Review: NewTek TriCaster STUDIO

Studio Monthly by Bruce A. Johnson This Much Updated "Studio-in-a-Box" Now Includes Virtual Sets It is hard to overestimate the impact the original NewTek TriCaster made when it was released in 2005. Quite simply put, this $5,000 shoebox-shaped computer gave anyone wanting to do multi-camera video production most of the tools they needed. Sure, there were limitations. Only three video inputs? No chromakey? But still, the TriCaster defined its own market. And there was so much good stuff to play with— the ability to stream, feed a projector and output video all at once, an onboard digital disc recorder, video editing, graphics and more— that you’d almost feel guilty complaining about any shortcomings. Power-Packed Features

Like any attentive company, NewTek heard the comments and updated the TriCaster, first with the TriCaster Pro, which added a waveform and vectorscope, two balanced audio inputs and component video inputs. But that just wasn’t enough, and in 2007 NewTek went wild. The TriCaster STUDIO has all the functionality of its older siblings, and much more. In a box that is now about double the volume of the original, the STUDIO version includes six video inputs, any of which can be composite, S-video or BNC-based Y/C sources. There are now four balanced audio inputs, support for tally lights, and you can now work in 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio. And as if that wasn’t enough, get your greenscreen ready for onboard chromakey and even virtual sets. It is no stretch to say that the TriCaster STUDIO features a collection of tools that makes it possible for skilled video producers to create very professional, polished productions of many types. It’s not hard to see why the TriCaster is so popular with church, industrial and streaming-video producers. Read more...