Review: Epiphan Webcaster X2

Each year at Streaming Media East and West, 而我们的流媒体合作伙伴从Mobeon捕捉我们的会议节目和流媒体从我们的主题房间, 我的主要任务是在展厅的流媒体展位拍摄对主要演讲者和其他行业思想领袖的采访. For years, we branded these as “Red Carpet Interviews,几年前，它(出于我不记得的原因)演变成了“几乎直播流媒体”(Almost Live from Streaming Media). Given that the first word in our name is “Streaming,” this title begged the question, “Why not drop the ‘Almost’ and just go live?”

因为我用两台摄像机拍摄这些采访——两台摄像机拍摄采访者和被采访者, 我的第一个想法是复制我用于实时切换和流媒体会议的设置(减去Powerpoint feed)。, 我的两台索尼PXW-X70相机通过Epiphan AV之类的捕捉设备连接到笔记本电脑的USB端口上.io or Magewell USB Capture HDMI or SDI, and using Telestream Wirecast or vMix to switch and stream the show.

Given the tight space constraints of our booth, however, I’ve found that after allocating room for two chairs for the talent, two tripods, 我们的杂志展示旁边的两个灯架没有留下太多的空间来打开笔记本电脑. 因此，我决定采取双管齐下的方式:向Facebook live现场提供单摄像头(双镜头)直播, and cutting the two-camera version after the fact.

Fortunately, compact encoding and boxes abound for no-footprint streaming, 是否安装在相机上，就像我4年前测试的第一个这种类型的单元一样(直播广播器), 或LiveU Solo或Teradek vidu Pro，我们已经成功地部署在流媒体东西方的展位采访流媒体上, respectively, in 2017.

Enter the Epiphan Webcaster X2

For this year’s Streaming Media East, which took place May 8-9 in New York City, 我把目光投向了这个领域的一个有趣的新条目:Epiphan Webcaster X2. 我过去曾使用过几种不同的主显节产品，包括AV.前面提到的io设备和Pearl流媒体设备(后来被Pearl 2黯然失色) reviewed in March 2016.

The Webcaster X2 caught my eye for several reasons. First was the price. At $299, 这是该领域第一个以这个价格首次亮相的设备(尽管它现在与nab周发布的Magewell Ultra Stream HDMI一起发布)。. 另一个是它的HDMI输出连接到一个信心监视器，也, via a USB mouse or mini-keyboard, doubles as a control screen for the X2. (The Webcaster X2 does have a “go live” button on the unit, but more interesting things happen when you connect a monitor.我过去在使用手机或平板电脑WiFi控制流媒体设备时遇到过困难(当我在流媒体上发表会议主题演讲时), I’m on dedicated ethernet so I don’t have to share bandwidth with attendees; if my phone and streaming device can’t see each other, I’m sunk), and often lost patience with the limitations of two-button, single-line LED interfaces on the little boxes, this wired option sounded like a good compromise, even if it took my setup out of the no-footprint zone.

The Webcaster X2 offers streaming to most popular platforms, including YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook Live, 这是我选择的流媒体东方采访平台. The week before I left for the conference, 我将X2连接到Blackmagic Design VideoAssist 4K和USB鼠标, 并毫不费力地将其与流媒体Facebook帐户配对(Figure 1, below).

Figure 1. Epiphan提供了一个代码，将Webcaster X2与您的Facebook帐户配对.

As you can see in Figure 2 (below), Webcaster X2界面使我可以很容易地单击Publishing Destination，并在初始配对完成后选择我管理的任何Facebook会议和杂志页面. 在流的详细信息页面，你选择你的Facebook页面或YouTube频道, 你也可以为你的视频输入标题和描述(使用支持鼠标的屏幕键盘或附带的迷你键盘)，并设置你的流媒体比特率和分辨率. I chose 2000Kbps and 1280x720.

Figure 2. Choosing the page to stream from

You can also enable or disable Show Comments, 它允许您在分屏配置的附加显示器上看到评论(Figure 3, below). Figure 3 also shows, just below the monitor screens, the Start button, which you click to launch a stream.

Figure 3. Comments appear in the panel on the right. Click the image to see it at full size.