Tutorial · Telestream Wirecast

Wirecast tutorial from Output Settings to on air

This Wirecast tutorial gets your show onto your Primcast channel in three moves: add an RTMP Server output, paste your server into Address and your stream name into Stream, then enter your publishing login under Set Credentials.

Below that you will find the encoder preset that keeps playback smooth, a bitrate table, SRT for weak connections and a quick check that your viewers can really see you.

Start with your values Video streaming plans

Wirecast · Output Settingsfield map

Destination: RTMP Server
Encoding: your own copy of a preset
Address: rtmp://HOST:1935/APP
Stream: livestream
Set Credentials · Username: USERNAME
Set Credentials · Password: PASSWORD
Key frame every: 60 frames at 30 fps

Values in capitals and the stream name come from your Primcast panel. Field names as Wirecast 16 shows them.

First, collect your four values from the panel

Wirecast has to know where your channel lives and how to sign in to it. Every one of those details is already in your account, ready to copy.

Where to find them

Server: Address plus application name, in the form rtmp://HOST:1935/APP.
Stream name: On most channels this is livestream.
Username: Your publishing login.
Password: Click Show to reveal it, or New password to replace it.

Use the copy buttons

Every value has a copy button next to it. Use them. The application name is specific to your channel, and older guides that tell you to type live will get your connection rejected.

This username and password only let an encoder publish to your channel. They are different from the email and password you sign in to Primcast with.

On your own dedicated streaming server, the values sit in that server's configuration instead. Ask us in chat and we will show you where.

See a Nearest server line on the card? Put that address in Wirecast instead of the main one. Your stream then enters our network at the closest location (New York, Miami, San Francisco, Amsterdam or Bucharest) and travels on from there. Keep the stream name, username and password the same.

Telestream Wirecast streaming setup: the RTMP Server output

Work through these in order. The RTMP Server destination is in both Wirecast Studio and Wirecast Pro, on Windows and on Mac.

Open Output and choose Output Settings (Ctrl+Y on Windows, Cmd+Y on Mac). If Wirecast does not ask for a destination straight away, click Add.
Set Destination to RTMP Server and click OK.
In Address, paste the server from your panel. It stops at the application name.
In Stream, paste the stream name and nothing else.
Click Set Credentials, enter the publishing username and password from your panel and click OK.
Pick your Encoding preset (step 03 shows how to make one you can edit), then click OK to save the output.

Connects

Address
rtmp://HOST:1935/APP
Stream
livestream

Fails without a useful error

Address
rtmp://HOST:1935/APP/livestream
Stream
(empty)

Putting everything in one box is the most common reason a first Wirecast stream never connects.

Can't find Set Credentials in your version? Add the login to the address instead: rtmp://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:1935/APP. If the password contains an @, a colon or a slash, make a new one in the panel first.

Wirecast encoder preset: keyframes and bitrate

The presets that ship with Wirecast are locked. Click the gear beside Encoding and choose View Details, or open Window then Encoder Presets, and use Save As to make your own copy. Edit the copy and select it on your output.

Key frame every: 2 seconds, counted in frames

Wirecast asks for the keyframe gap in frames, not seconds. At 30 fps enter 60. At 60 fps enter 120. At 25 fps enter 50.

Your viewers' player loads the stream in short pieces, and each piece begins on a keyframe. A gap of two seconds keeps those pieces even. A longer gap shows up as buffering on their side while Wirecast reports a healthy stream on yours.

The rest of your copy

Encoder: H.264. Choose x264, or a hardware encoder such as NVIDIA NVENC or Intel QuickSync if your computer has one.
Frame rate: 30 fps suits most shows.
Profile: Main, which every browser and phone can play.
Audio: AAC, 128 kbps.

Pick a bitrate your upload can carry

Add the video and audio bitrates together. That total should be no more than about two thirds of the upload speed you measure, so a 6 Mbps result means sending around 4 Mbps.

Suggested Wirecast video and audio bitrates by resolution
Size	Video bit rate	Audio bit rate	Upload needed
1920x1080, 30 fps	4500 kbps	128 kbps	7 Mbps
1280x720, 30 fps	2500 kbps	128 kbps	4 Mbps
854x480, 30 fps	1200 kbps	96 kbps	2 Mbps

Measure your upload on the Wirecast computer itself, at the hour you usually go live, and repeat the test a few times. A network cable beats Wi-Fi every time.

Wirecast dropping frames while your scenes get busy? Switch the encoder to NVENC or QuickSync. Encoding moves to the graphics hardware and the processor is left for cameras, titles and transitions.

Press Stream, then confirm you are live

Click the Stream button in the Wirecast main window.
Look at the Live streaming card in your Primcast panel. Within roughly 15 seconds it marks the channel as live and shows what Wirecast is sending.
Copy the playback link from that card and open it in VLC or another HLS player. Allow a few seconds for the first pieces of video to be ready.

The link for your channel looks like this. If your plan comes with a CDN link, the card lists it too and both play the same stream. The card also gives you an embed code for your website.

http://HOST:1935/APP/livestream/playlist.m3u8

Common Wirecast streaming problems and what to do
What happens	Try this
Wirecast never connects	Open Output Settings and check that Address ends at the application name and Stream holds only the stream name. Compare host and application name with the panel, character by character.
Address and Stream are right, still no connection	The login is next. Copy the username and password again through Set Credentials, or create a new password in the panel and paste it in.
It connects at home but not at the venue	Some venue, office and school networks block port 1935. Use a different connection, or switch the output to SRT (step 05).
Wirecast looks healthy, viewers buffer	Check that Key frame every is twice your frame rate, then move one row down the bitrate table. Your upload may be slower at that time of day.
The stream drops now and then	You are near the limit of your upload. Lower the bitrate by a row, or connect the computer by cable.

Wirecast SRT output for difficult links

SRT keeps a stream going over connections where RTMP struggles, such as event Wi-Fi, a mobile hotspot or a feed sent from far away. It comes with the Starter, Pro and Platinum plans of our video CDN. The free channel takes RTMP only. On those plans your Live streaming card shows an SRT ingest section with your own address and passphrase.

In Wirecast, add a second output in Output Settings, set its destination to SRT and fill in the values shown on the right. Turn the RTMP output off while you use it, so your upload carries one stream.

An SRT stream plays under its own name. While you broadcast this way, share the link the panel lists under Plays at.

Wirecast · output · SRTfield map

Mode: Caller
Address: HOST
Port: PORT
Latency: 1000 ms
Passphrase: PASSPHRASE
Encryption: AES-128 (16)
Stream ID: leave empty

Host and port are the two halves of the Address line in your SRT ingest section. Labels can differ a little between Wirecast versions; the values do not.

Sending your show to more places at once

Extra outputs cost upload

Wirecast lets you add several outputs, one per platform. Each one is a full copy of your stream, so three outputs need three times the upload, and the first sign of trouble is usually all of them stuttering together.

Let us do the copying

Send a single stream to Primcast, then add YouTube, Facebook, Twitch or any RTMP server under Restream on your Live streaming card, up to five destinations. Your connection carries one stream and our network delivers the rest.

Wirecast streaming questions

How do I stream from Wirecast to an RTMP server?

Open Output Settings, add an output with RTMP Server as the destination, paste the server into Address and the stream name into Stream, and enter your publishing login under Set Credentials. Save the output and click Stream.

What goes in the Address and Stream fields?

Address takes the server from your panel, which ends with your application name. Stream takes the stream name on its own, usually livestream. Joining the two in the Address field is the most common reason a stream will not connect.

What do I enter under Set Credentials?

The publishing username and password from the Encoder settings on your Live streaming card. They are separate from your Primcast sign-in, and you can make a new password there at any time.

What should Key frame every be set to in Wirecast?

Twice your frame rate, which gives one keyframe every 2 seconds: 60 at 30 fps, 120 at 60 fps. Wirecast counts this setting in frames, so typing 2 would mean a keyframe every two frames.

Why can't I change the Wirecast encoder preset?

The built-in presets are read only. Open the preset with View Details or from Window, Encoder Presets, click Save As, then edit the copy and select it on your output.

What bitrate should I use in Wirecast?

About 2500 kbps for 720p or 4500 kbps for 1080p at 30 fps, plus 128 kbps of audio. Keep the total below two thirds of the upload speed measured on the computer running Wirecast.

Do I need Wirecast Pro to stream to Primcast?

No. The RTMP Server destination this tutorial uses is in Wirecast Studio as well as Wirecast Pro, on both Windows and Mac.

Can Wirecast send to Primcast over SRT?

Yes, on the Starter, Pro and Platinum plans. Add an SRT output in Caller mode with the host, port and passphrase from the SRT ingest section of your panel, 1000 ms latency and AES-128 encryption.

Can I stream to YouTube and Facebook from Wirecast at the same time?

Yes. Send one stream to Primcast and add the other platforms under Restream on your Live streaming card, up to five destinations, so your upload only carries a single copy.

Other encoders on the same channel

Any RTMP encoder takes the same four values from your panel. Only the names of the boxes change.

Ready to put your Wirecast show online?

Open a video channel, paste your four values into Wirecast and watch it play in your browser or VLC. If a field gives you trouble, our chat replies in seconds, can check your channel while you wait, and brings in a person whenever you ask.

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