Get the best quality streams

This page has been created to help you get the best out of your video and audio streams. Hopefully following this guide will give you the quality that you desire. If you find that this page hasn't improved the quality of your streams, let us know and we will investigate further. It must be noted, however, that these are simply best practices and do not guarantee results.

Input Device

To start with you will need a good quality capture device. Below is a list of device types, in order of quality.

1. Serial Digital Interface (SDI) - This will give you the best quality video.
2. Component Video
3. S-Video
4. DV Video
5. Composite Video - Try to avoid using Composite Video input, this is mainly used for analog devices and will result in poor quality.

If you are capturing audio then try to capture digital audio as this will give you the best results. If you can only use analog input capture then balanced audio connections are better than RCA.

Ready your computer

Before you start to capturing there are a few steps which you can follow to make sure there is no interference.

• Turn off all network and file sharing
• Close all unnecessary programs
• Check your system resources to make sure you can keep pace with the recording

Compression

There are several settings you can adjust to get optimal quality, these are listed below.

• Key frame. A key frame is a point in encoded video where the data for the entire frame is transmitted, rather than just the changes. Key frames are generally inserted when there is a scene change. The key frame setting is the minimum time between points where the encoder will insert key frames (they may be inserted more often automatically, if necessary). Decreasing the distance between key frames can improve the quality of the video. If you use a longer key frame distance, additional key frames are inserted when necessary; for example, when a scene changes. Keep in mind, though, that a long key frame distance will affect the amount of time a user may need to wait for video in a broadcast scenario.
• Buffer size. The bit rate and quality of content fluctuate within the confines of the buffer size. A larger buffer size enables more bits within the buffer range to be allocated to complex scenes. For example, if you set the buffer size to 10 seconds, the codec may choose to allocate x number of bytes to the first 8 seconds, and the rest during the last 2 seconds. This allows for the more complex parts of the video to have more bits allocated within the buffer. Typically, increasing the buffer will improve overall quality. However, it also increases the delay between the time when the user requests the content, and playing starts. For lower bit rates, it is recommended to increase the buffer size. For higher bit rates, increasing the buffer size has a smaller impact on quality.
• Video smoothness. Video smoothness determines the tradeoff between sharp images and smooth motion. Video appears smooth when objects move easily from one position to another on the screen, and the edges of objects are not jagged. Video appears clear when images and motion are well-defined and clearly delineated. The bit rate setting determines the number of bits that can be allocated over a period of video. Based on this setting, the codec can choose to include more frames, which results in the images appearing smoother. However, each frame uses fewer bits. With a higher video smoothness value, the codec may include fewer frames. This increases the number of bits allocated per frame, resulting in sharper images; however, the image may not appear as smooth. The video smoothness setting only comes into effect when there are not enough bits to encode at the specified frame rate, and a tradeoff must be made. At higher bit rates, this value can be increased. If you are dropping frames during encoding, consider decreasing video smoothness.

Recording the stream

If the background is not important try to keep it to a bare minimum and out of focus. Also avoid all unnecessary movement to allow the main focus on what is really needed.

Essential Information

Internet Connection. For the best quality streams your upload speed should be 2.5x the bitrate you choose to broadcast. You can test your upload speed here.

Computer Spec. The computer from which you use your encoder should have at least the following specifications:

• Pentium 4 2.4Ghz processor
• 512mb of Ram (audio) or 1gb of Ram (video)
• Windows XP
• Windows Media Encoder 9

You're good to go!

As stated previously these are simply guidelines and are not guaranteed to improve the quality of your stream.