Streaming the 2018 Super Moon w/ the LiveU Solo

First impressions on the LiveU Solo… It’s a game changer and you have to use to it understand… LiveU was nice enough to send me a LiveU Solo to play around with and I have to say I didn’t see the need. Seeing as I have a fully built-out, brand new video production studio… But there is such a need in today’s live streaming market to break out from the traditional/comfortable live streaming location and get outdoors.

So, I took the LiveU Solo out for a test drive, twice and I learned a few things. First of all, the device is rock solid and provides a high quality and most important reliable connection between your HDMI video/audio source and your CDN (Content Delivery Network). I decided to live stream to our Facebook page and in the coming week’s I am interested to do more live streaming directly to our Facebook Group pages with totally mobile, yet incredibly high-quality video production. This is the kind of stuff you simply can’t do with your cell phone. But, let me tell you about live streaming space…

Live Broadcasting with LiveU Solo HDMI

So, as you may have read about in this blog post, we have recently learned how to attach a PTZOptics ZCam Variable Lens camera to a telescope and since Jan 1st and 2nd this year (2018) have an amazing Super Moon, I decided to drive my 4Runner to the top of an 8 story tall parking garage to set up a mobile broadcast. Using the LiveU Solo was great and everything was pre-configured before I even hit the road. When you are mobile broadcasting the last thing you want to do is worry about hitting the “go live” button on Facebook or  YouTube so I set up the unit to authenticate directly on my Go Live channel. This way all I had to do was press the go-live button on the LiveU Solo itself to start streaming.

Using vMix with LiveU Solo

Using the LiveU Solo w/ vMix

So, I know most people like to run and gun with the LiveU Solo using a camcorder or DSLR camera for video and audio. But I wanted to use multiple cameras with TriPods especially important for image stabilization when live streaming a full moon. I also wanted to have multiple cameras and the ability to quality transition between each with some nice background music and maybe a lower third or ticker of information. I could have used something like OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) which is free and reviewed in this blog post, but I already had vMix and it’s pretty much my goto software.

Anyway, a few things to think about when using the LiveU Solo with vMix.

1. The LiveU Solo does not have a preview screen. I found this to be a problem and requires some know-how. When you connect your computer to the LiveU Solo (At least a Windows Computer) it sees it as a separate monitor, very much like a frame grabber. What you want to do is have it set up as an extended desktop. When you do this you need to setup vMix, Wirecast or OBS (whatever software you are using) and have it in full-screen mode.
2. When it comes to audio you need to have that come with the HDMI. There is a headset jack for monitoring audio only. So you cannot use it to add a microphone input.
3. In Order to embed the audio onto your HDMI stream you need to setup your default audio device in Windows to be the LiveU Solo which shows up as Intel Something.

Conclusion

I’m a huge fan of the LiveU Solo! I love the way it helps me personally re-think what’s possible with professional video production. If you have followed our vlog, blog, podcast or any of our content you know we have worked incredibly hard to build our live streaming studio. With all the time and effort put into production spaces sometimes you can lose sight of how simple and powerful mobile live streaming can be. In a couple weeks, I will be taking the LiveU Solo to CES and broadcasting live from the show floor. It should be fun and look forward to many more high-quality live streams with the LiveU Solo!