Who are you, and what are your podcasts about?
I'm James McKinven, and I run a podcast production service called PodPanda.
I have two shows of my own:
- Indie Bites: where I speak to Indie Entrepreneurs in 15 minutes or less, finding out the tactics they've used to build a better life for themselves.
- This Indie Life: follows the journey of myself and my co-host, Dagobert Renouf, as we attempt to navigate our way to bootstrapped success.
I also co-host the Make Lemonade podcast.
Where do you record your podcasts?
I recently transformed a tiny cupboard in my flat into a podcast booth.
I removed all the rubbish I stored there, added 5cm thick sound panels from Amazon on every surface, and installed a thick carpet and a chair. Now I have a perfectly sound-treated room to record my podcasts in.
I made a video showing how I did it: https://youtu.be/XvKgsEunnBU
What equipment do you use to record your podcast?
I've used the best of the best for podcasts before, the Shure SM7B, with a Cloudlifter and a Rodecaster Pro, but I realized this is overkill for most remote podcasts. Especially when people are listening in less-than-ideal scenarios while commuting or on Bluetooth headphones.
Since then, I've switched to my trusty Shure MV7 because it's much more simple to use and still sounds fantastic. Oh, and I'm on a mission to eradicate the Blue Yeti microphone with my https://dontbuyayeti.com site.
What software do you use to record and edit your podcast?
I schedule all episodes using Savvycal and plan everything in Notion.
I then record using Riverside, edit in Descript, and distribute using Transistor.
For video podcasts, I edit exactly the same way I did audio-only in Descript. The only extra steps are creating a "frame" and thumbnail, which I've made templates for in Figma.
What would your dream podcast recording setup be?
I'm very fortunate: I pretty much have my dream podcast setup.
I have a client, Uncensored CMO, who asked me to purchase a video recording studio setup. This included 2x SM7Bs, a Rodecaster Pro, ATEM mini, 2x Lumix S5s; I even splurged on Mogami XLR cables which made me more excited than you might imagine.
My next goal is to build out a full broadcast podcast studio with branding, lighting, and a permanent setup in London. If anyone wants to fund that, let me know! ?