Running hybrid meets

We started running hybrid meets early on, in the 2000s. Initially it was to bring people far away to share with us, Now it is mostly for accessibility - I want anyone who is interested in the topic to join in. After experimenting with various ideas, I have settled on one solution that can make any venue a hybrid venue with minimal equipment.

We had SK transiting in Singapore for a few hours, on a transit stop from PNG to Thailand. Many were interested in his stories from Afghanistan and PNG but couldn’t make it to the last minute meet at a cafe in Joo Chiat. We set up a hybrid meet. We had a laptop running Zoom with remote participants. Rode mic clipped on SK’s shirt allows him to be heard clearly by the remote audience.

Equipment needed

1. Rode Wireless Go II set (2 wireless mics, 1 receiver)
2. Laptop (Windows or Mac or iPad running iOS 26 onwards, if you cannot plug into an external sound source, I will recommend using a Mac as the output volume is higher. Portable Bluetooth speakers are another option. )
3. Projector (optional) or a bigger screen laptop
4. Zoom (any alternative that supports switching of input sources)

Here is the setup: the first photo shows the wireless mic. There are two in the kit. The photo after that is the receiver. The receiver connects to the laptop.

Setup:

Before the event:

1. Setup Zoom and share the room details with your offline participants.

At the event:

1. Connect your laptop/iPad to the Rode receiver.
2. Turn on the receiver and the mics.
3. Switch your Zoom’s audio input to Rode Wireless Mic (leave the output to default or HDMI, depending on the audio setup of the space you have)
4. Position the laptop so that the camera points to the audience (you can also use an iPhone or an Android phone as the camera for the laptop)
5. Let your audience know that the mic is for remote participants. They will need to speak louder for the audience in the room (some people assume that the mic is for the room and they speak softly.)
6. Before you start, ask the remote audience if they can hear you.
7. Appoint one or two mic runners (the host/facilitator could be one) who can take the mic to the audience who wants to speak.

Nico joined us from Tokyo via Zoom. The advantage of Zoom is that you can place another iPad or laptop facing another.

A participant is using the Rode mic. The remote audience can hear her clearly and see her.

Below Thao speaking on the Rode mic at our meet in Saigon. Remote audiences from around the world could hear and see her. We also had an iPhone set up as a remote camera for the Mac. So we could move the iPhone in front of the current speaker.

Links:

Rode Wireless GO II: Wireless GO II | Dual Wireless Mic System | RØDE

Dji Mic 2 (an alternative to Rode) : DJI Mic 2 - Wireless Microphone - DJI

Using iPhone as a webcam for Mac: Use your iPhone as a webcam on Mac - Apple Support (SG)

Using an Android phone as a webcam for Windows: Use your mobile device’s camera - Microsoft Support (not all Android phones work for the wireless method. I have tried recent Samsung and Oppo devices - released in 2022 and later, and they worked well. Other Android phones, try wired method - phone connected to the laptop via an USB C cable)

Contact:

Email me at smarterbysharing@gmail.com if you have questions.