Historically, computers are called "possibility boxes." The more you think about that description, it seems increasingly true. A computer doesn't come off the assembly line as a non-linear video editor, a presentation machine, a sound mixing desk, a light board, or even as a word-processor, but software makes any and all of these things possible.
A hardware-based video switcher, by contrast, comes off the assembly line as a video switcher. It will eventually end its useful life as a video switcher.
So, if a video switcher is always a switcher and a computer is a set of possibilities, shouldn't your church use a software switcher instead of a hardware switcher? It's more flexible, after all, right?
Maybe, but maybe not, too.
Switcher switchers
Whether it's an app that controls specialized hardware like the Mevo, an app that connects the cameras from multiple smarphones and tablets like Switcher Studio, a hybrid that uses specialized video hardware connected to a computer like the Tricaster, or just software like vMix, Wirecast, or even open broadcaster software (OBS), at the core of each of these is software running on a computer (or mobile device).
With so many choices, there surely must be one that's perfect for your church, right? Let's look at some of the positives and negatives for video switching software and apps.
Video switching software: potential cons
For churches just venturing into live streaming and live production, it might be tempting to skip ahead to the positives and ignore some potential downsides.
First, the attack vector of common devices is much greater than specialized hardware. It's sad that we have to think about security, but we do.
First, the attack vector of common devices is much greater than specialized hardware. It's sad that we have to think about security, but we do. Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS, and even Linux have huge user-bases when compared to a hardware switcher, even from brands that sell a lot of switchers.
In addition, viruses, malware, ransomware, and trojans aren't the only possible causes of concern. Sometimes OS updates and other legitimate software might interfere with software switchers. For example, users who upgrade to MacOS Catalina, but have software that's 32-bit ,might be surprised to learn that it won't work any longer ... and that's an OS update from Apple, itself.
Then there are hardware limitations. If you use something like vMix, Wirecast, or OBS, you'll need to capture each additional video source, either over the network with NDI or with a direct connection to a capture card.
Most of the time two [Capture cards] will work fine together, but the more you add the more likely it is that they won't play well together.
Getting a single capture card to work isn't all that hard. Most of the time two will work fine together, but the more you add the more likely it is that they won't play well together. You might need to switch brands because the manufacturer didn't envision that you'd use more than a couple of their cards on a single system.
That's assuming you're capturing with USB. If you're using Thunderbolt, while the protocol supports daisy chaining multiple devices together, not all devices have multiple Thunderbolt ports. So [while] a single BlackMagic Mini recorder will work fine on a Thunderbolt 2 port (or a TB3 port with the right adapter), putting two on one port is nearly impossible. If your computer has multiple thunderbolt ports, you might be okay ... until you want to use another port for a monitor and the adapter doesn't have a second port that does anything other than pass power.
Some computers come with four or more ports, but not all do.
Another limitation is the UI of the software itself. Traditionally, hardware switchers have used a two-bus layout (with one or more effects busses). There's no guarantee that your software will follow suit.
Another limitation is the UI of the software itself.
OBS, for example, can have a number of sources (provided you figure out the video capture problem mentioned above), but effects, like keys, are added directly to each source, not downstream.
This means that having a lower third graphic with lyrics must be put on each source you're going to use it with. Imagine you're directing your live-stream and have lyrics on the screen over camera 1. Now, you go to preview camera 2, but the lyrics aren't on camera 2 and when you switch to it, they don't stay with the program output, but swap to preview with camera 1. This isn't hard to fix, but each time you change between showing lyrics or not, you have to make sure each source is correct when you take it, instead of just putting in or taking out a downstream key which is superimposed on the final signal, not each source. And that leaves out the problem that sources are labeled as "scenes" and effects are called "sources." Confused? Yep. That's common.
Wirecast works in layers. Its metaphor is kind of similar to ProPresenter where each layer is independent of the layers above and below it. So, switching between cameras doesn't affect the key above it or the background below it. It's more like a switcher, but the UI doesn't include the ability to use a t-bar to do a cross-dissolve at various rates, depending on artistic preference in the moment.
That's not to say that all of these switchers are devoid of the normal UI. This is one area where a Tricaster, for example, shines. Sure, it's a specialized control surface that looks like that of a hardware switcher, but at its heart the Tricaster is still a Windows computer that will need to be rebooted from time to time and, ideally, kept away from the person you know who likes to tweak things in the backend of Windows.
Video switching software: potential pros
Software does have advantages. In the church world, price is a huge one. OBS, for example is free. That means that if you've already got a capable computer, perhaps your only expense will be one or more capture cards.
vMix and Wirecast have inexpensive versions that might suit your needs and prove more versatile than similarly priced hardware.
A Mevo can get a huge variety of shots, given that it's basically a single camera (shooting at 4K and outputting in HD). If you already have a recent iPad model, you have the hardware you need besides the Mevo camera itself.
With all this talk about UI problems, there are a couple of distinct advantages that software switchers have in the UI department. First, their UI is more flexible. Hardware switchers might have small digital displays that say the name of the source. Some software switchers show you the source itself.
While the UI isn't standard, sometimes, that's a good thing too. Maybe your team has no live production background and the Wirecast UI just makes more sense to them than a preview/program bus metaphor.
... since the UI is drawn by the computer, it might be customizable in a way that buttons soldered to a circuit board could never be.
Additionally, since the UI is drawn by the computer, it might be customizable in a way that buttons soldered to a circuit board could never be. That was the major innovation of the iPhone, after all. It changed based on the needs of the app and user, where the Treo always had the keyboard, even when you didn't need it.
Finally, the UI won't always be the same; it might, but a new version might bring improvements that add flexibility and intuitive features you didn't know you needed.
So which is best?
For some churches, software is the way to go. They need to save the money, and the people they have find one piece of software easier or more flexible than the hardware alternatives.
For others, hardware is best. Maybe their people come from a production environment, so they already know how to use it. Maybe they need to have half a dozen cameras (or more) and multiple computer sources. Maybe they've got other needs that software can't accommodate, or can't accommodate reliably.
... plan for enough future to last until the next purchase and your church will be fine.
When it comes down to it, the choice is yours. Just make sure to choose based on your actual--and not aspirational--needs, unless those needs are likely to manifest themselves before the next upgrade.
Just remember that you buy things for the future, not the present. So plan for enough future to last until the next purchase and your church will be fine.
