Mac Podcast Creation: Easy but Not Cheap
One Journalists account of making a podcast.
Really though, you don't have to buy all this expensive stuff. I don't use a Mac, but I am sure you can got this cheaper. On my PC I have a Logitech webcam that I bought about 5 years ago. Now, I bought a good one at the time... but it is well used.
That is all I use to record sound, the little pinhole of a microphone in my Logitech. I record into Audacity and run the whole thing through the 'Normalize' effect when I am done to take out variations in the sound quality.
Doesn't cost me a penny! (okay, okay, so I had to buy
the webcam originally... but it was way cheaper than a good mic would have been!)
If you are putting out your 25th episode, then maybe it is time to upgrade your equipment. But when you are starting out, I recommend going for the bargin basement stuff!
Michael V
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During various periods from the early 1980s through the early 1990s, I spent time around musical recording equipment. First it was high-end reel-to-reel machines. At the end, it was rack-mounted digital devices.
It was the geek in me, since normal folks had few reasons to play with that kind of stuff then.
Now, of course, we have Web pages with audio, at-home DVD authoring software and, most significantly, podcasting that give all sorts of people reasons to record audio at reasonably high quality.
Great Sound From SnowballSo I seized the chance this week to experiment with a new Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iMac hooked up to a microphone called "The Snowball" from Blue Microphones of California. This week's column is a basic account of creating a podcast for easy distribution.
Podcasts are audio files -- diaries or news reports or just about anything you can record that listeners download to their computers and/or MP3 players.
Not surprisingly, Apple's iTunes is the easiest way to listen to them.
Recording one, however, is a little more complicated.
For this test, I used Apple's GarageBand software -- part of the iLife suite of programs that comes standard with Macs.
To begin, one creates a new project in GarageBand. This entails all of launching the application and clicking on the button labeled Create New Podcast.
The sound quality from the Snowball, which is connected to a computer via a USB port, is fabulous. (I have a face for radio and a voice for print, so don't look here for the URL to find the sample.)
.Mac Account Makes Web Publishing Easier
Once the podcast has been recorded, you need to publish it to the Web. The easiest way -- sorry, but that word keeps applying -- is to use a .Mac account from Apple. You also have the option of publishing it to iTunes.
Again, it's just a matter of a few clicks. The whole process took me about 30 minutes, and that included learning how to do it. However, Apple's online directions for this are not quite as good as they should be.
If you publish it to the Web, would-be listeners have to check your Web site from any machine with a browser to hear your podcast and view any pictures you've put up.
If you want to publish it via iTunes, which will make frequent listeners' lives much easier, they will also have to download iTunes. It's free in Mac and Windows versions.
Bargain Compared to Yesteryear
The cost of the whole venture is not cheap -- at least if you want to do it in a way that sounds good and is simple.
The Snowball microphone retails for US$149.
The 20-inch iMac costs $1,699, although the $1,299 17-inch version would work just as well in this case.
A one-year .Mac subscription, which includes first-rate e-mail and backup services and a bunch of other goodies, costs $99. A family pack of five accounts is $179 per year, but keep in mind, a half-decent microphone 20 years ago cost $2,000.
Brought to you by The Podcast News Crew at http://www.PodcastEmpire.com
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