Set up your SW1 box

The SW1 is a small box that stays connected to your sound board. It listens to the pastor's microphone and sends the audio to SermonWave for live captions and translation. It turns on with the power and gets ready on its own. This article takes you from unboxing to your first test.

Who it's for#

• Sound or tech volunteers installing the box in the booth.
• Church admins who manage devices in the Dashboard.

Before you start#

• An SW1 hardware plan on your SermonWave account. See Plans and free trial.
• Your SW1 box and its power supply.
• A network cable and an open network port near the sound board. The port must give out addresses automatically (DHCP), and most church networks do.
• An audio cable from a spare output on your sound board (an aux, matrix or record output works well) to the box's audio input.
• An admin login for the Dashboard. Only organization admins can change device settings or start and stop devices.

Step 1 — Unbox and place the box#

1. Put the box near the sound board, somewhere it won't get covered or knocked.
2. Don't power it on yet. Connect the network and audio first.

Step 2 — Connect to your network#

1. Plug a network cable from the box into your network.
2. The box needs outbound internet access. If your network uses a content filter or a firewall, see SW1 troubleshooting for what to allow.

Step 3 — Link the box to your account#

Your SW1 is registered to your church before we ship it. You don't need a code or a pairing step. Once it's powered on and online, it shows up on its own under Devices in the Dashboard.

Step 4 — Connect the audio#

1. Connect your sound board output to the box's audio input.
2. Send the pastor's microphone to that output. Leave music and other inputs out of that mix if you can, so only speech gets translated.
3. Power on the box.
4. In the Dashboard, open Devices and look at the Mic Input bar on your SW1's card. When someone talks, it should move and show good.
   • low or silent while someone is talking: turn up the output on your sound board.
   • hot or clipping: turn it down. Clipped audio translates poorly.
5. If the box has more than one audio input, open the device, go to Settings, and choose the right one under Input Device. Click the refresh button next to it to rescan the box's inputs.

Captura de pantalla próximamente

Step 5 — Choose your languages#

1. On the Devices page, click your SW1's card.
2. Open the Settings tab.
3. Under Translation, set Source Language to the language the pastor speaks.
4. Under Target Languages, tap each language to turn it on or off.
5. Click Save Settings. The box applies the change within seconds, even during a service.

For every setting on this tab, see Device settings.

Step 6 — Run a test#

1. On your SW1's card, click the Start button (the play icon). The card shows Recording.
2. Have someone speak into the pastor's microphone for 30 seconds.
3. Click the card and open the Live tab. The transcription and translation should appear as they speak.
4. Open your listener page on a phone and check that the captions show up there too.
5. Click the Stop button (the square icon) and confirm.

On a normal Sunday you don't have to press anything. The box is armed for auto-start (VOX) when it powers up. Translation begins when the pastor starts speaking and ends after a few minutes of silence. See Live monitoring.

What the lights mean#

The SW1 has a row of five status lights. In order:

If a light is off when you expect a color, give the box a minute after power-on, then check SW1 troubleshooting.

Troubleshooting#

The box doesn't appear under Devices. Check that light 2 is green. If it's green and the box still isn't listed after a few minutes, contact support and tell us your church name.

The card says Offline. The box can't reach SermonWave. Check the network cable and light 2, then see SW1 troubleshooting.

The Mic Input bar doesn't move. Check the cable, make sure the sound board output is unmuted and turned up, and check Input Device on the Settings tab.

FAQ#

Do I need a computer on Sunday?#

No. The box starts on its own and begins translating when the pastor speaks. You only need the Dashboard if you want to watch or change something.

Can I unplug the box during the week?#

Yes. When it's powered on again, it starts up, reconnects and arms itself for auto-start.

Does the box update itself?#

Yes. Software updates install automatically when the box is online.

Where do recordings go?#

After a service, the recording is uploaded to your sermon archive under Events.