Building Your Own Budget Streaming Setup
Like anything that involves technology, streaming can become expensive. Luckily, you don’t need much to get into the game and the essential tools are becoming increasingly more affordable. Let’s take a look at some items that can help with building a budget streaming setup.
Whether the purpose of your content is gaming, sports, music, or political debating, it’s important to plan ahead for the growth of your channel. That being said, if you look around at some major streaming channels, you’ll be surprised at how streamlined they are in terms of budget.
The demand for streamed video content has risen in the last two years, and influencers command more commercial weight than ever before. As a result, there is also an increase in products being manufactured for content creators and the new demand within this exciting online space.
How to build a budget streaming setup
Remember that budget gear isn’t only about being affordable, but rather, providing a great deal of value for the price. Also, the chances are that you’re likely to gradually upgrade your setup as your online presence increases.
For this reason, it’s important to acquire tools that have longevity and are likely to hold their value in the 2nd-hand gear market. That way you can lessen the impact of the spending trap it can become over time.
Beyerdynamic MMX-100
Headsets are popular with gamers, but they are convenient solutions for a range of streaming content and simply for communication purposes. The MMX-100 from Beyerdynamic is equipped with a META-Voice electret condenser microphone with a cardioid pickup pattern.
The connectable mic’s directionality means you get great off-axis cancelation, and therefore, less background noise. Moreover, the headphones are designed with long hours in mind so the comfort of the memory foam earpads is essential. Also included is a TRRS cable for consoles and mobile devices, and a dual-TRS mini-jack lead for PCs.
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PreSonus Revelator
If you prefer a dedicated mic but without the hassles of preamps and additional cables, the PreSonus Revelator is an affordable option worth checking out. It offers 24-bit 96 kHz recording via its bus-powered USB-C connection, and three pickup patterns including cardioid, omnidirectional, and figure-of-eight.
The 6 in/6 out interface allows direct monitoring and loopback, and the StudioLive voice effects section has 16 presets. What’s more, the UC Surface software mixer provides EQ, compressor, gate, limiter, and reverb. For editing and recording, the included Studio One Artist software also gives you access to the Revelator’s effects on the DAW’s channel strip.
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Elgato Stream Deck MK2
The admin tasks you will need to perform live will increase as your channel grows. So having a controller to trigger in-stream functions like the Stream Deck MK2 can make your workflow more efficient as you are freed up to better engage with your audience. The customizable 15-button grid allows you to assign commonly used functions within your OS, browser, or streaming software.
In addition, there is a selection of predefined icons to configure each LCD button or you can use your own. Moreover, the removable faceplate can be replaced or customized to match the rest of your streaming setup. It’s a pretty affordable and straightforward device overall, and it’s bus-powered via USB 2.0, which is convenient.
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Fun Generation Ring Light 300
Good lighting is one of the most important aspects of being on camera and luckily with products like the Fun Generation Ring Light 300, it doesn’t have to cost too much. The 12-inch ring houses 120 SMD LEDs and it has three selectable colour temperature modes to choose from, 3000K, 4700 K, and 6000 K.
The adjustable stand comes with a carry bag for easy transportation, and the package also includes a mount for using your smartphone’s camera. The lighting amount can also be controlled so you can quickly tweak the settings to get the best results no matter what camera you are using.
Please note that the required USB-A power supply is not included.
Roland UVC
If you’re planning on streaming every day, having a hub to connect and manage your audio and video is a useful addition to your setup. The Roland UVC can act as a mixer and interface for signals from your headset mic or the XLR input and the additional aux input allows you to fade audio signals in from other devices while you’re streaming.
The UVC accepts most major video camera formats and will be instantly recognized as a webcam and audio source in your favourite streaming software. Overall, it’s a useful USB 3 desktop interface that has plug-and-play compatibility with a wide range of devices.
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Also worth mentioning:
More about building a budget streaming setup:
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- Beyerdynamic MMX-100: Beyerdynamic
- Presonus Revelator: Presonus
- Elgato Stream Deck MK2: Elgato
- Fun Generation Ring Light 300: Thomann
- Roland UVC: Roland