Your stream is not just about you. It’s also about audiences who tune in to your channel. With that in mind, having poor stream quality is a big no if you want to keep them interested. So, how to improve stream quality and make it always engaging?
That’s the question begging for an answer. But fret not, we’ll learn about how to make streaming quality better in this article.
After reading this article, we hope you can avoid receiving lots of feedback about bad visuals and glitchy audio in the comments. Poor stream quality can overshadow your great content, and that’s a problem for any streamer.
So, are you eager to know the details? Let’s dive in!
Why Improving Video Stream Quality Matters?
Streaming quality does matter. But don’t get it wrong, it’s not only about audio and visuals. It’s about anything that makes watching your stream more enjoyable.
1. It’s All About Making The Best First Impressions
Improving your video stream quality is a game-changer when it comes to the audience’s first impression.
That is even more important if you’re a new streamer on platforms like YouTube Live, where many creators are competing for viewers. You won’t capture any of their attention if you don’t know how to improve your streaming quality.
Also, a study shows that viewers have little patience for bad streams. It’s just 90 seconds before they go to another channel. This patience might be even shorter on Twitch, where gamers and instant entertainment are the focus.
2. It Keeps Your Audience’s Attention
After making a great first impression, you need to make sure your viewers stay engaged. To do that, you should tackle technical issues like poor audio or lag in your stream.
Improving your live streaming skills is vital. You must avoid any hiccups that may affect viewer engagement. No content creator wants to receive comments like “Can’t hear you” in the comment section, right?
Keep in mind that the first impression means nothing if the audience is not focusing on your content but on your stream’s shortcomings.
If those problems continue, viewers are more likely to stop watching for a long time. Not to mention the intention to subscribe, donate, and share the stream with their friends.
3. It Builds Trust in Every Interaction
If you’re a content creator who streams in niches like gaming or music, having a high-quality stream can boost your reputation. When you keep producing awesome broadcasts, it tells your viewers that you’re serious about your content. And this builds trust.
What’s more important, it also boosts your reputation among other streamers. This opens doors for collaborations and exciting opportunities. Before that happens, you need to always ask: how to improve stream quality?
4. It Offers a Better Retention Rate
If you gain viewers’ attention and trust, they will stick with your videos and subscribe to your channel. And this is all about audience retention.
When you choose YouTube as your streaming platform, pay attention to your engagement rate. YouTube sees high engagement as a sign of good quality content, and it will promote it to more users. This algorithm generally applies to other platforms, too.
Simply put, the better your stream quality, the higher your audience retention rate. This will bring more people to watch your content because the platform promotes your video to a broader audience.
5. Better Streams Means Better Earnings
If you make money from streaming, always ask yourself, “How to make my streaming quality better and better each time?” The reason is stream quality affects your earnings a lot.
Viewers expect good content for what they pay. High-quality streams can encourage more viewers to use paid features on your channel, supporting you as a content creator.
What’s more, revenue plays a big role in a streamer’s success. The more money you earn, the more prominent you become as a streamer.
What’s even more amazing is that you can make money not just from your platform, like Twitch, but also from other platforms, like Gank, which lets you accept donations with no fees.
What Do You Need for Good Streaming?
Dealing with how to improve streaming video quality involves several elements that come into play. Let’s break it down:
1. High-Speed Internet
First things first, a strong internet connection is crucial for a successful streaming experience. Relying on poor internet access isn’t just a little annoyance. It can ruin your overall viewers’ experience.
What if your audience is into your live stream, and then suddenly it freezes? They will get annoyed and might leave your stream immediately. And that’s a big loss!
For HD streaming, make sure you have an upload speed of at least 5 Mbps. To improve quality with 1080p streams, think about choosing higher-speed plans from your internet provider.
2. A Good PC or Laptop
You don’t need a top-tier PC or laptop to kickstart your content creator career. But having a strong PC setup is recommended for a smooth streaming experience.
So, if your streaming setup is struggling due to low specifications, how can you get better streaming quality?
No matter if you’re streaming a game or hosting a live music concert, your computer needs to handle multiple things at once. These include the streaming software, the content being streamed, chat interactions, and more.
For the best performance, consider having a powerful multi-core processor, at least 16GB of RAM, and a dedicated graphics card.
3. High-Quality Camera and Mic
We’ve talked about the best 4k streaming cameras and top microphones for streaming in our other articles. As a streamer, nothing matters to you more than having top-notch audio and visual quality to keep your viewers engaged.
With a high-quality camera, your stream will have detailed visuals, giving it a professional look. Likewise, a good microphone will ensure clear audio without any annoying background noises. These two elements can greatly enhance the viewer’s experience.
When you’re just starting, a good-quality webcam and a USB microphone are sufficient. But as you progress, think about investing in better audio-visual equipment
4. Lighting
How can you improve your streaming video quality when you’re stuck in a room that’s too dark?
That’s right, you can’t. A fancy camera alone won’t do the trick. You need good lighting, too. It not only allows your audience to see you but also enhances the appearance of your stream.
Don’t get it wrong, it’s not just about brightness, though. It’s also about getting rid of shadows and making you stand out as the main focus. Luckily, even a basic LED ring light can improve a dim and grainy video, making it look clear and professional.
5. Streaming Software
Having the best streaming equipment is great, but without the perfect setup, it can ruin your output. Don’t forget that controlling all your setup while streaming can be challenging. Well, that’s where streaming software comes in.
But not just any software will do. You need the perfect one that meets your streaming needs. It helps manage scenes, overlays, chat interactions, and audio settings. Plus, it offers the flexibility to broadcast in different resolutions, bitrates, and frame rates, optimizing your performance.
How to Improve Stream Quality
Here are a few tips on how to make streaming quality better:
1. Use a Dedicated Streaming PC
The first thing that needs attention when it comes to improving streaming quality is the PC setup. We don’t say that you need to buy a new one. But having a dedicated computer for streaming is recommended.
You know streaming goes beyond playing games or recording yourself talking. It’s about sharing your experiences with the world in real-time. There should be no hiccups along the way. It means your PC needs to be up for the job.
That way, it’s a smart move to use a dedicated system for your streaming needs. So it won’t burden your resources. Also, you can improve your broadcast quality. Let’s say by adding multiple cameras, advanced audio setups, and more.
2. Use a Wired Connection
Wi-Fi is great for portability. But it might not be the best for streaming. So how to improve streaming quality? Always prioritize the use of wired connections. There are reasons for that.
First, an experiment has shown that a wired connection offers faster speed and lower latency. This is a big plus for gaming and streaming. Secondly, when you use Wi-Fi, you’ll only get about 60% of your internet service provider’s full speed.
What’s more, streaming needs a steady internet connection. Transmitting video and audio data in real-time needs a sustained bandwidth. Although Wi-Fi technology has improved, it’s still prone to disturbances.
Being far from the router or having other devices nearby can slow down or disconnect your connection. So, it’s best to stick with the wired connection.
3. Use High-Quality Equipment
How to improve streaming quality without the best equipment? To be honest, that would be tough. We believe that you should always strive for high-quality equipment. But you don’t need to get it right away, especially as starters.
DSLR cameras like Canon EOS Rebel T7 can record higher-resolution videos, resulting in sharper images and more accurate colors. While top mics like HyperX SoloCast can capture voices clearly and reduce background noise.
Top-notch streaming equipment also includes a dedicated audio mixer, good lighting, and more.
4. Pick The Right Streaming Platform
YouTube, Twitch, or DLive are streaming platforms that help you connect with your audience. These platforms take care of everything from setting up to delivering your content and making money. This way, you can focus more on creating content than any technical things.
But not all platforms are created equal. Each has its own strengths, features, and audience demographics. So, pick the right platform that best fits your goals and niche.
For instance, Kick is like the new Twitch. It has awesome features that gamers love. What sets it apart is its improved revenue sharing, which appeals to professional streamers. It is said that xQC, a top Twitch gaming streamer, moved to the platform for this reason.
5. Use the Most Updated Software
How to make streaming quality better when it comes to the use of streaming software? Don’t use outdated software.
Software developers regularly update their streaming software to meet industry standards. Unfortunately, some streamers overlook this and continue using older versions. By doing so, they may miss important improvements that could make their streams outstanding.
Keep in mind that streaming software plays a vital role in capturing, encoding, and transmitting content to your platform. So, always use the latest, most updated software once it’s released.
6. Optimize Live Encoder Settings
When you choose the ‘optimize’ setting on your live streaming encoder, you can improve your video stream quality. This applies to both hardware and software encoders, like the Teradek VidiU X or the Streamlabs OBS.
The encoder settings control how good your stream looks and sounds. They also affect how well it plays for viewers with different internet speeds. By adjusting these settings right, content creators can balance quality and smooth playback.
The key settings to focus on are bitrate, resolution, and frame rate. Raising the bitrate can enhance video quality, but your viewers need a strong internet connection. Adjusting the frame rate can make motion appear smoother or more natural.
7. Stream in 1080p
Choosing 1080p resolution strikes a balance between showing details and using less bandwidth. Also, most platforms support streaming at this resolution well. But why does streaming in Full HD become one of the steps on how to improve stream quality?
Imagine you are a sand art streamer. You want to showcase great artwork to your audience. But, later on, you realize that they can’t see the details due to the low resolution you chose. How frustrating is that?
The good news is that almost all internet connections around the world can handle 1080p streaming. This means you can still provide high-quality content without the need for a costly internet plan. It’s a win-win situation.
8. One Task at A Time
How to get better streaming quality on any platform? Try to minimize multitasking as much as possible. But why should you do that?
When you stream, your computer is working hard on demanding tasks. It can range from converting video and audio inputs into a digital format to transmitting them over the internet. This may require a huge portion of your computer resources.
So, if you do other heavy tasks, such as downloading large files, it can unintentionally slow down your system. As a result, your streaming performance may suffer, especially if your PC doesn’t have high specifications.
9. Monitor Your Stream
If you want to know how to get better streaming quality, keep this rule: don’t take anything for granted. It means you need to always monitor your stream to make sure it meets your expectations.
By actively monitoring, you can quickly spot and fix issues like lag, buffering, audio mismatches, or any visual glitches. Yes, your viewers will let you know if something’s off. But, it is recommended to be prepared for monitoring in advance.
Let’s say you’re streaming a live commentary of an eSports match. If you notice frame rate drops during intense in-game moments, you need to adjust the settings accordingly. Otherwise, your commentary might not match what’s happening in the game at that moment.
10. Test Stream Regularly
To improve your live streaming, remember to check your PC and software regularly. As time passes, your hardware might wear out, and software updates could cause compatibility problems. These issues can make your streaming experience less enjoyable.
The recommended step is to do a practice stream, especially before the big event. This lets you find and fix any issues and try out new setups in case things change. Regular test streams prevent unexpected problems and ensure everything goes smoothly during the real stream.
11. Eliminate Disturbance
The next step on how to improve your stream quality is to eliminate any visual or audio disturbances.
Visual disturbance happens when distracting elements in the background take away from your main content. To fix this, using a green screen is a great idea. It lets you replace your actual background with fantastic visuals or branded content, making your stream more engaging.
On the other hand, the audio disturbance is unwanted sounds that mess with your main audio. It can be a dog barking, a doorbell ringing, or a fan humming. To handle this, try streaming from a dedicated room where you can control the environment better. If you’re in a busy area, streaming at night can also help.
Improve Your Video Stream Now for Better Results
How to improve streaming quality? We’ve provided 11 actionable tips to help you get better streaming results. Well, you don’t have to follow all of them. Feel free to adjust it based on your streaming goals, especially if you’re new to this.
Keep in mind, enhancing streaming quality isn’t just about audio and video clarity. It’s about creating an immersive experience for your viewers. So, relying on high-quality equipment alone won’t be enough.
However, don’t wait for the next upgrade to improve your video stream. Start with small intentional changes. Then, you’ll notice a significant improvement. Now, are you ready to take the leap?
