I recently produced a few podcast episodes remotely where my guests only had iPhones and no podcasting experience. I wrote about the setup and the initial results yesterday — the sound quality was surprisingly decent. Not studio grade, but perfectly usable.
That got me thinking: could you do it even simpler, without any special software on the host side?
Turns out you can. The trick is a “double ender”: both people jump into a video call wearing headphones, but instead of relying on the call’s audio, each person records their own end locally. On an iPhone, that’s as simple as hitting record in Voice Memos. If you want something fancier, the Auphonic or Ferrite apps do a brilliant job.
One thing to remember: clap at the start. Both recordings will be slightly out of sync, and that clap gives you a sharp spike in the waveform to line them up later. Old-school film trick, works every time.
Beyond that, it comes down to the basics — find a quiet spot, get close to the mic, and try not to rustle anything. A blanket over your head in a wardrobe is ugly but effective. The iPhone mic is better than most people give it credit for, especially in a small, soft room.
That’s it. Two iPhones, a video call, and a clap. You won’t win any audio awards, but you’ll have something people can actually listen to — and that’s the whole point.
This started life in German on reinergaertner.de, my blog since 1997. The English version was AI-assisted. My German-trained eyes may have missed a few things along the way. She’ll be right.