Sanctuary cameras, broadcast audio and streaming for worship.
Streaming systems for sanctuaries, designed, installed and supported by Varto, with stored shots, controls and documentation built for a rotating volunteer team.
Start where last Sunday's stream fell short.
Build in phases: the first fixes what online viewers or volunteers notice most. When the complaint is the sound, audio comes first.
| What you hear | Where to start |
|---|---|
| The stream sounds thin, loud or far away | A broadcast mix of its own, split from the house console (over Dante where the console has it), with ambient microphones for the congregation and choir. Every camera, recording and stream added later uses that audio. |
| Viewers cannot see the altar, the pulpit or the choir | PTZ cameras placed for each part of the service, each with stored shots, or an operated camera where a volunteer can run one. |
| The volunteers are overwhelmed, and every service looks different | Switching and camera control side by side at one position, with macros and stored shots built around the order of service, and a written start-up. |
| The overflow room and the social hall cannot follow the service | Video over NDI to a decoder at each display, with its audio; rooms can be added one at a time. |
The people in the room also hear the voices and instruments directly; the stream hears only the microphones, so it needs a mix of its own, set for headphones and phone speakers. Funerals and special services stream from the same system.
Congregations Varto has worked with.
A cathedral streaming its liturgy.
PTZ cameras placed to cover the liturgy respectfully, TriCaster switching and a repeatable service workflow.
Varto has also worked with Our Lady of Consolation in Wayne, NJ, and Calvary Baptist Church in Morristown, NJ.
PTZ cameras on stored shots, or a camera a volunteer runs.
Stored shots cover the altar, the pulpit and the wide view; an operated camera adds the moments they cannot anticipate.
BirdDog X4E Ultra, manufacturer photographPTZ on stored shots
- Who runs it
- One volunteer at a controller, recalling a shot for each part of the service.
- In the sanctuary
- Out of the sight lines, with quiet drives, so nobody stands in the aisle.
- Panasonic AW-UE80 and UE50: quiet drives, a 24x zoom and NDI; 4K60 on the UE80, 4K30 on the UE50.
- BirdDog X4E Ultra: 4K60 over NDI and HDMI, HD over 3G-SDI, on PoE+.
- PTZOptics Link 4K and Move 4K: Link 4K carries Dante AV-H video and audio; Move 4K tracks a presenter on its own.
- Canon CR-N300: HD over SDI and 4K30 over HDMI, for an SDI or HDMI switcher.
- Controllers: a Panasonic AW-RP60 for Panasonic cameras, or a BirdDog KBD with up to four previews.
A camera a volunteer runs
- Who runs it
- A volunteer behind the camera, for processions, the choir or a baptism.
- In the sanctuary
- A position with a view that does not block the congregation.
- Canon XF605: one-inch 4K60, a 15x zoom, 12G-SDI and two XLR inputs.
- Panasonic AG-CX370: adds NDI HX2, genlock and switcher tally.
- Blackmagic Studio Camera 4K Plus G2: on an ATEM Television Studio, the return feed carries tally, talkback and camera control, so the operator hears the director.
Built for a rotation of volunteers with day jobs.
Each position is set up at commissioning for the one duty its volunteer owns, so each week starts from the same setup.
Cameras: stored shots
A stored shot for each part of the service, recalled from the controller or a Stream Deck set up for cameras that support it.
Switching: a few buttons
On a TriCaster Mini X, macros and the Mini Control Panel keep cutting and text to a few buttons; on QuickLink StudioPro, each button recalls a finished layout.
A layout for each duty
Browser layouts built in LivePanel, on TriCaster Mini X, Prizm and Vizion.
Written steps and training
Start-up, shut-down and what to do when something does not come up, at the desk; training on your system, with refreshers bookable when new people join.
Training
A clean mix, simple switching and the rooms beyond the sanctuary.
A three-camera sanctuary, in signal order
A first build for a volunteer team: a stream mix of its own, three cameras on stored shots, and the overflow room.
- Microphones
Ambient microphones and Sennheiser EW-DX wirelessThe house microphones, plus ambient microphones for the congregation and choir. EW-DX has Dante on the EM 2 Dante and EM 4 Dante receivers; the EM 2 has analog outputs only. Dante AVIO adapters put analog receivers and laptops on the network.SennheiserAudinate - Stream mix
Allen & Heath Qu DThe Qu-5D, Qu-6D and Qu-7D have Dante built in, for a smaller mix beside the house console.
Yamaha DM3 or TFThe DM3 has Dante ports; the DM3 Standard has none. TF consoles take Dante through an NY64-D card.YamahaWhere the house console has Dante, the stream mix takes its split over the network. A Dante stagebox such as a Yamaha Tio1608-D2 pairs with a DM3 for inputs at the stage.
- Cameras and controlThree PTZ cameras on stored shots, from one controllerThe altar, the pulpit and the wide view.Camera choices
- Switching, graphics and stream
Vizrt TriCaster Mini X or PrizmMini X takes eight inputs from HDMI and NDI sources; Prizm takes sixteen inputs over IP, with 8 SDI inputs when ordered with the chassis. Both run LivePanel layouts.TriCaster
Blackmagic ATEM Mini Pro ISO or Television Studio HD8 ISOHDMI cameras into a Mini Pro ISO that streams and records from the box; SDI cameras into a Television Studio HD8 ISO with a built-in panel.Blackmagic Design
QuickLink StudioProSwitching, audio, graphics, recording and streaming, each button recalling a finished layout; NewBlue Captivate graphics included.QuickLinkLyrics and liturgy graphics come in from the presentation computer as a source.
- Network
NETGEAR M4250 switches with NDI and Dante profilesThe cameras, the stream mix and the overflow feed on one managed network.NETGEAR AV - Overflow
A Kiloview D350 at each displayDecodes NDI or SRT to HDMI up to 4K60 or to 3G-SDI; a switcher without NDI output needs an encoder first.Kiloview
Also quoted with the room: cable, racks and power, lighting where the cameras need it, talkback for any operated camera, and the configuration, commissioning, documentation and volunteer training.
Committees, gifts and phased budgets.
Approvals and budgets
Board and committee approvals, donor gifts, capital campaigns and phased upgrades, with good, better and best options a committee can compare.
Start from what you have
We audit the house console, cameras and wiring first and keep what works.
Support and training
Support for volunteer-run rooms: per-incident help before a service, a Varto OnAir plan for the weekly schedule, or Professional Services Blocks for refresher training when the rotation changes. Coverage is confirmed for your equipment.
Repair
Eligible Vizrt hardware, TriCaster included, is repaired on Varto's own bench, a Vizrt Authorized Repair Center.
Send us the link to last Sunday's stream.
Put the link in your message. We will listen to it and suggest where to start.