Noisy laptop (fans or hard drive spinning).Things to avoid (because they make noise that will show up in your audio): Laptop (if it's a quiet one) or tablet.Things that are OK to have close to the microphone:

If you have a desktop, you may have to do as I did and put a hole in the wall so that your noisy desktop is isolated from your monitor and microphone. If you have a quiet laptop, just set up a comfortable desk or stand in your closet, and you'll probably be more than fine. Clothes hanging around tend to absorb echoes. If you can get the ambient noise low enough, everything else will be easy.Ĭlosets are popular. Where you record seems to be the biggest factor in the quality of the recording. If you don't want to make your own, you can pick one up for $7.50 on Amazon. I honestly didn't notice much difference. I made one with a piece of cardboard and some old batting for my first book, but didn't use one for my second. Something you can plug into the audio jack on your microphone or computer so you can listen to what the microphone is picking up while you're recording is a good idea. My co-narrator for King's Table used a Yeti Pro with a mic boom and a shock mount (he got the whole setup off of ebay) and had very good results with it as well. I'm sure it would be fine, but I can't personally attest to it.

Blue also makes a cheaper Snowball microphone that I've heard of people using. A quality USB microphone (a Blue Yeti is a very nice choice, one of the most popular microphones, and will only run you $130 on Amazon.A laptop would be nice (they're quieter), but I just used an old desktop. So here it is: the minimalist setup guide. My audio passed Audible's recording standards with flying colors and was well-received by listeners. I decided to make an attempt with the absolute minimum in equipment and setup using one of my short stories as a test case. This can be intimidating, especially if you're not confident in your ability to judge 'good' audio from 'bad'. Just like your bike-fanatic friend who recommends a $3000 bike to get you to and from work, Audiophiles will often insist that you'll never produce good audio without a $1000+ home studio system (or better yet, rental time in a professional studio). Enthusiasts always recommend the very best equipment, and they tend to think all of it is indispensable.

Audible creation exchange