Uses

Folks have been asking on my live streams about what software or gear I use for work.

Here you can find both the hardware and software I use. Things change often, but I try my best to keep this list up to date. If I miss something out, or you noticed that I have it but haven’t added it to the list, tweet me @nikolovlazar and I’ll add it.

Computing

  • My main machine is a 16” 2021 MacBook Pro M1 Max with 32 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD. It’s a beast. It can chew any bone you throw at it. I don’t use a separate machine for live streaming. I stream and work on this machine at the same time.

  • I use the LG UltraFine 27UQ850-W as an external monitor. It’s a decent 4K monitor with Nano IPS display, matt panel so it doesn’t reflect, and it delivers 90W through USB-C. I don’t use that though. I connect it with my laptop through HDMI. It’s not super huge on connectivity though. There aren’t a lot of ports on it. But it gets the job done!

  • I have both my laptop and monitoring mounted on an ergonomic mounting system that I got from back home. The website is in Macedonian, but you’ll get the idea from the photos.

  • The clacking noise comes from my ZSA Voyager. This replaced my Kinesis Advantage, which was my daily driver prior to this one. I was having wrist pain I couldn’t ignore, so I didn’t need to try hard to convince myself that I need one more keyboard. I also have the Keychron Q1 Version 2. It’s a hot swappable mechanical keyboard that’s heavy as a chihuahua - that’s not a lot for a dog, but a lot for a keyboard. I have it equipped with these Gateron G Pro Browns. They say they’re pre lubed. I wouldn’t say they have done a good job, but it’s not super bad. I don’t see myself lubing switches in near future.

  • I also got the Stream Deck sitting on my table. I’ve got it configured to switch my scenes and control specific elements in my videos.

  • For my mouse, something I use less and less, I picked the Logitech MX Master 3s for Mac. I’ve always wanted the MX Master, but I’ve been using Apple’s Magic Mouse up until recently. I really like this mouse. It has a silent click. It has infinite scroll which is actually pretty useful. It’s an overall good mouse.

  • I have everything connected to my Corsair TBT200, which is a Thunderbolt 4 dock. It’s a pretty good dock. It has a lot of ports. It delivers 96W of power to my laptop. It’s something I have to have, since my MacBook only has 3 USB-C ports.

  • For my lighting, I use the Neewer CB150 with the Aputure Light Dome Mini II softbox mounted on it. This is a really good, budget friendly option for studio lighting. The softbox comes with a honeycomb grid, which makes the light only illuminate me but not the background. It also has a gel mount if I want to add some color to the light, but I don’t see that happening, at least for my key light.

  • Here’s an older photo of my setup. I changed the keyboard, but the rest hasn’t changed much: An older photo of my station

Audio

  • My main microphone is Shure SM7B. I don’t think I’ll ever need a different dynamic microphone. It’s a dynamic XLR microphone used by big names in the music industry like Michael Jackson and Metallica.

  • I’ve got my microphone mounted on the RØDE PSA1. This is a good arm that feels premium and can support heavier microphones.

  • Since the SM7B is a gain hungry microphone, I’m using the Triton Audio FetHead to give it some gain without introducing a lot of noise in the sound. An alternative to this would be a Cloudlifter, but I like the Fethead because it’s an inline preamp, meaning I don’t need two XLR cables to have it connected between the microphone and the audio interface.

  • The mic is connected to my RØDECaster Pro with an XLR cable. This is an audio interface that converts the analog audio to digital. It’s a podcasting machine, so it has a number of inputs on it. But it is pretty big. I reviewed it. It has all the audio effects you need so you don’t need additional audio equipment like a compressor or noise gate or anything like that. I have this connected to my laptop via a USB-C cable.

  • Since the audio interface is pretty big, I mounted it on my table on a Vivo Laptop Stand. It clears up a big portion of my desk and it also looks pretty cool. You can see a photo in my review blog I mentioned above.

  • I also got the Hollyland Lark M2 lavalier microphone. I use this in my shorts and some of my videos. This is probably the tiniest and lightest lavalier microphone on the market right now. It comes with a bunch of accessories that make it super convenient. Also it captures a surprizingly good sound!

Video

  • For my main camera I’m using the Sony FX30 Cinema camera with the Sigma 18-50mm f2.8. This combination is the most budget friendly and versatile combination I could put together that’s specifically for video creation. Definitely not cheap, but if you compare the prices of other cinema line cameras and lenses, you’ll see what I’m talking about.

  • When I’m on the go, I’m using the Shimoda Explore v2 30 camera backpack with the modular insert included. In the bag I got:

  • For my streaming and my “at desk” videos I’m using the Sony a6300 with the Sigma 16mm f1.4. The camera shoots 6k and then it downscales it to 4k so you get crispier 4k that way. The lens is just phenomenal. It’s a wide lens, so it’s perfect for a setup like mine.

  • I’m powering my a6300 with a Subtel PW20 Power Adapter This is a phantom battery adapter that allows you to power your camera through your wall sockets so you won’t have to switch batteries in the middle of your live streaming.

  • I also have the Desview T3 Teleprompter. I used it for a few times at the beginning, but at one point I realized I don’t actually need it, so I stopped using it.

  • The a6300 is mounted on an Elgato Solid Arm clamped on an Elgato Master Mount L.

  • I’m connecting my a6300 to my computer using the Elgato Camlink 4k. This is an HDMI capture device that lets you use your mirrorless or DSLR as a webcam.

Furniture

  • I bought the MotionGrey Ergo2 Standing Desk along with the MotionGrey M Series Chair when I moved to Toronto. They were heavily discounted. I took the arm rests off the chair, and the extras like the headphone and drink holders from the desk. Honestly, I’m not using it in standind mode as much as I’m supposed to. These are good desk and chair though. When properly adjusted, you get no pain in your back or neck. And that’s super important!

  • To help me with the ergonomic adjustments I bough this thingy for my feet. You’ll never realize how much you need one until you actually get one. It plays a crucial role in my ergonomics setup. The massage parts aren’t that good, so sometimes I avoid putting my feet on them. They’re good for fidgeting though (with your feet).

Software

  • I use Neovim as my IDE. Here’s my nvim config if you’re interested.

  • I use the Dank Mono font in all my IDEs. I like how the italics look like. Such a fun font.

  • In terms of terminals I use Kitty. I’m using Kitty because it’s super fast, and because I can make it fully minimal, without title bar and window controls. Neovim in Kitty is amazing. Again, check out my Dotfiles repo to see how I got everything configured.

  • I use Notion for note taking and project management as well. The database feature is perfect for keeping track of anything, like video ideas, blog posts, tasks for your job etc.

  • I’ve replaced the Spotlight with Raycast. It’s much faster, has more features out of the box and it also has a number of extensions for even more capabilities. I do recommend you check it out.

  • For video editing I use DaVinci Resolve.

  • Whenever I live stream I use OBS Studio.

  • I also have Screenflow, which is a screen recording app that I got as a gift by egghead. It’s a pretty cool recording app. It lets you record multiple audio and video sources, like you microphones, computer audio, screens, and cameras, in separate tracks so you can have more freedom of creativity when editing your videos afterwards.

  • I used to have music in my streams, so I used Rogue Amoeba Loopback to loop the music to my audio interface and headphones at the same time while streaming so I can also listen to some music, not just you folks. But I stopped playing music in my streams, so I don’t use it anymore.