If you’re a church tech shopping for AV equipment for your weekend services and you have to pick one trade show to see new gear, we’d have to recommend InfoComm. It’s massive when compared to FILO or our own Capture Summit, but is dwarfed by the NAB Show – but that’s not a fair comparison, as NAB isn’t focused on technology for live productions. FILO, Capture and CFX offer more worship-specific educational opportunities, but if you’re shopping for video displays (projectors or LED walls) or sound reinforcement/PA systems, InfoComm should be your destination.
Held each June, the show rotates between Orlando and Las Vegas. This year was the Las Vegas iteration, held June 12-14, 2024.
As usual, the Church Production team had a packed schedule, with booth appointments every half hour for most of the show where we got hands-on with some amazing new pro AV gear --- much of which was designed with the church market in mind.
With hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of products to choose from it’s always difficult to narrow it down, but based on our observations here, in alphabetical order, are the “Top 5 Products for Churches from InfoComm 2024.”
Blackmagic Design Blackmagic Cloud Sync
Using Blackmagic Cloud Sync, editors can see and edit media in Davinci Resolve seconds after it's been recorded in a camera, from any location globally.
If you follow church social media strategist Rohn Starling, you know that speed is a critical element to social posts about church events, specifically weekend services. If you wait until Monday to start cutting up your weekend sermons, like most church creatives, you’re missing out. The new Blackmagic Cloud Sync is designed to alleviate the hassle of offloading and transferring video content for editors by doing it automagically. A quote from their new product announcement explains best, “The new live media sync feature in Blackmagic Cloud allows media to appear in the DaVinci Resolve bin as the camera records so editors can work while the camera is rolling.”
For more information on Blackmagic Design's Blackmagic Cloud Sync, please visit.
Canon EOS C400 6K Full-Frame RF Mount Cinema Camera
For live productions, the new Canon EOS C400 camera body features a dedicated 12-pin lens terminal for broadcast and cine-servo lenses, a variety of output and input interfaces including mini-XLR audio inputs, DIN connectors for time code, genlock and return video, and more.
Any new Canon EOS camera is likely to generate attention from church creatives, but this new one is different. It’s not cheap, but it’s designed specifically for double duty as a film camera for your mid-week filmmaking shoots, and it has features and connectivity that will enhance the video for IMAG and the live stream from your weekly services.
For more information on the Canon EOS C400, please visit.
Optoma ZK810T 4K UHD Laser Projector
With an innovative fixed lens design, small form factor, and affordable price-point, the Optoma ZK810T and ZK810TST projectors are designed for a wide range if fixed installation scenarios.
There were several very interesting new projectors introduced at InfoComm from Barco, Epson, Panasonic, and others. The reason we selected the Optoma ZK810T is the bang for the buck. Yes, other projectors may have more features, or may be more well known in the church market, but Optoma’s new ZK810T offers 4K UHD resolution, 3,000,000:1 contrast ratio, 8,500 lumens, and is HDR and HLG compatible, for a price hovering around $10,000. That feature set and price tag will satisfy a massive swath of the church market.
For more information on the Optoma ZK810T and ZK810ST (short throw) projectors, please visit.
Shure Nexadyne Dynamic Microphone
Unlike most dynamic microphones, the Shure Nexadyne mics feature Shure's new Revonic, dual-tranducer technology, which is designed to reduce handling noise, and increase overall output.
Though it was actually announced in late April, InfoComm was the first major North American trade show where Shure publicly displayed their new Nexadyne Dynamic Microphone. Lots of companies release new products that offer slight, or modest incremental changes. These new Shure mics are different. Starting at just $299, Nexadynes offer a new, dual-transducer technology called Revonic that’s designed to help sound engineers achieve ideal mixes, and reduce the time required for corrective audio processing.
For more information on the new Shure Nexadyne Dynamic Microphones, please visit.
Visual Productions Encolor T10 DMX Controller
The Visual Productions Encolor T10 fits on any standard gang box, and is CE, RoHS, UKCA and FCC compliant.
If you’re working at a small church, or you’re at a larger church with smaller venues (a chapel, youth rooms etc), the Visual Productions Encolor is a super simple, extremely affordable way to program and control small DMX lighting systems. Who doesn’t need that? And at a street price of about $250, it's a no-brainer.
For more information on the Visual Productions Encolor T10 DMX Lighting Controller, please visit.
