Podcasts are going strong in Hong Kong and now more so in this era of physical distancing. Here’s how to get the best out of remote recordings when you don’t have a pro studio.
Previously we wrote about why podcasts are a great way for businesses to share their expertise and prove what’s in the pudding! Take a look at that article for tips on how to start a podcast series. This time we are focused specifically on how to do it when you can’t be face-to-face! Here are some great tips from audio producers we work with Two Jacks Communications (UK) and Adrian da Silva (Hong Kong)
set up and recordings
In addition to Zoom local recording and Skype audio recording there is Squadcast which records both sides of a conversation directly to the participants’ computers and then uploads to a server. Requires good bandwidth.
If you are using Zoom or Skype (or similar), wear headphones plugged into your computer to monitor your chat and use your Zoom portable recorder to record your side of the conversation. If possible, get your guest to record their side of the conversation on a mobile phone using an app such as iPhone’s Voice Memos or Google’s Recorder and ask them to send over the file at the end of the recording.
- Connection: You’ll need a good, stable internet connection on the computer.
- Headphones: You’ll need headphones to connect to the computer.
- Mic: A headset with an inbuilt mic (not just headphones), like the ones probably included with your phone, will greatly improve the sound quality. The closer to the mic you can be, the better. But not so close that you’re overloading and plosives become an issue. 6-12 inches away usually does the trick.
- Quiet: You’ll need to be in a very quiet room where the sound doesn’t bounce around.
- Take off all noisy jewellery
- Mute your phone notifications
- Turn off air-cons
- Close the doors
- Try not to situate yourself in the centre of the room as it’s the most reverberant spot
- Putting some pillows around can help!
- Water: Make sure you have a glass with you as you’ll definitely need it!
- Recording:
- Connect to Skype / Zoom on the computer and record your side on the phone separately.
- Ask your guest to do the same and send you the file.
- Provide the mixed conversation file to your producer as well.
- When the conversation is finished, record 30 seconds of ‘room tone’ while remaining as still as possible – the audio producer can use this sound of the room to level the recording.
- WAV files are probably best but MP4 and M4a files can work too although they are not as high quality.
If you are using SquadCast, or even if you aren’t, getting to know your setup before hand can reduce stress during the recording. Here are some resources to help get you started:
