Thanks to NoviceDuder and all for posting. I've been looking into self building the livestream HD51 too. Hoping NoviceDuder updates this post with his results. Does anyone know if there would be a speed advantage to raid stripe with 2 SSHD? I think I am going to build this w 5 capture cards and the sdi output card. How do you know if your graphics card takes 2 PCIe spaces (whether physically or ports too)? I recall one blocking other slots in my only build. 5 capture cards, 1 sdi out, 1 CPU is 7 PCIe. Thanks much, sorry if this a stupid question.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3DoEC
I had a thought for on-location use and portability. I thought about mounting the computer in a rackmount case and enclosing it in a travel rack like the Gator Case Pro 4u.
Does anyone have thoughts on this kind of setup?
Unfortunately, I am having trouble finding a rackmount case that can accommodate an ssi ceb motherboard but be less than 19" in rack to back depth to still fit inside the Gator. Any thoughts/help would be greatly appreciated.
Thats how I've seen it done with the higher end Tricasters, though you would get a proper wooden flight case with a shock mounted rack, not a rotomolded plastic one. Something like this case. Yeah they can be expensive, but shop around, maybe even look for a used one on ebay. Even if you aren't interested in spending that much money, the takeaway is that you can get cases in every imaginable shape and size.
hey y'all
I've been following this post for a few weeks now. Awesome info and it has inspired me to build the same machine. (haven't yet)
I like the idea of a production switcher but wonder about the delay to live screens in the venue? anyone have a machine like this built with real world advice? I know livestream 'says' you can output to local screens with their HD51 but I am a little skeptical. Love to see how this build holds up in the IMAG scenario.
But currently and most importantly, I am on the fence for a capture card(s).
I was looking at the Matrox VS4 (works with vmix and iso records 4 sdi cameras, which is crucial for the live shows I capture)
and
this build with 4/5 decklink cards which sounds great as I can use HDMI inputs on certain feeds and this opens the system up to take on prosumer cameras and laptops running presenters material??
any thoughts out there on the advantages of either capture card scenario?
Can vmix get the same quality from the gang recording with the Matrox (4 sdi cams with up to 300mbps: I think)? Can you Gang the 4 Decklink card together (ie use the same time stamp for editing in Premiere)
Would it be better to buy cards with processing power? like the 4K version of the Decklink (not sure if there is a hmdi/sdi switchable one)?
Thanks for the info.
Cheers
I haven't used the livestream solution, but even much higher priced rigs like the Tricasters have a significant latency. Software switchers introduce a noticeable delay because of buffers. Even though the processing can be pipelined, the time spent filling the pipeline is unavoidable. In my experience it can be bad enough that the audio guys have to delay the mics through the PA a few ms so that IMAG stays lip synced. Likewise any playback that sends video through the mixer and audio to the mixing console has to have an audio delay (probably better to route audio through the switcher for record and stream sync anyway). It actually can be quite tricky getting all the delays set properly in a show with many sources and sinks. In larger venues, if you have pretty big screens and line arrays that cover a big area, how far away from the speakers will affect whether the video and audio are in sync or not, because light travels faster than sound. And the IMAG and PA unavoidably ends up visibly behind the actual action on stage. Ahh, live events...
Thanks Freq Labs,
So latency aside, has anyone used the Matrox AS4 and recorded 4 signals together? and Could I get the same quality from 4 Decklink cards?
sorry, VS4!
The reason I ask is that I want to edit with Premiere CS6 (or cc) post show.
Gonna be ordering my parts and building my system soon. I'll keep you updated!
Excited to hear how it goes!
My search for a server rack has yielded the Norco 430 at 15 in deep. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811219029
Many people report using it with the gator 4u travel case I posted. Problem is u need to modify the inside to accept a full size GPU. But it can fit 2 5.25 drives 3 3.5 drives with 7 PCI e cards. The mod to fit the big GPU loses you 3 3.5 slots of the 6 original. To bad there is no 17 in version.
I'm not doing that much travelling so may just use normal server case and forget the gator thing.
Worth mentioning that u should double check that whatever video card u select can accept your camera output. My camera HDMI out sends a non standard 1080i60. Not 50 or 59.94. The matrix vs4 for instance does not specify this. The black magic design decklink do.
My update.
Well I am chickening out from going the self-build software route. Going with hardware options that accomplish what I need for my use case.
I was a too nervous that the software version wouldn't be as stable and might be more prone to physical failure. Since I need to be moving around for gigs, I imagined $5k worth of processor and loose video cards bouncing around inside my PC case.
After adding in the cost of the i/o devices (6 BMD Decklinks) it didn't make sense. I lose a fully functional computer, post-editing capability, and perhaps some onscreen effects (pip and titling). But (I hope) I gain stability at about the same cost.
I spent a lot of times figuring out the quirks for the BMD ATEM product line, so if anyone wants to bounce ideas off me I would be more than happy. In case it helps anyone else in the same position, my build (hardly novel) is below. The "ATEMuser" message board was super helpful for all the details about camera compatibility, ATEM capabilities, etc. ATEM use a laptop (and software) as a control surface and outputs a multiview for switching (and program outputs) for regular HDMI computer monitors/tvs. It has an internal H.264 encoder that you can send to the laptop (via USB2) to relay to cloud stream hosts. I am not thrilled with the scaling/transcoding (ATEM TVS only accepts 760p and 1080i60 ins, so needs to downconvert fps for streaming), but its a tradeoff. BMC other ATEM switchers accept more varied frame size and frame rates (4k etc.) but this TVS will work with my current cameras.
BMD ATEM Television Studio (ATEM TVS) $945
BMD ATEM Hyperlink Studio 2 $945
Scandisk 480 GB SSD x2 $574
Behringer DEQ2496 $299
Furman rack powers trip/surge/conditioner $59
SKB 4u Shallow Rack $149
HDMI to HD-SDI and Jtech HDMI to Cat6 adapters for long camera cable runs.
Connection cables: HD-SDI, HDMI, XLR, an XLR to BNC adapter...
MXlight software $99 (well 55 Br pounds) for the relay to streaming sites. This also allows you to save video stream in case you want to avoid the Hyperdeck studio.