In this blog post, you will learn what are the top 5 podcasting mistakes new podcasters do and how to avoid them! It is important that your podcast sounds professional so you can get that audience. A bad-sounding podcast is worst than not having a podcast in the first place. The competition is higher than ever and if you look closely enough you will find a podcast with the same topic that sounds much better than yours. We don’t want that to happen so here are the most common podcasting mistakes!
1: RECORD WITH A BLUE YETI AND USING IT WRONG!
You would be amazed how many times I’ve seen this. It is literally the worst thing ever, that’s why it is on the top of my list! The Yeti microphone like many other condenser mics is a side-address mic. A side-address mic picks up the sound from the side of the microphone as opposed to a front-address mic which picks the sound from the top of the mic.
Each microphone has a certain pickup pattern. You probably heard of, “cardioid”, “bi-directional”, “omnidirectional” etc.. Now, the Blue Yeti has the following modes you can choose from as explained on the Blue official website. These modes tell you exactly which side is the one that picks up the sound.
This mistake became so common that Blue decided to include a card with clear instructions on how this microphone is supposed to be used. It is quite an easy mistake to do, so please don’t feel bad about it. If this was you, now your podcast will sound 10 times better!
CARDIOID MODE
Perfect for podcasting, Twitch streaming, music recording, voice overs and instruments. Cardioid mode records sound sources that are directly in front of the microphone, delivering rich, full-bodied sound.
STEREO MODE
Uses both the left and right channels to capture a wide, realistic sound image—ideal for recording acoustic guitar or choir and immersive experiences like ASMR videos.
OMNIDIRECTIONAL MODE
Picks up sound equally from all around the mic. It’s best used in situations when you want to capture the ambience of “being there”—like recording a band’s live performance, a multi-person podcast or a conference call.
BIDIRECTIONAL
Records from both the front and rear of the microphone—good for recording a duet or a two-person interview.
2: SPEAKING IN YOUR MICROPHONE BUT RECORDING WITH YOUR LAPTOP BUILT-IN MICROPHONE.
Unfortunately, this one is as common as the first one, but what worries me the most is that many podcasters don’t even realise that they do it. Many podcasters blame their equipment without realising that they don’t use it in the first place! To avoid this problem, make sure that your microphone is selected in your sound preferences on your computer.
Mac:
Go to “System Preferences” This is usually located in the right top corner under the Apple logo.
Go to “Sound” and select the “Input” tab.
Under the “Select a device for sound input” select your microphone or soundcard
It is a good idea to repeat this process on the “Output” tab as well
Windows:
3: NOT WEARING A HEADPHONE SET OR NOT ASKING YOUR GUEST TO WEAR A HEADPHONE SET.
When recording a podcast wearing headphones is a MUST! If recording remotely, this aspect becomes even more important. Let’s say your guest doesn’t wear headphones; when you speak into the mic your guest will hear you through the laptop speakers which will then feed back into his/her microphone. This process creates an echo that is almost impossible to remove in post-production. Another problem that can occur is that you don’t hear the result of the recording live and you can’t pinpoint if what you’re doing is right or wrong. Certain issues are apparent only while listening through the headphones.
To solve this issue make sure that you and your guest both wear headphones during the podcast recording.
4: ANOTHER PODCASTING MISTAKE TO AVOID IS NOT RECORDING IN AN APPROPRIATE ROOM.
The sound is like a mysterious force, you hear it and you know is there, but essentially in a sense, it is invisible. When you speak into an empty room, the sound will bounce from wall to wall until it dissipates, this creates reverberation which is often undesirable in a podcast recording. When speaking on a beach for example this process is not present, there are no walls and the sand absorbs the sound very well. Now you might think:
-Do you want me to go to the beach and record there?
You can buy some inexpensive absorption materials that you can place on your walls, it takes just a few bucks to solve and you can say goodbye to bathroom sounding recordings. There is more science to this and we will treat this subject in another blog.
You probably have an AC in your office, a fridge in your living room or probably you have a dog barking from time to time. There is nothing less professional in having a podcast with a lot of extraneous sounds. In my opinion, there are 2 ways to approach this:
-Commit to this and assume it, make it part of your show! Maybe you can’t really get rid of these sounds, you can’t stop the fridge, you can’t move the dog to another room, or it is just too hot to bear. In this case, just assume it and go with it, it can really spice up the discussion, making fun of the situation.
-Get rid of all extraneous sounds! In my opinion, there is no middle ground here, a podcast half cleaned sounds unprofessional and it shows that you try too hard. If you go this route, you will really need to put a stop to all the noise. Record in a room where is quieter and record in the evening when your baby’s probably asleep.
CONCLUSION
These podcasting mistakes are the most common ones and they very often affect the sound of many new podcasts. I can assure you that if you avoid these mistakes your podcast will sound 10x better and you will get more listeners as a result. if you have any questions in regards to podcasting, comment below or contact us.
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