podcasting

The new Elgato Prompter XL teleprompter, a significantly larger version of the company’s popular Prompter teleprompter, is designed specifically for professional studio environments. The Corsair-owned Elgato said the new model addresses the most common complaint about the original: size.

“We heard it constantly: ‘Love Prompter, but we need something bigger for our studio,'” said Julian Fest, general manager at Elgato. “Prompter XL takes what creators loved about the original — the versatility, the simple setup, the reliability — and scales it up for studio environments.”

To enhance users’ podcast listening experiences, a suite of new Apple Podcasts features will “elevate and celebrate narrative series,” Apple said Tuesday. Series refers to multi-episode stories. Updates introduce a Top Series chart, a dedicated Series category and a new editorial initiative called Series Essentials.

“Serialized podcasts are some of the most impactful shows in podcasting, featuring captivating voice talent and best-in-class writing and sound design. They are the stories we can’t stop thinking about and are talking about even years later,” said Ben Cave, Apple’s global head of Podcasts.

“We are thrilled to celebrate this incredible catalog with a new Top Series chart, Series category and Series Essentials on Apple Podcasts, making it easier for listeners to discover their next favorite show,” he added.

In a significant shift in the podcasting landscape, YouTube has emerged as the leading platform for podcast consumption in the United States, surpassing long-time market leader Apple Podcasts and streaming giant Spotify, which is now in second place, according to recent studies. Meanwhile, former leader Apple Podcast loses market share, falling to third place. And that marks a turning point in how Americans access and consume podcast content.

Not many USB microphones favored by streamers and podcasters eclipse the big names like Shure, Sennheiser and Rode. But one example that comes close is the Blue Yeti USB mic. Once a rising mainstay in a oddball startup’s lineup, now it’s a mainstay for peripherals giant Logitech. And it remains popular and even award-winning. Today’s Mac Studio rig relies on one.

If you want to sound good on video calls or podcasts, you need a good mic like the Audio-Technica AT2020USB+ Microphone with shock mount in today’s MacBook Pro setup. And the user can move it around easily enough because he places it on a low-profile Elgato microphone arm.

A prolific YouTuber runs today’s featured MacBook Pro setup. And you can tell it’s the pride and joy of a streamer or podcaster just by some of the crucial equipment. Namely, an excellent Shure SM7DB microphone run through a Focusrite Vocaster Two audio interface to ensure high-quality audio recording.

If you’re a content creator and you have an XLR microphone, you don’t necessarily need to buy a USB microphone to interface with your computer for uses like streaming and podcasting. Shure’s got you covered with its new Digital Audio Interface. It converts any XLR mic to USB for easy use directly with a computer.

Australian audio powerhouse Røde introduced five new products and two major software updates Monday — its “biggest product announcement ever,” it said — at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas.

Two new products headlined — the Streamer X audio interface/video capture card and the compact RødeCaster Duo AV production tool. The new PodMic USB, important firmware updates to the Wireless Go II mic system and the RødeCaster Pro II production tool, and handy new accessories rounded out the mix.

Rode unveiled its RodeCaster Pro II Monday, giving content creators a powerful production studio tool that adds features over its popular predecessor, the RodeCaster Pro.

The update provides an all-in-one audio tool for streamers, podcasters, musicians and other content creators at a price you don’t need to be famous to afford.

Popular audio gear maker Rode just launched the affordable AI-Micro, a compact, dual-channel interface for recording to a mobile device or computer. Using the small gadget, one or two mini microphones, headphones and a choice of apps, your iPhone, iPad or MacBook becomes a mobile audio recording studio.

We noticed business and technology author and noted Mac guy Ben Thompson volunteered a pic of his setup on Twitter when tech and politics writer Casey Newton posted a shot of an immaculate setup, wondering if he has “remotely what it takes to put something like this together.”

Well, Taiwan-based Thompson certainly has what it takes to put together a great setup — even if it’s more lived in and not quite as photo-ready as the one Newton posted.

A new batch of iRig accessories from IK Multimedia should make life easier for podcasters and YouTubers who produce on their iPads or iPhones. The gear looks pretty sweet, and — if my experience is anything to go by — it should be well-built, and sound great, too.

Let’s take a look at the new IK Multimedia gadgets.

These days, seems like everybody has a podcast, but that doesn’t mean they’re doing it right. Podcasting remains one of the most vibrant and growing areas of media, so there’s plenty of opportunity to make a mark and build a business. You just need to learn the ropes.

Apple is walking back yesterday’s warning to podcast producers that putting episode numbers in titles risked the podcast getting kicked out of Apple’s service.

It’s likely complaints from users brought about the change in this policy.

For musicians, podcasters and streamers, “the studio” is an iOS device in a living room, coffee shop or some crazy live event.

Samson Technologies rolled out a new microphone at CES this week that promises to gather studio-quality audio no matter the location.

In parts one and two of this series, I talked about how I record podcasts on the iPad. In today’s third and final episode, we’ll learn about editing. For this, I use the awesome Ferrite Recording Studio, and Apple Pencil, and a pair of headphones. Let’s get started.

In part one of this series, we saw how to record remote podcasts using only iOS. It requires using your iPhone to place the FaceTime or Skype call, but you end up with a great result. That post covered the setup. Today, we’ll see how the recording and editing parts work, using AUM and Ferrite on the iPad.

The iPad Pro is pro enough for almost anything, but one thing it still can’t handle is making a Skype or FaceTime call and recording it at the same time. This is a total pain for podcasters who like to travel light. Luckily, there’s a neat workaround.

Find out how to podcast from the road in the latest free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Get it now on iTunes, or keep reading for the week’s best Apple news, reviews and how-tos.

The iPad Pro is pro enough for almost anything, but one thing it still can’t manage is making a Skype (or FaceTime) call and recording it at the same time. This is actually the fault of Skype (and FaceTime), but is nonetheless a pain for anyone who travels and podcasts.

There’s a workaround, however. It requires that you use an iPhone and an iPad together. But seeing as how the alternative is carrying a MacBook, too, it’s a pretty good option. It’s also easy, once you get your head around the setup. And you don’t need to travel to use this setup. After some experimentation, this is now my default podcasting method.

Podcasting on iOS is perfectly feasible, as long as you don’t want to use Skype or FaceTime to talk and record the audio at the same time. The new RødeCaster Pro mixer/recorder neatly sidesteps this issue, as well as putting everything a podcaster might need into one sturdy box. And because the hardware is made by Røde, it’s probably pretty good.

Launching a podcast is something anybody can do, which is why it seems like everybody is. With so much content out there, quality stands out. So if you’re looking to get in on the podcast action, it pays to know how to do it right.

Podcasters using the popular iOS app Anchor can now manage their shows and audio clips from a larger screen with a new Anchor app for iPad.

The iPad app features new editing tools that make trimming audio or creating a recording with multiple segments easy with the touch of a finger. The app also has split screen support, which allows users to see a web browser or Notes app on one side while building a show on the other.

ZCast, the app that makes podcasting from an iOS device easy, just got a big new update that makes it an even greater platform for publishing your own shows.

Version 3.0 gives users the ability to record in studio-quality audio, and support for social media embeds that allow fans to enjoy your content directly within tweets and Facebook posts.

In this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine, amateur podcaster and video-tutorial creator, Chris Ward, shares what he’s learned, along with recommendations on the hardware, software and techniques to get you started podcasting using your Mac.

We’ve got video of iOS 11 beta 4 changes, and how the flashlight mode on iPhone helped a photographer light the simulated workspace of European astronaut Paolo Nespoli. Check out the long-awaited Rainbow Apple Watch Band from Juuk, and more.  Get your free subscription to Cult of Mac Magazine from iTunes. Or read on for this week’s top stories.

Podcasting is undergoing a renaissance with listeners consuming on-demand shows at unprecedented levels, and creators enjoying surprising levels of success with their work. One thing that sets apart the amateurs from the professionals is good content, but the other is production values.

I have been running my own small podcast for about a year, trying different ideas and formats to see what works. While I’m an amateur podcaster, I create tutorial videos for a living and I used to be a professional musician, so I know a thing or two about sound, music, and music production. I have also been using a Mac since 1997, and have recorded audio with just about every port that Apple has released. For me, the podcast is a great outlet to cover topics I don’t get to cover in my paid writing work. And of course, like many other podcasters, I like the sound of my own voice.

Here are some of the things I’ve learned, along with recommendations on the hardware, software and techniques to get you started podcasting using your Mac.