dead simple to throw in soundtracks, jingles and other bells and whistles. It’s a good place to start if you want to sound “professional.”

    A Logitech mic for $20 will do okay for spoken word. Samson has a nice studio mic for $80. For omnidirectional studio recording, Blue Snowball USB Microphone sounds really nice.
    They all work with USB. Otherwise you would do well with a USB or Firewire pre-amp. iMic needs a self-powered microphone to input a strong enough signal. USB mics are a better option. A pre-amp/mixer with standard studio mics is the most versitile.

    By michael on March 25, 2006 2:49 pm

20. i was wondering if anyone knew of a good program besides audacity thas also free,thanks

    By Ryan on April 5, 2006 9:31 pm

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