What Does a Podcast Guest Need to Record Remotely?

A podcast guest needs surprisingly little to sound good remotely. If you're asking what a podcast guest needs at a minimum, the answer is headphones, a quiet room and a reliable connection, plus a decent microphone if you have one. Everything else is a small upgrade. The checklist below is written for guests, and if you're a host, you can paste it straight into your booking email.

What equipment does a podcast guest need?

Here's what matters, in order. If you can only fix one thing, start at the top.

1. Headphones. Any kind will do. Without them, your mic picks up the host's voice from your speakers, and the echo lands on your recording. Wistia's producers call headphones non-negotiable.
2. A microphone. Your laptop mic will work but it sounds like a laptop. Wired earbuds with a mic are a cheap step up, since the mic sits closer to your mouth. If you plan to do a lot of interviews, a USB dynamic microphone such as the Samson Q2U or the Audio-Technica ATR2100x-USB is a popular pick, because that style of mic hears less of the room.
3. A quiet room with soft stuff in it. A carpet, curtains and a sofa soak up echo. An empty room with hard walls sounds like a bathroom. Your choice of room can do more than a pricier microphone.
4. A stable connection. Plug into your router with a cable if you can. On Wi-Fi, sit close to the router and ask anyone at home not to stream during your slot.
5. A laptop on power. Plug it in, since recording drains the battery fast. A recent version of Chrome works with most browser recording tools, but check with your host.
6. A camera at eye level. This one's for video shows. Put your laptop on a stack of books so the lens is level with your eyes, and face a window so the light falls on your face.

What's the checklist for the day of the recording?

Here's the list we'd send. Copy it, change anything that doesn't fit your show, and put it in your confirmation email.

The day before

• Open the recording link once to see that it works on your device.
• Allow your browser to use your mic and camera when it asks.
• Pick your room, and test it by recording yourself for 30 seconds on your phone.
• Choose two or three points or stories you want to get across.

10 minutes before

• Close every app you don't need, especially ones that sync to the cloud.
• Turn on Do Not Disturb on your laptop and phone.
• Put your phone in another room or on silent, and not on the desk near the mic.
• Plug in your laptop and your headphones.
• Have water nearby, and skip anything that crunches.
• Tell people at home that you're recording, and close the door.

During the recording

• Stay about a hand's width from your mic, and keep that distance. Point it the right way, because some mics pick up from the side and others from the top.
• Don't tap the desk, click a pen or type.
• If something goes wrong, stop and say the sentence again. Your host can cut it.

After the recording

• Don't close the tab until the host says your upload has finished.
• Send over any links you mentioned, along with a line about how you'd like to be introduced.

How do you avoid the most common problems?

Most bad guest audio comes from a few repeat mistakes.

• The wrong microphone is selected. Your computer may pick the webcam mic even with a good one plugged in. Check the input in the recording tool before you start.
• Noise reduction fights the mic. Tools on your laptop that remove background noise can make voices sound strange. If you sound robotic in the test, turn them off.
• You're too far from the mic. Distance makes you sound like you're in the next room. Move close and stay there.
• Bluetooth runs out. Wireless headphones can die or switch to a lower-quality mic mode. Wired is safer, so use a cable if you have one.
• A company laptop blocks things. Work devices often block browser access to mics or stop certain tools from opening. Try a personal device, and test it the day before.

What should a guest prepare besides equipment?

Tech is the easy part. A good guest also shows up knowing what they want listeners to take away, with a story or two they can tell well, and has listened to at least one episode. Our guide on how to prepare for a podcast interview goes through that side, and a one-sheet gives the host your bio and topics in one place.

Sounding good also helps you get asked back. Hosts talk to each other, and a guest who shows up on time with clear audio gets recommended. If you're still working on getting that first booking, start with how to get booked on podcasts or see how to be a podcast guest on Prends.

What should a host send to the guest ahead of time?

If you're a host, the short version is to make it easy and send it early. Put these in one email, a day or two before.

• The date and time, with the time zone written out
• The link, and whether a download is needed
• The expected length, including 10 minutes at the start for a sound check
• Headphones required, with the rest of the list above as a nice-to-have
• Audio only or video, so they know whether to think about their shirt
• What you're recording and how you'll use it, so consent doesn't come as a surprise
• A phone number or chat for the day, in case the link fails

That last one saves more sessions than you'd think. When a link fails five minutes before a call, your guest needs a way to reach you other than the tool that just broke. There's more on the host side in how to record a podcast remotely, and if your calendar is the part that's breaking, see how to schedule podcast guests.

Some shows ship a microphone to a guest for a big interview. It's a kind gesture and it works, but for most guests a clear note and wired earbuds will get you very close. Keep the bar low enough that a busy person will actually do it, and don't turn down a great guest because of a laptop mic.