Ultra.
If you are experiencing issues with dropped frames or disconnections while multistreaming, this would be the guide for you! Before we start with specific troubleshooting, please ensure this happens only while multistreaming. If this occurs while streaming to a single platform, please read our guide here for general troubleshooting steps.
When you have confirmed that this only happens while multistreaming, please follow each of these steps in order until it works out!
Run as Administrator
When using Streamlabs Desktop on a Windows device, running as an administrator can resolve many issues, including those that may arise when multistreaming. This simply means that you’re granting the program permission to make changes that may affect the system settings and other users on the computer.
You always want to ensure that you are running Streamlabs Desktop as administrator manually. It needs to be set as automatic to ensure that it will run properly. To do this, Right-Click your Streamlabs Desktop shortcut and select Run as administrator.
Check Network Software
Different network software can sometimes interfere with an encoder’s ability to go live or produce a consistent stream.
Firewall: You must ensure that Streamlabs Desktop is allowed through your firewall. We have steps on how to do this here.
Antivirus: To allow Streamlabs Desktop through different antivirus software, you will need to find the guide for the software you are using. Here are a few popular software:
Bundled Software: Software such as Lenovo Vantage or Asus Game First claim that they can help optimize your gaming. However, this can be detrimental to streaming. If you have something like this installed, try turning them off, as they can interfere with your encoding software.
Network
VPN: This may hinder your connection to the Streamlabs ingest servers. Please turn these off.
IPv6: If your ISP only supports IPv6, this may cause an issue. You can find steps to resolve this issue here.
Platform Limitations
Bitrate: Before starting, it's important to remember that each platform has its own limitations regarding streaming settings, such as video bitrate. When you're multistreaming, your bitrate shouldn't exceed the lowest maximum bitrate of your streaming platforms. If you exceed the limit, you might experience issues with the broadcast, like the stream not starting correctly.
Here are the maximum bitrates for some commonly used live streaming platforms:
- Twitch: 6000
- YouTube: None
- Facebook: 9000
- Trovo: 10000
- TikTok: 10000
- Kick: 8000
As an example, if you're multistreaming to Twitch and Facebook and are not in the Level Up program (which gives access to 1080p 60fps Live Streaming at up to a 9000 bitrate), your bitrate should be set to 4000, not to exceed the maximum of Facebook, even though Twitch allows up to 6000.
Encoding Software Settings
Bind to IP: This feature allows you to bind to a specific IP Address (associate software with a particular IP address). Navigate to these settings by going to Settings > Advanced > Network. Once there, under the Bind to IP section, please try manually selecting the correct adapter, especially if your PC has Wi-Fi and LAN available. If your network uses dynamic IP addressing, it's recommended to set this feature to Default to accommodate changing IP addresses.
Keyframe: Your Keyframe Interval should be set to 2 as this would prevent common issues that can occur when streaming to multiple platforms. You can find this in Settings > Output.
If you're still looking for help with multistream, please don't hesitate to contact our team via a support ticket. We'd be more than happy to assist you!