Play in 21:9 aspect ratio but stream in 16:9 aspect ratio

[mrskc303]

Hello!
I am having what seems to be a fairly uncommon problem. I have an ultrawide monitor as my main display which I use for gaming. I would like to send this 21:9 signal to my streaming laptop. I managed to get my 3440x1440 monitor to mirror to the capture device in 21:9 but as soon as I do that my game (COD Coldwar) thinks that I am using a 16:9 monitor which is probably the ratio the capture device advertises in windows. Am I going to just have to stream in 16:9 aspect ratio whenever I stream or is there a fix for this? I believe that the main issue is the difference in aspects and not resolutions.

 

[qhobbes]

Try NDI. Both computers need to be on at least gigabit. Here's a guide.

 

[koala]

If you use the screen mirror feature of Windows, both mirrored devices get the same resolution and refresh rate. They become identical from Windows' point of view. Windows offers you only resolutions for mirroring that both devices support. So if you connect a capture device that advertises only 16:9 resolutions, and you establish the mirror with one of these, your 21:9 monitor will get driven with that 16:9 resolution.

If you intend to stream 21:9 aspect ratio material, keep in mind the common streaming services support only 16:9 aspect ratio. They will always add big black bars to the top and bottom.
And even if they were able to support 21:9 streams, keep in mind the vast majority of your viewers will consume you video on a 16:9 monitor, so finally their setup will add the black bars. According to the Steam hardware survey, only about 2% of all steam users have 21:9 aspect ratio displays. I would care for the other 98% users and design a 16:9 aspect ratio stream, which probably requires you to play your game with a 16:9 aspect ratio resolution.

 

[mrskc303]

Thanks for the reply! You make a great point. What I would truly like to do is play the game in 21:9 and stream in 16:9 but no matter what settings I try I cannot output the capture in a different aspect ratio than what I am actually playing. So if I play in 21:9 the stream is 21:9 and if I play in 16:9 the stream is 16:9. I can output to different resolutions no problem. So far I have been settling for just gaming in 16:9 and cutting off the edges of the screen. It's honestly not a huge deal but it would be really nice if i could achieve the dual aspect ratio thing. Thanks again for taking the time to respond!

If you use the screen mirror feature of Windows, both mirrored devices get the same resolution and refresh rate. They become identical from Windows' point of view. Windows offers you only resolutions for mirroring that both devices support. So if you connect a capture device that advertises only 16:9 resolutions, and you establish the mirror with one of these, your 21:9 monitor will get driven with that 16:9 resolution.

If you intend to stream 21:9 aspect ratio material, keep in mind the common streaming services support only 16:9 aspect ratio. They will always add big black bars to the top and bottom.
And even if they were able to support 21:9 streams, keep in mind the vast majority of your viewers will consume you video on a 16:9 monitor, so finally their setup will add the black bars. According to the Steam hardware survey, only about 2% of all steam users have 21:9 aspect ratio displays. I would care for the other 98% users and design a 16:9 aspect ratio stream, which probably requires you to play your game with a 16:9 aspect ratio resolution.

 

[BigDubzBubbz]

Hello, I too just purchased a 21:9 ratio monitor. I would like to play on that while I record/stream to 16:9. Have you figured out a way to do this?

 

[mrskc303]

Hello, I too just purchased a 21:9 ratio monitor. I would like to play on that while I record/stream to 16:9. Have you figured out a way to do this?

I tried a bunch of different things and different capture cards looking for a solution. Currently the only good way to keep your aspect ratio during gameplay capture is to record it then upload it. There isn't a way I could figure out to stream in a 21:9 aspect ratio.