How do I do a pod cast reading some of my short stories?

[Laura]

I bought a microphone that hooks into my lap top. I can make the
podcast with my voice but can't figure out how to save it to a MP3
FILE.

Laura

[southernwomanrambling]

Hi. First of all did you purchase a standard plug-n-play microphone
with a low hertz? If you're serious about podcasting you might want
to splurge about $25 - $50 to get a quality microphone because yes,
with this sort of thing you really do get the quality based on the
quantity. And I know you and maybe many others will balk at that idea
but please trust me. I started out with a 'Star Trek' looking mic
that made me sound trapped in a tin can on play back. I've also had
the $25 USB mics purchased at a computer store. And yes, they do have
a higher quality way of saving recorded items but still there was
something about the sound quality...the timbre of the voice, the
emotion and so on. So I visited a music store and explained my
situation. And those music guys know some of the best ins and outs on
recording issues! They said there are terrific high quality mic/
receivers that do work with USB sticks plugged directly into a
computer.

Never buy a mic and walk away. Make it clear that what you're
planning on doing and they should have a quiet place for you to use
the mic to record and then listen to the finished product.


Next, once you've found a mic that not only fits your laptop or
computer, you'll need to make sure you have a real editing
program...which can be found online if you do some searching because
remember, you truly do get the quality of the generic mics and/or
'editing' programs that comes on most laptops/desktops today because
they often only convert audio files to .wav, m4a, or .wma files...all
of which are great if you don't plan on sharing your podcast with
about 97% of the human populations.

My suggestion hunt online for downloadable music editing programs that
fit your needs. Needs most podcasters don't realize they need until
they're well in over their heads. Things like: Fade in, Fade out,
Cross Fade & Trim, Normalizing, Reverb, Speeding up and down,
splicing, and...well the list goes on!
You don't need to rush to Best Buy to get this sort of audio program.
I went through several but 2 stuck out in my mind. It was Creative
Wave Studio and it did mediocre work for me. And the next one was
Wave Pad Master Edition and found it to be the best of the ones out
there. It's .very user friendly and actually a lot of fun to play
around with,

Just some info to digest. And before I finish here do you have a 3rd
party hosting site like podbean.com? That's who I use. It's a
nominal fee to use and it's caused me little to no problems!

Here's wishing you the very best!
L. Avery Brown

[Laura]

thanks so much for your help on the podcast. I will take it and try.
Thanks

On Sep 26, 12:46 am, southernwomanrambling

[moe]

It isn't necessary to pay for recording/mixing/editing software. If
you are using a Mac, the Garageband program that is usually included
is pretty decent to learn on and if you're using a pc, download
Audacity: http://audacity.sourceforge.net, Audacity also has a Mac
program. The one drawback to Audacity is it can be a bit fussy so
always save your files as you work.

I have a Zoom H2 which is a full 2/4 channel microphone and records
directly to a disk either in WAV or MP3 format. It has excellent sound
quality and is very portable. I've used it for voice recordings, for
interviews (although I still prefer my Iriver for the portability) and
also for background sound files while out walking along the streets.
sitting in cafes and other public events/places.

After that it is a matter of having a host like Libsyn to upload to
and viola, you have a podcast.
I've been podcasting for a few years...well, my husband is the tech
and I'm the talent: Babas Beach - www.babasbeach.ca - we started out
on Libsyn but my house geek moved it all to our own page recently.

Good luck.

maureen

[moe]

Don't know what happened to the babas beach link...here it is again
and it works...http://babasbeach.ca/

And this is a zoom mic - a wee bit of dosh, yes, but if you're
planning on podcasting or doing interviews or just playing with sound,
it is worth the investment - the full model is great for recording
concerts--if you have friends in a band or who performs at small
venues, this is a great way to provide them with a live
recording...http://www.zoom.co.jp/?lang=en I'm not shilling for these
guys, honest, I'm just really impressed with the product.

xxoo
moe

> and I'm the talent: Babas Beach -www.babasbeach.ca- we started out