If you are an experienced player in computer (online and not only) games, you have a wonderful voice, you have charisma and love the audience, then why don’t you spend time with benefit, share your experience, and who knows, it’s possible to make money on it ? A similar pastime would be Stream through Twitch. What is a "stream" (from English - stream)? This is a live broadcast of the game directly from your computer to one of the many Internet channels, from Youtube to Goodgame. There are many channels, but the most successful and massive streams “live” on Twitch. Why Twitch? Firstly, this is a channel with an understandable and step-by-step explanation of the settings for three different programs for capturing the screen (we will talk about them later). Secondly, Twitch is an international channel. For example, your Minecraft Stream can be watched not only by compatriots, but also by spectators from near and far abroad countries, which, naturally, raises the number of possible viewers several times. Of course, there are other channels, such as SK2, Gamezet, Goodgame and YouTube, but starting on Twitch is both easier and more interesting. In addition, you can broadcast not only one channel, but all at once. So, how to enable Stream on Twitch?
Program selection
There are an incredible variety of different programs designed for this purpose. The most popular program for Stream on Twitch is OBS (Open Broadcasting Software), followed by a much simpler, but less affordable (for some really important options you have to pay) Xsplit. If you are ready to give about $ 15 a month, but stream in one click in perfect quality and almost without settings, you should look at the professional version of Xsplit. If your wallet is not designed for such a load, then it is worth spending some time setting up OBS.
First steps in the big world
If you need a program for Stream on Twitch, then finding it is easy. The most important component of Stream (with the exception of the identity of the streamer itself) is computer hardware and an Internet connection. Since the stream is the transfer of data from the computer to the channel servers, your iron comrade should be able to:
- process a sufficiently large amount of data (for broadcast in good quality);
- transfer them quickly.
If these conditions are not respected, viewers will be forced to either watch a soapbox, or put up with lags and freezes of the video. Of course, this will negatively affect the audience. How to enable Stream on Twitch and check if your computer meets all the necessary requirements?
The speed of your Internet connection is checked by Speedtest, and you need to check it on the servers of Amsterdam, since the server closest to the territory of Russia and the CIS countries is located there.
And then you configure according to this table:
The table is quite confusing, besides in English, so some points should be clarified:
- The horizontal line is a type of processor from Intel, painted by generation and series. It is recognized through the "Computer" - "Properties" - "Processor".
- Vertical - upload speed (Upload Speed), which we learned after Speedtest'a.
And then we find the graph that matches your processor and Internet connection. If it is painted in white or blue, then streaming will not work, and it would be necessary to update the computer or improve the connection. The Stream setting will also be superfluous. Twitch simply will not receive video in a high enough resolution, and you will only be watched if you show something incredibly exclusive.
"In the beginning was the word ..."
So, we figured out the hardware and the Internet connection, go to the microphone and webcam. Since listening to a voice from the underworld and seeing a blurry haze instead of your charming face is very unpleasant, you will need a good microphone (ideally professional or karaoke), a good webcam and, if possible, headphones (otherwise the sound from the game can be duplicated and create unpleasant noises).
If your budget is not too limited, then it is better to look at professional gaming equipment (for example, from Razer). Otherwise, choose the wallet of your choice. Remember that ideally, the microphone should be cardioid, it may not be so convenient, but all extraneous noise will be guaranteed to be minimized. In addition, the camera is better to choose with the ability to transmit images in HD.
Preparation for setup
Before you enable Stream on Twitch, you must go through the registration procedure (with confirmation of e-mail) and get your Stream key (the key by which the program “finds out” which channel to transfer data to). Some programs only need a username and password, but this does not apply to OBS. Therefore, after registration, go to your dashboard and there you will get a Stream key ("Stream Key" - "Show Key")
All of the above will help you in the setup, which we will do now.
How to turn on Twitch Stream
Download OBS, install and run. Go to the "Settings" section.
And now point by point.
General
Here you can configure the language of the program and give a name to the profile (a set of your settings). It is better to make the name of the profile meaningful (for example, Stream Dot or Twitch, otherwise it will be easy to get confused).
Coding
Here are the most important settings, the quality of the image on the Stream depends on them. Twitch requires streamers to have a constant bitrate and CBR padding, so if there are no checkmarks in front of them, then do not forget to set them.
Remember the table on which we checked the "suitability" for the "Stream"? Time to return to it, since it is there that the recommended maximum bitrate is recorded. A little lower than the plate with the processor type and connection is a plate with the type of stream vertically and its horizontal quality.
Find your value and set the maximum bitrate. Remember, if it is higher than 3000, it is better to add another stream with a lower bitrate (otherwise users of weak PCs will not be able to watch you).
We set the audio to AAC, and its bitrate is 128.
Broadcast
Broadcasting is possible both live (right on your game channel), and for local recording, which at the end of the broadcast will be recorded on your computer. It is recommended that you start with the local one, because in this way you will be able to evaluate the quality of the picture and sound, notice the presence / absence of “freezing” of the video, etc. By default, the videos are written to the system disk in the user’s folder (again, the folder there must be a meaningful name, say, "Stream Dot", otherwise with several profiles the search for the desired video will take hours), but the path can be changed.
Next is the Stream setting for Twitch. In the column “Broadcasting Service”, select Twitch, insert the key that we received on the site into the Stream Key column.
If a bunch of red inscriptions appeared below - do not be afraid, everything is fine, the program tells us what else needs to be done. If you don’t want to learn more about how to set Stream to Twitch more finely, you can click on the Optimize button in the lower left corner. If not, then continue.
Video
To avoid black bars at the edges (and jokes from the category “your advertisement could have been here”), it is recommended to set the extension equal to the extension of your monitor, set the FPS depending on the data received in the table.
Audio
Here we select the playback devices (usually speakers or headphones) and the microphone used.
Let us dwell on the remaining points in more detail:
- NiG Delay: 200 (change only if the audience complains that the endings of your phrases disappear, increase by 200 and check).
- Strengthening applications: 1 (change if the audience hears you, but not the game).
- Microphone gain: 1 (and vice versa, if you hear only game sounds, but not your voice).
- Microphone Offset: Use only if there is a problem with synchronization.
On this, the main OBS setup for Stream Twitch is nearing completion, and only the “cosmetic elements” remain. About them further.
Hotkeys
The content is more than obvious from the name.
If you want to use the Push to Talk function (turn on the microphone only at the touch of a button), check the "Use the Press and Talk" function.
It is recommended to set hot keys to start / stop recording, as this will make the streaming process much more enjoyable.
Extensions
"Multithreaded optimization" - check the box opposite.
The priority of the process is medium (when changing, the processor will use more / less available resources for OBS, which will affect the work of other programs).
Put a tick in front of the item “Disable encoding during preview” should be only if there are lags in the preview.
Preset x264 CPU: set depending on the processor power. We recommend starting with veryfast, and if the power and connection allow, move smoothly to the values ​​near the slower.
Encoding profile: it is better to use main, because some gadgets (phones, tablets) may have problems decoding the channel.
Key frame interval: Twitch should be 2.
Adjust the sound to the timing of the video: use if there is a mismatch between the sound and the image on the video.
It is recommended to touch all other points if and only if you know exactly what you are doing and are ready to bear responsibility for it.
As a result, setting up OBS for Twitch Stream is over.
Scenes
The program is configured, now you need to configure the scenes and broadcast sources. Simply put, the scene is what will be displayed on the stream, the source is where it will be taken from. New scenes or sources are created by right-clicking on the field and selecting “new scene” / “new source” in the pop-up menu. They can be given a name (again, better meaningful and short, for example, Minecraft Stream, etc.).
The source may be:
- Desktop (the program will show the contents of your desktop).
- Window (any of the open windows).
- Image (a picture from a computer in order to “close” empty places on the stream).
- Slide show (the same as on the item described above, only larger in number and can be changed after a certain interval).
- Text (size, font, effects, etc. may vary).
- Capture device (camera or audio device).
- Game (any of the open applications at the moment is selected).
That's the whole Stream setting. Twitch can change its requirements or add new ones, so it is recommended to visit the site from time to time and reread the rules.
Common streamer errors
- When you start watching a channel of a person, you are interested in who he is, what he does, what he plays, what he is interested in, how he looks, etc. But on most channels there is not even basic personal information. Remember that the fact of registration and the first broadcasts does not make you a star, so do not be lazy and tell a little about yourself.
- Recommended reading the rules of broadcasting. Together with the rather trivial ones (restriction of profanity, racist, etc. statements) there are very specific ones (do not broadcast without clothes or in stockings / bathing suits / underwear, etc.). If they are violated, a permanent ban is possible, which means that all your efforts to read the article on how to make a Stream on Twitch were in vain.
- Without advertising, fame cannot be achieved. Create a VKontakte group, register on Twitter and Facebook (if you plan to broadcast in English too) and post information about streams, various content, etc.
At the end of the article, it should be mentioned that if you are broadcasting to several sites, then remember the delay (about 5 minutes) between the channels. Also do not forget that the maximum duration of a video on Youtube is 120 minutes. Everything above this limit is recorded in the next video.
This concludes the article on how to do Twitch Stream and wish you success!