Author: Mike Wilkerson

Mike Wilkerson is a former certified Sign Language Interpreter for the Deaf, now Marketing Automation Director for a large St. Louis-based Computer company and has been hosting, producing, concepting and enhancing podcasts for 13 years. While his interests are definitively pop culture-based, the bottom line is: It’s ALL About Perspective. Whether it’s being captured inside of one of Mike’s Podcast Capture Studios (based in St. Louis) inside the coming-soon “Micro Audio Podcast Capture Studios” (MPACS) or via The Podcast Bug: A 1974 custom Superbeetle with a recording studio built inside of it – Podcasting is Captured Perspective. Be sure to contact Mike with questions about podcasting, about the many programs he hosts or about the other programs that populate The 2GuysTalking Podcast Network.

“Alexa – What’s Going to Get Smart – NEXT?” Echo In Your Car

February 1, 2019February 1, 2019 ~ Mike Wilkerson

This month marks a year since I lost my Pop, Fred Wilkerson. It was only 10 days before his 75th Birthday and while I’ve missed him ever since, I’ve always been very transparent with my Dad and hence – we left nothing unsaid. I recommend it. One of the things he and I talked about all the way up until he was gone, which I finally adopted hard-core, was the utilization of smartspeakers/devices – in particular, the Echo line of devices from Amazon.

Computer. Zero Bar. Frozen (well, not really)

First it was him calling me at least twice a week to tell me the new commands he’d researched over the last week for his “Alexa.” Then it was the amount of “tasks” and “shopping lists” that they were being kept simply by mentioning something while inside his kitchen, office or workshop. It was finally the realization of the vast majority of his voice-recognition dreams that propelled him through every incarnation of STAR TREK. Walk right in. Talk right up. Get the information you don’t have now, from a kind voice that provides exactly what you ask for.

While I didn’t latch on until about 5 months before he died, when I did, it was with both feet. I started with a portable unit – The Echo Tap, that originally didn’t have the availability of a activate word, but had a button on top that you would “tap” (hence the name) to activate, speak what you wanted or were looking for and it would convey information. The value of this one was that it was rechargeable and wireless. From there I got two standard Echo units (second generation) to propel my two retail-based Podcast Studios. They made for perfect support agents for when research was needed, or for down times when it was time to jam to great tunes or listen to the newsy goings-on via a variety of news outlets.

A Home is Where the SmartSpeaker is…

Then came my dance with home automation. The lights were next. We wired (with, no wires ironically) my home studio and home theater rooms. Then came the FireTV add-on elements that allowed me to walk into my theater and say, “Alexa, let’s watch The Punisher on Netflix”, and have the lights dim, the TV come on, and align all the right digital planets to convey the angry barbs, bullets and bravado of one Frank Castle. A like request for Infinity War has become a favored Saturday work time advent regardless of my location.

Short Sleepy Time, a Daughter’s Tether to Grandpa

Next was the Master Bedroom (another standard second generation Echo unit) which is the daily conveyor of “My Morning Playlist” that sets the tone for my day, and allows my daughter to connect with me via intercom-like tech, who also now has her Grandpa’s first generation Echo in her room – custom wrapped literally watching over her as she sings along with Katy Perry, Maroon 5 and the entire soundtrack series landscape of artists on the Toy Story 1, 2 and 3. Then our Kitchen – which features the newest second generation Dot unit, that offers comparatively exquisite sound that’s just right for a room where sizzling omelettes and the perfect Freddie Mercury sound-a-like create a regular stage for an invisible and dazzled audience.

What. Comes. Next?

A notification message, sent to me late last year, provided me with a vision of what’s to come. While the Alexa app has been living on my phone (another something that my Pop foresaw years ago) It’s the literal, mobile connectivity that will be arriving, at a very special price for early-adopters later this year. An Echo device for your CAR is what’s on the way next. One of the last things I remember he and I talking about was that you “can’t take things with you.” Well, in this case – you can, Pop. You. Can.

I’ll have a follow up note about the auto-based Echo unit when it arrives and will enjoy making it another connection to information, details and connectivity that we’ve really never had before. For Podcasters? It’s the next evolution of what we’ll need to pack the punch that radio has had since inception.

Are you utilizing smartspeakers/devices regularly? Have you notice focused growth inside any of the platforms that cater to smartspeaker-centric offerings? Tell me which one and what you use it for inside the comments section below!

NOW Can We Call It Cool? A Perspective on The New Rode RODECaster Pro

February 1, 2019February 1, 2019 ~ Mike Wilkerson

The Logitech Over-The-Ear Headset - Circa 2005

I have been capturing, editing, promoting, producing and creating live capture facilities where the focus is talking about podcasts since 2005 and guess what? I’ve never required anyone give me a “multi-track series of files” to get any editing, production or podcast-based generation done – ever.

While I know this probably knocks back the sneakers of a variety of you reading, I wanted to first talk about what was, what is, and what shall be in the very near future.

My first podcast in 2005, was recorded as a Windows Media Player .WAV file, created with two el-crappo (that’s an official designation) Logitech, over-the-ear gaming headsets a ton of frustration and more ums, ers, uhs, y’knows and lipsmacking than anyone on planet Earth has ever experienced – as one, single file.

My most-recent podcast, captured just last night (2019), was captured via a Zoom H6, via Heil PR-40s, captured into a single-track .WAV file.

While each featured editing, post-production and an ever-shrinking UmErUhYknow Reel, each of them featured a couple of guys talking, that didn’t generally “talk over” each other.

“Where are you going with all this, Mike?”

I have used probably every device, doo-dad and “what if we try this” that’s been put out to capture podcast content over the years, and recently, a marvel of concept, technology and project completion was release by a company called, Rode. The device is a complete, in-on-simple small console device podcast recorder called The Rode RODECaster Pro. Put as simply as Doc Brown did inside the original Back to the Future feature film when referring to Mary’s camcorder as a “portable television studio”, The Rode RODECaster Pro is literally the central component to anyone’s future, much-portable Podcast Studio. Everything from the mic inputs, to the headphone inputs, to the cell phone inputs, to the optional sound/firing buttons for media files and sound effects, that even saves all of the information locally so that two mics, some cables, and a power source net you a literal, portable podcast studio. It. Is. Amazing. It. Is. Simple. And when it came out, it was resoundingly “hated” by all of the people that thought it was “kind of a good idea” except of course for the fact that it “didn’t record in multi-track.” Well, that’s getting a deployable software fix so – now it WILL capture and provide multi-track for anyone that has one.

NOW can we call this officially a great idea and product?

I guess what I’m driving at the most is that, especially inside an edited program, how often is crosstalk/talking over each other/whatever your team calls it – a giant problem? When you have an interview show that has lots of new guests or perhaps people that just don’t care of they’ve not taking appropriate turns – I guess i can see it. But I’ve literally never had a problem leaning across the desk, or into the teleconference suite speakerphone being used to capture the interview (that’ll be yet ANOTHER !GASP!-creating article) and asking the person to “remember, let’s take turns speaking so that people can hear what point both of us is trying to convey.” It’s one of the largest frustrations I have when reading “reviews’ of the Rode RODECaster Pro. My very brief note of it above DOES NOT DO THIS INSTRUMENT justice, but let’s be plain – this is newfound technology collective magic, for a good price, from an experienced company, in a burgeoning industry, that will be changing the podcast environment.

To whine incessantly because it “doesn’t record in multi-track” is something I just don’t comprehend, especially knowing that “the fix” was coming/will be a software update. There are a handful of other detracting elements (most-notably, that it will only record currently to an on-board micro-SD card – it is small, it is persnickety for those of us with reasonably el-crappo eyes) that just can’t possibly pile up to plunder the potential podcast punch this product promises to deliver.

What’s Your Worst-case Crosstalk/Talk Over Each Other Sample?

So I ask YOU – tell me YOUR “worst crosstalk/talk over each other moment, and why you let it continue so much that you now REQUIRE to have multi-track recordings for say, editing jobs where interjecting some simple direction would make things simpler, smaller, and much more straight forward!

Do it in the comments below!

Capture Hot Ideas for Sure – The Wave Notebook from Rocketbook

May 1, 2018May 1, 2018 ~ Mike Wilkerson

In a digital age, there’s never been a more important time to be able to document what we as podcasters “do.” I don’t know about you, but the value of a good notebook, for to-do lists, sketching, and general day-to-day odds and ends is something I’ve been without for a long time. In it’s place I’ve used:

Table Placemats from Denny’s
The Back of Something “of lesser importance”
An Extracted Piece of Printer Paper

and any one of a number of other things that would make any 3rd Grade Art teacher proud. But what’s left when it’s time to take notes and what’s the “incentive” to hang on to a notebook nowadays when everything is going “digital?” The fact is that all of us have purchased a notebook and made a new pledge to use it, document our activities, to journal and half a dozen other things but how can you do it nowadays and have it stick?

Write Down, Capture It, Catalog It, Zap and Repeat…

Enter The Wave Notebook from Rocketbook. We’re all familiar with Erasable Pens. I’ve been using them since the 70s so that tech isn’t new, and the value of them IS valuable. But after something is put onto paper how can you “get it digital?” How can you hold the value of the notebook you’ve just purchased? The Wave provides you two sizes of notebook (I went with the “Executive Size” (6″ x 8.9″)) and gives you a professional-looking, to-the-point tool that offers a whole lot more. Fill your pages with content within the black borders of the page with doodles, flowcharts, to-do listings, or notes from a meeting. Now the digital magic and cataloging can begin.

Your Thoughts and Skill Sets Captured:

An app, downloaded to either Android or iPhone is used to very quickly scan/capture the image of the page. A series of ghosted/watermarked logos on the bottom of the page allow you to instantly have the scan/captured image be sent to a growing number of online/clouded repositories and so now – all of your notes, sketches, fever-created nonsense and cannot-possibly-live-without-this scribble can live on – forever. The resolution is also remarkable, providing even ME – the picky-bastard artist in the room satiated with my sketches and what I’ve captured.

“So far this isn’t blowing up my need-a-notebook skirt, Mike. Now what?”

If digital capture and cataloging of your hand-created materials wasn’t good enough, how about a little written-hand to text action? You got it. It’s here.

What you’ll also note is that the benefit of the stiffer, more-durable pages within the spiral-bound notebook offer up an almost magical, value-added power. When you’ve filled the book, or need more pages, fear not. While The Wave Notebook retails for $27 (I got mine for $19 on sale), what would you pay for a noteboook – you never had to replace? Let me explain: When the time comes/you want to return to completely-clear pages, simply slide The Wave Notebook into a microwave, place a mostly-full cup of water on top of it, and in 2 minutes (one minute per side), you’ll have – a brand-new, clean notebook to begin capturing your next favorite pen-generated masterpiece.

You can see from the images here that this notebook, process and repository is one to marvel at but I’m curious – what do YOU think? Use the comments below to tell me what this makes you think of and let’s talk more about what you STILL need to “write down!”

Get a Wave Notebook from Rocketbook:
https://getrocketbook.com/products/rocketbook-wave

Content Stagecoach: The Booth Junkie

March 1, 2018March 1, 2018 ~ Mike Wilkerson

Humans have been traveling since – well, since Humans popped up, and what our collective travel experiences indicate is that there’s always something new to learn about. Time to Climb Aboard the Content Stagecoach and learn about new content!

We as podcasters are literally GEAR JUNKIES. From the Podcaster that buys every new “thing” to the podcaster that WANTS to buy every new thing to the guy that HAS bought everything and it sits waiting in boxes in the basement – we are addicted to gear contemplation and acquisition. One of the most-focused cravings for is when anyone says or reads the word MICROPHONE. Ahh, microphones, the true luscious taste of digital sin, bitter the taste – that triggers visions of our available funds in a variety of all-too-limited bank accounts.

I recently had my Heil Fin microphones (used in our voiceover booths and The Podcast Bug) serviced and while putting a short polish on them, I was surfing through YouTube’s growing listing of digital libraries and – oh – whats this? A microphone review, for those interested in utilizing mics for voiceover. Very interesting…

After having clicked the fun image of a guy with a a couple of akin mics who also had wild hair, i clicked the proverbial “Play” button and what lept out of the speakers in my West studio was…

The Booth Junkie

In this particular episode, the host Mike greeted us all, put on his appreciative, crown-like headphones and began detailing the always-fun-to-watch-people-hate “Blue Yeti USB Microphone” that is not only a good deal but a good starter, entry-level microphone that I myself have drop-shipped to people for interviews, live music collection and a number of other capture missions over the years. Without getting into too much depth, the bottom line is that I think the Yeti has become an easy target and for the most part is a shat-upon viable, variable tool that gets the job done fast for a very fair price and let’s you be “up and running.” Still, the Yeti has legitimate quirks and viable feature sets…

..and here was The Booth Junkie going over them all, with focused detail, clear experience in the realm of audio collection (in particular, voiceover) and an engaging voice that isn’t just seasoned, but FUN. Those of you that take in as much audio “listening” as I do in lieu of say radio or music will know the value of a good voice, but also – a personality. Mike DelGaudio (wait a minute, the guy has the word AUDIO in his name? Seriously? Yes, seriously) delivers a variety of details, perspectives and KNOWLEDGE that educates even someone that thinks they “know it all” when it comes to audio intake. There’s another facet of Mike’s gallery and it’s that there is FUN, yes, but also play. There’s a small, subtle dance being done between the capture of the content, the visuals that you get but also in the text’d dialog on screen. It’s a treat to be sure and one that leaves you satisfied as the episode goes by because it makes you wonder which mic it is you’re actually listening to because – I mean, we know, right? We know which mic is which right? Riiight?

While there are a number of episode styles in his library, one that captured my attention was his overall microphone review of a HUGE and growing number of mics. What’s also clear is Mike’s zeal in learning more about how the various mics (that both companies and other “Booth Junkies” themselves can loan to him to test) is his natural delivery of opinion, thought and not “THIS PRODUCT SUCKS”, regardless of the experience or happenstance. It’s all engaging, filled with well-paced content that makes you want to continue listening to more while glancing now and again to see what a short silence or “about-to-guess-about-something” phrase flip will deliver for the viewer. Inside another microphone comparison video (the $50 mic VS. the $1000 mic), Mike shares a divine process and nugget at the end that is something I’d LOVE to share here to explain how exemplary it is but hell – then why wouldn’t YOU go check it out, right?

The last nugget that should showcase my interest in Mike in general is one I can’t wait to share a follow up article about. Mike’s listing of microphones he’s put to the test and in digital voice-capturing battle is missing a KEY element. A shiny weapon that I myself have had as a sidearm in all of my studios for the last 12 years poised in all battles for podcasting and voiceover conquest. An always available tool that turns heads, collects bright sound and ushers in reviews, education and perspectives of all kinds. The Heil Fin microphone – is in-bound to Mike in the friendly East-coast-based confines as we speak for yet another engaging focus online. I. Can’t. Wait. It’s almost as if I am – addicted – to what he’s going to say? Where’d I put that mishapen’d spoon and rubber tube?

Turning to the digital pages that comprise YouTube.Com content today is a ROUGH road, but for those of us who like gear, let me confirm one thing: If you’re looking or detail about audio, in particular microphone-captured audio, by a guy named DelGaudio, with fun, engaging attitude that makes you send gear host-ward, then I have the PERFECT subscription to feed the poison stream of GEAR ADDICTION, and it’s right over here – you know the Booth – with the Junkie in it.

Tell him that Mike Wilkerson sentcha’.

Booth Junkie on YouTube
Mike DelGaudio – Voice Actor Website

Strutting Your Stuff – With the Right Microphone Strut…

February 27, 2018 ~ Mike Wilkerson ~ 2 Comments

You might think that holding your own is easy in the world of podcasting and for many of you – you’d be right. One thing to realize however is that one cannot – in most cases – hold their own MICROPHONE when it comes to effective podcasting.

In the last 13 years of podcasting, what I’ve learned the most from is necessity. From the reasonably el crappo gaming headsets my original co-host and I started with, to the super-impression-making microphone booms that allow me to capture content inside my Podcast Bug (a 1974 Custom Super Beetle with a Recording Studio Built into the Front of it), being able to address the mic is vital to podcasting success.

Discussions will erupt during the time it takes for you to read this article on a variety of online discussion forums that ask the question, “I need to get a mic boom, but I’m looking for something cheaper.” Without question, cheaper methods exist. From bungee cords + studio lamp, to propped-up clamp lamp remnants to the several cadillac-level booms that are available – you’ll find something that fits your budget, patience and “you’ve gotta’ be kiddin’ me” level.

The First Question to Ask: Why Do I Need a Mic Boom?

Are you a table thumper? Can’t get past the incessant knee-donk that destroys all podcasters hope of initial, edited-less podcast capture? Can’t figure out how to hold the paper and not have the “I am holding paper” sound capture along with your vocals? How cool am I going to look while I record? There’s a myriad of questions and answers for everyone but when it’s all said and done, I have one recommendation – that has been in place since the fall of 2005…

The Heil Sound PL-2T Overhead Boom: In addition to having a name that will leave anyone you tell it to weak in the knees, the construction of these struts is simple, strong, and after having tried 3-4 different times in a variety of studio environments over 13 years, they are what I’ve chosen to feature in my different studio efforts.

The Heil Sound PL-2T’s were featured in my original home-studio, my first, second, and 4th public commercial studios and are also featured inside my “Podcast Bug.” The clean lines, that allow for attached promotionability provide the strongest, most-dependable moving parts and confidence. Additionally, they offer the best options for attaching microphones of all kinds. While we feature the Heil PR-40s and Heil “FIN” microphones that fit as a matter of course into the booms, we’ve had guest voiceover artists that are accommodated easily with their general configuration.

The Heil Sound PL-2T Overhead Boom is also featured inside our existing voiceover booth making for yet another incredibly diverse environment that the Heil Sound PL-2T Overhead Boom shines.

What kind of booms do you use? What have you tried in the past? Tell me more about what you’re doing when it comes to “holding your mics” in the comments section below and let’s create the best, online source for microphone boom discussion available!

What are You Building? Contemplating Legacy, and Taking in Death…

February 27, 2018February 27, 2018 ~ Mike Wilkerson

Death. It is the end of all things. The ultimate equalizer. The instant reality pill.

For those that live on, it is an instant “perspective” moment that initiates review, alterations to checks and balances (or lack thereof) and often is a seed point for thought-provoking articles – just like this one.

Death, or even the threat of it, impacts us all differently. In the news this morning, was mention of Podcast Movement’s Keynote Speaker Kevin Smith’s brush with a “Widow-Maker” heart attack while performing the first of 2 comedy shows last evening. Needless to say, as an also 47-year-old and chubby podcaster, it definitely hits home. Death has also hit home with meteor-like punch this last year for me in that my Mom died suddenly in May 2017, and shortly after the first of the year, my Pop also died suddenly. Their deaths and Kevin’s near-miss create a completely different atmosphere literally in that you breathe differently after the knowledge of these events impact you.

“What does all this have to with Podcasting, Mike?”, I hear all of you asking. Well, it’s really straight-forward for me.

We can all Google “Podcast” and probably spit out the almost-paragraph mantra that refers to a “digitally stored electronic file”, sure. But for me podcasting is way more than something so cold and bland.

Podcasting is Captured Perspective.

In the vein of my parents, My family and I benefit in that my Mom has a variety of songs that she recorded over her life that I have still to this day, as well as some fun video that continues on and will, for generations long after she, I and others in our family are gone. They live on inside a digital library that I’ve created and made customized access to for my daughter, her friends and whomever else we choose to share them with. In my Pop’s case, we had the pleasure of interacting to create a series of foundational lessons for me and anyone else who listens – as a series of podcasts inside his OWN program, Fast Freddie’s Castle of Common Sense. Each of these focuses on a different subject and provide me, and anyone who listens with the morals, centering-thoughts and perspective that made him the man that he was, that were direct pieces of making me the man that I’ve become. His sense of humor. His want for people to understand his viewpoint. Even some (reasonably terrible) singing and limericks are all part of a forever-effort that are all encapsulated inside a series of electronic, on-demand files that you can listen to anytime you want – day or night – forever.

In my own case, over the years I’ve brought on the people that make television and feature film offerings, and the real-life professionals that can talk intelligently about what you see on each of those offerings. You’ll learn what’s real, the stuff that “kinda’ works” and what’s a completely Hollywood-generated fantasy effort. Sprinkle in an always-strong educational element of ensuring that quality is delivered in return when you convey your time, money and effort to television and movies and well – I too have delivered opinions, information and education of all kinds that will long outlast me.

That’s Podcasting.

The collection of their memories, our viewpoints on our listening to them, and the ability to share those perspectives with others?

That’s LEGACY.

Which brings me back to the main focus of why we’re here today.

What are YOU creating inside your podcasting efforts? Do you go back to listen to your previous programs? Are they educational? What do they share about you? Did you like what you’d shared? Will people learn something valuable about you or your efforts when they’ve completed their listening session? Did you share the perspectives of others, perhaps professionals around you during your programs? What, when YOU ARE GONE, will be left online digitally to become YOUR legacy?

I’ve enjoyed many of the in-depth, deep-dive dissections that Kevin Smith has provided in the past. The breakdown of his all-too-short-and-rare visits with Prince are beyond epic. Many of his detailings of today’s modern filmmaking efforts with Fatman on Batman co-host, Mark Bernardin, offer insight that I just know that I will not capture from another outlet. They include outstanding “what if they…” storylines, possible character arcs and industry stories that really do fall squarely into the “LOVE” category. That being said, I have a terrible dislike for his propensity to swear incessantly (sure “we all do it” and “it’s what his audience wants”, alright, alright), refer to oral sex and stroking the high hard one (and then offering a regular mime-session of “bathing in the heavenly love juices”) that serve as a multi-faceted minefield in prelude to listening to eventually find the golden points of discussion mentioned above.

When it’s all said and done, the question remains:

What are You Building?

Collectively, we can all plop down in front of the mic, smash a palm into the record button, collect the general jackassery and publish all you want or – you can choose to create something that takes your future availability to LEGACY status.

Which one will you set a course for? Disagree with me about my viewpoints on Kevin’s offerings?

Let’s talk about it inside the comments section now!

The Perspective of a New PodcasterNews.Com Writer…

February 20, 2018February 21, 2018 ~ Mike Wilkerson

Mike Wilkerson - Features Writer, PodcasterNews.Com Greetings from the friendly confines of St. Louis! My name is Mike Wilkerson and I’ve been podcasting since 2005, and have grown my initial interest in sharing details about the hit Fox show “24”, into a Podcast Network now spanning 54 different programs, an army of hosts and a lifetime of memories and experience that continue to build to this day. Let me start my introductory article here by asking everyone a question?

What is YOUR perspective?

What perspective are you trying to share with an audience as a podcaster or as someone who works in the podcast industry?

Perspective, to steal from a favorite movie, is what drives us. It fuels everything we do, from the life habits we have, to the relationships we engage in, to the way we end up sharing our lives (or not) after we’re long gone. The bottom line though is that perspective varies from person to person. Let me explain.

Podcasting is Captured Perspective…

I am a former Certified Sign Language Interpreter for the Deaf and for more than a decade, I’ve already had every conversation that everyone here is reading has had – they just weren’t my conversations. From baby birthing, to job interviews, to divorce proceedings, to criminal arrests, to funeral arrangements – I’ve had a taste of them all as an Interpreter. That being able to “jump into someone’s life, interact, learn and jump back out” was incredibly alluring and still is. Podcasting for now an even longer time has allowed me to continue to feed that thirst for knowledge, information and perspective, across a wide variety of people, industries and skill sets. The value that perspective provides all of us is even more distinctive and valuable than your fingerprint. While your fingerprint can identify you outright, your perspectives (indeed, a collection of them, say, online in blog, vlog or podcast form) will continue to educate, entertain, inform and extend your ability to share you and your knowledge long after you’re gone.

That’s Legacy, and it’s something we should all have an interest in leaving when we’re gone.

Over the last 12+ years, I’ve been fortunate enough to start with a single program, be the host across a variety of programs, grow our podcast program library exponentially, build 6 different terrestrial commercial Podcast Recording Studios, create a Voiceover Academy and Staff, a Podcast Editing Academy and Staff and usher in sponsors of all kinds to programs of varying sizes, shapes and skill sets. I can’t WAIT to share many of my own perspectives, those of the professionals I work with and more as I continue offering engaging perspectives about all-things podcasting.

The collection and sharing of experience is what will be the main focus of my writings here across a variety of topics, technologies, processes and more.

What’s YOUR perspective?

What is it that YOU do in life as a professional and how can I learn more from you to grow my database of perspectives? Connect with me via the comments below and help me grow more vital and educational nuggets to share with everyone in the podcasting industry!

Be sure to connect with Mike to Share Your Perspectives!
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