Breaking down barriers between athletes and fans, Ross Stripling and Cooper Surles launched “The Big Swing” podcast in January 2019 to discuss everything from sports to pop culture to finance, with a focus on all things baseball. When the co-hosts were looking to deploy a high-quality microphone solution to capture crystal-clear audio for their podcast, they found exactly what they were searching for with MXL Microphones’ BCD-1 Live Broadcast Dynamic Microphone.
“In our first few months of podcasting, audio was the biggest challenge for us,” says Stripling. “Once we were able to deploy the MXL mics and put them in front of each speaker, our audio went up twofold – the sound quality of MXL’s BCD-1 is incomparable to the previous solution we were using.”
In addition to high-quality audio pickup, Surles finds the noise rejection capabilities of MXL’s BCD-1 to be extremely beneficial for their recordings. “Not only do the mics pick up audio well, but they also do an awesome job of rejecting outside noise,” he says. “This is a particularly helpful feature when we record in our home studio set up, where my dog might be barking in the other room. Also, we frequently have guests that have no previous microphone experience, so they often won’t speak directly into the mic, and the BCD-1 does a solid job of capturing their voices off-axis.”
For Surles and Stripling, it is also important to have a portable and durable microphone solution as they travel from place to place recording “The Big Swing” podcast remotely. “When we travel, I keep the mics in my carry on, which gets thrown around a great deal, and while my luggage takes a real beating, the MXL mics remain in perfect working condition no matter what,” says Stripling. “They’re definitely durable and they’ve been exactly what we need.”
Additionally, as Stripling and Surles have no prior experience with professional audio equipment, it was crucial that they deploy a truly plug-and-play microphone solution for “The Big Swing” podcast. “When we first launched, we struggled a little bit to figure out some of the other hardware we were using, but with MXL’s BCD-1 mics, they’ve been so easy to work with,” says Surles. “We pulled them out of the box, plugged them in and they worked like a charm from the start.”
Surles and Stripling have become fans of MXL as a brand, finding their customer service to be extremely helpful and dependable. “It’s clear that MXL puts an emphasis on the creators and the people using their mics,” says Stripling. “They are available to us whenever we need additional equipment or have any questions about how we can use their product more efficiently. It’s been a huge help to have this relationship with MXL and we look forward to continuing to rely on the BCD-1 for all of our podcasting needs.”
MXL’s BCD-1 is an end address dynamic microphone with warm, rich tones designed to make vocals stand out in any recording or live performance application. With a tuned grill that eliminates internal reflections and a built in shock mount that prevents unwanted noise, the BCD-1 is an ideal solution for capturing crystal-clear audio in a variety of settings. Additionally, its built-in swivel mount allows for perfect positioning when combined with the optional MXL BCD-Stand.
