Essential Podcast Equipment: Start Your Podcast For Under $200

So, you’re ready to start a podcast. Maybe you’ve already picked out your premise, your guests, and even have a plan for the season. Now it’s time to record. But what podcast equipment do you need to start recording?

While you can hop on Zoom and talk into your laptop microphone, your show is going to come out sounding muffled, flat, crackly, and have a ton of room noise you’ll have to edit out. Podcasting is an audio-based medium. What’s the point of starting a podcast if your audio is bad?

On the other hand, established podcasters have home studios that cost thousands of dollars. That’s probably unrealistic for your budget and even your needs. While there is a difference in quality between even good and great equipment, the quality difference is often a lot smaller than the price gap would indicate. So, how do you sound like a professional without having a professional recording studio worth of equipment?

The best podcast equipment under $200

We recently covered the five essential pieces of podcast equipment on the Q’d Up Podcast on Podcasting. To get started and sound great, we’ll start you off with a pair of headphones, a microphone, microphone cable, microphone stand, and a recorder. Even better, the entire list comes out to under $200 so you don’t have to break the bank to sound good.

Headphones

The first piece of equipment you’ll need to record an episode is something you may already have—headphones. If you’re recording by yourself, you don’t even need to wear them. But if you’re having guests on the show or doing your own editing, a pair of headphones are a necessity.

There are a million different headphones on the market, all tuned with different styles of music in mind. Some are cheap and break easily. Others are expensive and have a bass-heavy sound. While you can easily drop a few hundred dollars on a pair of headphones, it’s not going to directly impact the quality of your show. That means you can drop $10 on a pair of A12 headphones and be golden.

Since we here at Q’d Up record and listen to podcasts all day long, some of us have professional studio headphones. But even those don’t have to break the bank. If you have a few more bucks to spend, the Sony MDR7506 headphones are excellent at just $99, yet they can take a beating if you need to throw them into a bag to record on the go.

Podcast microphone

It’s pretty hard to have a podcast without a microphone, making it—arguably—the most important piece of podcast equipment you’ll need to buy.

There’s a lot of buzz in the podcasting world about which new mic is the best. Some people like the trendy Yeti mics, while others swear by ones that cost hundreds of dollars. In truth, both extremes have their pros and cons but finding something in-between is going to be your best bet for value and quality.

You really just need a dependable, quality podcast microphone that can get the job done easily and consistently. We suggest the Shure SM48-LC microphone, which is reliable, travel-friendly—and best of all—only $39. Even members of our own team use this mic and we love it!

To be fair, if you have the budget for a better microphone, it’s not going to hurt to upgrade. However, at $229 for the Rode Procaster and $449 for the Electro Voice RE20, things can get pricey fast.

Mic cable

Once you’ve found the perfect mic, you’ll need to connect it to your other podcast equipment. On the Q’d Up Podcast on Podcasting, we recently explained the difference between a USB cable and an XLR cable. For podcasters, it mostly boils down to the input available on something like a Yeti microphone compared to a traditional studio microphone.

We prefer the XLR cable, as it actually clicks into your microphone and offers better and more consistent audio quality compared to a USB cable. But again, this will likely be dependent on what input your microphone has. All of the podcast microphones we recommended above use XLR.

In looking for an XLR cable, you can easily find one on Amazon for only $7.99. It’s 6 feet long, works with the Shure SM48-LC microphone, and does the trick. Why spend more when you don’t have to?

Mic stand

Now that you have your microphone, you need something to hold it up. That means you’ll need a mic stand

A mic stand is more important than it may seem. In order to have an even and consistent sound, you’ll want your mic to stay in the same place. No matter how careful you are, holding a microphone with your hand will cause differences in your recording. If you talk with your hands, your voice may fade in and out as you move the microphone away from your mouth. If you’re recording for a long time, you may get wrapped up in holding the mic itself and forget to focus on the show itself.

Luckily, this is another piece of podcast equipment that doesn’t have to be expensive. The Auray TT-6220 Telescoping Tabletop Stand works wonders at just under $17. An added bonus? It’s weighed at the bottom so if you knock into it accidentally, it won’t topple over.

Podcast recording

The last essential piece of podcast equipment for home recording is an audio interface or a recorder.

An audio interface connects to your mic and your computer while a recorder records directly from your microphones. For most home podcasters, an audio interface is what you’ll need to connect your shiny new podcast microphone to your computer to record. But if you need to record on location, a dedicated recorder with multi-channel support is a must-have.

While this is the most expensive tech you’ll buy on this list, it’s also the most imperative. It’s pretty hard to publish a podcast if you don’t have any audio recorded in the first place.

If you’re looking for an accessible but high-quality audio interface, we recommend the Focusrite Scarlett Solo USB Audio Interface First. This interface is easy to use, plugs into any computer, and works with free apps such as Audacity or Quicktime. For an interface priced at $119, it provides a rich, full sound.

If you need a recorder to be more mobile with your podcast, we recommend the Zoom H6N. However, that mobility comes at a price. The H6N is far more expensive at $349 than the Scarlett Solo, but it allows you to directly record four separate microphones at one time on an SD card. It’s easy to use and is sturdy for those audio professionals on the go but it’s overkill for most in-home podcasters, so don’t drop the money unless you need to record on the road.

Get started in podcasting for under $200

With these 5 essential pieces of podcasting equipment, you’ll have everything you need to record your amazing show. The best part is that it can be done for just $193.

Before you hit the record button, be sure to check out our post on how to hook your audience to draw in your listeners and keep them.