Question / Help Mastering Twitch Streaming!

[RauliePolie]

Hey forum people!

So recently, I've gotten into streaming console & pc games and have learned a lot from reading other posts on this site. I've come a long way in terms of stream quality thanks to everyone on here and I'd like to get some final answers solved before I go insane on trying to figure them out myself.

PC Specs
AMD FX-8350 Processor @ 4.2GhZ (OC'd to a safe voltage)
MSI GTX 970 4GB Graphics Card
MSI 970 Gaming ATX Motherboard
Corsair CX 750M Power Supply
Aver Media Live Gamer HD C985 Internal Capture Card
Samsung 840 EVO 120GB SSD (Where OBS is installed)
Western Digital 500GB HDD (Where recordings are saved)
Windows 8.1 OS

The Questions
#1: Since non-partnered Twitch streamers are limited to 2000kb/s, is streaming at 1080p pointless since it doesn't look good with any bit rate under 3000kb/s? I know my computer can achieve 1080p since it only reaches about 40% CPU usage streaming 720p @ 30FPS, but fellow viewers have said there's a lot of buffering when I try 1080p.

#2: Beforehand, I was cursed with the dreaded "High CPU Usage" messages and extreme frame drops before I tweaked my settings and now I never see it. Still, I see small studders in my recording in intense moments which makes perfect sense, but I'd just like to know if there's anything I can do to fix it? I completely understand if it's not possible, but possibly it is and I'm blind! Here's an example from a recent stream of Dying Light on my PS4 where a couple of seconds of gameplay don't seem as smooth (sorry if it seems that I'm picky but hey, I'm a perfectionist):
http://www.twitch.tv/rauliepolie/c/6008080

#3: For anyone with the same Aver Media C985 Capture Card! Has anyone confirmed that better quality is seen from matching the source setting as well as the entire video settings or does the resolution downscale adjust accordingly? (e.g., Having the capture card srouce be 1080p @ 30FPS and the OBS video settings be 720p @ 30FPS)

If you can answer all three or one or even none of them and have any advice, please reply. I appreciate all constructive criticism! If you read through all of this, I thank you for taking your time. I appreciate it :)

Now hopefully I can put my mind to rest and get some sleep.

Thank you & have a nice day!

 

[K41n30]

Hi, I have essentially the same internet connection that you ( 290/50 ) and avermedia c985 on a PC dedicated to streaming and I swear by 720p 60fps preset with a medium or fast and great max bitrate 2000 2,500.

 

[Richard Mead]

1) I didn't even realise non-partners were limited to 2000! What about if you pay for Turbo (or is that what partners are?)

2) Not sure if it's the game, but before I updated Dying Light recently, there were a lot of optimisation issues with PC (not sure if it's the same for PS4) where I would lag for apparently no reason. The latest update seemed to fix that.

3) Not sure on this one, sorry :)

 

[Osiris]

Non-partners are not limited to 2000.

 

[XSrcewGravityX]

Try this website of OBS for the best settings ;) Site: https://obsproject.com/estimator

 

[Richard Mead]

Non-partners are not limited to 2000.

Really? I just emailed Twitch Support asking them to confirm this and they stated they ask people to limit it to 3500, but didn't say whether non partners are limited or not.

Do you happen to know if Turbo boosts this or not?

 

[AndehX]

Turbo doesn't give you access to higher bit-rates. You are pretty much limited to 3500 if you're not partnered. Not sure who told you you were limited to 2000, but i can assure you its 3500. Any higher than that, and you will most likely have problems.