Question / Help Quality check with quicksync

[ThePatchelist]

Hey guys.

Straight to the point, i'm streaming via Quicksync on my i5 4460 @3.2GHZ (Internet is 120dn6up). It has basically no impact on performance, which is exactly what i want since i can't afford a capture card right now but still want to stream my games.

Only problem seems to be that the output quality is, or seems reaaaally bad. I cannot compare it to any other stream since i don't know anyone streaming with quicksync, and that's why i wanted to ask you guys if this is the best i can get or simply if i missed something in the settings that would make it look better? Or is it in the end just because my stream always runs on medium only due to not being partnered? (is that even the case?)

So, i've made some tests with two games, one being DayZ the other being CS:GO.

This is the log - weirdly enough it states that i tried to gamecapture into chrome and then it simply doesn't log for about 30 minutes. That was when i streamed DayZ.

https://gist.github.com/anonymous/98b0c85fb160d049a157

Here are the VOD's from said tests:

DayZ - 60fps - 1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) - 3500 Kbit/s - Quicksync
http://www.twitch.tv/thepatchelist/v/28717010

DayZ - 30fps - 1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) - 3500 Kbit/s - Quicksync
http://www.twitch.tv/thepatchelist/v/28717324

CS:GO - 60fps - 1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) - 3500 Kbit/s - Quicksync
http://www.twitch.tv/thepatchelist/v/28718135

So, i do know that DayZ automatically looks worse due to the grass and some issues with it (at least that's what i've read somewhere) But it shouldn't look that bad, should it?
About CS:GO, i just think that it looks too bad for the settings. Am i mistaken there and that'S the best i can get, or is there anything i can improve?

Side question to CS:GO - no matter how big or small i set my bitrate, CS:GO seems to be immediatly impacted by it. The game feels a bit sluggish, sometimes animations just "stutter" (they seem like they're looping) and the overall ping is about 10ms higher. The thing that i wonder about this is, why does this happen at all? Before i had only 2.5 up and basically the same non-stream performance like i do now. taking 3.5 away from my 6 should give CS:GO still 2.5 to work with, but overall it just can't handle it. I can go to about 1.5 in my streaming settings, and only then i start to see improvements.. Isn't this weird? Or is it just me that doesn't understand how all of this works? Thing is, i haven't seen any CS:GO streamer with similar issues when it comes to the stuttering..

Hope you guys can help me out improving my stream's quality.
Thanks!

 

[dping]

Hey guys.

Straight to the point, i'm streaming via Quicksync on my i5 4460 @3.2GHZ (Internet is 120dn6up). It has basically no impact on performance, which is exactly what i want since i can't afford a capture card right now but still want to stream my games.

Only problem seems to be that the output quality is, or seems reaaaally bad. I cannot compare it to any other stream since i don't know anyone streaming with quicksync, and that's why i wanted to ask you guys if this is the best i can get or simply if i missed something in the settings that would make it look better? Or is it in the end just because my stream always runs on medium only due to not being partnered? (is that even the case?)

So, i've made some tests with two games, one being DayZ the other being CS:GO.

This is the log - weirdly enough it states that i tried to gamecapture into chrome and then it simply doesn't log for about 30 minutes. That was when i streamed DayZ.

https://gist.github.com/anonymous/98b0c85fb160d049a157

Here are the VOD's from said tests:

DayZ - 60fps - 1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) - 3500 Kbit/s - Quicksync
http://www.twitch.tv/thepatchelist/v/28717010

DayZ - 30fps - 1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) - 3500 Kbit/s - Quicksync
http://www.twitch.tv/thepatchelist/v/28717324

CS:GO - 60fps - 1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) - 3500 Kbit/s - Quicksync
http://www.twitch.tv/thepatchelist/v/28718135

So, i do know that DayZ automatically looks worse due to the grass and some issues with it (at least that's what i've read somewhere) But it shouldn't look that bad, should it?
About CS:GO, i just think that it looks too bad for the settings. Am i mistaken there and that'S the best i can get, or is there anything i can improve?

Side question to CS:GO - no matter how big or small i set my bitrate, CS:GO seems to be immediatly impacted by it. The game feels a bit sluggish, sometimes animations just "stutter" (they seem like they're looping) and the overall ping is about 10ms higher. The thing that i wonder about this is, why does this happen at all? Before i had only 2.5 up and basically the same non-stream performance like i do now. taking 3.5 away from my 6 should give CS:GO still 2.5 to work with, but overall it just can't handle it. I can go to about 1.5 in my streaming settings, and only then i start to see improvements.. Isn't this weird? Or is it just me that doesn't understand how all of this works? Thing is, i haven't seen any CS:GO streamer with similar issues when it comes to the stuttering..

Hope you guys can help me out improving my stream's quality.
Thanks!

even for x264 1080(ish) at 60fps will not look good with 3500 bitrate. 1080(ish) 30fps, x264 barely meets the quality marks.

If you want it to look good, downscale to 720p at 30fps then use 2500-3000 bitrate max.

at that, you will lose a lot of viewers above 2500 due to their connection with twitch. this is nothing you can fix so recommended with quicksync is about 200-500 more bitrate for the same resolution with x264.

In this case 720@30 needs about 2000-2500 bitrate.

 

[ThePatchelist]

Well you might have missed it, but i am already downscaling - not 720 since i'm running a 16:10 native but i'm not trying to go native anywhere.

And why would less bitrate look better overall?

 

[dping]

Well you might have missed it, but i am already downscaling - not 720 since i'm running a 16:10 native but i'm not trying to go native anywhere.

And why would less bitrate look better overall?

your tests were with 1050p @60fps 3500 bitrate, 720p @ 30fps has more bitrate per pixel so higher quality picture in general.

Its all about your per pixel bitrate. aka qval

 

[Sapiens]

A lower bitrate would look worse but decrease the chance that some viewers experience buffering. DayZ and other games with tons of grass/foliage will probably always look like garbage at Twitch's current bitrate limitations, even at 30 FPS.

 

[ThePatchelist]

your tests were with 1050p @60fps 3500 bitrate, 720p @ 30fps has more bitrate per pixel so higher quality picture in general.

Its all about your per pixel bitrate.

Yeah i get that, but the tests were not 1050p, they were downscaled to 700p. I marked them with "1680x1050 downscaled to 1.50 (1120x700) "

A lower bitrate would look worse but decrease the chance that some viewers experience buffering. DayZ and other games with tons of grass/foliage will probably always look like garbage at Twitch's current bitrate limitations, even at 30 FPS.

I wish i had any viewers that could experience buffering in the first place, but okay.. still since i'm already downscaling it should look okay, shouldn't it? Decreasing the bitrate now would not give me any positive change, right?

 

[Sapiens]

I wish i had any viewers that could experience buffering in the first place, but okay..

It's hard to build a viewer base if a bunch of the people who stop by to watch can't do so because of playback buffering.

still since i'm already downscaling it should look okay, shouldn't it?

It will look better than trying to stream at a higher resolution or frame rate, but it probably won't look good in motion unless you're inside or otherwise not running through a field. Like every other DayZ and ArmA stream.

Decreasing the bitrate now would not give me any positive change, right?

The positive change is that more people will be able to watch your stream without issues. Can't complain about viewer count if you actively make viewing more difficult.

 

[ThePatchelist]

Ofcourse it'll be hard to build a viewerbase if they cannot watch the stream.. It was more of a joke ^^

So in the end the quality i'm getting is already good enough and in DayZ's case it's the games problem. Thanks for the help!