Guide: Building a home studio

After more than a year  of research, watching maybe a thousand videos, and reading articles while building my own home studio here in Amman, I finally got time to write this short guide with my recommendation into the different setups you might need depending on the purpose you have in mind.

The road here wasn't free of mistakes, none were drastic thankfully, so for those of you who want to embark on a similar effort this post will hopefully help you.

Lets first set the expectations:

  • What started this for me was the idea that I wanted to start a podcast. Soon after, it morphed into the possibility of creating online courses, potentially a youtube channel, and reviving my short/documentary filmmaking hobby. So I divided the guide into the different uses a home studio might serve you.
  • Everything I bought was on a budget, so finding the cheapest best quality was the baseline I went with when deciding what to buy - mostly.
  • I will not be promoting any specific gear over others but will sure share the exact category in italic, which you can use to do your own research. In some cases, I listed specs of gear you might want to get, to make the process much easier.
  • For podcasting, I do mention the software I chose to make it easier.
  • In each category, I list 3 different budget setups.

Do watch this funny video of my journey till date and some of the lessons I learned along the way :-D

PODCASTING

OVERVIEW: Dynamic microphones are your best choice for recording a podcast because they give you that radio broadcast voice and they are perfect to use in any room as they don't pick up much of your room noise or echo. Those microphones usually come with an XLR connection that needs an Audio Interface or a Mixer to connect to your laptop/tablet/mobile devices or into a digital recorder. Few come with both XLR and USB as well. Find them :)

Budget

  1. A USB Condenser Microphone placed 5 cm from your mouth.
  2. Anchor App for audio or Zoom for remote call video + audio.
  3. GarageBand or Audacity for audio recording & editing (Free) you can find other software listed here.
  4. You can use Auphonic to automate the post-production of your audio.
  5. For hosting your podcast, you can view the options listed here. Most will have monthly/yearly subscription plans.

Budget +

  1. A Dynamic USB Microphone placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. Zoom for remote call video and audio.
  3. GarageBand or Audacity for audio recording & editing (Free) you can find other software listed here.
  4. You can use Auphonic to automate the post-production of your audio.
  5. For hosting your podcast, you can view the options listed here. Most will have monthly/yearly subscription plans.

Budget ++

  1. Two Dynamic USB/XLR Microphones placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. A two-channel (or more) Audio Interface/Mixer.
  3. Riverside/Squadcast/Zencastr for better quality remote calls video/ audio.
  4. GarageBand or Audacity for audio recording & editing (Free) you can find other software listed here.
  5. You can use Auphonic (Free+) to automate the post-production of your audio.
  6. For hosting your podcast, you can view the options listed here. Most will have monthly/yearly subscription plans.

INSTAGRAM/FACEBOOK

This part is for small business owners who want to keep creating content for their followers. Budget gear to help you create better quality content to engage your customers on social media using FB or IG live/stories/reels.

Budget

  1. A lavaliere microphone (clip-on mic) or a small shotgun microphone placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. Your Smartphone with HD 30/60 or 4k
  3. 48w small led lights for fill light.
  4. A desktop tripod or selfie stick.

Budget +

  1. A lavalier microphone (clip-on mic) or a small shotgun microphone placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. Your Smartphone with HD 30/60 or 4k video recording. Focus App for a blurry background.
  3. Ring light for the key light, a 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.
  4. A smartphone rig for outdoor vlogging to rig the mic and lights on and to enable you to give your shots more stability.

Budget ++

  1. A wireless microphone so you move freely and have someone else shoot the video or vice versa.
  2. Your Smartphone with HD 30/60 or 4k video recording. Focus App for a blurry background.
  3. Ring light for the key light, a 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.
  4. A smartphone gimbal to give you a smooth stable shots indoors and outdoors.

YOUTUBE CHANNEL

This part is for those who have the stuff to share on YouTube, can be your life and adventures video logged, or reviews for gear, tools, or any area you have interest and expertise in, or can be educational, inspiring, or how-to content that helps you reach an audience who find it interesting.

Budget

  1. A lavalier microphone (clip-on mic) or a small shotgun microphone. Placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. HD 1080p Webcam
  3. Zoom for screen sharing a presentation while you narrate the video.
  4. 48w small led lights for fill light.
  5. A desktop tripod

Budget +

  1. A USB microphone is placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. Your Smartphone with HD 60 or 4k video recording. Focus App for a blurry background.
  3. Zoom for screen sharing a presentation while you narrate the video.
  4. Ring light for the key light, a 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.
  5. A desktop tripod

Budget ++

  1. On-camera shotgun microphone for vlogging or a wireless microphone for talking head videos. Placed 10 cm from your mouth.
  2. A Compact, DSLR, or Mirrorless Camera with HD 1080p/30 with wi-fi/Bluetooth. Mic input and a fully articulated screen are a convenient plus. Alternatively, you can record audio into your smartphone and sync audio in post-production. Also, you can connect your phone via wifi/Bluetooth to your camera brand app to view the shot as you are recording.
  3. Zoom for screen-sharing a presentation while you narrate the video.
  4. Softbox or Ring light for the key light, 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.

SHORT/DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING

This part is for those of us who have an urge to tell some stories but are too intimidated by the technical details of light, videography, and audio and being forced to be a jack of all trades. I decided finally to face the beast and dig deeper bit by bit.

Budget

  1. A dual lavaliere microphone placed 10 cm from your or your subject mouth.
  2. Your pro-Smartphone with HD 60 or 4k video recording.
  3. Good smartphone wide-angle and telephoto lenses.
  4. Softbox or Ring light for the key light, 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.
  5. A tripod with smartphone support.

Budget +

  1. A dual-channel wireless microphone for interviews.
  2. A Compact, DSLR, or Mirrorless Camera with HD 1080p/30 with wi-fi/Bluetooth. Mic input and a fully articulated screen are a convenient plus. Alternatively, you can record audio into your smartphone and sync audio in post-production. Also, you can connect your phone via wifi/Bluetooth to your camera brand app to monitor/control the shot as you are recording.
  3. Ring light for the key light, a 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.
  4. A tripod and a camera rig for stable shots.

Budget ++

  1. A boomed small-diaphragm condenser microphone for indoor dialogue or a long shotgun microphone for outdoor dialogue. Alternatively, a dual-channel wireless microphone can be used too.
  2. A camera mixer with an XLR/3.5mm input to connect the microphone to the camera or a 3.5mm input audio recorder. You can also buy an audio recorder with two or more XLR inputs at a higher cost.
  3. A DSLR or Mirrorless Camera with HD 1080p/60 with wi-fi/Bluetooth, a mic input, and a fully articulated screen.
  4. Softbox or Ring light for the key light, 48w/96w small led lights for fill light.
  5. A tripod + a standard mic stand(s) that you can use to boom the microphone.
  6. A camera gimbal for a variety of very stable shots indoors or outdoors.

Hope the guide is useful and please do drop a comment or message me if you like to have a conversation about your future home studio. Been and still is a super exciting journey!

LOCAL GEAR SHOPPING GUIDE

Please note that none of the retailers I mention in this video are sponsors nor  have paid me to mention them here.

  • For podcasting and recording vocals the best shop with a variety of options for microphones and audio interfaces is Abdeen Electronics in downtown, they do have an online store. other places to look into are Audio Wave.
  • For vlogging and going live on Facebook and Instagram, you can find good gear on many Facebook shops' pages.
  • For adapters and connectors and the general computer gear, many shops In Garden Street but I like professionals computer and City Center shops.
  • For camera gear and audio for video the shop I love the most is all the way in Mafraq called CameraJo why? Well, they do have a website with all of what they sell with updated stock, they also have a mobile app! In addition, they are very helpful and extremely professional. Another shop you might want to check is in Irbid and it's called YouCam, they have an updated Facebook page and shop. In Amman, you can check Al-Farouq Center, Image-one, and Mirat.

PS. Here is a list of the YouTubers who I learned so much from and who helped me make a lot of the decisions on gear and technique.

Razan Khatib

Razan Khatib

Playing at the intersection of culture, technology, and values. Trying to structure my thoughts and share experiences, learnings, and insights. Co-founder of @spring_apps
Amman, Jordan