ArKaos VJ 3.0 now provides you the option of live video streaming. This amazing new feature allows you to take video streams from several cameras in real-time, mix them with other visuals, and apply effects.

Windows Device Configuration:

There are three types of video devices:

* USB devices (webcams, digital cameras)

* FireWire devices (webcams, external acquisition devices)

* PCI video-acquisition boards

The simplest way to determine whether your device is compatible with ArKaos VJ is to use the free software application "AMCAP." If your device works with AMCAP, it will work correctly with VJ.

Using your devices in ArKaos VJ:

Confirm that your device is properly connected, then start ArKaos VJ. Select the third tab of the "Visuals" window.

Select the correct device, then click on the "Settings" button on the top-right corner of the window. Adjust the Video Format and Compression settings to suit your needs.

Preview your video-stream by double-clicking on its icon.

When your device is completely configured, you can drag and drop it on a key, and combine it with an effect, like any other visual.

For example:

Tips and Tricks

* Video-Acquisition boards:

A Video-Acquisition board is the best choice if you use an analog signal, like a video camera, DVD player or a tape recorder. Be sure that the board you use is not limited to interacting solely with the software it is bundled with, in which case you will not be able to use it with ArKaos VJ.

* USB and FireWire devices:

Though FireWire and USB interfaces allow you to plug several devices into the same port, this practice is not recommended for video streaming. Video streaming requires a large bandwidth to run smoothly, so several USB/FireWire devices on the same port will divide the bandwidth, As a result, your video streaming will run slower. We advise you to use only one video device per port, without using USB/FireWire hubs. If you don't have enough native ports, you can install a PCI card with additional ports.

* Number of devices:

You can plug in as many devices as you want (and as your operating system can support), but the more devices you use, the less smoothly ArKaos VJ will run, as such devices are quite CPU-intensive.

* Resolution:

You must carefully select the video-resolution you use for your device, based of the power of your computer and the number of devices you use together. A higher resolution utilizes more CPU power, but a lower resolution can produce a pixilated stream. It may take some time to find the ideal compromise between quality and smoothness, but give yourself the freedom to experiment with the resolution and color depth in the configuration window of the device.

* Computer motherboard memory speed:

The speed of your computer's memory (RAM) is plays a critical role in determining the smoothness of the streaming. We recommend 400MHz.

Return to the M-Pulse homepage