TL;DR
Connecting multiple Firewire video cameras to a single MacBook Pro can be challenging due to limited data buses. However, by leveraging an inexpensive ExpressCard adapter alongside your built-in Firewire ports, you can successfully ingest up to three professional DV cameras simultaneously for a highly portable, multi-cam Wirecast rig.
Hey guys, some of you know me as The Tech Buzz, and I will be posting from time to time some of my awesome findings in wirecast. My editor and chief, partner in crime, Eric Norrell, suggested I share with you guys my recent findings in wirecast. So I was getting ready for my bands show this up and coming weekend and wanted to use my presonus firestudio firewire audio interface (say that three times fast) on my 15″ macbook pro 2.66ghz core 2 duo 1st gen unibody with wirecast. Wirecast being the medium where I will record the video from the show and the audio via multi track inside pro tools or maybe garage band to save on my cpu. So I purchased this express card adapter for my macbook pro thinking I could plug the fire studio into that and my camera into the built in firewire 800 port. Now being an avid wirecast user, and tester, how could I not try and push wirecast to its limits on my machine and share my findings. To my surprise not only on one bus did I get a cam to work but TWO!!!! Then I plugged in a third to the built in and we had THREE!! I sat in disbelief as I snapped a shot showing 2 cams hooked up (we know the built in one works). For $16 you too can accomplish this. I hope this helps and please submit comments, questions or feedback. Thanks and keep it buzzin’
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