Covering an event as a live multi-camera production used to be the exclusive turf of the networks, but today we can see good-looking live HD video content streamed into people's homes created by more people than ever. Now, video producers are finding ways to join in the live TV revolution through the Internet. NewTek has been making waves over the last few years with its TriCaster family of products, and we had a chance to look at the newest HD incarnation, the TriCaster TCXD300. This TriCaster is a compact HD production studio turnkey system that fits in a backpack. It includes a multi-input switcher, green screen keyer, virtual set generator, real-time streaming system, and more tools to make TriCaster an all-in-one production center.

Getting Started

To get started in a hurry, there is a quick start guide in addition to the full manual. You also get a box of various adapters, a "TriCaster Crew" T-shirt, and a training DVD starring NewTek Director of worldwide training Don Balance. Not only will this allow old and new users of TriCaster up to speed on the new interface, it's a great way to rapidly prep a crew that's new to live video production.

At $15,000 the TriCaster TCXD300 is positioned as a professional device, though its jargon-lite workflow increasingly finds it in non-pro video environments. At its root, TriCaster is a live production tool, heavily optimized for operation by a single person or small team. Within minutes of opening the box, I was switching between three cameras, adding overlays, and even successfully keying talent (using a hastily lit green screen) into a live virtual set.

Additionally, you can create layered combinations of multiple inputs and overlays and save these as a "virtual input". Virtual inputs are an important feature. On past jobs, I've set a live split-screen effect between two cameras, but could not neatly switch to and from each input. Virtual inputs allow you to set up effects ahead of time and tie them to a single switcher button.

Mix

Any of the video assets you mix together can be either SD or HD resolution. TriCaster will scale those sources up to HD in real-time using 32-bit floating-point precision, 4:4:4:4 video processing and component (YCbCrA) color (well beyond industry standard 10-bit). Besides three live cameras, you can mix in the input of other computers on your network, still graphics, video clips from the built-in Media Players, and pepper it all with graphics from the built in CG program using a pair of downstream keyers. Every one of these inputs has its own proc-amp for color correction, as well as controls for sizing and positioning each source. This is a crucial addition, especially for positioning keyed talent into place on a virtual set without having to adjust the physical cameras. Making corrections like this while on set during production can save hours of post-production work. There is also a final proc-amp stage to adjust the master video output.