Podcasts & Podcasting Gear

Zoom Microphone and Accessory Pack Review

I purchased the Canon T3i after speaking to a number of friends and reading a great deal on the web by way of reviews. There were a number of excellent options available in my price range but the T3i seemed to best fit the bill. I ordered through Amazon and got a good price on a Canon T3i kit (body and lens) and an additional telephoto lens. I’m happy with the decision. No, I’m very happy with the decision. In fact, I like everything about the camera… except the audio when shooting movies. That, in a word, stinks. The audio…

Editorials

Gear Chat 2012- We’re Back!!

It has been over a year but Gear Chat is back and we’re talking tech. In this first episode Thomas and I talk about the Samsung Galaxy Note, the Series 7 Slate tablet and what configuration of Apple computing products is best. Future episodes will include Gaming and eBook segments and much more. We also want to hear from you! What content do you want covered? What questions do you have? Would you like us to do the podcast as a live, call-in conversation? We want to know. Happy listening and, as always, thanks for sharing via Twitter and Facebook.

Reviews

Blue Microphone Yeti Pro Review

Blue Microphone has consistently impressed me with their line up of microphones. From consumer USB microphones to professional units that plug into existing sound systems, the company puts out quality devices. This time, Blue Microphone took my favorite USB offering, the Yeti, and added a professional twist thanks to an option that now lets you plug it into professional audio equipment. Yeti Pro on Left, Yeti on Right As you can see, the new Yeti Pro looks almost the same as the original with two exceptions. The first is a very obvious color and texture change that yields a textured…

News & Features

How Does Blue Improve a Yeti? You make him a Pro!

A year and a half ago I was able to review the Blue Yeti with Larry. I love the Blue Yeti and use it every Wednesday when I record the Linux Link Tech Show as well as the occasional episode of Hacker Public Radio. It’s almost a perfect product. However, there’s one thing missing that makes the Yeti less of a perfect device for a professional. That is an XLR output. Blue has changed that Yeti of a Microphone and made him a pro by adding a XLR output on the bottom allowing you to plug the Yeti Pro into…

Reviews

Review: Samson Meteor Mic

About two weeks ago Thomas mentioned a brand-new microphone that was about to be released, the Sampson Meteor Mic. He told me that it not only had a great look to it but that all reports indicated it worked beautifully. It was small, easily transportable thanks to its fold up design, and it looked pretty cool. Most importantly it apparently offered excellent sound quality. I told him I’d have to look into it. I was fortunate enough to have a review unit waiting for me just two days later. I’ve been using it ever since and have been incredibly impressed…

Reviews

Olympus LS-7 Linear PCM Recorder Review

I am unique in how I started blogging. I started audio blogging or podcasting far before I started writing gadget reviews and posts here on Gear Diary. So, the first thing I always seem to look at when doing gadget reviews is a way to capture audio no matter where I go. My first mobile recorder of sorts was a Belkin Tune Talk, which is an adapter that plugged in to the bottom of an iPod, followed by the Griffin iTalk Pro and the Blue Mikey. All of these had issues. First, there is battery life. The hard drive on…

Events, News & Features

Gear Chat #19: The Gear Diary CES Edition of the Scottevest No Baggage Challenge for Charity

Larry and Dan are headed to CES on Monday along with Judie, Kevin and Francis. We, however, are going as part of a Scottevest No Baggage Challenge for Charity. In this Gear Chat we’ll discuss how this came about. This IS a No Baggage Challenge for Charity, and donations will be going to the Haiti Plunge. As part of the Challenge, Scott Jordan, founder and CEO of Scottevest will be making a donation, and we’d like to invite you all to step in and help as well. All the money raised will support The Haiti Plunge and help build a…

News & Features

Larry and Dan Are Back With Gear Chat #10- Jailbreak!!

Larry and Dan are back after a few week break. In this podcast they focus on jailbreaking their iPhone, iPod touches and iPads, highlight a few iPad and iPhone apps, touch on some items making news and offer a few tips and tricks. Some of the jailbreak apps we are enjoying… Activator Backgrounder FullForce Infiniboard Infinidock Categories Also in this podcast- iPad apps FlickPad and NotesToStore. You can download from iTunes…

Reviews

Blue Microphones Yeti Review

While at CES this year I had the opportunity to spend some time at the Blue Microphones booth. One of the products which really “wowed” me during demo time was their “Yeti” microphone. The Yeti is being touted as the world’s first THX certified Microphone. The USB powered microphone is the perfect tool for for a wide range of projects including podcasts, vocals, live or event recording, interviews, broadcasts, instruments, bands and more. Blue Microphones was kind enough to send both myself and Joel a Yeti for review and the following dual review contains both of our observations.

Reviews

Review: Blue Microphone’s enCore 100 and 200

Blue has long made studio mikes and other devices like the Blue Eyeball web cam with a focus on quality construction and great audio. Now they are trying to enter the live performance arena with their brand new enCore series of Microphones. Blue was kind enough to send me samples of both the enCore 100 and the enCore 200 stage mikes. Are they going to be good enough to unseat the venerable Shure SM57 and SM58? Let’s find out.

News & Features

PodTrapper Podcast Manager for BlackBerry automates your podcast library

For many years I had no idea what people found interesting about Podcasts. These recorded audio programs are named for their typical method of distribution through iTunes where they are often downloaded to iPods. A podcast session typically lasts about an hour and features one or more hosts talking about specific news of the week. Topics can range from technology to politics to financial news. The rise in popularity of Podcasts means that their distribution has also spread beyond just iTunes and iPods. I’ve found my BlackBerry Bold to be an exceptional podcast player due to its super loud and…

Reviews

Mediafly for BlackBerry Review

You may remember our recent coverage of the Mediafly service that syncs media content — specifically podcasts for now — to a wide range of devices. Well, Mediafly is wasting no time. Their goal is to launch on multiple smartphones throughout 2009, and then hit even more home stereo/video equipment in 2010 so you can have your media content synced and shared on just about any consumer device out there. The fact that Mediafly is device-agnostic is exciting in that your content goes with you, regardless of what device you may use or decide to uopgrade to in the future….

Reviews

Blue Icicle XLR-USB Interface Review

Blue has been making microphones for a while now but this is their first adapter. This adapter takes any microphone with an XLR connector and converts it to a USB connector making it possible to record high quality audio through your computer.

Reviews

Review: CastGrabber 1.0 Podcast Download Device for MP3 Players

Podcasting started around the time of the last election that George W. Bush won, in 2004. Now it seems to still be growing, although at a much slower rate. Up until now, you needed a computer to download the podcasts; now maybe you don’t, thanks to the CastGrabber.

Reviews

Review: Hyundai PC / Notebook Angled Mini high-powered Microphone from USB Fever

Are you sick and tired of people complaining that they can’t hear you during Skype phone calls? Have people been telling you that you sound like you’re in a tin can? If so, then maybe this little microphone is for you.