Rødecaster Video gets 4K multicam recording

The Rødecaster Video just learned a fairly serious new trick: recording from multiple cameras in 4K UHD. Firmware 1.4 introduces a dedicated 4K Capture Mode across the Rødecaster Video family. Multiple HDMI feeds can now be accepted at up to 3840 × 2160 at 30 fps, sent individually over NDI and recorded as separate tracks directly to external USB storage that can be an external SSD or the editing machine. In other words, a box originally aimed heavily at live production can now behave much more like a compact multi-camera recorder.

As in other cases where a major firmware update is presented accompanied by the sound of trumpets, there is a catch. Running several 4K feeds keeps the processor so busy that transitions, keying, graphics playback, multi-camera scenes and direct RTMP/SRT streaming are disabled in Capture Mode. So if you want to use it at full potential, the philosophy is basically: record everything now, make it pretty later.

A separate Full HD Capture Mode keeps feeds at 1080p60. Meanwhile, firmware 1.4 also expands Rødecaster Sync support and adds OTIO export for Adobe Premiere Pro. That makes the update particularly useful for podcasts, interviews and small production teams that want isolated camera recordings without adding more capture hardware.

The Rødecaster Video is not replacing a full production switcher. But with firmware 1.4, it is getting increasingly good at borrowing some of its jobs.