It’s time to get out my non-existent Credit Card… Again!
As I mentioned in my last post, Blackmagic recently released a bunch of new products, I also mentioned that I’d be updating my kit list to include these new products… and here it is. This post took me a bit longer than usual as I generated 3D images of the products to illustrate this article. It’s a good thing that I wrote my last few posts in advance and used the WordPress schedule feature to get them out at the right time. It’s taken me 4 days or so to render out all the products that I’m including in this kit list… Well, the still images took a day the animation has taken 3 days to render on my ageing MacBook Pro. So let’s get started.
The Camera
Let’s start with the Camera. For this, I’ve gone with the Studio Camera 4K Pro. The main reason for this is the 10G Ethernet port that enables you to run a single cable to the camera and provide power, Video Out, Program return, Comms and an HDMI return for a teleprompter.
As I mentioned in my previous post the one major downside to using the Ethernet port is that if you are streaming in 4K from the camera then you are limited to just 20 meters between the camera and the Studio Converter but if you are only streaming in 1080p then you can 100 meters. Nothing is stopping you from recording in 4K though and sending a 1080p feed to the Studio Converts (situated in the rack) though so you can always upload a 4K edit after the event.
I’m pairing the Studio Camera 4K with a Panasonic Lumix 25-175mm PowerZoom Lens (as it’s one of a very small number that has electronic zoom control), The Blackmagic Zoom Demand and the Blackmagic Focus Demand all mounted on a Manfrotto MVJ500AM Tripod with an extra pan bar on top of a Manfrotto Dolly.
Each Camera will also be equipped with a Ledgo Bi-Colour LED Panel (though I’ve not figured out how I’m going to mount them yet) and an EKSA Headset for comms.
The Camera Setup comes to roughly £4,646, though that’s using Blackmagic’s RRP costs for some of the devices
The Switcher
For the switcher, I’ve gone with the ATEM Television Studio Pro 4K. Whilst it’s not the cheapest switcher in the ATEM range, coming in at £2,759, It is feature-packed only lacking some of the higher-end features such as super source or ISO recording (though I can see these being added in the not so distant future… I mean the ATEM Mini ISO Extreme has them and that’s an HDMI only switcher).
I’ll be pairing the TV Studio Pro 4K with the Mackie Universal Control Pro Bundle to enable DAW control of the audio and the ATEM Camera Control Panel to give me more control over the cameras. Whilst these two accessories are not strictly necessary as you can do all of this in the software I do prefer having a hardware interface to control these things with. The only thing I still haven’t manage to figure out is a way to give the sound engineer and Cameras control operator a way to link into the Talkback system… but I’m sure I’ll come up with something by the time I can actually afford all this stuff.
Power Distribution
So this All-in-One rack is going to need a chunk of power and for that, I’m going to need something like the t.racks VM-100… well actually I’m going to need at least 3 of them due to some of the BMD gear not supporting PoE.
The VM-100 provides you with 8 IEC power ports on the back and two pull out lights on the front (with separate power and dimming) as well as a voltage meter on the front. it’s a pretty bang for the buck unit in terms of rack-mounted power distro but it should get the job done nicely.
Video Distribution
To distribute video through the rack and to the switcher I’ve gone with the Smart Videohub 12G 40×40 and there’s only one reason for that… Blackmagic don’t make a bigger video router that works with 12G video.
This beauty allows you to route 40 video sources to 40 different places without having to rewire your whole rack. it’s one of the parts of a video rack that is sometimes overlooked but can be a real time-saver when you are in the middle of an event and need to re-patch something on the fly.
I may have to do a little manual repatching every now and then with this rig, or get another video hub and interface them somehow, but for most productions, it should more than meet expectations.
Video Playback & Recording
Most shows have an element of video playback be it fullscreen video, titles or lower thirds.
To enable me to playback VT and record the event I have chosen to go with 2 of Blackmagic’s Hyperdeck Studio 4K Pro devices. Not only do they playback standard 4K video but they will also play out videos with an alpha channel allowing me to insert animated lower thirds and titles when using ProRes 4444 to encode these videos.
The Hyperdeck Studio 4K Pros also record at 4K 60fps I’ll be able to record a master copy of the event.
Studio Camera Converters
As I mentioned earlier I’ll be powering the cameras over PoE but in order, to do that, I’ll need a Studio Converter for each camera.
I love the idea behind the studio converter as it makes single cable operation of the cameras available without having to shell out thousands on the SMPTE fibre stuff making more professional setups accessible to smaller production houses, schools and churches.
The one thing I think that is missing from the Studio Convertersis having 2 XLR audio inputs. This would have simplified and reduced the cost of my setup greatly.
Dante Input solution
I decided early on that I’d still be running the audio over Dante but that I didn’t want to ruin the 1 wire setup to each camera. This meant that I had to look at an alternate solution to get the Dante audio into the ATEM, as the Studio converter does not have any audio inputs.
This is where the Teranex Mini Audio to SDI 12G comes in. I’ll be pairing each one with a Dante AVIO Analog Output Connector. This will enable me to embed 2 channels of audio from the Dante network into an SDI Feed. Send these up to the switcher and they can all be controlled in the Fairlight audio engine built into the switcher.
Future Jim Note: I didn’t realise till I finished rendering everything that I didn’t include any audio output to go to the in house sound system. Thankfully Blackmagic also produce an SDI to Audio 12G Teranex Mini So I’ll include 3 of these in the price list too as well as 3 extra Dante AVIO Analog Input Connectors too.
Video Streaming
Most event organiser these days want their event broadcast to as many people as possible and that can mean finding a way to get you program feed onto a laptop or computer then messing about with software such as OBS and it all becoming a massive pain the in the behind.
Blackmagic have solved this problem though by introducing the Web Presenter 4K. it’s a video encoder that can work in two ways. If you are happy with your OBS setup it’ll give you a 4K video feed, that is treated as a 4K webcam by your computer, that you can put into your software of choice. If you want a more streamlined setup though you can stream directly from the Web Presente to your streaming platform (so long as they support RTMP).
Personally, I’ll be going directly from the Web Presenter to the streaming provider so I have one less computer to have to monitor and mess with whilst live.
Networking
Now all of this gear is going to need to be able to talk to each other and have a way for me to configure or update the firmware. So we are going to need some network infrastructure.
I’ve kept this as simple as I can and to that end chose to go with the UniFi Dream Machine Pro SE from Ubiquiti paired with their 48 Port PoE Switch ( I could have got away with the 24 port if it wasn’t for the lack of audio inputs on the Studio Converters as the Dante setup uses 24 ports by itself.) as well as a 1U 48 Port Patch Panel.
I went with the Dream Machine Pro SE as this new version has PoE built-in give me a total of 56 PoE Ports, meaning that not only will all my gear have a network connection but I’ll be able to set up a wifi network should I need to with the additional purchase of a few UniFi access points.
Computing Power
I wanted to include at least one computer in the build so I could generate graphics on the fly as well as having the ability to update the firmware on all of this kit without having to remove them from the rack.
I chose to go with Apple’s M1 Mac Mini for this as it easily fits in 1u of rack space (especially when paired with sonnet’s RackMac Mini) and they are more than powerful enough to create some live graphics on the fly. To give me a bit more flexibility I included 2 of them in the rack.
Computer Video Interface
In order to get fill and key out of each of the mac though, I’ll need an interface though.
For this, I have chosen the Ultra Studio 4K Mini not only do they allow me to output fill and key but they also allow me to take the program feed and input into the mac mini should I need to use them for streaming or recording.
Inputs and Outputs
As the flight case only has access from the front, I needed to design a patch panel to go on the front that would allow me to take the camera feeds, audio inputs, network connection and power.
A Simple 12 port patch panel with the appropriate connectors was all that was needed. I went with 4 ethernet ports to connect the Studio 4K Pro Cameras, 4 SDI Connection (2 In, 2 Out), 2 XLR inputs for analogue audio connection at the rack an ethernet port for internet connection and a power-con connection that can be split out to the three power distro units.
Video Monitoring
Of course, I’ll need a way to keep an eye on what I’m doing and for that, I’ve chosen the Blackmagic Smart View, well two of them actually.
These monitors have 2 video inputs a piece so I’ll be able to have the multiview and program feed on each of the monitors’ first input and the two mac minis on their second for example. Though with the video hub I can duplicate any output onto these screen inputs.
Stage Box
In order to get audio into the rack from the venue, I’ll be using the Yamaha Tio 1608-D Dante Stage Box. That’ll give me 16 audio input to the rack and 8 outputs.
The Stage Box may not need to be used in every venue as they may have their own Dante compatible sound desk that we can link into and copy some of the feeds across to the switcher.
The Price List
All of this does not come without a cost though, and I have to admit it’s not cheap by any stretch of the imagination. So let’s have a look at that shopping list, shall we?
*Future Jim Note: I release after I published the post that I didn’t include enough SDI cables for the Smart Vidoe hub to input AND output all 40 channels. I also forgot to include the cables for genlock too so have updated them and the pricing.
I honestly think £53,000 is great value for money as you are getting a 4 camera 4K Multicam setup that has pretty much all the bells and whistles and would be perfect for any small scale production for schools, churches or conferences. If I had the money I would 100% buy this today.
What do you think of my latest kit list? Do you think I’ve missed something out? Let me know down in the comments below. My next post may be a little later than normal as I have run out of scheduled content whilst working on this post, I will have also started my new job by the time this goes out.
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