What's Your Podcast Stack?

the hardware and software that makes the magic happen

Last updated: November 15, 2022

Over in the Podcasting Twitter community (which I highly recommend you join, if you’re on Twitter), Si Jobling posted this:

It linked to his blog post, Podcast Kit 2022, where he shared the equipment that he uses to put his show(s) together. These are (taken from Si’s original blog post):

• Organise with Cal.com – an open source equivalent to Calendly

• Record with Zencastr (free solution for individual voices files) and Ableton (for mixing music)

• Kit include Samson Q2 mic, AirPods and MacBook Pro – a trusted affordable mic with my reliable Apple suite

• Produce with Descript – GarageBand has served me well but Descript provides a simpler, streamlined UX with the added benefit of automatic transcriptions (plus much more)

• Artwork with Canva – web and iOS app for convenient (animated) graphics I can create on the move

• Hosting with Pinecast – affordable hosting for as many podcasts you need with Hi-Fi addon for House Finesse audio

• Publish with EasyWP – all the websites use WordPress which I now host with Namecheap’s affordable hosting solution

• Promote with Buffer – all the socials (Instagram, Facebook and Twitter) are broadcast from a single point which can be scheduled and spread out over time to improve engagement

As someone who loves podcasting tools and equipment, it was really cool to see what Si uses, especially since many were ones I’ve either used, or still do.

It seems lists like this (or podcast stacks, as they’re often known) are really popular, with podcasters frequently asking what each other use to get the sound or result that they do.

So, if you’re interested, here’s my current stack.

The Pod Chat Podcast Stack

To make things more “organized”, I’ve broken this down into sections: hardware and software. Note: some of these contain affiliate links, so I’ll make a little bit of beer money if you check any of them out.

Hardware

• Mic: Shure SM7B

• Back-up mic: Elgato Wave DX

• Headphones: Sony MDR-7506

• Audio interface: MOTU M2

• Boom arm: Elgato Wave Mic Arm Low Profile

• Camera: Elgato FaceCam

• MacBook Air 2020 running the M1 chip

Software

• Organizer: Calendly for booking guests

• Record with: Boomcaster for remote recordings

• Edit with: Hindenburg Pro

• Audio optimization: Accusonus ERA Bundle 6 (no longer produced)

• Hosting: Captivate

• Transcripts: Poddin

• Promote: Optinly for lead generation

• Promote: Reel for audiograms

• Newsletter: Substack

• Artwork: Canva

• Website: Captivate Sites

• Reviews: My Podcast Reviews for keeping tabs on reviews of the show

So that’s my current set-up.

It’s been interesting (at least, for me!) to see how it’s changed over the years. For example, my first mic was a Snowball iCE, and I didn’t even edit when I first started, never mind actually thinking about optimizing the audio!

But that’s the fun of podcasting – we grow as we can, and learn as we can, and improve as we can.

And the best part? We never stop – it’s always a journey, with new tools, new tricks, and new opportunities to find.

How about you – what’s your current podcasting stack? I’d love to know!