The simplest recording setup that saves solo podcasters the most time. I share my under-$500 kit — Shure MV7+ at the desk, DJI portable mic on the go, and the YoloCam S3 if you want to add video — plus why I'd skip the $1,000 RodeCaster Pro and how to use the camera you already own.
Show Notes:
00:00:04 --> 00:00:08 Last summer, I built a fence. Well, I'm using
00:00:08 --> 00:00:11 I generously. My father -in -law and brother
00:00:11 --> 00:00:14 -in -law built a fence and I helped the best
00:00:14 --> 00:00:18 way I could. Now, part of building a fence is
00:00:18 --> 00:00:21 sinking these six -foot posts three feet into
00:00:21 --> 00:00:24 the ground. And if you had to do that with a
00:00:24 --> 00:00:27 shovel, it would take a very long time. It would
00:00:27 --> 00:00:29 be physically exhausting and the project would
00:00:29 --> 00:00:33 have taken weeks, not a single weekend. Luckily,
00:00:34 --> 00:00:38 my brother -in -law had what's called an auger,
00:00:38 --> 00:00:42 a sort of two -person handheld drill that lets
00:00:42 --> 00:00:47 you dig those post holes a lot faster and more
00:00:47 --> 00:00:51 accurately. I mention this because when we talk
00:00:51 --> 00:00:56 about systems and automations and workflows,
00:00:56 --> 00:01:01 we often think about the software side of things.
00:01:01 --> 00:01:05 What AI tool are you using? What automatic transcription
00:01:05 --> 00:01:08 thing are you using? What edit by text tool are
00:01:08 --> 00:01:12 you using to make editing faster? But what we
00:01:12 --> 00:01:17 don't talk about is the hardware and having the
00:01:17 --> 00:01:22 right hardware makes your job easier. So today
00:01:22 --> 00:01:26 I want to talk about the simplest recording setup
00:01:26 --> 00:01:31 for you as a podcaster. And I want to tell you
00:01:31 --> 00:01:35 about my criteria first. One, it needs to be
00:01:35 --> 00:01:41 affordable. I have a lot of equipment that I
00:01:41 --> 00:01:45 have gathered and collected over the last 15
00:01:45 --> 00:01:49 years of podcasting. You don't need that today.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:53 So number one is it needs to be affordable. I
00:01:53 --> 00:01:58 am aiming for less than $500. Two, it needs to
00:01:58 --> 00:02:02 be simple, which means it should connect directly
00:02:02 --> 00:02:05 to your computer. You shouldn't need additional
00:02:05 --> 00:02:10 cables or gear to get everything working properly.
00:02:10 --> 00:02:15 Not if you are recording a podcast from your
00:02:15 --> 00:02:18 computer, from your home, from your hotel room,
00:02:18 --> 00:02:23 wherever. End. Number three, it should be easy
00:02:23 --> 00:02:27 to use. I am aiming for as plug and playable
00:02:27 --> 00:02:33 as possible. So with that, what is the simplest
00:02:33 --> 00:02:36 solution? Oh, and by the way, I should mention
00:02:36 --> 00:02:41 that getting started, you don't necessarily need
00:02:41 --> 00:02:45 video. And so I am going to mention a camera,
00:02:45 --> 00:02:50 but I'm also going to say, well, You don't really
00:02:50 --> 00:02:54 need the camera to get started. So what is the
00:02:54 --> 00:02:58 simplest solution? The recording setup that saves
00:02:58 --> 00:03:03 solo podcasters the most time? Here we go. Are
00:03:03 --> 00:03:08 you ready? It's the Shure MV7 Plus when you are
00:03:08 --> 00:03:14 at home on whatever boom arm. I like the Elgato
00:03:14 --> 00:03:17 Wave Arms. I've got both the high profile and
00:03:17 --> 00:03:21 the low profile. I like them both. That's it
00:03:21 --> 00:03:24 for your home recording setup. The Shure MV7
00:03:24 --> 00:03:27 Plus has USB -C. It plugs directly into your
00:03:27 --> 00:03:31 computer. You don't really need to configure
00:03:31 --> 00:03:35 it. It sounds great out of the box, but it also
00:03:35 --> 00:03:39 comes with software to make it sound even better.
00:03:39 --> 00:03:41 Adding noise gates and stuff like that. Things
00:03:41 --> 00:03:45 that you would have to configure in post or on
00:03:45 --> 00:03:51 your your interface if you have an XLR microphone.
00:03:53 --> 00:03:56 Now, I'm not talking about software, but I do
00:03:56 --> 00:03:58 want to mention the other part of this, which
00:03:58 --> 00:04:04 is a DJI portable microphone. And I mention this
00:04:04 --> 00:04:08 because if you want to record on the go, bringing
00:04:08 --> 00:04:13 your Shure MV7 Plus is probably not the best
00:04:13 --> 00:04:17 or easiest thing. The DJI portable microphone.
00:04:17 --> 00:04:21 I'll have links to both of those in the description
00:04:21 --> 00:04:25 for this episode. That is a microphone that can
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 fit in your bag, plugs directly into your phone,
00:04:27 --> 00:04:31 or can plug into your computer and honestly sounds
00:04:31 --> 00:04:35 great. I have an audio notes style episode that
00:04:35 --> 00:04:38 I do for the Streamline Solopreneur and I use
00:04:38 --> 00:04:42 that microphone and it sounds amazing. So there
00:04:42 --> 00:04:46 you go. You've got the Shure MV7 Plus, which
00:04:46 --> 00:04:50 comes in somewhere between let's say $250 and
00:04:50 --> 00:04:56 $300. The price often changes here on Amazon
00:04:56 --> 00:05:01 as I'm looking at it. And then the DJI wireless
00:05:01 --> 00:05:05 mic. There are a few options for those. Several
00:05:05 --> 00:05:07 of them clock in at less than a hundred bucks.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:09 If you just need the one, I think it's like 60.
00:05:10 --> 00:05:16 So we're looking at around $300. Now I did mention
00:05:16 --> 00:05:23 a camera if you are interested in doing video.
00:05:24 --> 00:05:27 I think the best camera is the one you have on
00:05:27 --> 00:05:32 you. And so if you're using a laptop, the MacBook
00:05:32 --> 00:05:35 cameras, the built -in ones are pretty good.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:39 The iPhone has an amazing camera on it. And if
00:05:39 --> 00:05:41 you have a Mac and an iPhone, you've got continuity
00:05:41 --> 00:05:43 camera, so you can use your iPhone as a webcam.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:46 There are other apps like camo that will let
00:05:46 --> 00:05:51 you do this with any computer and camera setup.
00:05:51 --> 00:05:54 So that's what I recommend. If you do want a
00:05:54 --> 00:06:03 dedicated webcam, the Yolo live, yo live. The
00:06:03 --> 00:06:10 YoloLiv YoloCam S3 is a fantastic camera. So
00:06:10 --> 00:06:15 that camera is about $200 as I'm looking at it
00:06:15 --> 00:06:23 right now. So 200 plus the Shure MV7 plus coming
00:06:23 --> 00:06:26 in at like 250. We're still less than 500 bucks.
00:06:27 --> 00:06:30 And you have an incredible looking camera with
00:06:30 --> 00:06:34 a great video. that are both very easy to use.
00:06:34 --> 00:06:39 That was the entire point of this episode, is
00:06:39 --> 00:06:43 that you don't want a super complicated setup,
00:06:43 --> 00:06:46 but you also don't want to get cheap hardware
00:06:46 --> 00:06:49 that you're going to have to spend a bunch of
00:06:49 --> 00:06:53 time fixing in post, right? I could recommend
00:06:53 --> 00:06:59 a $20 microphone and then maybe you can use Descript's
00:06:59 --> 00:07:06 audio fixie thing. to fix it. But I usually go,
00:07:06 --> 00:07:10 especially with my videos, directly from recording
00:07:10 --> 00:07:14 to I do some light editing, but I don't change
00:07:14 --> 00:07:17 the audio. I don't edit the audio. That's what
00:07:17 --> 00:07:22 I want for you. And you don't need a $500 Shure
00:07:22 --> 00:07:27 SM7B and you don't need a thousand dollar Rodecaster
00:07:27 --> 00:07:31 Pro. and you don't need that all plugged into
00:07:31 --> 00:07:36 a $5 computer. The computer's not $5 ,
00:07:36 --> 00:07:39 the computer plus the monitor. But point being,
00:07:40 --> 00:07:46 for 500 bucks, less than 300 if you're just getting
00:07:46 --> 00:07:49 the one microphone, you can have a great setup
00:07:49 --> 00:07:52 that you're not fighting so that you can do what
00:07:52 --> 00:07:57 you do best, which is record. So that's it for
00:07:57 --> 00:08:02 this episode. If you want to get these episodes
00:08:02 --> 00:08:07 ad free as well as bonus episodes that go into
00:08:07 --> 00:08:10 some other topics like monetization and a behind
00:08:10 --> 00:08:12 the scenes look at how this show comes together.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:18 I am offering a membership on Apple podcasts
00:08:18 --> 00:08:21 right now. So if you're an Apple podcast listener,
00:08:21 --> 00:08:25 you can sign up in the Apple podcast app. and
00:08:25 --> 00:08:30 you can get ad -free and bonus episodes of this
00:08:30 --> 00:08:34 podcast. Now, if you are not listening in Apple
00:08:34 --> 00:08:38 podcasts, let me know over at StreamlinedFeedback
00:08:38 --> 00:08:44 .com because if it's worth it, I will add it
00:08:44 --> 00:08:49 to Patreon or something else that is less platform
00:08:49 --> 00:08:53 -specific, but I use RSS .com for this show.
00:08:53 --> 00:08:57 and the integration directly with Apple Podcast
00:08:57 --> 00:09:00 subscriptions is super easy. And so I decided
00:09:00 --> 00:09:05 to just start there. Thanks so much for listening
00:09:05 --> 00:09:08 to this episode of The Streamlined Podcaster.
00:09:09 --> 00:09:12 And until next time, I hope you find some space
00:09:12 --> 00:09:13 in your week.