expects more than 20 % of users ’ listening will be on non-music content in the near future .
So , the era of podcasts being a DYI hobby recorded in a host ’ s garage ( not that there ’ s anything wrong with that , Marc Maron ) has passed . We ’ re now firmly in the era of professionally-recorded and produced podcasts . That said , the personal charm has not left the medium . It would be a foolish thing to lose as that personal connection with listeners – as compared to radio – is partly responsible for podcasts ’ immense popularity to begin with .
“ A casual saying that would go around [ the department ] is that ‘ podcasts aren ’ t just a spot for bad radio ideas ,’” recalls Cesil Fernandes , podcast producer and sound design lead at CBC Podcasts . “[ Senior Director Leslie Merklinger and Executive Producer Arif Noorani ] really wanted to embrace that podcasting was its own beautiful thing . We could tell stories in a way that we weren ’ t able to tell in traditional places . I think embracing that from day one has let CBC Podcasts become this entity – this powerhouse , really .”
But even looking beyond media heavyweights like the New York Times or CBC , or startups flush with Spotify ’ s cash , the independent podcasts are still upping their production game considerably . So , with all this said , what goes into making a proper-sounding podcast ?
When Dave Misener left pro audio distributor HHB Canada ( now YSL Pro ) after many years as its product specialist , he got back into audio recording , which he had been doing for over 20 years . In a roundabout way , this led him into the world of podcasting , first recording a show on food insecurity for urban planning company Hoffmann Hayes , and now for the popular sexual health podcast Sex News with Rae , which was recently nominated for a Canadian Podcast Award in the category of Outstanding Health & Fitness Series .
When he got involved with Sex News with Rae , Misener says his first priority as the engineer was making sure the host , Rae Szereszewski , sounded her best . Listeners will understand and forgive the inconsistent sound of Zoom for guests joining a show , but if the host ’ s sound is poor , the whole podcast feels cheap . The solution was to procure a couple Blue Yeti Pro USB microphones – one for Szereszewski and the other , if possible , that is dropped off at the home of that week ’ s co-host .
“ The Yeti Pro actually sounds really good and doesn ’ t have that crisp high-end . And the same with the [ Shure ] SM7s ; they don ’ t have that crisp high-end ,” says Misener . “ So , we got this inexpensive-but-decent mic , but now we ’ re dealing with this crazy-awful room sound . So , I actually built a small enclosure that the Yeti mic sits inside of with padding .
It cuts down on reflections in the room . So , super simple solution . Then , to step it up , we stopped using Zoom to record the podcast and we started using Cleanfeed .”
Cleanfeed allows for the hosts to speak to each other remotely while recording high-definition audio . It records the two audio feeds separately and then automatically marries them into a stereo file when the live session ends . But because Cleanfeed doesn ’ t include video , Szereszewski and her co-host are often looking at each other over Zoom while chatting , but with the application muted .
“ When I pull it into Reaper to do the editing , I can separate the stereo file into dual mono . Doing this , the quality all of a sudden went off the charts . It was a really controllable situation that sounded really good ,” adds Misener . “ I guess in essence , what I ’ m really talking about is you ’ re trying to reduce variables , or you ’ re trying to reduce things that can send it off the rails , right ? What that meant , too , is that I ’ m always having to sit in on every single podcast recording just to monitor . I don ’ t even necessarily really listen to what they say , though I do because I have to edit it later . But you really have to catch glitches in the audio just in case , because the last thing you want is to have an entire piece ruined because it went off the rails with your internet connection failing or something else and you missed a part .”
If not using something like Zoom or Cleanfeed to record the audio conversation , then another simple solution is having both people talk into a decent-quality voice recorder , or even directly into GarageBand or another simple DAW on their computer , and then syncing the two audio files in post-production .
Funnily enough , for recording remote interviews , the big dogs at the New York Times and CBC are keeping things even more low tech . For them , a low barrier to entry for interviewees is essential to get the guests they need , particularly for daily news shows with a quick turnaround .
When it comes to recording the New York Times ’ immensely popular news podcast The Daily ( which , as the name implies , releases a 20- to 30-minute episode every weekday ), Fisher says it ’ s all about having “ backups on backups .” The host , Michael Barbaro , has a Shure KSM32 microphone in the small office studio , as well as at home where he ’ s been mostly working during the pandemic . At home , Barbaro has some simple RealTraps panels for a makeshift vocal booth . Then he records through an XLR splitter into both his phone and a Zoom H6 recorder . “ But then he is also recording the split track of the Google Hangout that we ’ re doing our interview with in case the guest fails to record their side of the conversation in good quality ,” Fisher says .
For the interviewee ’ s side of the conversation , as we said , the solution is surprisingly low tech – it ’ s all about the phone ’ s good ol ’ Voice Memo or Voice Recorder app . The Daily ’ s producer simply asks the guest to – while they ’ re talking to Barbaro over Google Hangouts – hold their phone up to their ear and speak into it like a phone call but with the Voice Memo app recording . The reason they ’ re now insistent on the phone being up to the interviewee ’ s ear , Fisher says , is because some folks held it in front of them with their mouth right up to the phone ’ s microphone and the audio files were a “ plosive nightmare .”
For Fernandes at CBC Podcasts , he says the best-case scenario is the interviewee has a USB mic , which is pretty common these days . Otherwise , the producer tells the person to put their phone on airplane mode and speak into Voice Memo with it turned to lossless
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