You have an idea you want to tell. About films, books, your favourite band, your hobbies or life itself. Maybe an audio legacy for your children and grandchildren, or an audio diary of your pregnancy. At Tonstudio Leipzig you record your podcast with professional microphones, calm guidance and an editing service.
Most podcast guides assume that you want reach, sponsorship and chart positions. That it is about maximising listener numbers and landing in the Spotify charts. That is true for professionals and content creators. But for a great many people who want to make a podcast, it is about something else: they have a subject that matters to them. A story that should be told. A hobby they could talk about endlessly. An idea that only they have in quite that way. This page is written for exactly those people.
At Tonstudio Leipzig I produce hobby podcasts and private audio projects with the same care as commercial productions, but with a different tone. Here the content comes first. Here it is about the story you want to tell. Here it is about your 50 or 500 listeners being able to really listen. That is a completely different task, and at least as interesting.
What often comes out of it is more than a podcast. Family recordings that still move people in twenty years. Pregnancy diaries that the child hears later as a teenager. Travel memories that do not disappear into Instagram stories. Podcasts about chapters of a life that become an audio biography. Series about films or books that build a small, loyal circle of listeners. If you are standing in front of an idea like that and simply do not know how to start: you are in the right place. You book the first consultation in the studio shop. Short questions about booking are welcome by email or phone.
A hobby podcast follows you, not the trends. Here are the typical ideas people arrive with, sometimes with a finished plan, sometimes with only an idea that still needs a shape.
You have a subject you could talk about endlessly: films, books, history, science, a sport, a hobby, your own experiences. A solo podcast is the most intimate form: you speak directly to your listeners, at your own pace, in your own words. I guide calmly, give you tips on the microphone and make sure your voice sounds relaxed.
Two or three of you discussing a subject, telling a story, going deeper into a hobby. Recorded on site with up to three microphones, without phone quality and without the gaps of a video call. It works for book club conversations, shared hobbies, or simply for the regular round with your favourite people.
Parents and grandparents telling the next generation how they met, how they grew up, which anecdotes the family knows, what they want to pass on. In twenty years an audio legacy beyond price, keeping the everyday wonder of a family safe.
Parents record audio messages for the unborn child across the months of the pregnancy: what it was like when the test was positive, what they hope for the birth, which songs they already have in their heads. When the child hears those recordings later as a teenager, it is a moving gift from a time it cannot remember itself.
When you have made a particular journey, six months in South America, camping through Scandinavia, moving to Australia, a long family tour, and you do not want the memory to disappear into Instagram stories. A travel podcast in several episodes, ordered by places or by themes, with atmosphere and narrative. It stays on your audio shelf long after the stories are deleted.
One person records their life story across several appointments, structured in chapters such as childhood, youth, studies, first love, starting work, starting a family. It becomes a legacy the family can still hear in thirty years. Related to audiobooks, if it should grow into a complete audio biography.
Whether a single recording or a series in several parts, here are the three most common formats for hobby podcasts. Editing, sound design and, on request, a podcast cover are included. For anything unusual, write to me briefly and I find a solution that fits.
You alone in front of the microphone. Ideal for a pilot episode, a test recording or a short first attempt, without committing to a series. Includes a microphone check, the recording, editing out pauses and slips, and a finished file to upload or share privately.
The most popular format. You with a friend, family or a guest on site, everyone with their own microphone. More time for a relaxed conversation, several takes, a break in between. With editing, intro and outro, professional sound, ready to upload to your favourite platform or to share privately.
When you are planning a series: a family podcast, a travel memory, an audio biography in chapters. I plan three to five episodes per studio day, or spread the recordings across several appointments. With a consistent sound, one intro and outro, and a strategy for releasing it as a series.
Important for Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Together we design a professional cover with your photo, the title and a look that suits, so that your podcast looks like a professional format everywhere.
A recognisable intro and outro for your series, either purely spoken with a short musical idea or as a small sound identity of its own. It immediately lifts your hobby podcast above amateur recordings.
Do you want to be on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or only share privately by cloud link? I explain the platforms, help you set up the RSS feed and make sure your first episode goes online cleanly.
Spotify and Apple Podcasts require a square podcast cover. It is the first thing listeners see before they press play. A well made cover immediately lifts your hobby podcast above amateur recordings, and it is easier than you think.
I take a photo in the studio during the recording, at the microphone, with headphones on, in full hobby podcaster authenticity. Or you bring a photo of your choice: from a holiday, from your hobby, with the family dog. An abstract image that suits the subject works just as well.
We design the layout, the podcast title, the subtitle and the typeface together. Bold and minimal for serious subjects, playful and colourful for hobby series, calm and elegant for family podcasts. I show you what works, you decide what suits you.
You get a square cover file at exactly the right resolution for Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Spotify for Creators and other platforms. Ready to upload, without you having to worry about technical specifications. Your podcast looks like a professional format when people browse their podcast app.
The podcast cover is an optional extra, so mention it when you get in touch. Anyone who would rather design the cover themselves, or already has one, is of course just as welcome without it.
A hobby podcast is not only a recording. Things happen while you make it, while you listen to it and in the years afterwards, small quiet important things that make a hobby podcast more valuable than any viral hit.
Hearing your own voice in professional quality for the first time is almost always a surprise. Do I sound like that? Usually stronger, clearer and more interesting than you expected. That moment turns a hobby idea into a real podcast.
Before the first episode, almost every hobby podcaster asks: who would want to listen to me? Producing that episode anyway is a small act of courage. Anyone who gets past it has a microphone they will use again and again.
A hobby podcast does not need ten thousand listeners. When fifty or five hundred people want to hear exactly your subject, that small loyal group who look forward to every new episode is often worth more than any viral hit that is forgotten tomorrow.
Many hobby podcasters come for just one episode, to try it out. Most are so taken with it after the first recording that they plan a series. When you look back on thirty episodes in two years, you know: this made your life richer by one good thing.
When you record a family podcast or an audio diary of a pregnancy, you may not hear straight away, while editing, what you are actually making. But when your daughter hears the recording from your pregnancy at sixteen, or your grandchild hears their grandmother's voice in thirty years, it is clear that you created a legacy.
While Instagram stories disappear after 24 hours and posts sink into the algorithm, a podcast stays. An audio collection you can still hear in ten years, that your family can pass on, that keeps a piece of history from your perspective. Few media last like that.
A hobby podcast recording needs less technical preparation than thinking. Here are the six points that make your studio day easier, even if you have never stood in front of a microphone.
Do not start with the title, start with the subject. What are you passionate about? What could you talk about for an hour without running dry? Which story do you want to tell? A clear subject is worth more than a clever title, and the title comes later.
A fully written script sounds read out. What works: a list of the five to ten most important points you want to cover in the episode. That keeps you natural, lets you speak freely, and still means you forget nothing.
Who listens to your podcast? Picture one particular person: a friend, your child in twenty years, your grandchild, someone who shares your hobby. Speak to that one person rather than to the listeners. That is how real connection appears instead of busy anonymity.
On the day: drink plenty of water, avoid ice cold drinks, do not eat too heavily, and do not spend the evening before shouting. A relaxed voice sounds fuller and more confident. Before the first take we do a short speaking test together, so you settle in easily.
If a friend is joining as a guest: send the planned subjects beforehand as a short list. Let your guest know roughly how long the episode should be. Nobody has to be perfectly prepared and it can stay relaxed, but a little clarity takes the nerves away.
The biggest obstacle with hobby podcasts is the demand that everything must sound professional immediately. It does not. The first five episodes are often bumpy, and after that you find your flow. With the editing service even your pilot episode sounds genuinely good. It will never be perfect, and that is fine.
So that you know exactly what happens between the first inquiry and the finished episode, here are the four phases of every hobby podcast production.
You send me a short inquiry with your podcast idea: subject, format, rough length, solo or with a guest. I usually get back to you the same day with an honest assessment and a package suggestion that fits.
After that first exchange I reserve the studio date. You get a short preparation checklist, tips for your voice and an overview of how much time I have set aside. For a series we plan several appointments.
At the appointment I welcome you, show you the studio, do a short microphone check with you and make sure you feel comfortable. We record at your pace, with breaks where you need them. For interview podcasts I look after both of you, or all three.
After the recording: editing out pauses and slips, improving the sound, adding intro and outro if you want them. Delivered as a finished audio file for Spotify, Apple Podcasts or Spotify for Creators, or as a private cloud link for family and friends. I help with the upload on request.
My studio is centrally placed in the south of Leipzig, five minutes from the Bayerischer Bahnhof. Easy to reach by tram, city train and car. Here are the typical journeys for hobby podcasters from the region.
Bernhard Göring Straße 17, five minutes on foot from the Bayerischer Bahnhof. Reachable by tram, city train and car, with parking nearby. Practical if your guest arrives by car or if you want to get a coffee together after the recording.
Halle is about 35 minutes away by city train, and roughly half an hour by car depending on the time of day. Many hobby podcasters from Halle combine the studio date with a day in Leipzig: studio in the morning, city in the afternoon.
From the towns around Leipzig you reach the studio in fifteen to twenty five minutes. Markkleeberg, Schkeuditz, Taucha, Markranstädt, Borna, Grimma: typical if you live nearby and want to record a local hobby podcast.
Leipzig is under two hours from Chemnitz, Dresden, Jena, Weimar, Erfurt or Magdeburg. A day trip for a studio appointment works well and is often combined with a visit to the city.
For interview podcasts the guest and the host often come from different cities: Berlin, Dresden, Munich. Leipzig is well connected as a meeting point in central Germany. I can set the appointment so that both of you can travel comfortably.
Some hobby podcasters turn the recording into a small ritual: arrive on Friday evening, stay in the centre of Leipzig, record on Saturday morning, have lunch together with the guest afterwards. That way a hobby production becomes a small event.
Here are the answers that matter most before you get in touch about your podcast idea. If your question is not here, a short message is enough. I answer honestly and without any sales pressure.
No. Most hobby podcasters who record with me have never stood in a studio before.
I guide calmly, give tips on the microphone, do a short speaking test before the first take and make sure your voice sounds relaxed. You need no expensive equipment and no technical knowledge. You come with your subject, I take care of the rest.
Six main areas come up most often here:
1. A solo podcast about the subject you love.
2. An interview podcast with a guest on site.
3. A family podcast as a legacy for children and grandchildren.
4. An audio diary of a pregnancy for the child before it is born.
5. A travel podcast as a memory of a long journey or a move abroad.
6. A podcast about chapters of a life, as an audio biography in series.
This page is written for hobby podcasters and private audio projects without a commercial background.
If you work for a a content creator, an influencer or recording for commercial purposes , please see the separate business site of Tonstudio Leipzig for companies and freelancers, where there are packages built for reach, sponsorship and commercial release.
Up to three people can sit at separate microphones at the same time.
If two of you are discussing a hobby subject or recording a round of conversation, that is the typical setup. For more people, speak to me beforehand and I find a solution with staggered recordings or a hybrid setup.
A family podcast is an audio series about your family history, told by parents and grandparents for their children and grandchildren.
Subjects: how you met, what growing up was like, which values should stay, which anecdotes belong to the family. What feels ordinary today is, in twenty years, a legacy beyond price.
Several episodes across several appointments are possible.
Yes, that is in fact the most common request.
Hobby podcasters want to record and share their subject, nobody wants to spend hours editing. I cut out pauses, slips and noises, add intro and outro, balance the voices so that everyone is at the same level, and deliver a finished episode ready to upload.
Yes, that is part of the service if you want it.
I explain the platforms (Spotify for Creators and Apple Podcasts Connect), help you set up the RSS feed and make sure your first episode goes online cleanly.
Purely private releases by cloud link to family and friends are possible too, if you do not want to publish.
No. Everything is here in the studio: professional microphones, headphones, an acoustically treated room, everything you need.
You come with your subject, your concept and perhaps a few notes. Even if you have tried recording at home and were not happy with the sound, here it sounds like a professional podcast from the first second.
Yes, on request. A professional podcast cover matters for Spotify, Apple Podcasts and every other platform.
Together we design a cover with your photo, the podcast title and a look that suits, either from a studio session or from images you supply. Bookable as an extra.
A typical episode of 30 to 60 minutes fits into a studio session of about 90 to 120 minutes , including the welcome, the microphone check, the recording and a short break.
For several episodes in a row, such as a whole family podcast series, we plan several appointments.
Hobby podcast recordings are priced individually.
The factors are: solo or interview, studio time, how much editing is needed, intro and outro, a podcast cover, help with the upload if you want it, and the number of episodes.
When you get in touch you receive an honest estimate the same day, usually with a package suggestion that suits your idea. A first consultation is bookable online in the studio shop.
Yes, and it is in fact recommended if you are planning a series.
Recording several episodes at the same appointment saves time and gives your podcast a consistent sound. Typically that means 3 to 5 episodes per studio day, depending on length and format.
For a family podcast series I like to spread the work across several appointments, so that the people telling the story do not get tired.
Tell me briefly what you have in mind, for example a solo podcast about your hobby, an interview with a guest, a family podcast for your children, an audio diary of a pregnancy, a travel memory or an audio biography in chapters. I look at your idea and answer with an honest assessment, a suitable suggestion and the next sensible steps. The detailed assessment of your project happens in the first consultation, bookable online in the studio shop.