I ran across a reference to this post in the Rogue Amoeba blog that describes how to use Audio Hijack Pro to podcast in a number of scenarios. It sure does seem a lot simpler than what I’m doing. I downloaded the trial version and will check it out.
It seems like I could use this to do an entirely real-time show that automatically saves to the 96 kbps MP3 when it is done. My no-edit shows still require an hour or two of post-production, so the idea of just doing the music bed and everything live and have the show ready to publish 10 seconds after I stop is downright attractive. If I go this route though, it really has to be zero edits whatsoever because editing out bits of my talking with the music bed already there would lead to weird skips that would sound like ass. Maybe that is a feature, not a bug. Hmmm…..
The tricky part is figuring out what app to play the music bed with. I will want to be using Quicktime to play things I am excerpting, and iTunes to play the songs. I’ll need a third app for the music bed, unless I put the theme on my Shuffle and play it in through the iMic. Actually, that’s crazy enough to work and would give me a physical control I could use to turn it up and down. This is getting more and more interesting as I think about it.
Rube Goldberg comes to mind.
“I’ll need a third app for the music bed”
A simple media player that perhaps using quicktime as it’s engine could work – although I like the idea of using the shuffle..
At present I use MixCast Live, iTunes and WinAmp to try and get a good working environment. There really is a big market out there for some kind of live mixer that can mix multiple channels in real-time. Basically hook everything up, then “mix” the podcast live..
It’s funny that they call it “Audio Hijack Pro” to distinguish it from the $16 version. There is *nothing* pro about this product. Spend a little more and get Cubase SE. You will not regret it. The only drawback I see for podcasters is that it does not record streaming. Perhaps a future 3rd party hack could make it do this. I remember when Creative Labs had the record “What You Hear” feature on their soundcards. I guess the RIAA killed that. Bastards!
TE,
I looked at Cubase and don’t see how it is going to do what I want. Mostly, I’m capturing things from other programs so how does Cubase fit in there? Audio Hijack Pro does exactly what I need in capturing the audio and then chugging it straight to MP3. Rather than get a better editor, I’m liking the idea of not needing an editor at all.
Good point. If they made a version specifically for podcasters with stream capture, it would make more sense but the RIAA would go after them so we have all these dinky mom and pop programs.
If you could just restrain your desire to edit, you can still use a better program live. Your thinking is similar to your Shuffle choice. You could have bought a Muvo N200 and put a piece of masking tape over the LED display if you wanted less features.
Compressors, limiters etc.. can be helpful in a live situation. Having said that; I noticed that Audio Hijack Pro does have VST support, so you can find some fairly decent free VST plugins if you search around the net. The best thing to do is join a forum and ask there what is best.
My main concern about AHP is the question of stability, also it ought to have more tracks (in case you ever want to edit again 🙂 )
Cool! You just gave me another inspiration for MY podcast set up!
I’ve been playing with podcasting here, for the last few weeks. And I didn’t like the time commitment my set up would require. I definitely appreciate even more, what you did for those 100+ episodes!
But if this idea works for you, I’ll be trying it out.
Oh, I see you have some podcasts made with the new set up! I’ll have to listen to see how you like it.
(I’ve been out of the loop for over a week, cuz my spare PC set up to download your BitTorrent feed, died on me over a week ago. And I had no replacement Azureus box, and no time to set one up, till now.)