Timely Updates for
Takedown Scoring and Stats Users
Takedown LIVE on a Computer
More platforms means more flexibility and choice for our users. That’s good!
Takedown LIVE is now fully compatible with Chromebook computers. Download Takedown LIVE from the Play Store onto your Chromebook and get the same realtime wrestling results and video access that you’d get on Android or iOS.
LevelChanger’s apps offer the widest range of platform compability in wrestling.
Takedown LIVE Compatibility
iPhone and iPad
Macintosh
Android phone and tablet
Chromebook
Takedown Scoring and Stats Compatibility
iPad
Macintosh
Budgeting for Next Season
Plan and budget for these items to get more value out of your Takedown investment.
With the scholastic season in the rear view mirror, many teams are already planning for next season. Here are some investments to consider.
External Camera
A game-changer for video. Read about our experience here.
Cost: $100 - $500
Camera Mount
Whether you use the iPad or an external camera for video recording, some sort of stablizing mount is very helpful. Choices include a tripod, monopod and/or a table stand. See examples. Good selection on Amazon.
Cost: $50-$100
External Battery
A life-saver when your iPad’s battery is running low. See example. Great selection on Amazon.
Cost: $50+
Apple AV Adapter
Easiest and cheapest way to use Takedown’s Scoreboard feature. Available for Lightning and USB-C iPad connectors. Don’t forget to get an HDMI cable — Amazon is a good source.
Cost: $50 - $70 for adapter, $10-$20 for HDMI cable
iPad
Upgrade or add another iPad to your Takedown deployment. Amazon and eBay are good sources for used iPads.
Cost: $200 +
Protective iPad Cover
If you drop an unprotected iPad from shoulder height onto a solid floor, the screen will likely crack or worse. A folio cover is cheap insurance. Find a new one on Amazon or eBay.
Cost: $20
Video Subscription
Add a video subscription to your Takedown scoring subscription and reap the benefits of an efficient video workflow.
Cost: $150 annually
Digital Display
For Takedown’s Scoreboard feature, you need an HDMI-equipped display. Schools typically have an inventory of these displays and your school’s gym might already have a compatible wall-mounted display.
Cost: $125 and up, depending on display size.
Bluetooth Scale
Use Takedown’s free paperless, wireless weight recording feature to conveniently track athlete progress toward their weight objective. Takedown is compatible with the Befour PS-6615 scale.
Cost: $700 for scale
Teams and States Leading the Digital Revolution -- Final Tally 2023-2024
Usual suspects lead the way in 2023-2024
Top 20 Digitized Wrestling Teams
Edwardsville High School Wrestling
Hillsborough Wrestling Takedown Club
Evanston Township
Chief Sealth
Jays Wrestling
JC Youth Wrestling Club
North Knox
Big Walnut
Wauseon
Butler (Vandalia)
Liberty High School
Shawnee Mission South HS
Napoleon
Mallard Creek High School
Yorkville
Lockport Township
Hurricane Middle School
Langham Creek HS
Western Boone Wrestling
Hurricane High School
Top 10 Digitized Wrestling States
Ohio
Illinois
Missouri
Pennsylvania
California
Michigan
Texas
Kansas
Indiana
Georgia
One Million
Doing anything a million times is noteworthy.
Takedown users have scored over one million matches! Wow. That’s quite an accomplishment!
Congratulations to all of our wonderful customers including these two happy managers.
Onward to two million.
More:
Version 3.3.11
New release available for download.
The newest version of Takedown Scoring and Stats is 3.3.11
This release includes bug fixes.
Highly recommended download for all users.
Version 3.3.10
New release available for download.
The newest version of Takedown Scoring and Stats is 3.3.10
This release introduces significant improvements to Pairings for dual meets as well as bug fixes.
Highly recommended download for all users.
Pairing Improvements
We’ve improved the multi-user features of Pairings for dual meets. With release 3.3.10, multiple users can simultaneously configure dual meet Pairings. Split the task between two or more people by weight class or one person enters the home team and another person configures the away team. Remember: if multiple people are configuring the same entry — the Opponent Team wrestler at 138, for example — the last entry is the one saved to your database. So, make sure you’re coordinated and this improvement will save time.
Another important update in dual meet Pairings is the ability to import your lineup from another dual meet. This exciting new capability — accessed in Pairings, Copy Lineup from Event — replaces your Pairings lineup with the lineup from the selected dual meet. Using a lineup from a previous dual meet is more convenient than configuring all weight classes manually. Limitations are: (1) dual meet only, not for tournaments and (2) the source dual meet must be the same competition level and weight classes.
Using an External Camera (Part II)
We used another external camera with Takedown to record video. It was greater.
We recently implemented the capability of using an external video camera with Takedown. By “external” we mean a separate camera rather than the iPad’s camera.
Previously, we used a Logitech Streamcam with Takedown to capture a high school dual meet. Our thoughts on that experience are in Part I.
This week we used a more advanced camera — Sony ZV-1F — to video record a dual meet with Takedown.
Our verdict: A game changer. Spendy. But…wow.
Why use an External Camera?
There are many reasons to use an external camera.
The video view is independent from the iPad orientation. Put your iPad in a comfortable position for scoring — on your lap, for instance — and still get a great shot.
Separates the scoring and video recording tasks. Scoring and video recording simultaneously can be overwhelming for one person.
If you have a videographer, it allows them to be part of the process (rather than outside of it) without asking them to also score wrestling matches. Not surprisingly, some videographers aren’t interested in scoring wrestling matches.
Potentially, better quality and features — zoom or low level light correction, for example — than the on-device iPad camera.
4. Improved iPad battery life if the external camera has its own battery as is the case with this camera.
The camera we used was a Sony ZV-1F with a standard tripod and mount.
We connected the camera to an iPad (10th generation) running iOS 17. Takedown automatically chooses the external camera instead of the on-device camera.
This camera generates 720P output, the resolution used by most Takedown customers. Pinch-to-zoom works the same as it does with the on-device iPad camera. Unlike the Logitech Streamcam, this camera’s features — and there are many — are accessible via the camera. Importantly, the Sony has a viewfinder, manual zoom and re-chargeable battery.
Results
To our eyes, the video quality of this camera was similar to the Logitech Streamcam.
Here are a few example videos:
Video Recording Experience
We used one operator for scoring and video recording. The camera’s zoom setting captured the full mat area — so panning wasn’t required to keep the action in the view — and used the iPad pinch-zoom feature to get an action closeup. This seemed to be the most practical operating mode for one person. Of course, with a dedicated camera operator a tighter zoom would be possible and often desirable.
Occassionally, we used the Sony camera zoom and tripod panning. This wasn’t sustainable — when the scoring activity picked up we inevitably failed to keep the action in the viewport. So, we reverted to a wide zoom on the Sony camera and used the iPad pinch-to-zoom for tighter shots.
The camera viewfinder was very helpful as it eliminates the need to monitor the iPad’s screen to know if the wrestling action is in the video view. This also means that the camera’s position relative to the iPad is limited only by the length of your USB cable.
Lastly, decoupling the iPad orientation from the camera view yields considerable benefits. We placed our iPad in the most comfortable position for scoring without affecting the camera view. As with the Logitech Streamcam, the entire process of scoring and video recording was much easier.
Cost
Camera — $500 delivered.
Tripod —Pricing for floor standing tripods varies from $50 to multiple hundreds of dollars.
Cable — $10 - $20. Get at least 6’ and it must be USB-C and USB 3+. USB-C alone isn’t sufficient.
Considerations
Not all cameras work as an iPad-compatible external camera for Takedown. Only ‘UVC 1.5 compliant’ cameras are compatible.
Not all iPads work with an external camera. You’ll need a USB-C port and iOS 17 at a minimum. The iPad 10th generation seems the most affordable model that works.
Takedown’s implementation is a bit — technical word here — janky. The perspective shown in the Scoring viewport is rotated 180 degrees around the vertical axis. This doesn’t impact the recorded video; it impacts only the viewport image. You’ll appreciate the Sony camera viewfinder because it offers the correct perspective and makes panning intuitive.
Unplugging the camera when Takedown is in the background can cause a crash when Takedown is brought to the foreground.
More Info
Version 3.3.9
New release available for download.
The newest version of Takedown Scoring and Stats is 3.3.9
Bug fixes and other improvements.
Highly recommended download for all users.
The Logo of Shame
Fix up your branding. Don’t wear the Logo of Shame.
The default logo for Takedown LIVE is “Add Logo Here.” We’ll change this default logo every so often.
Add your team’s logo to Takedown and Takedown LIVE.
Avoid the Logo of Shame.
User Contributed Post: Tripod/Monopod Combo Works Well
Takedown user shares experience with helpful accessory.
Below is a contributed post by a long time Takedown user.
As a parent volunteer that manages our use of Takedown, including making sure that all matches are scored and stats are correct, I had thought a short tripod or something that could be used during duals from the scoring table would be helpful but had never taken the time to find a solution. Then I saw the blog post titled 'Table Top Stand is Way Too Easy' and decided to go look again for something that we could use.
I was looking for something that was more designed for panning than the tabletop stand from the blog post. I discovered the Orion Tritech II-M Stabilized Monopod (available on Amazon and other retailers). This monopod was a great find! It's budget-friendly and offers multiple configuration options. I presented this product to our boosters and asked them to purchase one so that we could test it out.
We received the monopod just before our next home dual. I tested the tabletop mode at that dual and it worked great. I still needed to keep one hand on the legs when panning but I suspect that over time that may change as the head loosens up a little more.
That was followed by a tournament where I used the monopod configuration to score matches and still get stability which is much easier at tournaments than using a tripod which we were using in many cases prior.
We haven’t used it in the stabilized monopod configuration yet, but I can see cases where that might be useful as well. For instance, in a dual tournament where we may not be seated at the scorers table, the stability will be better than the straight monopod option. The stabilizing legs can also be left folded making the function that of a normal monopod as well.
In conclusion the Orion Tritech II-M Stabilized Monopod has proven in the short time that we have had it to be a great asset for our team, offering a cost-effective and versatile solution. If you are looking for a cost-effective tabletop scoring option, I would recommend taking a look at this monopod.
C. Shenberger, Parent Volunteer
Midview High School (Ohio)
If you have an experience you’d like to share with the Takedown community, let us know. It’s helpful for others to hear tips and tricks from the folks who are on the ground and using Takedown in the trenches.