Part 2 of our 3-Part Series on Podcasting
Welcome to Part Two of our three-part series on starting and recording your podcast. In last week’s edition, we talked about three different tiers of podcasting equipment you can buy. Today, we’ll walk through exactly how to produce your first episode using Tier 1 gear—our most budget-friendly option.
This includes a USB microphone such as the Samson Q2U or the Fifine 688B. You’ll also need a pair of headphones and the free Audacity recording software, which I mentioned in Part One.
Let’s go through the process step by step.
Step 1: Set Up Your Equipment
Plug your USB microphone into your computer. Then, plug in your headphones. Next, open Audacity and select your microphone as the input device.
This part is easy. At the top of the Audacity interface, you’ll see a dropdown menu for input devices. Since your mic is already plugged in, Audacity will detect it and let you select it.
Step 2: Hit Record
Put on your headphones, take a deep breath, and hit the record button. Speak into the microphone. When you’re finished, hit stop. That’s it—simple, free, easy, and surprisingly good sound.
What If You Have a Guest?
Here’s where things get a little tricky. With a USB mic, you typically can’t have a guest in the same room unless you both share the same mic—and honestly, that’s not practical.
However, there’s a new product on the horizon called the Zoom P2. It’s expected to retail for around $99 and will allow you to plug in two USB microphones and then connect the device to your computer. That could make in-person guest interviews much easier—but as of now, it’s not available.
For now, the best option for remote interviews is to use video conferencing software like Zoom or Google Meet. My daughter uses both for her podcast. Google Meet is free, and from what I’ve heard, the audio quality is excellent.
Both platforms will record video of you and your guest—something to keep in mind if you plan to upload your episodes to YouTube. My daughter usually turns off the video because she says the sound quality improves that way. (Also, she might be a little shy.)
Step 3: Editing Your Episode
After recording, you’ll move on to editing your podcast in Audacity.
If you’ve recorded your guest through Zoom or Google Meet, you can import the audio directly into Audacity, sync the tracks if necessary, and begin editing. Editing in Audacity is fairly straightforward, and there are countless YouTube tutorials to help you get started.
In fact, Audacity just released a new version this week, which I haven’t tested yet—but it’s still a very user-friendly program. If you make a mistake, just find the section on the waveform, highlight it, and delete it. Done.
Want to add an intro or outro? You can drop in music tracks. Got a sponsor? Insert your ad or promo spot wherever you like. It’s all very doable, even for beginners.
Optional: Recording on Your Smartphone
You can also use your smartphone to record with a USB mic and an adapter. The Samson Q2U, for example, can connect via a Lightning or USB-C adapter, depending on your phone. If you’re using an iPhone, GarageBand is a great app for recording and editing. If you’re using Android, I recommend transferring your recording to a computer and editing it in Audacity.
Final Thoughts
That’s the basic process for recording your very first podcast. As you get more comfortable, you’ll find that editing takes less time and the whole workflow becomes second nature.
Here’s the quick recap:
- Plug in your microphone
- Put on your headphones
- Hit record
- Hit stop
- Edit your audio
- Add intro/outro music (optional)
- Upload to your hosting platform
In next week’s installment, we’ll talk about podcast hosting platforms. I’ll compare a few paid services to some of the free ones so you can decide what works best for your podcast.
Thanks for reading—
From all of us at the Tampa Bay Technology Center