What you need to up your worship live stream game from beginner to pro
Live streaming has become insanely important really quickly leaving everyone from the beginner to the tech savvy scrambling to figure out what they need to buy. Below are a handful of kits and upgrades that will help you up your livestream game at any level.
Smartphone Warrior
The smartphone is the core technology behind almost everyone’s first foray into live streaming, and it should be. Top of the line smartphones are built with insane cameras and noise cancelling microphones that make them an excellent choice for everyone’s first live stream. In fact, at the level the smartphone is the entire kit! That being said, there are a handful of upgrades you can make to bump up the quality level quickly.
Better (non-digital) zoom lens option: Ollo Clip
Upgrade the mic: Shure MV-88 (iPhone) Rode VideoMicro (Android)
Get the signal from your sound board into your phone: Shure (iPhone) Roland GoMixer (Android)
Better light (use the warm filter): Ring Light Kit with Stand
Laptop Mission Control
Moving to a laptop can up the quality, but it will also up the cost substantially. The laptop can give you a hard wire connection to the internet (ethernet), and will allow you to customize your camera and audio and streaming service to your heart’s content. I prefer a Mac (as do most video professionals) but a PC will do the job as long as you get a top of the line model with as much ram and processor as you can afford. No computer recommendations here, just the things hanging off all the sides of it!
Basic Kit:
Camera: Logitech BRIO
Audio (USB Mixer using mics you already have): Behringer Xenyx Q502
USB Mic (for primarily speaking livestreams): Blue Yeti
Shotgun mic (directional to pick up what’s happening in one part of a room): Rode VideoMic
Extra lighting: LED Panels
Better Kit:
Camera (HDMI Output): Panasonic Lumix G7
Capture Card (makes that camera into a webcam): Pyle Video Capture
Audio Mixing: Behringer Xenyx 1204
Better Mic (Speaking/podcasting-style): Heil PR40
Better Shotgun Mic: Shure VP83F
Extra Lighting: GVM RGB lights
Video Switcher for multiple cameras and lyrics: Roland V-4EX
Getting it Online:
Inexpensive: OBS Studio
Good and Easier to Use: Livestream Producer
Pro(ish)-Level Gear
If you’re a pro, you’re not here, but if you are ready for a big upgrade, this list will take you closer to the pros. However, with pro gear comes pro complexity. Remember, if you aren’t familiar with this pro gear, it can actually decrease the quality of your broadcast.
Streaming Solution (This is the thing I’d recommend the most): Boxcast this gives you high quality encoding and allows you to immediately stream to Facebook, Youtube, AND Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon FireStick
Video Camera: Cannon XA15 (Less Expensive) Panasonic AG-UX180 (More Expensive)
Fluid Head Tripod: Magnus VT-4000
Better Video Switcher: Roland V-8HD
Better Lights: GVM 900D