With so many organizations and churches streaming, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the way we stream is constantly improving. Gone are the days when simply having content on the web was enough to be cutting edge; now, I dare say, it’s required. In the past few years, standalone streaming devices have become readily available and are not particularly expensive. I’m a fan of these devices because they keep you from tying up a computer, which could probably be better utilized elsewhere. One of my favorite devices was the original Matrox Monarch, so when I heard that they were releasing a new version --- the Monarch LCS --- it definitely caught my attention. I was drawn to the original Matrox Monarch because it combines streaming and local capture in one device. With the introduction of the new Monarch LCS, Matrox has added a twist: synchronized capture from multiple devices and streaming.
The new Matrox Monarch LCS is being sold as a lecture capture appliance, because it will capture a camera and a computer, and stream either or both. To really oversimplify it, the LCS can do a picture-in-picture of a presenter and a Power Point presentation.
The Monarch LCS allows the viewer to define the layout of the content on their viewing screen.
We have yet to receive a review unit, so this First Impression article is based upon available information. However, what I find interesting is the new Matrox Monarh LCS offers the exact set of features that many churches want for their messages. One of the often-overlooked issues with doing this type of dual-input encoding is that computers and cameras deliver video at different resolutions and frame rates. The LCS has a built-in frame synchronizer, so it can ensure that both signals are synced together prior to streaming them out.
Hot Design
The brushed aluminum box is reminiscent of long-gone Mac Pro towers. It’s small enough that two Monarch LCS units will fit on a single rack shelf side by side. But don’t let the small size fool you, there is a lot of horse power packed into this tiny package.
The back of the Monarch LCS features two HDMI inputs (A and B), an SDI in (A only), and HDMI and SDI outputs. The outputs can be used to monitor what is being recorded or streamed. It also has 1/8-inch analog audio in and out as well as Gigabit Ethernet Port and RS-232 connector. All of this is pretty standard run-of-the-mill I/O. The only real surprise here is both SDI and HDMI outputs are always active and both can be mapped to receive content from any input[1] . The HDMI output also gives the operator the option of selecting the production output at the frame size of the encoding parameters, enabling them to preview content that will be sent to the remote viewer.
The front panel has a deceptively simple looking interface that can control the input selection, switch between inputs as well as start and stop encoding. If those controls seem too simple, the Monarch LCS can also be controlled by Crestron or by command center on any web-enabled device. The front of the unit is also where all the storage interfaces with the unit. This is accomplished with an SD card slot and two USB ports. External hard drives can be attached via the USB ports, giving the end user the option to record for very long durations.
Cool Features
One of the most attention getting features of the new Monarch LCS is the ability for the layout to be viewer-defined. When paired with compatible third-party media players the viewer gets the option to select the layout they want to view. They can even switch layouts while streaming. This is great for those times you have a long verse or a map as part of your pastor’s sermon. The viewer can opt to watch just the pastor, the pastor with the notes next to him or even switch to full screen notes to get a good look at those bible verses or maps. Putting this control in the viewer’s hands is huge, giving people the option to view what they want how they want. It doesn’t get much better than that.
The other feature I find impressive is the store and forward capability. This has some real applications in the church world where you want to archive or upload an on-demand file to the internet. However, you don’t what to try and do it while all the congregation’s smart phones are still clogging your pipe. Once it has recorded files locally to an SD card or USB attached storage it can transfer the files over the network, or via FTP/sFTP protocols to cloud based servers at a later time. This transfer can be triggered manually or automatically at a scheduled preset time.
At the end of the day the new Matrox Monarch LCS is going to get you a lot of bang for your buck. At $2,495 it’s not the cheapest streaming box on the market, but I’m not sure too many other devices can boast the feature set and ability to stream two inputs. I think many churches would love the option to be able to provide notes into a stream completely separate from their main program or camera feed. As a viewer, I really like the option to be able to select how I watch the video. As someone who watches multi-viewers all the time, a two-up window doesn’t bother me. However, I can see other people finding it too busy, so being able to serve both is a real winner.
I am interested to see what would happened if you simply plugged two cameras into Monarch LCS instead of a computer, but nothing in the documentation mentioned it. We’ll wait for the review unit to arrive so we can learn more about this and other features. If the two-camera option were also a possibility, the new Monarch LCS would go from simply “great new technology” to a game-changer for the church production market.
