Mic recommendations for podcasting?

I have a client that wants to create good quality audio files for his customers. I read the review for Apogee which seems to favor music but not voice as much.
Any other models that we should be looking at?
Thanks

I have a Apogee MiC that I've used to mic up everything from guitar cabs to vocals. It does everything well I'm sure it will do podcasting just fine. It comes with a short cord I ordered the optional 3 meter cord.
Also check out the Blue Yeti mics. Very popular with podcasters and musicians.

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Mic choice for podcasting in GB3

I'm assembling hardware to create a podcast and am having a heck of a time finding a microphone that will work with GarageBand 3 and a PowerBook G4. Regardless of whether I plug the mic directly into the input or into iMic and then FireWire, the levels produced barely register in System Preferences/Sound or in GB and are way too low. I'm able to boost the vocals somewhat in GB, but the resulting hiss is unacceptable.
I'm using an Audio-Technica Pro24 stereo mic rated at 600 ohms. Could the problem be that even with iMic, I need a mic with higher impedence?
Is the best solution to buy an amplifier?
-- Leigh
PowerBook Mac OS X (10.4.6)
iMac

Since your PowerBook has a Line-In I'd suggest a better solution than an iMic would be a small mixer like the Behringer UB502 Eurorack Mixer for about $30. It will give you a lot more control over the levels.
--HangTime [Will Compute for Food] B-|>
Note: I am an Amazon Associate, if you purchase this item via my link I will get a small commission)

Wireless mic suggestions for podcast

I am interested in video podcasting. I have a sony high def video camera but I want a wireless mic that doesn't cost a thousand dollars. I do not want to hold a handheld--it won't look professional. Any suggestions ? Thank you

you can take a look at the USB mics here:
http://www.bulletsandbones.com/GB/Microphones.html
but the low end model would probably be a step up only because it won't pick up the HD and fan noises of the computer, if you can swing $79, the middle one should get nicer sound

Best mic for Podcasting using Garageband

Hey
I was just wondering which mic would be best for podcasting with garageband. Plus will I need two mics for a two person podcast?
See ya
Bevan James Eyles

Is there really that much of a difference in
bandwidth speed between Firewire 400 and USB 2.0?
You'd have to do some web research to get solid numbers. I know what I've read, and experienced, and FireWire moves more data more easily. On paper, I believe USB 2.0 is speced to be faster (480mbs vs 400mbs), but with FireWire handling all it's own smarts in moving data, it just does a better job in the REal World.
guess I didn't think that with USB, bandwidth would
be something to consider, unless you are talking
Firewire 800 which most machines don't come with.
My opinion is that it really depends how far you are going to push the machine and GB. I'm working on a 52 or 53 track project, I need every bit and every cycle I can get (and it's playing fine via my FireWire drive)
I have to admit, I am kind of curious now ... maybe when I get a chance I'll try copying the project to a USB drive and see if it can still play it. If it can, perhaps the difference is small enough that it doesn't matter. Probably the REAL test, which I'm doubtful I'll tackle, would be pushing the project to just the point where it will play from the FW drive (iow, one more track and it can't), and then move that to the USB drive. Not perfectly scientific (fragmentation could be an issue, etc), but it would be interesting to try.
On the USB/Firewire using CPU issue, that I didn't
think about. I guess in some situations it might be
an issue, but again, for audio podcasting I just
didn't take that into consideration.
Yeah, for a PodCast, how many tracks are you REALLY going to create, half dozen tops? Maybe a few more for special-special effects, but they won't be playing through the entire cast, so, agreed, it's not likely to be an issue on a small project.
As far as one being better, or "cleaner" as an input
device, have there been any tests and results posted
on this? I would like to see that if there were.
The bus is not going to make a difference. All USB and FireWire are doing is moving the data, not changing it. Th quality comes from the Mic PREs and line-level preamps, the A/D converters, the mic you're using (the room...)
Thanks for your knowledge on all this.
Hope this helped --HangTime [Will Compute for Food] B-|>

Recording iChat Audio for Podcast

I'm struggling to find a solution for recording audio for podcast interviews and am thinking that perhaps there's an easy answer I'm overlooking.
I have no problem connecting to an interview subject using iChat, however, my voice levels are only 50 to 75 percent as strong as the subject's. This same situation occurs when I'm using Skype. I have all of my input levels set to maximum.
Tests with Ecamm Call Record and Audio Hijack Pro have a similar problem.
Also, is there a way to record audio directly from iChat with these third-party apps?

Umm, a Pretty problem.
I would first test with several Buddies to get their opinion on how loud you seem to them.
I can turn up my volume but it still requires that I speak as loud as I would in a conversation and face the Mic. If I sit too far back from the mic I get too quiet no matter how I talk.
I find this with people who test with me who confirm they have System Preferences > Sound > Input volume cranked up. (the worst are Australians sitting outside on the veranda for Breakfast and trying to show me the view with a laptop)
As I have two Macs sitting quite close to each other I do get feedback if I connect the two in a Chat so I have to pay attention to the volume setting.
Having said all that if the resultant recording seems too low in Volume at You end I would personally use iMovie 6 to teak the volume up when I spoke - either by Extracting it and cutting it up and increasing those portions or by using the purple and yellow dots to do so.
The Eccam page actually says this...
Create a Podcast
Conference Recorder makes it easy convert your QuickTime movies into MP3 or AAC format. Simply drag a recorded QuickTime movie to the included "Convert to MP3" or "Convert to AAC" utilities, and let them do the work for you. Additionally, Conference Recorder records each side of the conversation on separate tracks, allowing for easy post-editing. The included "Split Movie Tracks" utility will automatically export each movie track to a separate file.
This would mean that you could turn up the track for your Audio in Quicktime Pro
Launch the file but not Playback
Go to the Window Menu > Show Movie Properties
Select the Audio Setting tab.
Increase the Volume db on one Audio track and see if it your speech by playing.
Adjust as required (Change track if required).
Save File to save the adjustment.
Hope this helps.
8:42 PM Tuesday; June 16, 2009
Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"

Recommendations for Semi-Pro or Pro HD Video camera to use with fcp and Mac

Recommendations for Semi-Pro or Pro HD Video camera to use with fcpX and Mac with auto settings and ability to override, need to add external mic or 2. Am one person crew so needs to be easy to use.

And check out the Panasonic AG-AC90. Very good specs for a prosumer unit. Everything in the semi-pro area will involve trade offs for sure. Key thing is to study up enough to know what your needs are vs what trade off are involved in the various models. The ag-ac90 trade off (one of them) is diffraction limited sharpness.

Recording conversations for podcast

Hi everyone,
I want to record interviews using Skype and eventually put on my website as well as for podcasts. I have the latest version of Mac OS and Skype.
My priority is, ease of use (installation, changing any settings--apple and other apps).
What apps will I use (Garage Band, Quick Time) and which ones are easiest to use.
Does anyone know, if me and the other person have Skype, can the other person use the mic on their computer, or do they have to have a headset w/mic or use their phone?
Of course would perfer free apps, but if it's significantly easier to pay $20 or so than would rather do that.
Thanks so much and Happy New Year.

Your best bet is probably Skype Call Recorder - I've not tried it but it is designed to do what you want. When you've made your recording you can use GarageBand or an audio editor such as Audacity or Amadeus Light to edit it and make an mp3 file.
As to the actual recording, I get quite good quality off the internal mics on my Macs, but your would need to experiment. A decent mic would be better but good ones aren't cheap: remember that the audio input on Macs does not work with microphones directly - you need a preamplifier, a mixer, or to use a USB-connected mic.
Headset microphones tend to be poor quality, and you can get noise if the brush against clothing or the face. However both ends should definitely use headphones to hear each other, or you will get echoes.
If you want to make a podcast this page, which gives basic information, may be of help:
http://rfwilmut.net/pc

Pre-amp and mic recommendation

for a while now I've been recording vocals from my condenser mic directly into the pre-amp on my presonus firebox. im told that in many cases, to get the best out of your mic, it's not necessarily the quality of the mic but the quality of the pre-amp. i spoke to someone earlier who mentioned that the pre-amp on my firebox probably isnt the best for direct mic input. he said i would definately benefit from some sort of pre-amp between my mic and my firebox.
can anyone recommend a good, affordable pre-amp for the home studio? better yet, can someone confirm what ive been told?
also considering getting a new mic altogether... im eyeballing the SE electronics z3300a multi-pattern mic. any vouchers or recommendations for good mics in the home studio? I'll be bumping up from an unimpressive m-audio nova condenser mic.
thanks!

hey fellas---
thanks for the replies. to answer some of the overriding questions:
budget: I'd probobly like to keep in in the range of a few hundred dollars, no more than a grand. if i can get a better sound out of my existing mic by getting a decent pre, that'd be ideal. if i need to upgrade mics, that might take time. still, trying to keep it around $500-$800.
application: EVERYTHING. anything from male vocals to voiceover work to film ADR to acoustic guitars. everything EXCEPT drums. wont be doing any drum or percussion micing anytime soon. lots of acoustic instruments like guitar and solo violin. might also, if its doable, run electric guitar and bass through the pre-amp if that will help with my electric guitar signal (like i said with the mic, the e-guitar is going straight into the instrument input on the presonus firebox, nothing between to sweeten, warm, or strengthen the signal consistently).
preference: a clean, dry sound with faithful reproduction. but to be honest, i wouldnt mind a little warm colouring. something with a stronger bass response, but still accurate and faithful mids and highs.
its been suggested to me that i stick with solid state mics for now, but a tube pre-amp wouldn't hurt. I've got a tube preamp, but im not happy with it so i havent used it in ages (the ART Tube MP Studio V3)
Thanks!

Very low external microphone level for podcast?

I'm using GB '09, v.5.1, on a MacBook Intel Core 2 Duo running OS 10.6.4.
I want to start podcasting, but the level on my microphone is extremely low. It's a Sony ECM-MS907, a battery-powered mic with a miniplug connector.
When I test it, the levels are barely visible in the editor, and that's holding the mic up to my mouth. From six inches way, my recorded voice is barely audible.
Inside GB, I try to set the input source to Line In, but I never get that option on the Input Source pulldown menu, so I use Stereo 1/2 (Built-in Input). I've tried forcing the option through Preferences to Line In. That doesn't seem to influence the GB settings.
Any thoughts? I have Input Volume at max in Preferences and Recording Level at max in GB, but nothing seems to make the recorded level anywhere near as loud as, say, the effects samples. Thanks for your help.

it's often hard to get a consensus on anything, but my opinion is that it's a mixture of comfort-level, flexibility, and quality.
• i've heard lots of good things about the Snowball, and it's simple
• a mixer and good mic would offer greater flexibility for recording different things while adding a level of complexity (if you're not familiar with using consoles, etc) and possibly lowering quality if you use cheap gear.
a lot depends on what you want to do, and what you expect from your final product.
and after saying all that, i remembered that you're talking about strictly voice for a podcast. i think for the simplicity alone i might lean toward the USB mic, it would provide excellent quality for podcasting, and not put more things in your signal chain to deal with when recording.

Recording meetings - Mic recommendations please

Hi Everyone,
I'm in a lot of meetings and try to record them just incase I miss something. I've been using the inbuilt microphone in the macbook but I'm picking up a lot of noise from when I type on the keyboard. Also since I sit a the head of the table, people at the far side come in very faintly.
Is there a good external microphone anyone can recommend? Even better if there is a bluetooth one that I could just place in the middle of the table.
I've tried googling around with no success. There don't seem to be many mics designed for similar purposes.
Thanks
Tim.

For bluetooth, are a few but they are pretty costly (ones I found were in the US$400 range). Instead, you're probably better off with a Bluetooth speakerphone, just mute it but leave the mic active.
Here's ONE EXAMPLE.

NEED RECOMMENDATION FOR NEW MP3 PLAYER

I have a Clip+ and a Fuze+, but both are old and the battery will not hold a charge for very long. I've been considering the Clip Sport. I love the interface of my old Fuze+...the way all your music (internal and external drives) all show up on one list. I also saw on Sandisk.com that for the Clip Sport the higest SDHC card recommended for mp3 is 8GB. I can live with that, I guess. Does anyone find it inconvenient to go back and forth from the internal drive to the card when selecting music to play or for making a playlist? I'd really like to get a Clip Zip, but I found an grossly overpriced refurb on ebay. Does anyone know where I can find a reasonably priced Clip Zip? I'll be looking forward to hearing from users RE recommendations for a new player. Thanks in advance.

"I'd really like to get a Clip Zip, but I found an grossly overpriced refurb on ebay." Refurb Clip Zip 4GB players are priced at $30 on Ebay. Yes, new ones are a bit expensive. At less than half the price of a new one though, imo the refurbs are worth the risk, especially if you buy two of them. As for the Clip Sport, it has a limit of 2,000 songs for each of the internal memory and the card memory. I use 256 kbps mp3 for my music. It took around 14GB for me to reach the 2,000 song limit, so I use a 16GB card in my Clip Sport. A 16GB card holds around 14.6GB or so of files. The Sport can't combine songs from internal and card memory into a single playlist. I also have Clip+ and Clip Zip players which I have put Rockbox on. Rockbox is a free alternative firmware (operating system) which is available for the Clip+, Clip Zip, Fuze, and Fuze+, but not the Clip Sport or Clip Jam. Rockbox enables many additional features, and has a huge song database. Some format 128GB micro SDXC card as FAT 32, fill it with songs, and use it in a Rockboxed Clip+ or Rockboxed Clip Zip. The Clip Sport is okay if you don't have a large number of songs you want on the player. Some might buy a 4GB one for example, and use the internal storage for classical music and podcasts, and have a 16GB or 32GB card in it for rock music. If you are okay with 2,000 or fewer songs on a player, then the Clip Sport would be good for you. Yes, you could put around another 1,000 songs in internal memory at 256 kbps if you get an 8GB Sport, but then you couldn't integrate those together in a playlist with songs on the card. Depending on the average length of your songs, you might need a 32GB card to reach the 2,000 song limit, especially if your songs are at 320kbps mp3. Also keep in mind that Sandisk players(except for those that support Rockbox and have Rockbox installed on them) have trouble with cards faster than class 4, so using a Sandisk class 4 micro SDHC card is advise for maximum compatability. Some 32GB cards by other makers might cause problems in Sandisk players even if they are class 4 or slower.

Cellular Data for Podcasts pop-up - how to get rid of (iOS7)

I am downloading all of my podcasts to my iPhone 4 (iOS7) through iTunes on my iMac. Before iOS7, I did this and listened to them in the Music app - it was all really straightforward. iOS7 forces me to use the Podcast app. I'm still not sure if I'd doing the sync/download from iTunes correctly as sometimes the episodes appear on the phone and sometimes they don't (and I'm the one who usually figures these things out and tells my other family members how to do it), but that's a whole different story.
Because I do not want any podcasts automatically downloaded to the phone, especially over Verizon's network, I turned off Settings -> Podcasts -> Use Cellular Data. I have also turned off Sync Subscriptions.
Whenever I am not on a WiFi network and I unlock my phone while it is in the Podcast app, I get a popup that says:
Cellular Data is Turned Off for "Podcasts"
You can turn on cellular data for this app in Settings.
And I have to "OK" it to make it disappear. It is getting annoying. I know cellular data is off. I did it on purpose.
My goal is to get rid of the popup but I've had no luck yet after tweaking a few settings. I don't know exactly what Sync Subscriptions does, but one educated guess is that as long as I have that off, no podcasts will be downloaded to the phone unless I do so via iTunes on my iMac. Is that correct, and would that allow me to turn on Use Cellular Data (to get rid of the popup)?
Any other ideas about this?
And if someone can explain all of the different permutations of how to manage Podcasts between iTunes and an iDevice (or even when a computer isn't in the picture), I'm all ears.

None of the tips suggested above worked for me. I still had that infernal message about connecting to the internet. But I have apparently (crossing my fingers) found a solution which works for me.
In the good old days I had iOS6 on my iPhone 5 with iTunes 10. I created a Podcast playlist in iTunes and I could cheerfully listen to it on the Music app driving around Europe (I'm on a UK tariff) with no 3G or wifi.
I now use iOS7 on my iPhone 5, syncing with iTunes 11 on Mavericks. I can now listen to the same Podcast Playlist with the Podcast app, wifi and Cellular Data turned off, Cellular Data and Notifications turned on everywhere and not a trace of the warning message. All the Podcasts play in sequence with no problem. Victory?!
The problem turned out to be in the syncing with iTunes. Although the Podcasts, whether in the Playlist or not, appeared to be syncing, in fact they were not imported fully into the phone. Thus when I selected a Podcast to play, the full file wasn't actually on the phone and so it wanted to stream it.
My solution was achieved by doing the following.
1. Create Podcast playlist in iTunes and drag some podcasts into it.
2. Wiith phone connected to iTunes device, highlight the iPhone in the left hand column and swivel the little arrow to expand the list of contents. You can then check the actual contents of each section on the phone. Music, Movies, TV Shows, Podcasts etc.
3. Hit iPhone in left hand column. Hit Podcasts tab at top of window. Uncheck everything in and out of sight and Apply/Sync to remove all Podcasts from phone.
4. Hit Podcasts section of expanded iPhone contents list in left hand column. That should be empty. Similarly there should be no sign of the Podcast playlist below it.
5. Now return to the Podcasts syncing section. Check 'Sync Podcasts'.
6. Scroll to bottom of page to 'Include Episodes from Playlists' and check the Podcast playlist you created. Apply/Sync.
7. Now check that the Podcasts in the playlist are in the phone by hitting the Podcast label in the expanded contents list. It should match the contents of the Playlist which should also have appeared in the list of playlists in the phone.
8. With WiFi and Cellular Data turned off, go to Podcast app and, if you're as lucky as me, you should be able to play any of the Podcasts in the playlist without that infernal message being displayed. Displaying 1 or 2 fingers at your mobile provider is optional!

Question about lead in music for podcasting.

Question about lead in music for podcasting.
I listen to many other podcasts and there are those which play lead in music with bit of music inside their podcast. The music are songs we all know and enjoy. I have notice that they only play short small clips of these songs and are not royalty free songs.
My Question would be is there a limit of time which you can play any song with out paying for it and use it in a podcast legally.
Thanks Mike

Legally you cannot use copyright music without written permission or a licence from a recognized authority, no matter how short the clip. Many people do this and get away with it (and for full tracks too) and it's debatable how much notice anyone is likely to take, or whether they would be bothered about a short clip. But the legal position is, it's not legal.

Recommendations for a new monitor?

Greetings,
I'm looking for a new monitor for my Powermac G4 450 MHz AGP (sawtooth).
I'm currently using a Formac Gallery 1740 after 6 years it's starting to faded out on me.
I'd really appreciate any suggestion or Recommendations for a new one.
Aisha K.

I'm using a 17" LCD, Acer model AL1706 on my G4 400MHz AGP. Was plug 'n play and has been flawless over the years. I'm sure the current model numbers are different.
 Cheers, Tom
Here's some Acer model LCD monitors.
http://www.amazon.com/Acer-19-inch-Flat-Panel-Monitor/dp/B0002X8TVW
Message was edited by: Texas Mac Man

Need a printer recommendation for a small office

hey folks, hoping someone might be able to suggest a recommendation for our business. We’ve had an OkiData color laser printer that’s lasted over 6 years but it’s been giving us some trouble over the last year and yesterday it stopped printing with an error we can’t resolve. Would have to bring a tech in to fix and we’d basically already decided that once this thing bit the dust we’d move on to something else. It’s time.
We are looking for something in the $200-$400 range, would consider going a little higher if it was clearly worth it. We want something that connects wireless, prints quickly and reliably in Snow Leopard over an Airport Extreme network, decent color print quality is important but doesn’t have to be photo quality (we have an HP Photosmart for that kind of stuff), and it needs to have reasonable printing cost per page. We don’t print a tremendous amount of stuff, but we probably go through 100-200 pages a day and it adds up.
Was looking at the HP OfficeJet Pro 8500 wireless and that looks like a nice unit except half the people who buy one hate it. Looks like HP quality control is lacking and if you get a good unit, great, but the odds are good you’ll get a lousy one.
Also looking at the Brother HL-3070CW, but reviews say it has a high consumable cost.
Basically, the more I look into this the more I head spins and now I've got myself wrapped around the axle and don’t know what to do.
Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated.

I would steer clear of the 500 express. Since you seem to be new to cisco products, I would use the opportunity and buy what most of your potential customers already have. Get yourself a pix/asa and a 2900 series switch as first poster suggested. If you are interested in certifications, you will need to learn the command line interface. The 500 express will do you no good as it is all gui. This is only my opinion of course. Oh, and did I see not expensive and cisco in the same sentence. :)

Mic recommendations for podcasting?

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