The Gear I
Actually Use
No sponsored picks. No theoretical lists. This is what runs across @VanLife (120K subs) and @GotCoach (50K subs) right now.
Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you buy through them, Aaron earns a small commission at no extra cost to you. Only gear personally tested or used by clients is featured here.
See the 5 Curated Kits Instead
Hand-picked combinations for every stage and use case. Starter, Growth, Pro Studio, Mobile Creator, Podcast. Aaron picks the products. You hit Buy.
Aaron's Personal Setup
What's actually filming the videos right now.
DJI Mic Mini
Ultralight alternative to Hollyland Lark M2
- Only 10g per transmitter
- 400m range
- 48hr battery with charging case
On-camera personalities who want the mic invisible. Property tour creators who walk a lot.
View on Amazon
Elgato Key Light Mini
Portable, app-controlled, excellent for desk setups
- App control (no fumbling with physical knobs on camera)
- Battery powered (works anywhere)
- High CRI for accurate skin tones
Desk creators who want pro lighting without a stand and softbox.
View on Amazon
Sony ZV-E10 II
Best vlogging camera in 2026
- 4K with no crop
- Excellent built-in directional mic
- Flip-out screen for self-monitoring
Anyone who's outgrown their phone and is ready to invest in real glass.
View on Amazon
Sony ZV-1 II
Compact alternative to ZV-E10 II. Fixed lens.
- Compact one-piece design
- Excellent autofocus tracking
- Wide-angle lens built in (no lens swap needed)
Creators who want one device and don't want to think about lens decisions.
View on Amazon
Sony 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6
Kit lens for ZV-E10 II
- Versatile zoom range (wide to short telephoto)
- Lightweight
- Pairs perfectly with ZV-E10 II body
Default lens for the ZV-E10 II until you know what specialty glass you actually need.
View on Amazon
Elgato Key Light Air (Pair)
$130 each. Buy two for proper key + fill.
- Desk-mount design (no light stands needed)
- App-controlled
- 2800K to 7000K range
Permanent desk setup. Talking head creators who film in the same spot every time.
View on Amazon
Sony a6700
APS-C flagship. AI autofocus, 4K 120fps, pro-grade codecs.
- AI-powered subject tracking (eye, face, body)
- 4K at 120fps for slow-mo
- Professional codecs (S-Log3, ProRes-style)
Channels with revenue, ready to commit to a pro body.
View on Amazon
Sony a7C II
Full-frame. Exceptional low-light. Future-proof investment.
- Full-frame sensor (better low-light, shallower depth of field)
- Compact body for a full-frame
- Future-proof for years of channel growth
Creators committed to YouTube long-term who want top-tier image quality.
View on Amazon
DJI RS 4
Essential for property tours and walkthroughs
- 3-axis stabilization
- Holds full-frame mirrorless cameras
- Smooth tracking shots
Real estate, travel, vanlife, anyone whose content involves walking through spaces.
View on Amazon
DJI Mini 4 Pro
Under 249g. No Part 107 license needed for hobby use. 4K aerial.
- Under 249g (no FAA registration needed for recreational use)
- 4K video
- Obstacle sensing
Real estate creators, travel/vanlife, anyone who wants aerial B-roll without commercial drone licensing.
View on Amazon
DJI Osmo Pocket 3
Built-in gimbal. 16mm wide. Quick B-roll capture.
- Built-in 3-axis gimbal (no external rig needed)
- 1-inch sensor (better than most action cams)
- Pocket-sized
B-roll, behind-the-scenes, vlogging on the move. Aaron's @VanLife setup uses this heavily.
View on Amazon
Elgato Stream Deck MK.2
Programmable LCD button panel. Switch scenes, mute mic, fire macros with one tap.
- 15 customizable LCD keys
- Built for OBS, Streamlabs, Twitch, YouTube Live
- Trigger AI prompts, copy snippets, control lights
Live streamers, podcasters, anyone with multi-scene workflows. Cuts mid-stream chaos by 90 percent.
View on Amazon
Claude
Free; Pro $20/mo
- Long-form writing
- Deep strategy work
- Document analysis
Writing strategy docs, book chapters, multi-step thinking.
View on Amazon
N8N
Free (self-hosted); Cloud from $24/mo
- Open source
- Aaron's primary automation engine
- AI avatar generation
Builders who want full control of their automation stack without per-zap pricing.
View on Amazon
GoHighLevel
$97-297/mo
- Aaron's primary CRM (already in his stack)
- Landing pages, email sequences, pipeline management, appointment booking in one
- Replaces 5+ tools
Anyone running a real business through YouTube. The complete back-end.
View on Amazon
Skool
$99/mo
- Courses + community in one
- Where Aaron's coaching members live
- Gamification built in
Anyone monetizing community access. Where the Crazy Simple YouTube community lives.
View on AmazonBy Tier and Use Case
Starter Tier $0 to $500
Anyone starting out with no budget pressure.
Your Smartphone (iPhone 14+ or Samsung S23+)
Free. You already own it.
- Shoot in 4K at 30fps
- Use back camera, never the selfie cam
- Modern phones rival entry-level mirrorless cameras
Anyone starting out. Period.
UBeesize 67" Phone Tripod
Phone + camera compatible. Remote shutter included.
- Works with both phones and cameras
- 67 inches tall (no awkward filming angles)
- Bluetooth remote in the box
Talking head, property tours, any locked-off shot.
View on Amazon
Hollyland Lark M2
Best budget wireless mic in 2026
- Wireless with 1000ft range
- 48kHz/24bit audio quality
- Fast pairing, idiot-proof setup
Anyone filming outside, in cars, or moving around. Don't bother with a wired lav if you're filming property tours.
View on AmazonDJI Mic Mini
Ultralight alternative to Hollyland Lark M2
- Only 10g per transmitter
- 400m range
- 48hr battery with charging case
On-camera personalities who want the mic invisible. Property tour creators who walk a lot.
View on Amazon
Maono PD300X
USB + XLR dual output. Grow into it.
- Dual USB and XLR connections
- Clear vocal profile out of the box
- No interface needed for USB mode
Desk-based talking head. Podcasters. Anyone who films in one fixed location.
View on Amazon
Neewer 18" Ring Light
Adjustable color temp. Phone mount built in.
- Adjustable color temperature (warm to cool)
- Phone mount in the center
- Even, flattering light on the face
Indoor talking head. Anyone filming at a desk or against a wall.
View on AmazonElgato Key Light Mini
Portable, app-controlled, excellent for desk setups
- App control (no fumbling with physical knobs on camera)
- Battery powered (works anywhere)
- High CRI for accurate skin tones
Desk creators who want pro lighting without a stand and softbox.
View on Amazon
PromptSmart Pro (App)
Voice-activated scrolling. Works on any tablet.
- Scrolls to your voice (no foot pedal)
- Recognizes when you skip or repeat
- Works on phones and tablets
Anyone who needs script support but doesn't want to look like they're reading.
View on AmazonGrowth Tier $500 to $2,000
Channels generating leads, ready to upgrade.
Sony ZV-E10 II
Best vlogging camera in 2026
- 4K with no crop
- Excellent built-in directional mic
- Flip-out screen for self-monitoring
Anyone who's outgrown their phone and is ready to invest in real glass.
View on AmazonSony ZV-1 II
Compact alternative to ZV-E10 II. Fixed lens.
- Compact one-piece design
- Excellent autofocus tracking
- Wide-angle lens built in (no lens swap needed)
Creators who want one device and don't want to think about lens decisions.
View on AmazonSony 16-50mm f/3.5-5.6
Kit lens for ZV-E10 II
- Versatile zoom range (wide to short telephoto)
- Lightweight
- Pairs perfectly with ZV-E10 II body
Default lens for the ZV-E10 II until you know what specialty glass you actually need.
View on Amazon
Rode Wireless Go II
Dual-channel wireless. 200m range. On-board recording backup.
- Two transmitters in one kit (interview-ready)
- 200m range
- Records to onboard memory as a backup
Two-person interviews, property walkthroughs with co-host, anyone who's gone wireless and never going back.
View on Amazon
Rode VideoMic Pro+
On-camera shotgun. Great for mobile/outdoor shooting.
- Mounts directly to camera hot shoe
- Great for outdoor and mobile shooting
- Auto power on/off with camera
Run-and-gun creators who don't want to clip a lav every shot.
View on Amazon
Shure MV7+
USB + XLR hybrid. Touch panel. Auto-level technology.
- USB and XLR in one mic (grow into pro setup)
- Auto-leveling so you don't blow the mix
- Touch panel controls (no fumbling)
Podcasters and desk-based creators who want broadcast sound without a separate audio interface.
View on AmazonElgato Key Light Air (Pair)
$130 each. Buy two for proper key + fill.
- Desk-mount design (no light stands needed)
- App-controlled
- 2800K to 7000K range
Permanent desk setup. Talking head creators who film in the same spot every time.
View on Amazon
Parrot Teleprompter V3
Mounts on camera lens. Professional delivery improvement.
- Mounts directly on the camera lens
- Eyes stay on the lens (looks natural)
- Compatible with most cameras and phones
Anyone scripting their videos who wants to ditch the awkward off-screen glance.
View on Amazon
SanDisk Extreme Pro 128GB
V30 speed rating minimum for 4K recording.
- V30 minimum speed (required for 4K)
- Reliable, no dropped frames
- Industry standard
Mandatory for 4K recording. Don't cheap out on cards.
View on AmazonElgato Stream Deck MK.2
Programmable LCD button panel. Switch scenes, mute mic, fire macros with one tap.
- 15 customizable LCD keys
- Built for OBS, Streamlabs, Twitch, YouTube Live
- Trigger AI prompts, copy snippets, control lights
Live streamers, podcasters, anyone with multi-scene workflows. Cuts mid-stream chaos by 90 percent.
View on Amazon
Elgato Cam Link 4K
Turns any HDMI camera into a 4K USB webcam.
- Use your real camera as a webcam
- Plug-and-play USB-C
- 4K passthrough at 30fps
Anyone with a mirrorless camera who wants pro quality on streams or video calls.
View on Amazon
Elgato Facecam Pro
4K60 webcam built specifically for streamers and creators.
- True 4K at 60fps
- Designed for live streaming, no driver headaches
- Better than any laptop or mirrorless-via-Cam-Link for plug-and-play
Streamers and creators who want studio quality without the mirrorless camera setup.
View on Amazon
Elgato Wave:3
Premium USB condenser mic with software mixer.
- Plug-and-play USB
- Built-in clipguard prevents distortion
- Wave Link app gives you software-level mixing
Streamers who want one cable from mic to PC without an audio interface.
View on AmazonPro Tier $2,000 to $5,000+
Channels with revenue, ready to scale production quality.
Sony a6700
APS-C flagship. AI autofocus, 4K 120fps, pro-grade codecs.
- AI-powered subject tracking (eye, face, body)
- 4K at 120fps for slow-mo
- Professional codecs (S-Log3, ProRes-style)
Channels with revenue, ready to commit to a pro body.
View on AmazonSony a7C II
Full-frame. Exceptional low-light. Future-proof investment.
- Full-frame sensor (better low-light, shallower depth of field)
- Compact body for a full-frame
- Future-proof for years of channel growth
Creators committed to YouTube long-term who want top-tier image quality.
View on Amazon
Sigma 16mm f/1.4
Talking-head hero lens
- Fast aperture for creamy background blur
- Wide enough for handheld vlogging
- Sharp wide open
Talking head creators who want that 'cinematic' shallow depth of field look.
View on Amazon
Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8
All-in-one zoom
- Constant f/2.8 across the entire zoom range
- Wide enough for room shots, long enough for tight portraits
- Property tours and talking head in one lens
Real estate creators, property tour channels, anyone who hates swapping lenses mid-shoot.
View on Amazon
Shure SM7B
Industry standard broadcast mic. Requires audio interface.
- The mic used by Joe Rogan, every podcast network, every radio station
- Rejects room noise extremely well
- Broadcast-quality vocal warmth
Podcasters, talking head creators, anyone with a permanent recording space and a separate audio interface.
View on Amazon
Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 (4th Gen)
Pairs with SM7B. Clean preamps. USB-C.
- Required if you're using the SM7B
- Clean, quiet preamps (great with low-output mics)
- USB-C connection
Mandatory partner for the Shure SM7B.
View on Amazon
Aputure Amaran 200d
Daylight-balanced LED. Professional 3-point lighting.
- 200W of daylight-balanced output
- High CRI for accurate color
- Bowens mount (works with all standard modifiers)
Anyone serious about three-point lighting. Serious cinematic look.
View on AmazonDJI RS 4
Essential for property tours and walkthroughs
- 3-axis stabilization
- Holds full-frame mirrorless cameras
- Smooth tracking shots
Real estate, travel, vanlife, anyone whose content involves walking through spaces.
View on AmazonDJI Mini 4 Pro
Under 249g. No Part 107 license needed for hobby use. 4K aerial.
- Under 249g (no FAA registration needed for recreational use)
- 4K video
- Obstacle sensing
Real estate creators, travel/vanlife, anyone who wants aerial B-roll without commercial drone licensing.
View on AmazonDJI Osmo Pocket 3
Built-in gimbal. 16mm wide. Quick B-roll capture.
- Built-in 3-axis gimbal (no external rig needed)
- 1-inch sensor (better than most action cams)
- Pocket-sized
B-roll, behind-the-scenes, vlogging on the move. Aaron's @VanLife setup uses this heavily.
View on AmazonThe Tools That Run It All
CapCut Desktop
Free; Pro $8/mo
- AI captions
- Built-in templates
- Auto-reframe for Shorts
Beginners and Shorts-first creators. The fastest editor for simple cuts.
View on Amazon
Descript
$24-33/mo
- Edit video by editing text
- AI filler word removal
- Studio Sound noise removal (free with sub)
Anyone who values speed and AI-assisted workflows over frame-perfect timeline control.
View on Amazon
DaVinci Resolve
Free; Studio $295 one-time
- Free version is genuinely professional
- Industry-leading color grading
- No subscription
Editors who want pro tools without Adobe's monthly bill.
View on Amazon
Adobe Premiere Pro
$23/mo (Creative Cloud)
- Industry standard
- Most plugins and integrations
- AI features via Firefly
Pros, agencies, anyone collaborating with editors who use Premiere.
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Final Cut Pro
$300 one-time
- Magnetic timeline
- Optimized for Apple silicon
- Fast rendering
Mac users who want the fastest possible workflow on Apple hardware.
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FireCut
$15-30/mo
- AI auto-cuts inside Premiere Pro
- Silence removal
- Chapter detection
Premiere Pro users who want AI assist without leaving their existing workflow.
View on Amazon
ChatGPT
Free; Plus $20/mo
- Content ideation, script outlines, title variations
- Massive plugin ecosystem
- Image generation built in
Quick brainstorms, title variations, description drafts.
View on AmazonClaude
Free; Pro $20/mo
- Long-form writing
- Deep strategy work
- Document analysis
Writing strategy docs, book chapters, multi-step thinking.
View on Amazon
Google Gemini
Free; Advanced $20/mo
- Multimodal (text + image + video)
- Integrated with Google ecosystem
- Real-time data access
Research with sources. Analyzing competitor videos. Image-based research.
View on Amazon
Perplexity AI
Free; Pro $20/mo
- Sourced research with citations
- Real-time data
- Designed for research, not chat
Researching script content where you need to cite real, current sources.
View on Amazon
ElevenLabs
$5-99/mo
- Clone your own voice
- Voiceovers for B-roll without re-recording
- Multi-language support
Voiceovers for B-roll, repurposing into other languages, faceless channels.
View on Amazon
Adobe Podcast AI
Free (web-based)
- Free
- Cleans up bad audio after the fact
- Dead simple (upload, download)
Anyone who recorded audio in a less-than-ideal space and needs to fix it.
View on Amazon
Midjourney
$10-30/mo
- Best AI image quality available
- Custom thumbnail backgrounds
- Conceptual B-roll imagery
Creators who need custom imagery they can't shoot themselves.
View on Amazon
OpusClip
$19-49/mo
- AI auto-extracts the best moments from long-form
- Generates 10-15 viral-scored Shorts per video
- Auto-captions
Repurposing long-form into Shorts without manual editing time.
View on Amazon
Vidyo.ai
$30-50/mo
- Alternative to OpusClip
- Good for batch processing multiple videos at once
- Different scoring algorithm (sometimes finds different clips)
Agencies and creators repurposing high volume.
View on Amazon
Revid.ai
Free; Pro up to $29/mo
- Text-to-video Shorts
- Auto Mode generates daily content
- Good for faceless niches
Faceless channel operators or creators who want a content stream without filming.
View on Amazon
Riverside.fm
$19-29/mo
- Records remote interviews with separate tracks
- Local recording (no internet quality issues)
- AI Magic Clips for short-form
Anyone recording remote interviews or guest content.
View on Amazon
Buffer / Hootsuite
Free tier; Pro from $15/mo
- Schedule across Instagram, X, LinkedIn, Facebook
- Set and forget
- Both have generous free tiers
Cross-platform repurposing without daily manual posting.
View on Amazon
Canva Pro
$13/mo
- Thumbnail templates
- Magic Eraser
- Background removal
Thumbnail creation if you're not in Photoshop. Brand asset creation.
View on Amazon
Photoshop
$23/mo (Creative Cloud)
- Generative Fill for backgrounds
- Professional compositing
- Industry standard for thumbnail designers
Anyone hiring a designer or doing pro-level thumbnails themselves.
View on Amazon
Pikzels
$9-29/mo
- Scores thumbnail effectiveness before publishing
- Predicts CTR
- Compares variants
Channels with traffic where small CTR improvements move the needle.
View on Amazon
Remove.bg
Free; Pro up to $10/mo
- One-click background removal
- Web-based, no install
- Cheap or free
Cutting out subjects for thumbnails. Quick one-off background removal.
View on AmazonN8N
Free (self-hosted); Cloud from $24/mo
- Open source
- Aaron's primary automation engine
- AI avatar generation
Builders who want full control of their automation stack without per-zap pricing.
View on Amazon
Zapier
$20-70/mo
- Largest integration library
- Connects GoHighLevel, Skool, email, YouTube
- No code required
Quick wins where you need two tools talking to each other now.
View on Amazon
Make.com
$9-29/mo
- More flexible than Zapier for complex flows
- Visual builder with branching logic
- Cheaper at scale
Multi-step scenarios that Zapier struggles with.
View on Amazon
TubeBuddy
Free; Pro from $8/mo
- Keyword Explorer
- Tag suggestions
- Thumbnail A/B testing
Mandatory for anyone serious about YouTube SEO.
View on Amazon
VidIQ
Free; Pro from $17/mo
- Views Per Hour tracking
- Competitor analysis
- Daily Ideas (algorithmic suggestions)
Complement to TubeBuddy. Different signals, both useful.
View on Amazon
ViewStats
Free; Pro from $10/mo
- 2,500x more data points than competitors
- Viral prediction
- Built by people running 100M+ sub channels
Channels chasing the algorithm at scale.
View on Amazon
Social Blade
Free
- Public channel analytics
- Competitor growth tracking
- Free
Spying on competitors. Tracking your own growth rate over time.
View on Amazon
Poppy AI
$15-40/mo
- Analyze competitor videos
- Generate scripts in your voice
- Hook templates
Channels copying winning competitor formats fast.
View on Amazon
Notion
Free; Plus from $10/mo
- Content calendars
- Video databases
- SOPs
Solo creators and teams managing content pipelines.
View on Amazon
Trello
Free; Standard from $10/mo
- Kanban boards
- Visual workflow management
- Idea, Script, Film, Edit, Publish pipelines
Visual thinkers who want a simple kanban for their video pipeline.
View on AmazonGoHighLevel
$97-297/mo
- Aaron's primary CRM (already in his stack)
- Landing pages, email sequences, pipeline management, appointment booking in one
- Replaces 5+ tools
Anyone running a real business through YouTube. The complete back-end.
View on AmazonSkool
$99/mo
- Courses + community in one
- Where Aaron's coaching members live
- Gamification built in
Anyone monetizing community access. Where the Crazy Simple YouTube community lives.
View on Amazon
Calendly
Free; Pro from $12/mo
- Embed in YouTube descriptions
- Reduces scheduling friction to zero
- Integrates with everything
Mandatory if you want viewers to book calls.
View on Amazon
Kit (formerly ConvertKit)
Free; Creator Pro from $29/mo
- Visual automation builder
- Creator-focused (built for newsletters and digital products)
- Good free tier
If you're not using GoHighLevel yet. Email-only setup.
View on Amazon
Leadpages
$37-74/mo
- Standalone landing pages
- Conversion-tested templates
- Faster than building from scratch
When you need a quick landing page outside your main CRM.
View on Amazon
Stripe
2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
- Connects to GoHighLevel and Skool
- Handles subscriptions and one-time payments
- Industry standard
Mandatory for collecting money online.
View on Amazon
Carrd
Free; Pro $19/year
- Quick one-page websites
- Dead simple setup
- Cheap
Link-in-bio pages, single lead magnets, simple landing pages.
View on AmazonThe Principle
Tools don't build channels. You do. The creator with a smartphone and a $50 mic who publishes twice a week will outperform the creator with $10,000 in gear who publishes twice a month. Every single time.
Start with what you have. Upgrade when it's the bottleneck, not when it's the excuse.
Run the AI Advisor →
Paste your situation into ChatGPT or Claude and get a custom pick.
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Affiliate disclosure: Some links on this page are affiliate links. Aaron earns a small commission at no cost to you when you purchase through them. This keeps the site, worksheets, and prompt library free.