Best live-streaming solution?
December 1, 2011 9:21 AM Subscribe
Next week I'll need to livestream some conference plenary sessions over UStream. In the past, I've solved similar problems with a camcorder, component video to USB converter, and a mediocre laptop.
What's the best solution these days, given that "Of course we have a camera that will work!" has turned into "You have $200 to make this happen."
Possible complications: camera position must be in the back of the ballroom, and I'm working from a 2-year-old office laptop.
Possible complications: camera position must be in the back of the ballroom, and I'm working from a 2-year-old office laptop.
schmod: "Finally, if you've got some money left over in the budget, make sure that the lighting in the room is bright and consistent. If the room is small, you can get a cheap LED video light that should do the trick."
Oh, and if we're starting to nitpick, don't mix different kinds of light sources. Daylight is especially problematic, as it's much more "blue" than incandescent or florescent lighting sources, and will probably be much, much brighter than anything else in the room. If you've got good lighting within the room, draw the curtains.
posted by schmod at 10:32 AM on December 1, 2011
Oh, and if we're starting to nitpick, don't mix different kinds of light sources. Daylight is especially problematic, as it's much more "blue" than incandescent or florescent lighting sources, and will probably be much, much brighter than anything else in the room. If you've got good lighting within the room, draw the curtains.
posted by schmod at 10:32 AM on December 1, 2011
Response by poster: I have neither camera, nor capture device. My big hesitation around HD webcam is the distance from the back of the room.
posted by piro at 10:47 AM on December 1, 2011
posted by piro at 10:47 AM on December 1, 2011
Laptop has no firewire input?
How long is the event? You can rent a much better camera than you can buy for the same price.
posted by RobotHero at 12:15 PM on December 1, 2011
How long is the event? You can rent a much better camera than you can buy for the same price.
posted by RobotHero at 12:15 PM on December 1, 2011
I've been livestreaming(free channel) for about two years at my work. We have author signings and I stream the programs which last about an hour. I've always had issues trying to do this well and have spent countless hours reading about it, to what seems like no avail. The main factor ultimately ultimately appears to be cash.
I used an old DV Camcorder to firewire-in on a Mini-Mac. Poor quality but functional. I finally figured out how to just run the audio out from the PA to the computer, so even though the picture was bad, now the audio was clear. I've recently tried two hundred dollar webcams which couldn't focus on the subject at any distance.
Now I'm attempting to make the jump to something more legitimate but can't figure out what the best way would be. I'm thinking that Wowza might be an option as I built our website and have had success running a feed from Flash Media Encoder to a JW Player on my Wordpress Site. In that case though, the resolution still was atrocious.
I've now got a new Samsung Quad Core laptop and an HD camcorder.
My questions though are...Will 3MB up be enough to get a good quality stream? (It doesn't have to be HD.)
Do I have to buy one of these HDMI encoders? (My camcorder doesn't have Firewire out)
Should I just wait for Youtube's live streaming program to start?
Livestream is 300 a month. Which is a lot. Is it cheaper to go with Wowza since I have the equipment? I really would like to get away from the ads etc.
That's it, thank you for anyone that can give me a hand.
posted by whanisko at 8:47 PM on March 28, 2012
I used an old DV Camcorder to firewire-in on a Mini-Mac. Poor quality but functional. I finally figured out how to just run the audio out from the PA to the computer, so even though the picture was bad, now the audio was clear. I've recently tried two hundred dollar webcams which couldn't focus on the subject at any distance.
Now I'm attempting to make the jump to something more legitimate but can't figure out what the best way would be. I'm thinking that Wowza might be an option as I built our website and have had success running a feed from Flash Media Encoder to a JW Player on my Wordpress Site. In that case though, the resolution still was atrocious.
I've now got a new Samsung Quad Core laptop and an HD camcorder.
My questions though are...Will 3MB up be enough to get a good quality stream? (It doesn't have to be HD.)
Do I have to buy one of these HDMI encoders? (My camcorder doesn't have Firewire out)
Should I just wait for Youtube's live streaming program to start?
Livestream is 300 a month. Which is a lot. Is it cheaper to go with Wowza since I have the equipment? I really would like to get away from the ads etc.
That's it, thank you for anyone that can give me a hand.
posted by whanisko at 8:47 PM on March 28, 2012
This thread is closed to new comments.
Firstly, do not stream the webcasts over WiFi. Find an ethernet drop that you can plug into. This is completely non-negotiable. Trust me on this one.
Also, it's worth noting that many people have better luck using the free Adobe Flash Media Live Encoder than the software that UStream provide (you can download a FMLE configuration file from your UStream account that has all of the important connection info filled in for you). You'll have to play around with the codec settings to find something that works with your hardware and bandwidth (to start, you can knock the framerate down to 20fps, don't need to use the highest resolution possible, and a 56kbps mono audio track is perfectly adequate for spoken-word content). Make sure you're not exceeding 60% CPU usage while running the webcast. Anything higher, and you risk dropping frames, which is bad.
Secondly, the camera will be a tough issue. If you've got a camera with component video output, I'm assuming it can do *some* sort of HD? If so, I guess you should use that. If not, your best bet will be to buy a very high-quality webcam, and figure out how to somehow put it on a tripod.
HD webcams are currently a better option than using an old camcorder and an analog capture device, and may even be better than using a DV camcorder + Firewire.
Thirdly, you need to find a good way to capture audio. If you've already figured that out elsewhere (ie. there's a PA, and you're taking a feed from that), great. Otherwise, don't expect the microphone on the camera or laptop to produce usable audio if you're in a big room. Even if you've got a PA, you will still have an issue if somebody who is not mic'd speaks. For this reason, I'd strongly recommend buying a shotgun mic, and playing around with the placement of it, to get the best quality recording from the room. Getting sound right is really important, so don't gloss over this part.
Finally, if you've got some money left over in the budget, make sure that the lighting in the room is bright and consistent. If the room is small, you can get a cheap LED video light that should do the trick.
posted by schmod at 10:29 AM on December 1, 2011