Only murders in the building returns for season four this week, and our favorite podcast hosts Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short), and Mabel (Selena Gomez) begin recording another episode of their true-crime series. While they may have what it takes to solve a murder, we here at Wirecutter couldn’t help but wonder if the amateur podcasters are using the right equipment to sound good over the airwaves, especially since they’re often recording on the go, surrounded by the chaos of New York City.
To get some answers, we spoke with Wirecutter’s audio experts, senior editor Brent Butterworth, podcaster and author of our USB microphone guide, and senior editor Lauren Dragan, who writes about headphones and audiological equipment for Wirecutter and is an experienced voice artist who has been doing commercials for decades.
As it turns out, Only murders in the building could actually be a well-produced podcast. According to Brent, you don’t need top-of-the-line microphones or a soundproof booth to record a decent show: “It’s fine if they don’t use acoustic treatment. If a podcaster has a decent cardioid (unidirectional) microphone, a thick rug or carpet, a reasonably quiet room, and the discipline to stay on the mic, it shouldn’t be a problem for them.”
Here is all the podcast equipment used in the fourth season of Only murders in the buildingand what we think about it.
