The new ATEM Mini Line's hardware streaming engine, from Blackmagic Design,facilitates live streaming via the unit’s Ethernet connection directly to YouTube Live, Facebook, and Twitch.
In our churches around the country, we’re always on the lookout for game-changing technology that can improve how we work. Now, with the Covid-19 outbreak, the game is changing us, as we scramble for new and effective ways to bring worship and hope to our communities. With the near-universal appeal to maintain social distance, we’ve had to pull it together fast. And for many ministries, the video experience is what has enabled us to maintain and even grow the church’s vital role in our communities.
For many ministries,the video experience is what has enabled us to maintain and even grow the church’s vital role in our communities.
While keeping us safe, social distancing is presenting an opportunity for church technical teams to reset and make plans to improve our technology for remote worship, as well as to prepare for when we can all safely gather again. Here are a few notable new products that can help churches now and into the future.
Professional streaming video for the masses
If you’ve only recently stepped into video, but you feel that you are ready to work with multiple cameras and effects, Blackmagic Design has just announced a new low-cost live production switcher that might be just what you need to take your church’s video look from barebones to professional. At just under $600, the ATEM Mini Pro adds powerful extra features for recording, streaming, and monitoring to Blackmagic’s already impressive and affordable ATEM Mini. What is notable about the new addition to the ATEM Mini line is its new hardware streaming engine that facilitates live streaming via the unit’s Ethernet connection directly to YouTube Live, Facebook, and Twitch. This feature means getting your message to the most popular platforms with better quality, without dropped frames, and with much simpler settings.
The GY-HC500 is part of JVC’s 500 Series and is … the company’s first handheld professional camcorder with a 1-inch sensor.
While live streaming has become a staple for many churches, the ATEM Mini Pro also supports recording the stream directly to USB flash disks in H.264, plus it supports recording to multiple disks for continuous recording. That means that churches can create long recordings in the same H.264 video files with AAC audio that can be directly uploaded to any online video site, such as YouTube and Vimeo.
Among its other professional features, the ATEM Mini Pro includes a multi-view on the HDMI video output that allows all inputs to be monitored on a single monitor. The display even provides producers with a live status of recording, streaming, and the audio mixer. If you happen to have Blackmagic’s Pocket Cinema Camera 4K and 6K models, a new free firmware update from the company’s website not only provides new features for the camera, but also makes a powerful connection to an ATEM Mini switcher. This gives the producer control of the camera parameters, lens, and tally light. The camera’s record light becomes a tally light so talent can immediately see which camera is on-air. The ATEM Software Control camera page has a camera control unit (CCU)-style interface for adjusting and matching their cameras, similar to a true broadcast CCU. You can even ISO record Blackmagic RAW in the camera for editing later.
Pro quality, IP-friendly camcorders
JVC Professional Video has served the remote production world since long before it became a standard, offering a wide range of models to support all remote church applications and budgets. As the current world climate is leading to extremely rapidly changing production formats, it has made wireless streaming video transmission of paramount interest to broadcasters, educators and church leaders alike. Among JVC’s most relevant technologies are the recent announcement of its GY-HC500 Camcorder that shoots in both NTSC and PAL-compatible frame rates, and is designed to seamlessly work with both a traditional as well as IP workflows. With sophisticated built-in streaming and connectivity, this camera is designed to optimize both image processing and IP performance.
What is perhaps most valuable for church audio designers and engineers is that Dynacord's Sonicue sound system software simplifies the professional set-up, tuning, and operation of all sizes of sound reinforcement systems.
The GY-HC500 is part of JVC’s 500 Series and is a fully capable production camcorder with advanced 4K recording. It’s also the company’s first handheld with a 1-inch sensor. The camera has two SDHC/SDXC card slots, records 4K UHD 30p/25p/24p 4:2:0 at an 8-bit depth and has the capability of recording 10-bit ProRes 422 at 4K resolution and 50/60p frame rates with recording to M.2 SSD (requires optional caddy). It also boasts advanced low latency, return video and IFB monitoring and cueing capabilities, making it the ideal choice for remote production. Since the 500 Series began shipping in January, JVC has integrated more support functionality, including the recent addition of HEVC and SRT technologies, to keep pace with the evolving video landscape. “This is especially important to the current production environment,” notes Craig Yanagi, national marketing manager at JVC Professional Video Products, “as churches are coming to rely on equipment that enables them to efficiently provide high-quality video alternatives for streamed services and events. The ability of these cameras to build off a church’s existing IP infrastructure allows churches to reach their maximum production potential, while simultaneously keeping cost and complexity to a minimum.”In addition to its 500 Series, JVC provides additional streaming capabilities for today’s houses of worship with its GY-HM250HW camcorder. This unit offers selectable pre-loaded religious icons and is the industry’s first professional camera that can directly integrate with Facebook Live. Another valuable solution for houses of worship is the company’s KY-PZ100 PTZ camera, which now has the ability to stream the RTMPS protocol, the standard for Facebook Live.
Easy audio set-up, tuning, and control
Dynacord’s SONICUE system-focused software has been around since the middle of 2019. While the original release was designed to support Dynacord’s tour-grade TGX and IPX series amplifiers, the new 1.1 release is a major upgrade that expands its DSP structure for use with Dynacord’s popular live music (L series) and permanent installation (C series) amplifiers, as well as including presets for more Electro-Voice loudspeaker models. Now, with provisions for smaller amplifiers and a preset library that includes smaller speakers, the whole audio ecosystem in a church can be easily controlled via one SONICUE intuitive interface—from the main line arrays in the sanctuary to the ceiling speakers in the hallwaysSONICUE software now features presets for almost all current commercial, portable, install, and concert loudspeaker models from Electro-Voice, including the popular ZLX, ELX200, EKX and ETX portable series, and the EVID commercial family. Expanding the variety of loudspeakers directly supported in the software means that more projects, from smaller church installations all the way up to concert-size venues, can now take full advantage of the benefits that SONICUE brings.
SONICUE 1.1 also includes an important firmware 2.0 upgrade for Dynacord L and C series power amplifiers. Both series offer onboard DSP, advanced FIR-Drive with professional audio performance, and the new firmware expands the DSP structure to give users the same level of input and processing as is found in Dynacord’s tour-grade IPX and TGX amplifiers. Additionally, the user DSP block has been doubled to offer 10 bands of parametric equalization (PEQ); enhanced array processing features include five additional bands of PEQs and dedicated array delay. This enables L and C series amplifiers to be used for more complex setups that require more options for system tuning and more flexibility, for example when working with subwoofer arrays. What is perhaps most valuable for church audio designers and engineers is that the SONICUE sound system software simplifies the professional set-up, tuning, and operation of all sizes of sound reinforcement systems. Its interactive design provides a clear and comprehensive system overview, making sound systems quicker to set up, tune, and operate with minimal effort.
Time to think about new technology
The current break from typical weekly routines might be the ideal time to jump on long-overdue maintenance tasks, and it may also represent a rare opportunity to reset and plan for the future. With technology shows cancelled and congregants at an appropriate social distance, church technology teams can take a breather and invest some time considering what new tech can be the change agents for their churches moving forward.
