Here’s my 2018 holiday gift guide for podcasters or folks who hope Santa will help them become a podcasters.
So feel free to print this out, circle the toys you want, and leave it somewhere for Santa to find.
I’ll give you different price ranges for the podcaster gift ideas so it’ll be easy for you to figure out how much you really like that podcaster friend.
(Note: Wherever possible, I’ll include affiliate links so I can get a bit of that Amazon money if you decide to buy something.)
$100 or Less
App Store & iTunes Gift Card
- Watch Costco for discounted packages. i.e.
If your podcaster is also an Apple nerd, an App Store gift card will never go out of style. I’ll be including apps at various levels for Mac podcasters to consider picking up, so an App Store gift card makes it all that much easier to do.
Music for Their Podcast’s Soundtrack
- Check out SoundsLikeAnEarful.com
Almost as important as what a podcaster says on their show is the music they use to draw you in. There are a ton of places to get music online, but I love hitting up Chris at Sounds Like An Earful Music Supply because (a) he’s got a cool name, (b) he’s a fellow indie creator, and (c) the music he creates has an earthy tone, despite having lots of electronic sounds.
I’ve used songs from SoundsLikeAnEarful for Goodstuff projects as well as clients I edit podcasts for.
Acoustic Foam Panels
- Amazon.com $18USD
- Amazon.ca $47CAD
Foam panels like these are a significant upgrade from egg carton packaging – or nothing at all. It’s important to note that these won’t keep sound out of your recording space. But they will help prevent sound from bouncing around your recording space. Less echo, less reverb. If the recording space you’re in has a lot of flat, hard walls, floors, or ceiling – then getting some of these foam panels can help deaden the sound in your space.
Ferrite Recording Studio for iOS
- App Store Free with in-app purchase of $39.99USD to unlock everything
On iOS, Ferrite is one of the best audio editing apps. There are a lot of podcasters making use of it to edit on their iPad on the go. Earlier this year I tried picking up an iPad Pro and Apple Pencil but couldn’t find a good workflow that was better than sitting in front of a Mac with a keyboard and mouse.
Logitech c922x Webcam
- Amazon.com $74USD
- Amazon.ca $125CAD
Podcasting doesn’t necessarily mean live streaming or video, but even on a Skype call it’s nice to have a clear webcam. And just about every podcaster I’ve watched come along is tempted to try live streaming in some form, even if for a short time.
25” Flexible Desktop Tabletop Clamp
- Amazon.com $20USD
- Amazon.ca $27CAD
If you’ve got your new webcam, rather than just mounting it on top of your computer screen why not put it at an interesting angle so you can show what you’re doing on your keyboard or with your camera or whatever your YouTube channel is showing off?
This little clamp is handy for putting a camera or a mic in a weird, out of the way spot. You won’t need it until you absolutely do.
Ecamm Live
- Ecamm.com $79USD / $105CAD
If you’re getting them a Logitech C992x webcam, convince someone else to get them the essential piece of software for live streaming on a Mac: Ecamm Live.
I’ve blogged / recorded videos about Ecamm Live a fair bit here so I won’t go into it further here – but it makes live streaming so easy it makes 2013 me cry at all the hoops I had to jump through just to get audio out to the internet, never mind 1080p video!
ATR2100 USB / XLR mic
- Amazon.com $70USD
- Amazon.ca $100CAD
This is one of the best deals for anyone looking to get into podcasting OR wanting to add a second mic to their gear collection. It has both a USB connection for quickly plugging into any computer and a XLR connection to allow it to be used with a fancier mixer/pre-amp.
I keep one in my laptop bag at all times just in case a random podcast breaks out wherever I happen to be. IT HAPPENS.
An Hour of Consulting with Me
- Book at LemonProductions
While you can’t wrap me up and put me under the tree, getting an hour to pick my brain might help you or your podcaster friend get unstuck on their podcasting journey.
Book a consulting call with me here and we’ll arrange a time that works best for you (or your podcasting friend).
A Month (or more) of Podcast Hosting
- Transistor.fm, $19USD/month
Back when I first got into podcasting, the thing that held me back from just trying it out was the monthly hosting costs. I honestly stressed so much about signing up for something that was going to add more fees to our bank account every month.
Give someone the gift of a few months of runway to try their podcasting adventure without having to worry about whether they’re throwing money away if it doesn’t work out. The great part about Transistor’s pricing is that it allows you to have as many podcasts as you want while you experiment and try things out. Many podcast hosts charge per show – Transistor.fm’s plans are based on download numbers. And when you’re just starting out, you may obsess over download numbers but chances are they won’t be high enough to go over the base plan with Transistor.
I use Transistor for all the podcasts we host on Goodstuff and have loved it.
$100 – $200
Triton Fethead Preamp
- Amazon.com $140USD?
- Amazon.ca $115 CAD
If the mic you’re using (like the Shure SM7B or Heil PR40 for example) is a quiet and you find you have to constantly crank the gain/volume knob to hear anything, you may need a preamp. The Fethead just plugs into your existing XLR cable chain from your mic and adds 22dB of clean boost.
Hidenburg Journalist
- Hidenburg.com $95USD / $125 CAD
@Clew_less responded on Twitter recommending Hidenburg, a digital editing software solution built for podcasters and news journalists. It’s a step up from the free software like Audacity but not as expensive as Logic Pro X or Adobe Audition. Worth trying out.
Zoom H1N Portable Recorder
- Amazon.com $120USD
- Amazon.ca $160CAD
The Zoom H1N portable recorder is great as a field recorder when you need to record somewhere besides your home studio. But it also functions as a great back up recorder for a computer recording set up. Send a line out from your USB mixer or computer to the H1N and have an always there backup of the audio in case your recording software decides to randomly stop on you.
Which never happens. Ever. Right?
Headphone Upgrade w/Audio Technica ATH-M50X
- Amazon.com $169USD
- Amazon.ca $200CAD
I recently picked up a pair of these after my previous headphones fell apart. I love the look and feel of the ATH-M50’s. I’ve got a larger head and these fit me just fine. I do get a bit of what I call “headphone headache” after a full day of editing or recording with them on, but I think that’s the nature of the business.
If you’ve been recording and editing with your iPhone earbuds up to this point, get Santa to give you some love for your ears this Xmas.
📺 You can check out my unboxing video on my YouTube channel if you’re curious how they look/feel.
Elgato Green Screen
- Amazon.com $159USD
- Amazon.ca $199CAD
This is for the podcaster who also wants to do some video and be cool like those Twitch kids with their green screen background. Frivolous, perhaps. But still tons of fun and would be a nice surprise under the tree for your podcasting friend.
$200 +
DBX 286s Microphone Preamp Processor
- Amazon.com $199USD
- Amazon.ca $500CAD ??
This has been the go to preamp for hobby and pro podcasters for a long time and it continues to be the recommended preamp for folks who don’t have thousands of dollars to invest in their audio gear. I’m still waiting for it to be available for a decent price here in Canada otherwise I’d have one sitting on my desk already.
Logic Pro X
- Mac App Store $279USD
I like Apple’s Logic Pro X for editing podcasts. Other folks like Adobe Audition. Still others like Audacity. But Logic Pro X is the one that works well for me. Plus, having bought it 5+ years ago I’ve gotten free updates for it ever since.
Zoom H6
- Amazon.com, $370USD
- Amazon.ca, $500CAD
This is the big brother to the Zoom H1N mentioned earlier and functions as a great multi-input field recorder OR a great multi-input USB preamp for your computer. Or both. With lots of accessories and mic options, the Zoom H6 is an awesome device to have in your portable podcaster backpack… say it with me… just in case a random podcast breaks out wherever you happen to be.
RX7 Standard
- Buy from Izotope.com, $399USD
This is the secret sauce for cleaning up bad audio for podcasters, videographers, or anyone who works with audio. You don’t know you need it until suddenly you do, and then Izotope’s RX suite saves you hours of headache.
What Did I Miss?
What’s on your podcaster wish list that I missed? I keep an Amazon wishlist of anything I come across that I think I might want someday for my own podcasting gear – whether I really need it or not.
Leave a comment below if you’ve got something on your wish list that I missed. Even better – record an episode talking about your gear and your gear wish list and leave a link to your episode in the comments! I’d love to hear it in your words and voice.
