Guides for live video
These video encoder software tutorials walk you through OBS Studio, vMix, Wirecast, XSplit, FFmpeg and AVerMedia RECentral, so your computer sends its picture to a Primcast live video channel. Pick the program you already use and the guide tells you what to type in every box.
Each guide follows the program's own screens, in order. Keep your channel open in the Primcast panel next to it: the server address, the stream name and the publishing login you need are all listed there.
S1Free, open source
Add your camera or capture card as a source, pick Custom under Settings, Stream, and paste in your server and stream key. Then set the bitrate under Output and press Start Streaming.
S2Live production
Set Destination to Custom RTMP Server, paste your server into URL and your stream name into Stream Key, then add your publishing login under Advanced. The guide also covers an SRT option for shaky connections.
S3Live production
Open Output Settings, choose RTMP Server, type your address and stream name, then add your login with Set Credentials. One press of Stream and you are on air.
S4Scenes and overlays
Add your video source, then make a Custom RTMP channel from the Broadcast menu. Fill in the address and stream name, choose your bitrate, and your new profile starts the show.
S5No screen at all
One command per source, whether that is a video file, a camera or your screen, plus an SRT version for long or shaky connections. Unlike the others, FFmpeg takes one address with the stream name at the end.
S6For AVerMedia devices
Pick your capture card or camera as the source and set the video to H.264. Then choose Custom RTMP in the streaming list and paste in your server and stream name.
All of them send a Primcast channel exactly the same stream, so the choice comes down to your computer, your budget and how busy your production is.
| Program | Cost | Computer | A good fit when |
|---|---|---|---|
| OBS Studio | Free and open source | Windows, macOS, Linux | You are starting out, or you want full control without paying for a licence. |
| vMix | Paid licence, free trial | Windows | You run several cameras, replays or remote guests on one Windows PC. |
| Wirecast | Paid licence | Windows, macOS | You need a full production desk and your team works on a Mac. |
| XSplit Broadcaster | Free version with limits, paid licence | Windows | You like ready-made scenes and overlays and mostly stream one presenter. |
| FFmpeg | Free and open source | Windows, macOS, Linux | The stream has to run unattended, from a script or a server. |
Prices and editions change, so check each maker's own site before you buy. Not sure yet? Start with OBS Studio: it costs nothing, and moving to another program later means typing the same values into new boxes.
The menus differ from one program to the next, but the information is the same. Here is what each value means for your channel.
rtmp://your-domain:1935/your-applicationCopy it from your channel in the Primcast panel, exactly as shown. The application at the end belongs to your channel, so do not swap in a name you saw elsewhere.Live video channels take RTMP. If your program can send SRT and you would rather use it, the Pro and Platinum plans of our video CDN accept it.
When a new setup refuses to go live, the cause is almost always on this list.
Take the stream name off the end and put it in the stream key box. Only FFmpeg wants them joined.
Plenty of channels use it, but yours may not. Copy the application from your panel instead.
Your bitrate is too close to your upload speed. Lower it, or drop from 1080p to 720p.
In OBS it lives under Settings, Advanced. vMix has no switch to find: it reconnects on its own.
If you changed nothing, do not start changing settings now. Open the chat and say so: it can check your channel while you wait.
For most people it is OBS Studio. It is free, open source and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, with scenes, an audio mixer and full control over the output. If the stream has to run with no screen, from a script or a server, use FFmpeg instead.
Pick OBS Studio if you want to start for free, vMix if you run several cameras or guests on a Windows PC, and Wirecast if you want a paid production desk on a Mac. Your viewers cannot tell the difference, because all three send the same RTMP stream.
Open the program's stream settings and choose a custom RTMP server. Put the server address in one box and the stream key in the next, then add your publish username and password. Your channel's page in the Primcast panel lists all four, and each tutorial here shows exactly where they go.
At 720p and 30 frames a second, around 2,500 to 3,500 kbps of video looks clean. At 1080p, about 4,500 kbps of video plus 128 kbps of audio stays under the 5 Mbps ceiling of our paid live video plans. Either way, your measured upload speed should be well above the total.
Usually the bitrate is more than your connection can carry, or the computer is struggling to encode. Lower the bitrate or the resolution, switch to a hardware encoder such as NVENC or Quick Sync, and use a cable instead of Wi-Fi on the streaming computer.
Some programs can. vMix and Wirecast send to more than one destination on their own, and OBS Studio can with a plugin. Every extra destination needs its own share of your upload speed, so check that it still leaves room.
Every live video channel lets up to 1,000 people watch at once, in their browser, through a player you embed on your own website.
Open the chat on this page. Our AI assistant replies in seconds, can look at your channel and your settings while you wait, and hands you to a person from our team whenever you ask.
A Primcast live video channel receives the stream from your program on our servers in New York or Bucharest and plays it on every page where you embed the player.