DIY

What you need to Stream

Record for Streaming Later Or Livestream (Cameras are placed closer together than normal to take this picture)

Recording and Streaming Equipment Suggestions

Wedding, Church Service, Webinar, Virtual Tour, Meeting, Interviews…

This is a quick guide to help you get started with streaming content, no matter your budget. If your budget is low, medium or high the lists below will help get you started in the right direction.

A Quick overview of how the equipment on the page works together for streaming

You can get started right now by leveraging YouTube and other streaming services. You can record your content for streaming later or stream live as your event is happening. You don’t need a huge budget to get started. Below is a list of some of the equipment you will need at various budget levels. However, this is only the beginning, taking your content to social media is a journey. When you need help, we can guide you on the journey, so you don’t take costly wrong turns. Yes… you can use Google and YouTube to learn just about anything, but you don’t know what you don’t know. I found out what I didn’t know the hard way… by making the mistakes and purchasing equipment that wasn’t the right equipment for what I was trying to do. Some costly equipment is now sitting on a shelf collecting dust. To be honest you can learn everything you need to know, I did. But I spent money on the wrong equipment because I didn’t know, what I didn’t know. I made some expensive purchases on good equipment but not always the best equipment for what I was trying to do. If I had it to do all over, with the knowledge I have now I would make some fundamental changes in equipment choices. Our goal is to aide you, so you don’t make those mistakes!

We will help you make the right decisions and explain why. Everybody tells you in general what you need, then what? How do these things work in your specific situation? Do you want to buy equipment to be a YouTuber? Or do you have other goals, and YouTube is just a tool?

Beginner Budget Options

Simple setup to record or stream video

To Stream your event: The first step is recording your content to stream later or Live. The provided list will get you started.

To simply stream your event on the internet You just need a camera to record the event and a YouTube account to upload the video to.

To do a live broadcast (Live Stream) you will need obtain Live streaming software and a YouTube account. There are many free app you can use, one is OBS (Open Broadcast Software). It works well and you can easily find tutorials online for getting started with OBS and learning the more advanced features. You will also need a (Gaming) computer or laptop that can handle the workload of transcoding the video stream to the internet and internet access with the bandwidth needed for the stream.

You must spend a little more money to produce a good quality live experience vs recording to stream later. Below is a list of some basic equipment you will need to get started:

For a high-quality broadcast:

A HD Camcorder or DSLR camera (one with a clean HD feed) and tripod
Capture Device To allow your camera input to the computer for streaming live to the internet.
Passive Direct Box to connect to your sound system audio, providing high quality audio. This allows more flexibility for input audio.
Encoding Software to record and stream your content. (for Live Streaming)
Gaming Computer/Laptop to run encoding software to allow you to upload/stream content.
Internet Connection with enough speed to transmit your content.

Medium Budget

Setup a studio system to record and stream events with multiple Cameras

The medium budget equipment needs are basically the same as the low budget option but with higher end choices of equipment and a dedicated higher end laptop/computer. This is the prosumer or professional grade equipment. The right equipment in this category can serve as the building blocks for moving to the next phase in the growth of your program.

Multiple Prosumer or Professional UHD Camcorder or DSLR camera with a clean HD feed. Camcorders are best suited in this category and higher because of extended recording abilities. This camera can also be used for recording events outside of the live service. By purchasing this camera with some additional gear, you’ll be able to produce other high-quality videos content.
Tripods with accessory cage for mounting mics, field monitors and other accessories as needed.
Video Switching/Capture Device allowing your camera(s) to provide high quality video input for streaming.
Passive Direct Box to connect to your sound system audio, providing high quality audio.
Encoding Software to record and stream your content.
Gaming Computer/Laptop to run encoding software to allow you to upload/stream content.
Internet Connection with enough speed to transmit your content.

Higher Budget

With a larger budget you can move to multiple cameras to do things like create multiple camera angles, create picture in picture scenes, follow multiple presenters on separate cameras. This would also require an additional piece of gear.

Cameras: This level will usually involve multiple cameras. In a multi camera setup, all your cameras should match for a consistent look when switching viewing angles. If you’re moving from the medium budget to this higher budget, stick with the same camera you purchased at that level or upgrade all. If you must change cameras, if you followed our recommendations in the medium range, those cameras will still be useful. They can be used for remote events where taking the new equipment on the road would be impractical.
Video Switcher/Capture Device: At this point you would definitely bring in a video switcher to switch between multiple cameras. OBS software as well as others can handle the switching but once you go past 2 cameras you need to go with a separate physical switcher. The switcher should be able to handle multiple digital signal formats such as HDMI and SDI.
Tripods with accessory cage for mounting mics, field monitors and other accessories as needed.
HDMI to SDI converters and the appropriate cables. This will allow your camera to provide high quality video input to your video switcher over longer distances. This equipment, if you followed the progression we suggest, you may not have to purchase these because the cameras you purchased may have SDI outputs already.
Passive Direct Box to connect to your sound system audio, providing high quality audio.
Encoding Software to record and stream your content. At his level there is paid software to consider using other than OBS. Software that has all the features you need without having to find plugins, that is easier to learn to use. However, OBS is free and if you followed a progression to get to this point, you will already be comfortable with and know OBS.
Gaming Computer/Laptop to run encoding software to allow you to upload/stream content. The more you add to your system the better your computer will have to be. Especially if you move into content that needs editing in house.
Internet Connection with enough speed to transmit your content.

This is just the beginning of the higher end of production. At this point things get more complicated and mapping out what you want to do and how far you want to go is needed. Figuring out how far you want to go in the beginning is the best advice I can give because it will help you to make informed decisions. You want to make building block decisions, not dust collecting decisions. Taking your ministry online can be a big job, but there’s a huge range of options available from free to higher end. We can help.