Portable Podcast Recording Kit
The VB1 Pro is a complete, broadcast-quality podcast recording setup in a mil-spec case. Two Unison microphone preamps, 24-bit/192kHz conversion, and a patent-pending Hexium™ tray that holds every component in position. Open the case, plug in one cable, and record in under 90 seconds — in a studio, a spare bedroom, or a hotel room on a work trip.
Two hosts. Two microphones. Two separate tracks.
This is the part that most portable podcast kits get wrong. The Apollo Solo has two Unison microphone preamps, which means a second microphone records to its own fully independent track. No shared channel. No bleed between voices. In the edit you can level, compress, de-ess and cut each host separately, which is the difference between a show that sounds produced and one that sounds like two people around a laptop.
Choose the two-microphone configuration and both microphones ship in the same case. The Hexium™ tray is cut for both — nothing rattles, nothing needs reassembling at the other end.
Honest answer on headphones
The Apollo Solo has a single headphone output. That is deliberate, not an oversight. The host monitors while setting levels, and most hosts then record without headphones because it makes for a more natural conversation. If you want your guest monitoring as well, any headphone splitter works — there is nothing proprietary about it.
We would rather tell you that now than have you discover it after the box arrives.
Works with every platform and DAW you already use
The VB1 Pro presents as a standard audio interface, so it works with:
- Remote recording platforms: Riverside, Zencastr, Descript, Squadcast, Zoom
- DAWs: Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Adobe Audition, Audacity, Reaper, GarageBand
- Universal Audio LUNA, included with the Thunderbolt version on Mac
One thing worth understanding about remote recording: on Riverside, Zencastr and the rest, each participant is responsible for their own local audio. The platform only captures what your hardware sends it. The VB1 Pro cannot fix your guest's laptop microphone — what it does is make your side of every conversation the best-sounding one on the call.
Why podcasts sound like podcasts
Listeners forgive a slow episode. They do not forgive bad audio — most leave in the first two minutes and do not come back. Sponsors are the same: brands with real budgets listen for production quality before they look at download numbers.
The gap between a hobby podcast and a professional one is almost never the writing. It is the signal chain. A USB microphone digitises at the capsule with a consumer converter and no real preamp. The VB1 Pro runs a Unison preamp into 24-bit/192kHz conversion — the same chain used in professional studios. Listeners hear the difference even when they cannot name it.
What is in the case
- Universal Audio Apollo Solo — two Unison microphone preamps, 24-bit/192kHz conversion, near-zero latency monitoring
- Universal Audio SC-1 with Hemisphere™ microphone modelling — one or two, depending on configuration
- Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO (80 ohm) — closed-back studio reference monitoring, optional
- Hexium™ carbon tray and shell inside a Nanuk mil-spec case, carry-on compatible
- Gator mini boom arm, calibrated XLR and USB-C cabling
- Signal Lab access — DAW presets dialled in by working professionals
It records more than podcasts
The same kit working voice actors use to book paid work. Voice over pays roughly $150 to $3,000 a project, and you already have the core skill — you talk into a microphone every week. Plenty of podcasters treat this as a second income stream rather than a cost. See what voice over actually pays.
Get started
Already own a shotgun microphone you trust? There is a version built around it. Compare both kits side by side.