40 and 20

AFFORDABLE WATCHES
AND OTHER THINGS WE LIKE

Hey all. If you are here, there is a good chance that you already know about us and what we do.  If you don't know, 40 and 20 is a weekly podcast about affordable watches. Our hosts are Andrew and Everett - just two (mostly) normal guys in Oregon with a passion for affordable watches.  Every week Andrew and Everett get together and spend about an hour in front of the microphone, with a beer (or five), and talk about watches, food, drinks, life, and other things they like.

If you're not already a listener, we would love to have you along for the ride.  We're currently available on all of the major dedicated podcast places, including iTunes and Google Play. Our Homepage is: https://soundcloud.com/40and20

SO, WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?

40 and 20 has been going since summer 2018. We started (like so many podcasts) with a stupid idea, next to no knowledge, two inexpensive USB microphones, and an old family-computer.  Here we are, many months and hours of recording later, with a bit more knowledge, a Soundcloud Pro account, three cheap USB microphones, and that same old iMac. 

Up to now, all of this has come out of our own pockets. When we started, we had a tiny budget - a budget that has not changed. Every subscription and every piece of equipment we purchase for the podcast comes out of the same bank accounts that Andrew and Everett use to buy food for their families, sign up for summer camps for their children, and to save for their retirement. That is hardly a burden - this is a labor of love, after all - but it does create a limitation to expanding or increasing the quality of our setup (and occasionally to grumpy wives). 

OK, HOW DOES MY CONTRIBUTION HELP?

1. Better recording equipment. 
Our very first goal is to upgrade our recording hardware. Our current setup, while serviceable, comes with some natural limitations. In particular, the following have proved difficult: (1) the ability to easily phone-in guests, and (2) to maintain the highest level of audio quality. USB microphones and free digital audio workstations (DAWs) are excellent for simple home recordings, but their utility quickly degrades as you move to more complex setups and higher demands for fidelity. By purchasing high quality equipment, including analog microphones, a mixer, and a digital recorder, we will be able to increase our recording versatility, improve the quality of our recordings, and drastically decrease editing time and effort (which is not insignificant). 

2. Fund hosting and (maybe) a website.
Currently, we pay $16/mo for our Soundcloud subscription. That may not seem like much, but is not nothing.  Remember - we are each working with wives who check the bank accounts religiously. Your contribution will immediately offset the costs of hosting the podcast, and should make our wives happier! We want happy wives - these patient and wonderful women never expected us to make money with 40 and 20, but it is a hard-sell to spend their money on it. 

Further, although we adore the podcast format, it is not ideal for certain things.  Often you listeners, or even watch brands themselves, send us watches, straps, or other items on loan. We can (and do) talk about that item on the podcast, but usually it doesn't do the item justice.  A better approach to an item "review" is via a website with pictures and the written word. We have not yet made that move, because hosting a website is at least as much money as hosting a podcast; we simply haven't been able to justify that cost without a support network. A website is currently number three on our list (after equipment upgrades and podcast hosting); your money would go directly to offset those costs. 

3. Watch events, travel, and... 
Look guys, sky is the limit here. We don't yet know what comes from this, but we promise to always make thoughtful use of your contributions, and to use them toward making 40 and 20 a better and higher quality thing. Whether that is travel to WindUp or to watch meet-ups with brands, watches, and you, or simply improved hardware, software, and delivery, we pledge that your contributions will always go towards increasing our ability to bring you a better experience.

THANK YOU! 

Thank you again, for being here. We genuinely appreciate your support, whether its by being a patron or just a listener.  

Andrew and Everett