

Show HN: Zencastr – Record your podcast guests in top quality from their browser - joshontheweb
https://zencastr.com

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joshontheweb
I use the WebRTC and Web Audio API to capture the users audio from their
microphone, compress it in chunks, and then upload it to the hosts dropbox
account. This all happens in the browser. The server simply serves the app and
sends some websocket messages back and forth so the host can start/stop the
recording.

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noso
Very cool! what tech stack did you use to develop it?

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joshontheweb
Thanks! MongoDB, Node.js, Koa.js, Backbone.js, WebRTC, Web Audio API, Dropbox

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minimaxir
"Top quality" is misleading since the bottleneck in podcast sound quality is
recording hardware (e.g. microphones)

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joshontheweb
That depends on how bad your internet connection varies. Skype compression
artifacts can be brutal. But yes, you are correct in that the microphone makes
a big difference as well as the room you record in.

edit: grammar

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bradleyland
That's the primary problem with using Skype for podcasting: you have no
control over codec selection. When Skype detects network disruptions, it
automatically changes codec to reduce bandwidth usage. Granted, if your
network cant transport at the higher quality codec, you're going to get drops
in audio anyway. Personally, I'd prefer the control though. It's easier to
wait out a brief disruption in bandwidth than it is to coax Skype back up to a
better quality codec.

