How to Make a Podcast#
What is a Podcast?#
The English name for podcast is Podcast, which is actually a hybrid word. Podcast = iPod + BroadCast, is a digital broadcast media that can be subscribed and listened to on digital devices. It was originally promoted by Apple, and now you can still subscribe and listen to various programs by downloading the app called Podcast on the AppStore.
So, a podcast is equivalent to recording the content of a radio program, placing it on an RSS subscription feed for users to subscribe, download, and listen to.
Why do people listen to podcasts?#
This is a common question. Attention on the internet is the most scarce asset for the general public, and the competition is fierce. Podcasts are generally lengthy and only have audio without any visual stimulation. Will anyone listen?
In fact, podcasts have their own unique use cases and complement other types of media, unlike the zero-sum game of text and video. Podcasts are usually used when it is not easy to read content, such as commuting, resting, walking, or doing household chores.
And the audience for podcasts may not be as small as we imagine. According to statistics from Edison Research, the population of people in the United States who have listened to podcasts over the age of 12 reached 51.4%. In 2020, due to the epidemic, Chinese podcasts have ushered in a second spring since 2014, known as the Chinese Podcast Year. We can understand the current audience situation of Chinese podcasts through the 2020 Chinese Podcast Listener Survey conducted by PodFest China.
How to Make a Podcast#
From the definition of a podcast, it can be seen clearly that a podcast is actually divided into two steps.
- Creating digital audio content
- Publishing it on an RSS subscription feed
Topic Selection#
Podcasts are subscription-based media, and a stable theme can give the audience an expectation of the future development of the program and help the audience quickly understand what the program is about.
- Program title
- A brief description of about 1-2 sentences
- Cover image
Teacher, can you be more powerful?
- Audio intro, by adding a fixed audio intro at the beginning of each episode, you can quickly bring the audience into the state of listening to the program, and it will also form a memory anchor, which can transfer the feelings of the past episodes to the new episodes.
Topic Preparation#
This part varies depending on the type of program. Some parts can be shared, but others need to be added based on the type.
You need to prepare a script that includes the following:
- The topic of the conversation
- A list of core questions
- Basic program flow, such as host introduction, guest introduction, and topic guidance
For talk show programs, it is also necessary to send the list of questions to the guests for them to prepare. Depending on the host's ability, they can also prepare ice-breaking topics.
Recording#
This chapter mainly introduces the following:
- Recording equipment
- Recording software
- Single-person or multi-person offline recording
- Multi-person remote recording
Recording Equipment#
At the beginning of any interest, equipment is often the least important part. As the interest develops, gradually increasing investment is the wise choice. For podcast recording, the simplest way is to use the voice memo recording function on your phone and then export and edit it later. In most cases, content is more important than sound quality. So, don't let the lack of a microphone be an obstacle to making your podcast.
When you are determined to improve the audio quality to provide a better experience for your listeners, you need to understand the following equipment.
Microphone
A microphone is a tool for sound collection. A good microphone can provide better audio quality from the source and an excellent microphone can even solve some recording environment problems.
Types of microphones
- Condenser microphone
- Ultra-high sensitivity, fast transient response, wide frequency response, ultra-low touch noise, etc., but relatively fragile and sensitive to impact and moisture. Requires power supply.
- Suitable for recording in a good environment and pursuing high-quality sound effects.
- Dynamic microphone - the type we usually see in KTV
- Low noise, no need for power supply, easy to use, stable and reliable performance, relatively cheap, but transient response and high-frequency characteristics are not as good as condenser microphones.
- Suitable for beginners in recording environments with cross-interference
Microphone parameters:
-
Sensitivity
- The higher the sensitivity, the smaller the sound it can pick up.
-
Sound pressure
- The maximum sound pressure that the microphone can withstand without distortion.
-
Directionality, the direction from which sound can be received
Here is a diagram of the directionality of the Blue Yeti microphone
- Sound card
- If there is no built-in sound card, you need to connect to a device with a configured sound card when using it.
- If there is a built-in sound card, you can record and analyze at the same time, achieving the purpose of monitoring.
- Interface
-
XLR, once mainstream, but now not recommended for personal use, the interface is difficult to adapt to universal devices
-
- USB, recommended, can be easily connected to a phone or computer
- Type-C, the future trend, but currently supported devices are relatively few
Monitoring headphones
This is an easily overlooked device, but it is crucial for improving the recording quality of the podcast.
- The main function is monitoring, which means listening to your own voice while speaking, so you can listen to the sound you are producing in real-time.
- Because condenser microphones are very sensitive, they can easily pick up some noise. Real-time monitoring helps you deal with these noises in a timely manner.
- At the same time, you can pay attention to your own speaking situation. Many times, you will only realize the problems with your speech after recording.
- There are many issues to consider when purchasing, if you are interested, you can read this article
[How to Choose Monitoring Headphones](https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/27909887)
Recording Software#
Software can be divided into recording software and post-production software, and some software can perform both roles.
For recording, if it's simple, you can use the voice recording function on your phone or computer. After recording, you can import it into post-production software for processing.
Post-production software is mainly used for noise reduction, editing, etc. The main ones are,
Exclusive to Mac platform
- Garage Band, free
- Logic Pro X, paid, $199, professional level
Multi-platform
- Audacity, free and open-source
- Adobe Audition, paid
Recording Modes#
Single-person recording and multi-person offline recording.
- This is simple, find a quiet room and turn on airplane mode on your phone to prevent external interference, then you can start recording.
Multi-person remote recording
- Open an online chat room and play the recording through the speakers. This operation is relatively simple, but the sound quality may be lower and there may be delays.
- The current mainstream Multi-End recording mode is for multiple hosts to use online chat tools such as QQ or WeChat voice. Everyone wears headphones while chatting, so the sound is not played out. At the same time, each person uses a recording device to record a track. In the final post-production editing, you only need to overlay the tracks to complete high-quality multi-person remote voice recording, which is simple and efficient.
- Bowuzhi host Yu Wanying drew an illustration of the "Multi-Ender"
Editing#
Collect audio -> Edit -> Compress -> Denoise
Collecting Audio#
- If there are multiple tracks recorded, you can gather them together using various cloud storage platforms.
- Background music
Editing#
- Remove some meaningless sounds to maintain the rhythm of the program
- Extreme silence before the opening, silence during recording
- Rambling before the opening, excessive verbal expressions during recording
- Overlapping due to simultaneous speech by two people in multi-track situations, edit as needed
- Frequently used verbal expressions, such as "then", "uh", "yes..."
- Splicing of multiple tracks in multi-person recording
- Rerecord incorrect content
- Add background music
- Add intro and outro
Compression#
- Compression means dynamically changing the amplitude of the sound waveform to make loud parts softer and soft parts louder, avoiding "noise" in high frequencies and "muddiness" in low frequencies.
- Since various situations can occur during podcast recording that cause the volume to suddenly increase or decrease, such as the host shouting loudly at the beginning of the show, or the guest moving away from the microphone due to unfamiliarity, affecting the pickup effect. In order to prevent listeners from constantly adjusting the volume themselves, we recommend using compression to control the volume fluctuations. Even if these fluctuations seem very subtle, you can see them clearly in the waveform.
Denoise#
- Denoise, usually recommended to use Audacity because it is open-source
- There is also Adobe Audition
- The main purpose is to remove background noise, the principle is the same as active noise-canceling headphones, generating a sound wave opposite to the noise based on a segment of noise to cancel out the noise. Remember, do not overdo the denoise, as it will affect the sound quality.
Export#
- Mono
- Stereo may seem better on the surface, but in actual listening, when the sound comes from different directions, it greatly affects the user's listening experience, so it is generally recommended to use mono.
- Bitrate, in general, less than 192KB
- Higher sound quality will result in larger file sizes, and beyond 192, it is generally difficult for listeners to distinguish.
- Keep the size within 150MB, which is the upload limit for most hosting platforms
Show Notes#
The main purpose of show notes is to provide users with additional textual information they may need, so they don't have to repeatedly replay the podcast to collect this information. It mainly includes:
- A brief introduction to the podcast episode
- Guest introductions
- Chapter list with timestamps
- Can be created using Podcast Chapter
- Music used
- Books, music, and shows mentioned in the episode
Broadcasting#
Prepare audio files -> Upload to hosting platform -> Submit to podcast platforms
Prepare Audio Files#
Refer to the export section in the previous chapter
Upload to Hosting Platform#
Since podcasts require users to download and listen, audio files need to be uploaded to a self-built or third-party audio hosting platform. Here, it is mainly divided into two categories, hosting platforms that cooperate with China and hosting platforms that do not cooperate with China. This mainly affects the process of launching podcasts in the Chinese market.
- Hosting platforms that cooperate with China
- Lizhi FM
- Qingting FM
- Tingban
- Ximalaya
- Hosting platforms that do not cooperate with China
- Fireside
- Squarespace
Podcast Platforms#
- Essentially, it maintains a large RSS subscription feed list and a usable B/C-end software for uploading and downloading.
- The current mainstream platforms are
Podcast Platform Review Process#
Recommendations#
Recommended Podcast Apps#
- Podcast
- Xiaoyuzhou
Recommended Podcasts#
Non-fiction
- Page Seven - Audio documentaries
- Ez Bizarre FM - Crime storytelling
Tech-oriented
- Go Night Chat - Go language-themed podcast
- Snake Catcher Talk - Python-themed podcast
- Entreprogrammers Podcast - An English podcast program about four developers transitioning to entrepreneurship
- Test & Code
Tech and gadgets
- Yipai - Podcast by Shaoshupai
- Avocado Toast - Silicon Valley tech trends and North American life
Humanities
- Hu Zuo Hu You - Humanities-focused program
- Zhenbianfeng - Lifestyle conversation program
- Da Xiao Diantai - Coffee-themed podcast incubated by Da Xiaokafei
- Wu Ye You Min - A talk show by a group of unemployed people