Quality podcast: what is it?
Marco Arment (Marco Arment) shared his vision of quality in podcasting. We selected the most interesting comments and added other useful sources.
Many listeners and the podcasters themselves considered podcasts to be a kind of hobby that didn’t require effort, and were disdainful of them. It was possible to record the issues without putting much effort, not really thinking and caring about the quality of the recording and the characteristics of the audio, using cheap equipment and spending a minimum of time.
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Unfortunately, the careless attitude to the quality of podcasts is still common. Over the past few days I have met several people who believe that podcasters do not need good microphones. They defend their position, hiding behind anti-elitism, turning into "anti-intellectualism."
Indeed, Jason Snell (Jason Snell) and Casey Liss ( Casey Liss ) have already discussed this topic in detail. By the way, we just translated Casey's manual, and tips on choosing equipment for Dan Benjamin's podcasts. We did not leave Marco aside, here is his review of portable headphones and comments on the possibility of the emergence of a new audiovisual format.
For podcasts, it is important that they are comfortable to listen to, and this cannot be achieved without at least a nominal set of equipment and processing.
We in Audiomania are engaged in both blogging and participating in the recording of the Sound podcast - a program about devices, components, formats and technologies used in the audio world. Marco's philosophy largely intersects with what we came to during the work on our content projects.
Of course, we are not talking about the millions of equipment costs, but you cannot do without an adequate microphone and headphones. It is better to record and edit in headphones with a neutral tone in order to be able to identify and correct potential defects. It is important to understand that the microphone and headphones do not have to be expensive, they just have to fit the task.
High-quality equipment is needed not to please audiophiles, but to make the podcasts you create sound good enough to be comfortable listening. In this case, people will not be annoyed by the sound quality, and it will not be difficult for them to understand what you are saying.
Many refuse to engage in any processing and furnish a room for recording. These things can affect the quality of much more professional microphones. Yes, it can take a horrific amount of time at first, but you can’t do without it.
If there are no soft items in the room, then the sound of the podcast will give the impression that you recorded in the bathroom. The problem is perfectly solved sound absorbing panels or just blankets. You can also write in the dressing room or with an open wardrobe. If you have a lot of computer peripherals that make noise, you need to turn off everything that is not necessary or, perhaps, record in another room with a laptop. Otherwise, the buzz on the record will create the impression that you are recording in the server room. That's all, on this preparation of the room is completed.
Now installation. Many consider this business a tedious waste of time. Scrupulous removal of all “a” or “e” in speech, stuttering or pauses is not always necessary. The main thing is to remove unnecessary parts of the conversation: the conversation at the initial setup of the recording, the interruption of the Skype call, and so on. The art of editing is to remove parts of the show that make it significantly worse, but remove it so that the listener does not notice their disappearance.
If you notice the time of occurrence of such problems, then fixing them takes a few minutes. All this work is necessary in order for your material to look decent against the background of others, for it is about the choice of listeners. People spend their time. This should be treated with respect. They need to be shown that you are not indifferent to what you are doing.
Transcripts from our Sound podcast:
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/365511/
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