IK Multimedia’s iRig Mic HD records audio right to your iPhone or Mac via 9to5Toys

September 2, 2019 by Douglas E. Welch

IK Multimedia iRig Mic HD Microphone features:

Handheld USB Condenser Microphone
Mobile Recording on iPhone and iPad
Studio Recording on Mac and Windows
24-Bit/48 kHz Audio
Onboard Gain Control Adjusts Input Level
Multicolor LED Level Indicator
Detachable Lightning and USB Cables
Includes App/Software Bundle

Read IK Multimedia’s iRig Mic HD records audio right to your iPhone or Mac via 9to5Toys

An interesting link found among my daily reading

New Media Gear: Parrot Teleprompter

January 13, 2019 by Douglas E. Welch

A teleprompter can greatly increase the quality of your videos by giving you a professional look and tone when presenting. Past teleprompter devices have been quite expense, while this one is more in line with the prices YouTubers and other video makers can afford. — Douglas

Parrot Teleprompter

Professional quality 30r/70t teleprompter glass
Sets up faster than any other teleprompter in less than a minute
Compact so you can take it anywhere your videos take you
Works with the most common camcorders and slr cameras
Easy to use free parrot teleprompter app works with all major smartphones.Compatible with Camcorders and DSLR cameras with standard lens sizes.

Similar Gear

* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs

Samson Go Mic Mobile Review: Wireless Microphones for All! via SomeGadgetGuy

October 25, 2018 by Douglas E. Welch

What wireless microphones do you use for your podcasting and video production? Share your gear in the comments!

Oddly enough, I was struggling with some older wireless mics today as I was recording a presentation by my wife. Sometimes this hand-me-down set works well and at other times the audio fades in and out as the presenter moves about the room. It is long beyond time to get a “real” set of wireless mics so I will take a look at this Samson unit as one possibility for replacement? — Douglas

Read Samson Go Mic Mobile Review: Wireless Microphones for All! via SomeGadgetGuy

An interesting link found among my daily reading

New Media Gear: Spire Studio is a recording studio that fits in your hand via The Verge

October 8, 2018 by Douglas E. Welch

iZotope is best known for creating mixing and mastering audio software, but a couple weeks ago, I got to check out Spire Studio, the company’s first piece of hardware. Spire Studio is a palm-sized device that musicians can carry with them to record professional-grade multitrack audio anywhere they are.

While there are lots of gadgets on the market for portable recording, most interfaces I’ve seen need to be plugged in to your phone, cater to recording a specific type of instrument, or need lots of dongles. Spire Studio, on the other hand, has a lot of use in a very small footprint, and connects to your phone wirelessly. On the front is a built-in mic and headphone jack, while the back has two XLR/TS combo jacks with Grace Design preamps, another headphone jack, and a 48V phantom power button for powering your own condenser mic. The top of the Spire Studio has recording control buttons, and the option to perform a soundcheck, where it will listen to the audio you’re playing for 10 seconds and then adjust the input levels accordingly. Of course, it all comes with an accompanying app.

Read Spire Studio is a recording studio that fits in your hand via The Verge

An interesting link found among my daily reading

Timbre is a totally free app for editing video and audio via Android Authority

October 2, 2017 by Douglas E. Welch

Another mobile audio/video tool to check out for your new media kit. — Douglas

Good audio and video editing tools are somewhat hard to come by on mobile — a sentiment shared by app developer Xeus. The dev was prompted to create the Timbre: Cut, Join, Convert mp3 app after failing to find a “decent” tool for doing the same in the Play Store. And what Xeus has come up with is certainly an effective tool.

Despite the name, Timbre lets you do more than just edit mp3s: you can split and join audio or video, remove sections within a range, and combine files together, as well as remove the sound from your videos or create audio tracks from them.

Read Timbre is a totally free app for editing video and audio via Android Authority

Learn more about podcasting with this book

* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs

Available of the LA Public Library (9 books/1 ebook)

An interesting link found among my daily reading

Roland GO:MIXER for iPhone/iPad via Bless This Stuff

July 6, 2017 by Douglas E. Welch

This could be an excellent addition to your New Media audio kit, whether for music or podcasting. Record direct to iPhone or iPad. — Douglas

Roland have released a compact audio mixer that allows users to perform, mix audio, and record video with your smartphone, all at once. Go:Mixer allows users to capture a high quality audio track at the same time the video is recorded, and mix in vocals, instruments and backing music on the fly. Simply plug in the pocket device to capture a pristine stereo soundtrack directly to your video as you perform. With multiple inputs available, you can connect a mic, musical instruments, and media players and mix them all together live while you shoot. Instead of relying on your phones noisy mono mic or recording external audio tracks that you have to sync later in a video editor, you can now record top-quality audio in one quick and easy step.

Read ROLAND GOMIXER via Bless This Stuff

* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs
** Many of these books may be available from your local library. Check it out!

An interesting link found among my daily reading

Apple creates video series to help iPhone users take better pictures via The Next Web

June 2, 2017 by Douglas E. Welch

For those of you who don’t know to take good photos with the iPhone’s camera — and I’m one — Apple has made some videos to help you improve.

In a series of tutorials posted on its site, Apple demonstrates how to take well-composed, beautiful pictures with the iPhone 7’s camera. the company has also posted some — but not all — on it’s YouTube channel.

Read Apple creates video series to help iPhone users take better pictures via The Next Web

An interesting link found among my daily reading

Noted: $10 device lets your iPhone or Android take time-lapses and panoramas like you’ve never seen

January 18, 2017 by Douglas E. Welch

At the $10 price point, I ordered one of these immediately. I had been looking to make my own from a mechanical kitchen timer, but there is no way I could make a finished and functional device for this price. I’ll post more when I get this in-hand. In order to receive the $10 price, look in the righthand sidebar of the Amazon page under Other Sellers on Amazon and select the first entry, sold by Amazon.com— Douglas

Read Noted: $10 device lets your iPhone or Android take time-lapses and panoramas like you’ve never seen on BGR.com

Buy from Amazon.com

* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs

New Media Gear 25: Shure MV88 iOS Digital Stereo Condenser Microphone

January 21, 2016 by Douglas E. Welch

Shure MV88 iOS Digital Stereo Condenser Microphone

I discovered this microphone through, of all things, an advertisement on Instagram?!? What?!?! A useful social media advertisement. If all ads could be as targeted to me as this one, I might not complain about them so much. That said, the ad immediately made me want to check our the Shure MV88. I am always on the lookout for useful New Media Gear and this looks to be another device you might want to add to your arsenal. As I don’t have one in-hand, I have included some links below to give you an overview of how people are responding to this mic and some real world usage examples.

One dislike that crops up for me is the inability to use it with a cover. I know, making a device that works with any of the thousands of covered out there would be nearly impossible, but I hate having to pull my phone out of its cover to use it and I miss the protection it provides when working. I also worry about external devices plugged into the Lightning port, as I am always afraid I am going to break the port accidentally.

Beyond those fairly small quibbles though, the audio samples from the mic sound good and it can help to keep your recording kit a bit smaller. You’ll want an iPhone with a larger storage capacity in order to insure you aren’t constantly filling it up with audio. My 16 GB iPhone 6 already complains about being full much too often and I am sure I would run into even larger issues if I were recording audio to it regularly.

Check out the Shure MV88 and tell me what you think!

Amazon Reviews of the Shire MV88

Link: Shure Web Site

* A portion of each sale from Amazon.com directly supports our blogs

Previously on New Media Gear:

Noted: Apple launches Music Memos app for the iPhone and iPad

January 20, 2016 by Douglas E. Welch

Read Apple launches Music Memos app for the iPhone and iPad via Talking New Media

An interesting link found among my daily reading

Tech: Chhirp app sends/embeds 12 second audio clips via Twitter

April 16, 2015 by Douglas E. Welch

I came across Chhirp today via this post on The Next Web, Chhirp for iOS lets you post 12-second voice clips directly to Twitter.

As with most new apps, you can never be sure exactly where it will fit into the ecosystem until people actually start to use it. This leads me to try out a lot of new apps, just to see what they can do.

My first Chhirp

2012 Gift Guide: Olloclip 3-in-1 Lens for iPhone

December 5, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

Olloclip 3-in-1 Lens for iPhone 4/4s/5

If you use you iPhone for your New Media and Podcasting project, the Olloclip can give you more flexibility in the type of photos and video you shoot. This snap-on lens includes a Fish Eye, Wide Angle and Macro lens in one package. Simply clip it onto your iPhone and start shooting.

You can find example photos and video on the Olloclip web site.

More 2012 Gift Guide Items:

Continue reading →

2012 Gift Guide: RAM Vehicle Mounts for iPhone (and nearly any other device)

December 4, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

RAM Vehicle Mounts for iPhone (and nearly any other device)

Over the years I have owned several RAM Mounts and I highly recommend them. I have had mounts for my old Garmin GPS, my iPhone 3G and my iPhone 4. These are both suction cup units which hold the phone to the windshield. I also have a mount on my bicycle which can also use the car mounting arm.

RAM has mounts for nearly any cell phone, GPS, iPad, computer and any situation including cars, motorcycles, bikes, boats, aviation, kayaks and much more. If you need to use your devices no matter where you might be, check out RAM Mounts.

New Media folks will find a wide selection of camera mounts from RAM for all their “action footage” needs. Timelapse photographers can also benefit from sturdy mounts that can be attached in less-than-hospitable places.

The RAM Mounts web site includes an online “RAM Mount Wizard” that can step you through assembling the appropriate mount for your device and situation.

More 2012 Gift Guide Items:

Continue reading →

Subscribed 013: TUAW: The Unofficial Apple Weblog

November 24, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

Today on “Subscribed” I focus on another blog. My blog subscriptions are my lifeline to the world and have easily taken the place of all the print magazines I used to read each week. — Douglas

TUAW: The Unofficial Apple Weblog

Looking through my Google Reader stats, it looks like TUAW is one of my most favorited subscriptions. Even when I don’t have time to write an entire blog post on a topic, I can favorite it in Reader and it will automatically be Twittered out, posted to my Facebook page and stored away for future reference and inclusion in my month-end “My Favorite Things” posts.

TUAW is my go-to site for Apple information of all sorts. I am a Mac user myself, so much of this information is put to immediate use, but a large part of my clientele is also Mac-based, so when an important update, bug or announcement goes out, I am sure to hear about it quickly and thoroughly via TUAW.

Like many of the blogs I mention here, TUAW also has a companion YouTube channel.

Visit TUAW’s YouTube Channel

What are some of your favorite Subscriptions? Share them here in the comments!

Previously highlighted on Subscribed:

2012 Gift Guide: Apple iPhone 5

November 18, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

Apple iPhone 5

I am a very happy use of Apple’s iPhone products. I have a 3G, an iPhone 4, an iPhone 4s and soon, an iPhone 5. All of the past phones have been passed down to other family members over the years and, at risk of jinxing myself, I haven’t broken a screen yet.

I am a Mac users for many years now, and I find that iPhone carries the same benefit at as my Mac. As I describe it to my friends and my clients, “The Mac/iPhone works the way that I do.” I understand it. It integrates well into my work flow and daily life and, for me, it works well overall as a piece of ubiquitous technology. it allows me to be productive no matter where I am, which is very important when you are a freelance consultant like myself. I can grab a few minutes with email while I wait outside a client’s house, or sit in a coffee shop and catch up on the latest news and events over my Cafe Americano.

The iPhone 5 can be a New Media production studio in your pocket. You can record audio, shoot and edit video, upload to YouTube and blog the results.

To sum up, it works for me. It might work for you. Check it out!

More 2012 Gift Guide Items:

Is that a production studio in your pocket? – Logitech’s New WiFI webcam works w/ iPad/iPhone/Mac

October 16, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

So, it looks like Logitech has been watching a lot of uStream and a lot of Google Hangouts lately. Their new webcam, the Logitech Broadcaster ($199 US) , is a WiFi connected webcam that allows for secondary angles during your web stream. It can also record that second angle to be used for a later edit in iMovie. The Logitech Broadcaster can be controlled from an iPad, iPhone or your Mac and you can use a combination of all the available cameras in your stream or recording.

Here is a video from Logitech showing off some of the features.

Can’t see video above? Watch “Logitech Boradcaster” on YouTube.

The case of the Logitech Broadcaster does double-duty as a magnetic base for the camera, allow you to position it where you need. It doesn’t look like it has a traditional tripod mount, but that is a little hard to see from the video and pictures provided.

If you are looking to take your web streams and video productions to another level, the Logitech Broadcaster could be an interesting piece of kit to add to your gig bag.

Video: Using Chirp to Enhance Your Podcasts

October 6, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:45 — 138.3MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

I came across this new iPhone app, Chirp, last night in my usual Internet reading and it got me to thinking immediately — couldn’t this app be used to create enhanced podcasts that automatically directed listeners to web sites, photos, notes and more at specific points in the show. This is my short demo on how it might be done.

This certainly wasn’t something that the creators Chirp.io were thinking about when creating the app, but that doesn’t mean we couldn’t use it to our (i.e. podcasters) advantage.

Can’t see the video above? View “Using Chirp to Enhance Your Podcasts” on YouTube

iPhone: Chip.io send links via electronic birdsong

October 5, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

I came across this post on Boing Boing about this new iPhone app, Chirp.io. This app allows you to select a photos, note or link and send an audio “chirp” that other iPhones can receive, and then decode the link.

“We’re a spinout from University College London Computer Science and we’ve developed a new data transfer application for smartphones (and more) called Chirp.

This is our thing – a technology inspired by birdsong and the principles of biomimicry.

We think it’s pretty exciting since the app has great potential, although it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Our plans include teaching the machines to sing.”

While it may seem odd to speak of analog and acoustic in these days of digital and electronic, I immediately saw one way to put Chirp to use — as a data, and/or advertising trigger for audio or video podcasts. I am going to do some quick tests to see if you can embed the Chirp codes into a podcast file, both audio and video, and see if they can be received and retrieved by the app on my iPhone.

Enhanced podcasts have never really caught on as they require either iTunes or an iPod to view the enhanced content and require a bit more production to create. With Chirp. you could include data triggers directly as part of the MP3 file. I’ll report back after a few tests.

News: Google Releases New YouTube App for iPhone and iPad

September 11, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

As promised when Apple announced they would no longer include their YouTube app with all iOS devices, Google today released its new YouTube app. As I expected, it provides a much better YouTube experience than Apple’s (older) YouTube app. In fact, I stopped using that app months ago and switched over to using the mobile web version of YouTube as it allowed me access more features and provided a better overall experience.

After using the app for an hour or so today, I can say I like it! It is clean, functional, streams video well over 3G or Wifi and generally does what I want it to do. My list of subscribed videos is neatly present in a format very similar to that used on the Google+ App with large thumbnails and a bit of descriptive text.

Download the new YouTube app from the Apple App Store

Here are a few screen shots of the new YouTube app

2012 09 11 15 48 28 2012 09 11 15 49 04

Product: iStabilizer Dolly makes smooth moves for video

July 30, 2012 by Douglas E. Welch

TUAW (The Unofficial Apple Weblog) points out this New Media device which can help you get smooth “dolly” shots using your iPhone or other small camera. (See Hello, Dolly! Meet iStabilizer’s new iPhone moviemaking accessory)

The Dolly is a combination of smooth running skate wheels, a positional arm and standard tripod mounts that can connect to your iPhone or other camera. rolling the Dolly gives you smooth “dolly” shots around your scene or actors at a fraction of the cost of a true dolly rig used by mainstream productions.

You can see several demonstration videos on YouTube to give you a feel of the type of shots you can achieve with the Dolly.

Careers in New Media

Helping to Build New Careers in New Media

Category Archives: iPhone

IK Multimedia’s iRig Mic HD records audio right to your iPhone or Mac via 9to5Toys

New Media Gear: Parrot Teleprompter

Samson Go Mic Mobile Review: Wireless Microphones for All! via SomeGadgetGuy

New Media Gear: Spire Studio is a recording studio that fits in your hand via The Verge

Timbre is a totally free app for editing video and audio via Android Authority

Roland GO:MIXER for iPhone/iPad via Bless This Stuff

Apple creates video series to help iPhone users take better pictures via The Next Web

Noted: $10 device lets your iPhone or Android take time-lapses and panoramas like you’ve never seen

New Media Gear 25: Shure MV88 iOS Digital Stereo Condenser Microphone

Noted: Apple launches Music Memos app for the iPhone and iPad

Tech: Chhirp app sends/embeds 12 second audio clips via Twitter

2012 Gift Guide: Olloclip 3-in-1 Lens for iPhone

2012 Gift Guide: RAM Vehicle Mounts for iPhone (and nearly any other device)

Subscribed 013: TUAW: The Unofficial Apple Weblog

2012 Gift Guide: Apple iPhone 5

Is that a production studio in your pocket? – Logitech’s New WiFI webcam works w/ iPad/iPhone/Mac

Video: Using Chirp to Enhance Your Podcasts

iPhone: Chip.io send links via electronic birdsong

News: Google Releases New YouTube App for iPhone and iPad

Product: iStabilizer Dolly makes smooth moves for video