Watch out for cheap analog pro video mixers!
You have maybe seen cheap pro analog video mixers
for sale on ebay or elsewhere for knock-down
prices.
Just be careful that you know what your are bidding for/buying...
Just be careful that you know what your are bidding for/buying...
There is no question that pro analog video mixers
of the kind that used to grace broadcast studios etc. seem a very attractive
option secondhand. They usually have far more inputs than the prosumer models
and have nice chunky BNC connectors
etc.
BUT.... there is a big gotcha that will bite you on the bum if you think you can buy one of these and just wire up some prosumer DV cams and be mixing away.
Almost all of these mixers do NOT have any kind of frame synchronisation or timebase correction built-in.
To put it another way, they assume that all video sources are already genlocked or synchronised and that they can happy mix between them without worrying about whether all the start of frames happen at the same time.
So...they will NOT work with your average DV camcorder or indeed any other video source that does NOT have a genlock input to allow frame synchronisation.
Of course if you have studio cameras or VCRs with a genlock input you CAN wire it all up to use one of these mixers, but I would suggest that unless you are setting up a permanent installation that this is all a major pain in the neck and should be avoided for VLOBLIVE gigs.
Just stick to a prosumer mixer like an MX50 or an MX20 or the new generation Edirol ones that have frame synchronisation built in and you will be fine.
BUT.... there is a big gotcha that will bite you on the bum if you think you can buy one of these and just wire up some prosumer DV cams and be mixing away.
Almost all of these mixers do NOT have any kind of frame synchronisation or timebase correction built-in.
To put it another way, they assume that all video sources are already genlocked or synchronised and that they can happy mix between them without worrying about whether all the start of frames happen at the same time.
So...they will NOT work with your average DV camcorder or indeed any other video source that does NOT have a genlock input to allow frame synchronisation.
Of course if you have studio cameras or VCRs with a genlock input you CAN wire it all up to use one of these mixers, but I would suggest that unless you are setting up a permanent installation that this is all a major pain in the neck and should be avoided for VLOBLIVE gigs.
Just stick to a prosumer mixer like an MX50 or an MX20 or the new generation Edirol ones that have frame synchronisation built in and you will be fine.
Posted: Thu - January 12, 2006 at 09:56 AM |
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This site contains my personal views, ideas, tips, tricks and rants about doing live video, IMAG or graphics at live events on a very low budget. They are published as I get time, in a style closely approximating a weblog. Dave C.
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My name is Dave Chalmers and I live in Edinburgh in Scotland, UK. My background is in Electronics, but for 10 years I have been helping to put on live video at events in central Scotland in my spare time. Through the course of these events, nearly all on very constrained budgets, I have learned a few things about what works and what doesn't. While I would not claim to be able to give you all the answers, I can at least help you avoid some of the mistakes.
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Total entries in this category: 9
Published On: Jul 06, 2006 11:37 PM
Total entries in this category: 9
Published On: Jul 06, 2006 11:37 PM