The One Kit You Should Buy To Make A Podcast

Podcast gear for everyone!

One of the most confusing things about making a podcast is figuring out what gear you need to buy. There are a million options for at every price point, and everyone seems to use something different. But with a sea of options, many potential great choices, and no industry standard, the process of choosing a kit can be anxiety-producing and time-consuming.

And that’s… not great. The more time and energy you spend worrying about your kit, the less time you’re able to spend getting your hands dirty with your brand new kit to make your podcast.

To help sweep that noise aside, here’s a kit that would be a great choice for almost anyone. It has everything you need, is relatively cheap, sounds great, is extremely flexible, and will serve you for years to come.

As of this writing, you can purchase this whole kit for less than $500.

My favorite thing about the H5 is how intuitive it is — everything is laid out for you right there. Wanna record on Channel 1? Press the “1” button. Wanna record on Channel 2? Press the “2” button. Wanna record on both? Press both. Other functions follow suit. Everything’s in its right place, and easy to find.

The other major strength is its versatility. It’s light and compact, so you can take it into the field for interviews by pairing it with an external mic (I recommend the AT8010, see below), or use its great internal mics to record ambient sound in stereo, or as a backup if your external mic fails. You can also use it as a USB interface, which allows you to connect through your computer directly into your audio editing software, which can make recording narration much easier.

It’s also as versatile as the H5 — you can use it to do field interviews or to record in the studio. Buy two if you want to do a studio interview with a second person.

They sound great so when you’re monitoring your live recordings, you’ll be able to pick up background noise that you might not be able to hear on cheaper iPhone earbuds. They also have a very neutral sound—they don’t boost one frequency over another, so you get an very accurate representation of how your mix sounds. And they last for years.

Once you have your recorder, mic, and headphones, you just need to fill out your kit with a few accessories. But don’t worry, they’ll only cost you around $25 total.

That’s OK. Just use your phone or internal computer mic with the headphones/earbuds you already have. It’s not the most ideal setup, but it’s definitely better than not making radio at all. And once you’ve had some pieces under your belt, if you still can’t afford this kit, you can look into cheaper alternatives.

But most of all, go out, make radio, and have fun!

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