Updated October 2026 · Video podcasts and audio-first shows
Use a short audio checklist for each video podcast episode: set the microphones and levels before recording, watch the sound during the take, and check sync, loudness and the final file afterwards. A repeatable checklist protects the audio that viewers and listeners rely on.
Video podcasts have more moving parts than audio ones. There are cameras to start, lights to check, a sync point to record and a second master to export. The audio is easy to forget in the rush, but it is what listeners hear first and what keeps viewers watching. A short checklist keeps the sound in order without slowing the session.
The checklist below is for a studio or a home setup. It is grouped into three parts, because the sound needs attention at each stage.
Checking the room and the levels before recording prevents problems that cannot be fixed later. Watching the sound during the take catches a microphone that has moved or a speaker who has drifted. Checking after the session confirms that the files are safe and in sync. Each stage catches a different type of error.
The checklist is short on purpose. A long list that nobody uses is worse than a short one that everyone follows.
The audio version and the video version are separate exports, and each needs its own check. The audio version should match your usual loudness target, and the video version should sound the same level when people switch. The LUFS meter can measure the loudness of each file. Compare the two versions by listening, not only by numbers.
Record the microphone settings, the room, the level and any problems in a short log. A log lets you repeat a good setup and find the cause of a change later. Over a season, the log becomes the record of how the show sounds, and it answers questions about past episodes when a guest or an editor asks.
An interview, a solo show and a panel need different steps. An interview may need an extra check on the guest’s microphone and a short introduction recorded for the edit. A solo show needs a check on the speaker’s distance throughout, since nobody else is there to remind them. A panel needs more microphones, more levels and more care with crosstalk.
Write the variations as sub-lists under the main checklist, so the core steps stay the same and the extras are added only when needed.
A checklist works only if it is used. Build it into the session calendar, so the setup starts with the list rather than with a search for it. Print it, pin it on the wall or keep it on the phone, and tick each line aloud if you work with a partner. Small rituals like this are what keep the audio consistent over a long season.
Review the checklist every few months. Remove the steps that never catch anything, and add the ones that caught a real problem. A checklist that changes with the show stays useful.
A checklist cannot make a poor room good, and it cannot replace listening. Use it to catch the routine mistakes, and keep your ears on the episode. Adapt the list to your setup, and remove any step that does not apply.
Whatever the picture looks like, viewers judge the sound first. Use the Vocal Checker to check clipping, noise and level in a recording before you export. The Tunedzy Go page covers cleaning a phone recording. For the decision about whether video suits your show, read the decision guide in this series.
Spot clipping, noise, rumble and level problems. Runs in your browser, nothing is uploaded.
A few minutes before recording, and a few more after. It saves much more time in editing.
Yes, quickly. Rooms change with the weather, the time of day and what is switched on.
A microphone that moved during the take, or a level that was not checked before recording.
Keep it where you can see it while you set up, on paper or on your phone.
