Digital Video Mixer Improves Production Quality

Located near Milwaukee , Wisconsin , Brookside Baptist Church wanted to bring more services and an enhanced worship experience to its growing membership of 700. Having witnessed how the Internet and iPods have been revolutionizing the way people communicate and connect with the world around them, the church started investigating how technology could help them reach out to members and non-members in new and exciting ways.

Several years ago, the church started building up their audiovisual system one component at a time.

"Finding a new mixer was critical to improving our A/V system," explained Randy Melchert, media director at Brookside Baptist. "We had been using a switch box with RCA jacks. The solution was too cumbersome and inflexible for our needs ¾ not to mention it yielded the occasional black-out."

And so, the church researched digital mixers to determine which one could accomplish what was needed today, as well as deliver added functionality for tomorrow.

Solution
The church selected the MX-4 DV Digital Mixer from Focus Enhancements, www.focusinfo.com . The MX-4 DV lets users switch between 12 video sources (four composite, four S-video, four DV) and includes four digital inputs and one digital output. Its real-time 10-bit (4:2:2) video processing and high-quality input comb-filter circuitry yield superior digital and analog images without any degradation in quality.

"The added redundancy gives me peace of mind that if something goes wrong, we can quickly rewire and get back up and running in no time," said Melchert. "And, the MX-4 DV's intuitive user interface reduces the learning curve ¾ a critical feature when it comes to training our volunteer users."

Benefits
The MX-4 DV has helped Brookside Baptist Church improve production quality for both live and recorded applications. The church has been able to incorporate a second camera to provide a more comprehensive and varied view of the sanctuary. During Sunday service, they project a live signal to a projection screen in the sanctuary, along with LCD screens scattered throughout the church's lobby, nursery, and overflow rooms.

The team also projects hymn lyrics onto the top third of the screen in the sanctuary. This has become a highly popular feature with the congregation, especially hearing-impaired members who appreciate the new "closed captioning" service.

"Using picture in picture, the MX-4 DV helps us coordinate which video goes where," said Melchert. "For example, we might choose to place only the song lyrics on the screen in the sanctuary, but combine the lyrics and a live broadcast of the service to other screens throughout the building."

If a guest speaker brings along a DVD or presentation, Melchert is able to seamlessly integrate this diverse content using the MX-4 DV.

"We just include PowerPoint slides as a fourth source and can blend the slides with the live speaker for a powerful result," he said.

The MX-4 DV comes equipped with more than 700 automatic and manual transitions, although the church has stayed with a few of the more basic ones.

"The MX-4 DV gives us a professional production quality that lets us expand beyond the four walls of our church," Melchert said.

This past year, the church aired their annual Christmas Concert on Wisconsin on Demand, making the performance accessible to 300,000 digital cable subscribers in the greater-Milwaukee area.

And by podcasting/vodcasting its sermons, audio, and video broadcasts, Brookside Baptist helps members and non-members attend church, even when they can't leave the house. Users can view services and other church activities on the Web or download them to their iPod. To accomplish this, Melchert typically sends the output signal from the MX-4 DV to a DVD burner and then posts the final to the Web site. They have also been testing out live Webcasts using the mixer's FireWire connection. And for the less Internet-savvy members, they distribute copies of DVDs, even VHS tapes.

"We've witnessed a tremendous response to our new media," Melchert explained. "Local members are downloading sermons to play on their iPods while stuck in traffic. New members find us now on the Internet. And former members stay connected with us from wherever they are in the world."