How to broadcast your worship services live online
We have been broadcasting our service online at the Ville-Emard Church of Christ in Montreal since 2006. In that time we have worked out a lot of kinks that have taken place with the technology and equipment needed. I will now be showing you how you can broadcast your worship service online.
Note: this is not the only way, this is only the way we’ve done it.
Equipment Needed
First here is a diagram of the equipment we use. I will then go through each piece and give you some details.
1. Microphone
At the podium you probably already have some type of microphone hooked into a mixer and then dispersed to some speakers. If this is true you are much closer to broadcasting than you think. We use a Gooseneck Audio-Technica Microphone.
2. Mixer
Our microphone connects to a plug in our wall using XLR cables then travels through the ceiling to a table in the back of the room with our Sound Mixer, Camera and Computer on it. The sound mixer is a Soundcraft Sound Mixer similar to the one in the link. The microphone cable connects to a XLR input on the mixer.
A few things we ran into with the mixer: first we had to make sure the Phantom Power was turned on. Your mixer may not have this but if you do make sure to check this button. Another issue was outputting the audio to the computer. Our mixer had several different outputs. We tried all of them and found the one that sounded the best, but the item that made the biggest different was our next piece of equipment.
3. Rolls DB25 Passive Direct Box (audio hum eliminator)
We broadcasted for a while with a really annoying hum in the background. We couldn’t find the item that was causing it. We hired some Audio Specialists to check out our system and help us find what was wrong. After a few minutes they suggested the Rolls DB25 Passive Direct Box and instantly our audio was crisp and hum free. This $30 box was the difference maker. One thing to note is that this box has an 1/4″ input jack on one end and an XLR output on the other. In our computer we had the standard stereo 3.5mm mini microphone jack that is on almost all computers, so they had to make us a custom XLR to mini cable. You can find a XLR Jack to Stereo 3.5mm Mini on amazon.com for $12.
4. Computer
You’ll want a computer that is strong enough to multitask several processor heavy applications. In laymen terms, you need a computer that can handle multiple stuff hammering away at your computer at the same time without slowing down your broadcast. Once your broadcast starts slowing down you start getting members of the church going back to bed or hassling you the next time you see them. We use a 17″ Dell Inspiron laptop; however; you can probably get more power out of a desktop computer and it will probably be cheaper. Get something with several sticks of ram, 4GB would be nice and an Intel Dual-Core processor. A nice large screen (20″ and more) will help you run all the software without windows being hidden behind each other. Our computer is connected to the camera through FireWire so make sure your computer has that or can handle a Firewire adapter card.
5. Camera
A good camera can really take your broadcast to the next level. We use a Canon GL-2 sitting on top of a Manfrotto tripod with a Bogan/Monfrotto Fluid ball head. Try to get something with 3CCD’s and allows you to use some manual features. After reading your manual or finding a tutorial online, make sure to properly white balance your camera and set the manual focus. Note: we never jumped into the HD world, partially due to the expense of it and partially because I don’t think the web is ready for HD streaming (I could be wrong at the rate things are changing) but if you go the HD route I would assume you could connect the camera to your computer through the HDMI input instead of the Firewire. I have not tested this but it might help some of you. I have also not tested streaming through USB 2, maybe someone with some knowledge of that can comment below.
Software
We currently use Ustream.tv for our live broadcast. There are several companies out there providing you streaming services for free. Most will put advertisements on your stream. Two other companies you should check out are LiveStream, Justin.tv. These sites allow you to download software or use web-based software to broadcast. They all have FAQs on how their sites work so I won’t go into that here. Some offer ad-free paid accounts.
There is really only one software we purchased to get our broadcast working (and better) and that is WebcamMax for $30. This software does two things for us. It first takes our feed from our camera that is 720×480 pixels and compresses it to 320×240 for Ustream.tv; however; I think this limitation has been removed, but when we first started this was a problem. The second thing WebcamMax allows us to do is sample different parts of our computer screen and display that in our stream. We show the hymnal slides on big screens at the front of the room. These are controlled through Powerpoint on our computer. They are setup to display as if the projector is a second monitor on our computer. We can then use WebcamMax to outline a part of the screen (we select the second monitor) and display the hymn slides on our stream. This can be a little tricky to figure out but adds a nice touch to the stream. Tip: download the older version of WebcamMax (version 5.5.2.2). The interface is easier to use.
BUT, you do not have to use this software it is optional. If your stream provider says your stream is too large for their service you can run your camera through a free program called Super Webcam.
So that is the process we take to get our services online. If you have any questions about getting your church online feel free to add a comment below. I can also be reached on all of the social networks using the username: halgatewood.
Remember to have fun with it.
