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Wowza Video is the leading live and on-demand streaming platform, providing a reliable, scalable, customisable and secure solution for any organisation sharing video content. Enterprises, media and educators rely on Wowza Video to deliver a high-quality viewing experience to their audiences, and Wowza hardware encoders are critical to ensuring that content is reliably delivered to the platform.
With the discontinuation of the Wowza ClearCaster, choosing a Wowza hardware encoder becomes more complicated. Consumers will have many choices when selecting a video encoder hardware to enhance their Wowza video. If you need an alternative solution to Wowza ClearCaster, we recommend that you choose a Wowza hardware encoder with the following features.
Hardware encoders offer superior performance and reliability, two key factors that ensure consistent streaming and recording of professional video. Hardware encoders are specifically designed and optimised to handle multiple high-end audio and video sources without dropping frames or interrupting the video stream.
Rather than constantly evaluating how to optimise one or more computers for use as an encoder, hardware encoders have been rigorously tested to ensure that Wowza streams run smoothly.
Available audio and video inputs are a top priority for Wowza hardware encoders. By taking advantage of the wide range of input options, the hardware encoder can accommodate the wide variety of devices you already own - cameras, mixers, and more.
Simultaneous support for HDMI streaming encoder, SDI, and other inputs means that you can connect any available camera in any situation without having to worry about easily misplaced adapters. The same goes for audio inputs.
Once the hardware encoder has captured audio and video, it must be delivered to the Wowza video platform. Just like capturing audio and video, the flexibility of delivering this content to Wowza is a major benefit of the content plan.
At the very least, a hardware encoder needs to be able to deliver your content to Wowza via H.264's RTMP protocol, which is easy to find. But Wowza Video supports a variety of streaming protocols, including RTMPS, RTSP, MPEG-DASH, HLS, and SRT.
The optimal streaming protocol for the first mile to Wowza Video depends on the production. For example, HLS supports video up to 4K and can be delivered over unpredictable networks due to its adaptability, but it does this by increasing the latency of the stream. Meanwhile, SRT is designed to deliver low-latency, high-quality video over unreliable network connections, making it ideal for any live content that requires real-time communication between actors and viewers.
Wowza hardware encoders support a number of different first-mile transport protocols, so you can send what's possible for any network condition, codec and content type.
Whether you plan to stream from multiple locations or a single studio, accessing one of multiple Wowza hardware encoders from a centralised dashboard makes life easier for all stakeholders.
Configuring, monitoring, maintaining and operating hardware encoders from anywhere reduces downtime by eliminating the errands or travelling time required to diagnose problems that interrupt streaming or recording.
Ideally, remotely manageable devices include 24/7 device monitoring and customised alerts that allow any team member to identify and resolve issues. Additionally, remote management should allow for content control, quick configuration, startup and stoppage, and verification that everything is working as expected for the highest quality audience experience.
Remote device access and management provides invaluable assurance that the hardware is working properly to deliver quality content to the audience.
Until the hardware is decommissioned, a key benefit of Wowza ClearCaster is cloud orchestration. This allows owners to have complete control over the entire fleet from anywhere in the world. Thankfully, many manufacturers have followed suit and it is now possible to find equipment that can be accessed, monitored and controlled in the cloud.
ORIVISION provides all the essential tools for producing top-notch content for Wowza Video. With dedicated components and a wide range of physical and IP AV inputs, you can take a signal from virtually any device and trust its performance.
ORIVISION offers a wide range of streaming protocols such as SRT, HLS, RTMPS, and more to ensure your content reaches Wowza in the best possible quality, and its lightweight and portable design makes it suitable for any environment.
Find out which ORIVISION video encoder is right for your Wowza video project!
