Author Topic: Tools of the trade (Read 17372 times)

BrandtPileggi · **on:** August 20, 2007, 01:22:45 PM

Hey there folks. I thought it would be nice to have a thread that was just talking shop. I will throw out that it would be a great idea for any beginner, such as myself, to relisten to all of the episodes of Podholes.com. There's a wealth of knowledge there that I can't imagine I'd find anywhere else.

Computers:
I'm just starting to get some stuff in preperation of making my own podcasts. I've gotten some software and I'm currently shopping around for a computer. Any suggestions? I know Mac is pretty popular but I think I may want to go with a PC because it'll be used for more than podcasting. Are there noise issues with fans and internal things that I should be aware of?

Listener · **Reply #1 on:** August 20, 2007, 04:46:41 PM

Quote from: BrandtPileggi on August 20, 2007, 01:22:45 PM

Hey there folks. I thought it would be nice to have a thread that was just talking shop. I will throw out that it would be a great idea for any beginner, such as myself, to relisten to all of the episodes of Podholes.com. There's a wealth of knowledge there that I can't imagine I'd find anywhere else.

Computers:
I'm just starting to get some stuff in preperation of making my own podcasts. I've gotten some software and I'm currently shopping around for a computer. Any suggestions? I know Mac is pretty popular but I think I may want to go with a PC because it'll be used for more than podcasting. Are there noise issues with fans and internal things that I should be aware of?

I would be more concerned with ambient noise where you'll be recording. My studio is in the basement, but every time the a/c goes on you can just barely hear the hum in your teeth.

A good microphone will solve that problem. Don't buy a cheap one... I spent $50 on mine (so, not cheap, but not expensive) and have been very happy.

Get a mic condom, too, if you pop your Ps.

My wife's Sony compy is so loud you can hear it in the living room when it's on upstairs, but I think that's an isolated case.

BrandtPileggi · **Reply #2 on:** August 20, 2007, 04:57:48 PM

I have this perfect closet for the job right behind my desk in my office. I was thinking about installing some sound absorbent material in ther on the walls but then decided I may just pull a Sigler and fill it with hanging clothes. My lady friend will probably be using it for singing and voicework too. Meh... maybe I should put up some egg crates.

I'm more worried about the horror stories I've heard of days being spent chasing down hums.

Mr. Tweedy · **Reply #3 on:** August 20, 2007, 05:21:43 PM

What are your podcasts going to be about?

I know you said you don't want a Mac (although you should), but I thought I'd comment that the Mac Mini I use at work is almost completely silent. Even when the fan is cranked up all the way, it's barely a whisper. Easily the quietest computer I've ever not heard.

BrandtPileggi · **Reply #4 on:** August 20, 2007, 05:54:31 PM

I know this sounds stupid but I also do some inventing, so I tend to hold my cards VERY tightly to my chest, even though in this situation I think it may be a little unwarrented. With that said, I'm not entirely comfortable with talking about what it(they) will be about until I'm closer to production. So I'll have to go with the gut for now.

I'm not thinking Mac because I'm going to be using the same comp for 3d models, gaming, audio and video editing. I really want to get into Avid Liquid. I know Final Cut Pro is great and all but I hear even more people in the industry say, yes it is great, but so is the appl e hype machine. All said and done, Avid remains the industry standard with maybe Sony Vegas closing ground the fastest. So I don't NEED FCP but I do need discrete graphics cards or chipsets and I haven't found one in a decently priced macbook yet.

I need to be able to run
-PodcastStation (if anyone has any yays or nays on this I'd love to hear them, I just keep seeing it rated at the top)
-World of Warcraft (I know. I'm weak. I haven't played for about 6 months but I usually go 6 mo.s 6 on etc... with MMO's)
-AutoCad
-Maya
-Maxwell
-Avid

It just seems that at my price point, I'm BARELY going to be able to get somethign that will be able to handle it fluidly. And I'm not sure if MacBooks have been known for their affordability. It seems there's a premium for the hip factor. With that said, in the future I may want to get exactly what you have, a mini station or something. It's just right now, I NEED a laptop, and one that can do damn near anything on the cheap.

Listener · **Reply #5 on:** August 20, 2007, 07:47:56 PM

If you want to run Avid, you basically need a workstation-quality PC.

BrandtPileggi · **Reply #6 on:** August 20, 2007, 08:42:39 PM

Shyte. Well I guess I'll have to edit video on the PC.

goatkeeper · **Reply #7 on:** August 21, 2007, 05:23:57 AM

Well, I guess I meant to address things like this in the thread I just started too- but ah well. I don't see why you can't go Mac- podcasting, 3d models, gaming, audio and video editing-? I guess some gaming might suffer, but your going to have to compromise somewhere no?
We all want everything on the cheap man- a perfect affordable laptop- a cheap hotel near Dragoncon- theres some great software you can use for podcasting (garageband/mac!) and you can get a cheap enough mic and interface and not worry about hum/etc and not have to sell 30 oz of sperm to get there.

Mr. Tweedy · **Reply #8 on:** August 21, 2007, 01:57:44 PM

Is Garage Band what you use for Drabblecast? Your production is top-notch.

BrandtPileggi · **Reply #9 on:** August 21, 2007, 03:04:22 PM

What's better for podcasting? Podcast Station or Garage Band? Sorry goatkeeper! I didn't see the post, where is it so I can catch up?

raygunray · **Reply #10 on:** August 21, 2007, 04:50:58 PM

I puttered around with my M-Audio Podcast factory ( http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/PodcastFactory-main.html) last night and finally threw up my hands in disgust. It works fine, but I kept stuttering, getting bothered by cats banging on my door them my wife screaming at an escaping cat.

I'm moving my setup to a closet where the acoustics are better and its kitty proof. I have an old laptop and an external hard drive that may do the trick.

goatkeeper · **Reply #11 on:** August 21, 2007, 07:44:22 PM

Tweedy- I use Pro tools as of recently because it's got more bells and whistles but used Garageband up till Drabblecast 24 and I think it's great. If you have listened to any older stories, you'll notice production has come a long way- mostly due to the purchase of a much better microphone around Episode 19. Thanks for the compliment though!

Brandt- I've never used podcast station before so I'm not sure, sorry. I can tell you garageband is great and gives you tons of things to play with aside from just podcasting. Also, make sure you get a good mic with a pop filter, god it makes such a huge difference. I can point you in some directions if you need one.

raygun- I feel your pain buddy. My cat is hell bent on getting air time each week.

raygunray · **Reply #12 on:** August 21, 2007, 11:15:56 PM

Could I get some opinions on the sound quality of my first trial podcast ie Audio quality and such.

http://www.diabeticincandyland.com/

goatkeeper · **Reply #13 on:** August 22, 2007, 01:05:58 AM

If you just want comments on the sound quality- I thought the audio sounded great! You got a good deal at CompUSA!

raygunray · **Reply #14 on:** August 22, 2007, 01:13:47 AM

As for getting comfortable reading and speaking, that will just have to come with practice and getting comfortable before a mic. I did some acting.

I recorded an excerpt of the podiobook i'm writing and my reading is better.

A technical quesiton: Should I record in stereo or mono?

BrandtPileggi · **Reply #15 on:** August 22, 2007, 02:35:51 AM

Steve has made some great suggestions I think I'm going to go with. I think my first mic will be a Sure SM58? I can't remember if that's the right model. The one you can use as cannon packing without losing any sound quality. After that I think I'll grab a AKG Perception, after I figure out what I'm doing a little better. And yes Steve; good headphones before then. Senheisers. Got it

raygunray · **Reply #16 on:** August 22, 2007, 04:45:43 PM

Well the closet idea is a no go. The old Gateway laptop is a noisy as a DC-10 with leaky oil seals and there is an air unit on the other side of the wall. I'm having a problem with echoes so I may put a thick blanket accross the doors and put eggcrate behind my desk. Didn't have a problem before.

As for my sample recording, have any input other than audio quality? I thought of doing a podcast editorial or essay every week when I finish my blog. I used to do comedy monologues and did some acting. I work better if I write what I'm going to say and then I can adlib and be more confident going on tangents. I'm an expert at nothing, so that is the content I have to work with.

goatkeeper · **Reply #17 on:** August 22, 2007, 05:56:32 PM

Quote from: BrandtPileggi on August 22, 2007, 02:35:51 AM

Steve has made some great suggestions I think I'm going to go with. I think my first mic will be a Sure SM58? I can't remember if that's the right model. The one you can use as cannon packing without losing any sound quality. After that I think I'll grab a AKG Perception, after I figure out what I'm doing a little better. And yes Steve; good headphones before then. Senheisers. Got it

I'm a musician that plays a lot so I've experimented with and own several different types of mics- Shure SM58 is classic, everyone uses these and they are reliable but I'd go with, or at least read about, the Sennheiser e835. It's the same price as the SM58, but has better frequency range and also I've found the sound to be more consistant at varying distances and angles to the mic.
But you can't really lose with either- I don't think anything else in the midrange mic market like Audix OM-5 or Audio Technica ATM27 compares.
Check out http://www.fxguidry.com/mictest1/index.htm to hear the difference between tons of different mics.

AKG Perceptions are amazing if you want a condenser mic-you can find deals.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/AKG-Perception-200-LargeDiaphragm-Condenser-Microphone?sku=271243&src=3SOSWXXA

RAY- do you have hardwood floors? That's weird that you get echo...

As far as your cast- I think it was a great first go. For the content, normally I don't really get into bloggy type podcasts myself- podiobook type things are almost exclusively what I listen to. But it seems that "talk podcasts" do well when they address a specific thing in a unique way. I listen to Destrucomundo- a podcast with 3 guys with very different personalities that talk about different ways the world might end. It helps they have multiple people getting drunk and playing off each others ridiculous theories.

raygunray · **Reply #18 on:** August 22, 2007, 07:19:04 PM

I haven't found many journal blogcasts that have interested me. Most of them are whiny-white Liberal's moaning about post-911 Amerika or knee-jerk emo stuff.

I have a stack of essays that I read at coffeehouses that got some great reception. I thought I'd produce one a month as an added feature to the blog. The podiobook would be a separate project.

BrandtPileggi · **Reply #19 on:** August 22, 2007, 10:10:27 PM

Awesome suggestions Goat! Thanks. I'll definitely check those out!

raygunray · **Reply #20 on:** August 23, 2007, 06:00:07 PM

What about soundtracks? What's the copyright rules about using other bands songs in you podcast?

Also, do some of the podiobooks trade a plug for a plug with bands? For example, I put up an ad in Craigslist for a band to volunteer a track in exchange for a promo for their band and website.

Planish · **Reply #21 on:** September 30, 2007, 05:18:39 AM

Quote from: raygunray on August 21, 2007, 11:15:56 PM

Could I get some opinions on the sound quality of my first trial podcast ie Audio quality and such.

http://www.diabeticincandyland.com/

"Diabetic In Candyland 02 - The DragonCon Report..." - Sounds pretty good. The only thing that put me off at all is what sounds like artifacts from a noise removal filter. It's like a low-level tinkly-swirly-wind&surf sound effect in the background. I'd almost rather put up with a bit more of the hum or fan noise or whatever it is you're trying to get rid of than the Noise Removal artifacts. You might get better results by playing with different parameters in the noise removal. Better yet would be to eliminate the ambient noise from the get-go, but I know how hard that is without having a dedicated room for recording.

raygunray · **Reply #22 on:** September 30, 2007, 10:23:15 PM

Quote

The only thing that put me off at all is what sounds like artifacts from a noise removal filter.

I caught that. I found that its better to use it sparingly or not at all. I start with five seconds of ambient sound then just take the edge off.

I've done another podcast and I can tell it sounds much better. I've mixed music and got some pointers on compression and normalization.

goatkeeper · **Reply #23 on:** October 04, 2007, 05:43:42 AM

Yeah, best to avoid those filters. Enjoying the cast btw

raygunray · **Reply #24 on:** October 04, 2007, 07:40:39 PM

Thanks. I've got a couple of submissions that sound promising and will try to have a full show before Satan's Holiday. I'ts really coming toghether.

Also, I located and old friend from my Prague days I haven't seen in at least ten years.