Podcast Guest FAQ

Hello!

If you're reading this it means we have asked if you'd like to make a guest appearance on the Bucket List Board Gamers Podcast (or you've somehow guessed the URL of this hidden page.)

Firstly, thank you for agreeing to join us! We love chatting with people from all aspects of the gaming industry and our interview episodes are some of our absolute favourites to record.

We've put this page together to give a little explanation of how we record, and what equipment you'll need to join us (don't worry, it's nothing special!)

What will I need?

Ideally you will need the following:

A relatively quiet spot to record from

We don't expect anyone to have a recording studio in their house (we've had cows, birds, dogs and even a flock of sheep making impromptu appearances on some of our episodes) but as long as there isn't a TV or radio playing in the background, or a lot of road noise etc then we should be good to go.

A Laptop or PC (or iPhone)

We record on a platform similar to Zoom (more on that later) so a laptop or PC is the best option to record on, but there is an iOS app if needed.

A Microphone

This one is a necessity, but it doesn't have to be some super expensive studio mic (most of ours aren't!) As long as it picks up your voice clearly and at a comfortable level, it'll do just fine!

Headphones

Although the platform we use is similar to Zoom, due to the audio quality it records at, it doesn't always cancel out loopback, so a pair of headphones are required. Again they don't have to be expensive, so long as you can hear everyone through them that's fine!

A Webcam

This one isn't necessary as we don't record video, however it often makes for a more engaging conversation if we can see each other.

What do we use to record?

We record on a platform called Zencastr. This is beneficial as it records everyone's audio separately and most importantly, locally.

This means should anyone's connection briefly drop out, or their connection slow down and make them sound like a robot to everyone else on the call, the recording remains completely in tact.

With all the audio streams recording separately, it also means we can get the best possible results when it comes to the editing stage, as we can deal with overlapping audio, and cut out background noise/coughing etc.

How does it work?

On the day of recording we'll drop you a link over (usually 15 minutes or so before we are due to record) for the Zencastr session.

All you need to do is click that link, ensure that Zencastr is picking up the correct microphone and headphones, as sometimes it will revert to system defaults rather than external devices, and be ready for a chat!

We'll all join the session, briefly discuss the episode and then hit the record button!

After the recording has ended, please hang around a little while. It takes some time for the audio files to upload to Zencastr so we can grab them for the editing phase, and if you disappear too quickly it fails.

Anything Else?

Hopefully that has covered everything off, but if you have more questions please feel free to reach out and ask before the session is due to start!