And certainly setup is painless, so far as mixing boards go. It’s an admirable goal, especially in the world of podcasting, where content democratization is supposed to be a guiding principle. The Rodecaster operates on a similar principle as much of anchor.fm’s offerings, giving users the path of least resistance to bringing a podcast to life. Essentially it serves as a way to bypass the computer entirely, once you’ve finished the setup process. There’s a small touchscreen display at the top of the board that serves both as a way to gauge levels and navigate various settings. I showed it to a few folks during setup, and everyone was impressed by the look of the thing, from the pro knobs to the brightly illuminated sound pads with customizable colors. Better yet, you can patch people in remotely by connecting a smartphone via hardwire or Bluetooth. That includes everything from live mixing to an octet of sound pads you can use to trigger music beds and sound effects. The idea is to just record everything live to a single track that can be uploaded directly to your podcast server of choice. The product is essentially a six-channel soundboard with self-contained production capabilities. From the looks of it, it just might be the ideal product to help home podcasters scratch that itch. I jumped at the chance to try out the Rodecaster Pro. For those who want to record multiple guests in the same room, however, things start to get much trickier. Blue has produced some pretty compelling USB-based stuff. A handful of companies have looked to capitalize on the increasingly profitable world of non-professional podcasts. Also, the barrier of entry is needlessly complex. Cost has always been a factor, of course. Perhaps I’ve always secretly fantasized about what a home studio might look like. And, of course, with a Tascam, you don’t have the same sort of sophisticated control you get with a board. I’ve recorded a bunch of these in cafes, bars and restaurants. The mics themselves are pretty crisp, but ambient noise is an issue. It’s sitting atop my rolling luggage, which is turned upside down on a small hotel coffee table. Here’s a picture I took of comedian Hannibal Buress after recording an upcoming episode in my hotel room in Lagos, Nigeria. It’s a lot easier to ask someone to be on your show if you’re able to go to them. While friends were building soundproof posting studios in their homes, I went with a rig I could take with me. It’s served me pretty well in the five years I’ve been doing my show. But the principle is the same: take nothing I can’t fit into a laptop sleeve. I’ve upgraded things a bit in the past year - improved the mics, bought some foam windscreens and bought a pair of tabletop, foldable mic stands.
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