How to stream for Video Capture Cards (how-to)

[tstrike]

Ok thanks to a lot of wonderful folks tips and stuff I didn't see a more simplified how to for streaming in Windows. I think the same would apply in other OSs as well, but I decided to reinvent the wheel so here it goes:

Streaming using a Video Capture Card

You need:

Operating System
1 Video Capture Card
Drivers for Video Capture card (go to http://www.driversguide.com to find software drivers for video capture cards, they have TONS)
DirectX 9.0
VLC (please get the nightly version, a lot of good folks work really hard on this software, and PLEASE donate to them if you can)
A network connection
Windows Media Player
A WHOLE LOT of patience

Step 1

-- Install Capture Card (I use all ATI Wonder Cards and have no problem)
-- Install or Update your DirectX (http://www.windowsupdate.com)
-- Install VLC


Step 2 FOR NAT(using DHCP for home networks)/DSL/CABLE Routers

-- Go to your router and click on Port Forwarding
-- Enter your VLC server's IP address and the desired port for forwarding.
-- Your router should accept the setting and tell you everything is ok

Step 3

-- Fire up VLC
-- Go to File > Open Captue Device > Video Device Name > Refresh.. (wait a moment) click on the default bar and then click on your capture device driver (the one that came with your card)
-- Now click Stream/Save > Settings
-- Click on Play Locally and MMSH. Insert YOUR LOCAL IP ADDRESS and DESIRED port (for folks using NAT thats 192.X.X.X that you forwarded on your router earlier)
-- Click on Video Codec and select your Video Codec format (I use WMV since I am using WMP), then select a good bit rate like 192 or 128, then select the size of the picture in your player (1 - 2)
-- Repeat the instructions above for audio
-- VERY IMPORTANT TTL .... Type 10 at a minimum... This tells VLC the number of routers your stream will probably go across..
-- Click Ok and Click Ok again to start your stream


Step 4

Open WMP and click on File > Open URL
Type http://<your ROUTERS IP>:9494

Your video will take a bit to buffer but then you should see your pictures

Done

IF ANYONE can help with instructions on optimizing their video please post on this thread

If you have any questions fire away?

[monkey3d]

I can't open the stream in media player and when i play it locally, i get audio, but a gray screen and no video.

Arrrggh!

[Scott JHU ECE]

Note that http streaming should defeat the NAT issues, et al., if you're willing to have a delay in there to avoid configuring the router.

If anyone has a thought on defeating the NAT issues, et al. using a faster streaming format, do tell!

[bill_bill]

thank you - thank you - thank you.....
four simple steps, worked the first time i tried it.
I was trying to find a solution to this and i had to read millions of pages in the forum, with no result at all.
You gave the solution to all my problems with a these simple straight-forward instructions.

where have you been all this time man ?????

bill

[tstrike]

I can't open the stream in media player and when i play it locally, i get audio, but a gray screen and no video.

Arrrggh!

Sorry about the delay. Please confirm your card works by making sure you activate your TV Tuner software.

[dvrvm]

Absolutely great! Worked for me.
One question left: How can you get it working without compressing the stream? As I stream over LAN only anyway, bit rate is not an issue for me, but the computer with TV card is too slow to compress 720x576 on the fly...
Without setting the "video codec" and "audio codec" options, I don't see any video nor do I hear sound on the receiving computer.

[tstrike]

Absolutely great! Worked for me.
One question left: How can you get it working without compressing the stream? As I stream over LAN only anyway, bit rate is not an issue for me, but the computer with TV card is too slow to compress 720x576 on the fly...
Without setting the "video codec" and "audio codec" options, I don't see any video nor do I hear sound on the receiving computer.

I am glad you asked that question For I have found PREMIUM settings



This is in bold

Make sure for TV Capture Card you use:

WMV1 or WMV2 at 92 bitrate
ASF for format

EXTREMELY important for streams:

Cache 6000ms. Make sure this is configured both in your Advanced options and your other cache option.

Watch your video FLY in realtime. Now I can watch both of my places of business using VideoLAN

[DocJelly]

Excellent post, but I have a different issue... I have video but no audio... I select the SoundMAX Digital Audio for the audio device name, and when I click on Configure, it defaults to CD Player, and I want to choose Line In. I select Line In... the APPLY button stays grayed, and when I click OK, it doesnt "remember" If I click configure again, it's back to CD Player... I think that's the first issue Im having... any thoughts?

Second, which codec should I use for the audio transcode? MP3?

Other than that, I followed your steps and it works great. Now I can watch the Olympics Hockey when Im at work (until they catch me and tell me to shut it off that is)

[DocJelly]

I tried a couple more things before I called it a night...

if I run my TV Tuner software first (AverMedia USB) and have that showing on the screen, and then follow the steps in this (excellent) tutorial, I got audio!... but no video.

If I turned it off and restarted the stream, I got video back... but lost audio.

If I just open the capture device without any streaming I get video, but no audio, and if I stream to 'play locally' I get video, but no audio.

Im stumped now..gonna hit the sack and see if anything comes to me in my sleep..

TIA
-M

[tonsofpcs]

Based on that audio device name, I assume you are using windows?

Try changing the selected recording source using the volume control application (sndvol32.exe , properties, recording, select everything, ok, select the line in)

[DocJelly]

Yes, im using Windows XP. I should have specified that last night, my bad. It was late...

OK I selected the Line In, as per your instructions.
Fired up VLC, Open Capture device.
Video evice> rfresh list, then selected AverTV USB2.0
Audio Device> refresh list, then selected SoundMAX Digital Audio. CLick Configure, and CD Player is still selected as the Pin Line. Changed to Line In and clicked OK (APply button was still grayed out)

Stream checked, caching checked (3000).
Streaming settings:

MMSH 192.168.1.10 port 8001
Encapsulation method ASF
Transcode:
Video Codec WMV2 (also tried WMV1) bitrate 192, scale 1
Audio Codec MP3 bitrate 96, channels 2

set TTL to 10
OK

back here on my laptop I opened the URL using my DYnDns name and port 8001 and I get the video.. still no audio.

Thanks for the help,
-M

[tonsofpcs]

Do you get the audio locally? (be sure that line in is muted on the playback mixer). If not, try doing this by selecting your sound card and NOT clicking configure on it.

[DocJelly]

Yes, when I run the TV Tuner software, I get audio, when I run WMP or iTunes I get audio, when I make a boo-boo and windows opens a "bad dog!" dialog box, I get audio, it's ONLY when I open the capture device in VLC that I don't get audio.

The AverTV USBultra tuner that I'm using I find a bit odd in that it uses USB2 for the video signal and whatnot, but a separate audio-out that I have plugged into the line-in on my (onboard) sound card. I would have thought that it could have done both over USB...

So you want me to mute the line-in? from the sound countrol panel applet?

Im streaming the Canada/Italy hockey game at the moment, and Idid not click configure after selecting my sound card from the drop down, and I'm not getting any audio still.

Even when I try to open the capture device and watch it in VLC without streaming it, I don't get audio.

Im using a "fresh" download of VLC 0.84a that I downloaded a couple nights ago.

-M

[Guest]

Having the EXACT same problem.... Trying to stream via videolan, but cant get sound from the averTV usb-device.... Same problem when trying it in windows media encoder...

Have tried line-in muting and doublechecked that line-in is selected under record.

gaaaahh... what to do???

[Christolito]

+ no audio locally via vlc

[DocJelly]

I also tried the windows media encoder and had the same issue as with VideoLAN.

What sound card are you using, Guest? Im running mine through the onboard sound card in an '04 Dell Optiplex GX270.

If I pick an XviD file and stream that, I get sound no problem, just with the capture device that I can't get it to work.

-M

[Guest]

i have the same problem with mine AverTv usb2 on winXp SP2. no sound on local or stream..

Yes, im using Windows XP. I should have specified that last night, my bad. It was late...

OK I selected the Line In, as per your instructions.
Fired up VLC, Open Capture device.
Video evice> rfresh list, then selected AverTV USB2.0
Audio Device> refresh list, then selected SoundMAX Digital Audio. CLick Configure, and CD Player is still selected as the Pin Line. Changed to Line In and clicked OK (APply button was still grayed out)

Stream checked, caching checked (3000).
Streaming settings:

MMSH 192.168.1.10 port 8001
Encapsulation method ASF
Transcode:
Video Codec WMV2 (also tried WMV1) bitrate 192, scale 1
Audio Codec MP3 bitrate 96, channels 2

set TTL to 10
OK

back here on my laptop I opened the URL using my DYnDns name and port 8001 and I get the video.. still no audio.

Thanks for the help,
-M

[Guest]

Hi.

I have a different problem. When ever i try to do anything with the capture card and the streaming to my lan it reboots the machine. I tried it on a different system with completly different hardware (XP-AsusTV7134 capture card) and exactly the same thing.

Is there something I am not doing that could be causing this??

I can capture and save to a file no prob...I can stream a DVD no probs...just can't get them working together.

Thanks

Sorry I posted this as a topic by accident

[Guest]

Hi i'm using an Aver Media Card as well ot a desktop version 300 i believe, and i can't get the output to stream at all.
If i try to stream a video file it works great.
tried the WMP you suggested i get a network error, i'm using WMP 10, i set the proxy setting to autodetect since that's what microsoft suggested. I have port 1234 set to FWD to my VLC server.
I tried broadcasting as both a sngle cast and a multi cast
Anyone have any suggestion?

[oxygens]

i have 2 bnc receive ports on the video capture device
i'm running fedora core 4
linux sees video and video0, connecting to any one of them gives me camera1 and i cant connect to camera 2
any ideas?

[oxygens]

i have 2 bnc receive ports on the video capture device
i'm running fedora core 4
linux sees video and video0, connecting to any one of them gives me camera1 and i cant connect to camera 2
any ideas?

sorry i meant to type bnc, not bnv

[oxygens]

tvtime sees 4 channels, "Composite0", 1,2,3

0 and 1 can see each one camera so this one is working fine, but i need to get it going in vlc

[Guest]

nevermind, advanced/channel, manual select, I'm now trying to figure out how to do this on the remote interface or by parameter

[Guest]

problem: running 2 VLC instances, one on channel0, when i startthe other one on channel1 the first instance changes too , this doesnt hapen with the original software on windows, so i guess it's software stuff, dont know where to report this an di dont have time, bye

[Edmur]

I have a Pinnacle PCTV Vision capture card in my computer IBM PIII 733. I´m trying to send a streaming multicast to leave of it, but I am not obtaining. Someone has some tip from as I must proceed. Already I obtained to generate one streaming to leave of a DVD but when use dshow nothing happens.

Thanks,

Edmur