This is an essential piece of gear for streaming and one that needs to be carefully selected to match your needs. Tip: If any of your “shots” (Wirecast), clips, or playback features are animated, or if they’re showing live low-frame playback when active or when you mouse-hover over them, turn this feature off. If you’re working with either vMix or OBS, then you’ll want to use a PC. If you’re running Wirecast as your encoding software, use a Mac. This is your engine-it’s the single most important piece of hardware because it’s responsible for actually broadcasting your production.īe sure to close out any non-essential programs running in the background, and keep an eye on CPU usage (I maintain 5-20% normally while streaming). It’s likely you’ll utilize multiple computers on your show, so be sure to use your most reliable and battle-tested machine to run your encoding software. No matter what you’re broadcasting and to whom, many of the principles of live production still apply: Are you producing a clean video image? Does your lighting complement that image? Is your audio clear, crisp, and in sync? And then there’s the newest (and arguably most important) item on the checklist: Do you have a strong and stable internet connection? Let’s take a look at some production tips and gear recommendations that will help you execute your next live stream.Īs always, be sure to check with your university’s equipment-lending program before spending any money on gear! You're reading the latest media kit guide from Connect2 - supporting great equipment loaner services in Higher Education. It’s how gamers show off speed runs for massive audiences, and how a grandmother might show her family the steps required to bake her famous peanut-butter cookies. It’s how news departments handle on-air interviews. Now it’s how we bring in keynote speakers for conferences. It’s always been a staple of my career and I’ve found its transformation incredibly exciting. Over the course of the pandemic, it’s become much easier to pull off. Recent strides in technology, however, have revolutionized the business. Live streaming has never been an industry for the faint of heart.

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