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Glossary

Plain-English meanings of the words and equipment names used in this documentation. If a term in another page is unfamiliar, look it up here.


Equipment names

Allen & Heath QU-5D : The audio mixer — the large desk with sliders. It balances all sound and creates the room, foyer and livestream mixes. See QU-5D Mixer.

JBL SRX812P : The powered speakers in the main auditorium. "Powered" means each speaker has its own amplifier built in.

Foyer amplifier : The amplifier that drives the foyer speakers, fed by its own mix from the QU-5D.

RodeCaster Video : The video switcher and livestream encoder. Combines the cameras with the livestream audio and streams to YouTube. See RodeCaster Video.

Camera 1 — RoboShot HDMI 12 : The first PTZ camera, usually the wide shot.

Camera 2 — AVKANS 20X PTZ Camera Pro : The second PTZ camera, usually close-ups; has a 20× zoom.

AVKANS Joy Pro Controller : The joystick box used to move the cameras by hand. See PTZ Controller.

StreamDeck XL : The panel of labelled buttons on the desk. Each button runs a job (switch camera, start stream, change slide). See StreamDeck Buttons.

Bitfocus Companion : The software (on the NUC) that makes the StreamDeck buttons work.

Presentation PC (NUC) : The small Windows computer that runs PowerPoint and Companion.

Bluestream HDMI Matrix : The box that decides which picture shows on which screen. See Bluestream Matrix.

RTI 7" touch screen controller : The small touch screen just below the PC used to turn the TVs on and off. It controls TV power only — the picture comes from the Bluestream matrix. See TV Distribution.

Rode M5 : A pair of wired condenser microphones used for the choir and organ.

Sennheiser condenser microphone : The wired microphones at the lectern (Ch 1) and pulpit (Ch 5).


Audio terms

Mixer : The desk that combines and balances all the microphones and sends sound to the speakers, foyer and livestream.

Fader : A sliding volume control for one source. Up = louder, down = quieter.

Mute : A button that silences a channel even if its fader is up. Lit = silenced.

Channel : One input strip on the mixer, e.g. "Channel 1 = lectern mic".

Mix : A particular balance of sources for one destination. We have three: room, foyer and livestream.

Matrix mix : A separate, independently-balanced mix. The foyer and livestream each use a matrix mix, which is why a mic can be in one mix but not another. See Livestream Mix.

Main / LR fader : The fader controlling the overall level to the church speakers.

Feedback : The loud squeal when an open mic hears the speakers and loops. Fix by lowering that mic's fader.

Condenser microphone : A sensitive wired microphone (no battery needed) — our lectern, pulpit and Rode M5 mics.

Radio (wireless) microphone : A battery-powered wireless microphone — our two handhelds and the headset.


Video terms

PTZ : Pan, Tilt, Zoom — a motorised camera that can turn and zoom on command.

Pan : Turning the camera left/right.

Tilt : Tipping the camera up/down.

Zoom : Making the picture closer (in) or wider (out).

Preset : A saved camera position (pan/tilt/zoom) you can recall with one button.

Switching : Choosing which camera the livestream shows. It does not move the cameras.

Source : An input — e.g. a camera or the PC — that can be shown or sent somewhere.

Encoder : A device that packages video for streaming. The RodeCaster Video does this for YouTube.

Livestream : The live broadcast of the service to YouTube.


Display terms

HDMI : The common cable/connector that carries picture and sound between devices and TVs.

Matrix : A switch that can route any input to any output — our Bluestream matrix sends the PC picture to the chosen screens.

Confidence monitor : A screen facing the speaker so they can see the slides without turning around.

Input / Output : An input is a source coming in (e.g. the PC). An output is a screen going out (e.g. Front TV Left).

No Signal : A TV message meaning it is not receiving a picture — usually wrong input or routing. See TV Not Working.


General terms

Slide Show mode : PowerPoint showing slides full screen (press F5), with no menus.

Scene (QU-5D) : A saved snapshot of all mixer settings — recall it to return to the normal Sunday setup.

Power-cycle : To turn a device off, wait, and on again — a common fix.

Mills IT : The company that maintains this system. Contact details on Regular Checks.