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First Stream

Documentation > Tutorials > First Stream

This tutorial walks you through your first live broadcast using SpiritStream and OBS Studio. You'll learn how to connect your encoder, start streaming, and monitor your stream health.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:

  • SpiritStream installed and FFmpeg configured (Getting Started)
  • OBS Studio (or similar RTMP encoder) installed
  • A streaming profile created with at least one target
  • Your stream key from your chosen platform

What You'll Learn

By the end of this tutorial, you will be able to:

  1. Configure OBS Studio to send video to SpiritStream
  2. Start and stop streams properly
  3. Monitor stream statistics in real-time
  4. Troubleshoot common streaming issues

Stream Architecture

Understanding how data flows helps troubleshoot issues:

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flowchart LR
    OBS["OBS Studio"] -->|"RTMP"| SS["SpiritStream<br/>localhost:1935"]
    SS -->|"RTMP"| YT["YouTube"]
    SS -->|"RTMP"| TW["Twitch"]
    SS -->|"RTMP"| KK["Kick"]
Loading

OBS sends to SpiritStream, which distributes to all configured platforms.

Step 1: Configure OBS Studio

Open OBS Settings

  1. Launch OBS Studio
  2. Go to Settings (File → Settings on Windows/Linux, OBS → Preferences on macOS)
  3. Select the Stream tab

Set Custom Server

Configure OBS to send to SpiritStream instead of directly to a platform:

Setting Value
Service Custom...
Server rtmp://localhost:1935/live
Stream Key stream (or any key you prefer)

Note: The stream key here is just for the local connection between OBS and SpiritStream. Your actual platform stream keys are configured in SpiritStream profiles.

Recommended OBS Output Settings

For best results with SpiritStream:

Setting Recommended Value
Output Mode Advanced
Encoder x264 or NVENC (hardware)
Rate Control CBR
Bitrate 4500-6000 kbps for 1080p
Keyframe Interval 2 seconds
Profile high

Step 2: Prepare SpiritStream

Select Your Profile

  1. Open SpiritStream
  2. Navigate to Profiles in the sidebar
  3. Click on your streaming profile to select it
  4. Verify the profile shows as "Active" on the Dashboard

Verify Stream Targets

Before starting, confirm your targets are configured:

  1. Go to Stream Targets in the sidebar
  2. Check that each platform shows the correct server URL
  3. Ensure stream keys are entered (shown as masked dots)

Step 3: Start Streaming

The order matters—start SpiritStream first, then OBS.

Start SpiritStream

  1. Go to the Dashboard or Stream Manager
  2. Click the Start Stream button
  3. Wait for the status to show "Waiting for input..."
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sequenceDiagram
    participant User
    participant SS as SpiritStream
    participant OBS
    participant Platform as YouTube/Twitch

    User->>SS: Click "Start Stream"
    SS->>SS: Start RTMP server on :1935
    SS-->>User: Status: "Waiting for input"

    User->>OBS: Click "Start Streaming"
    OBS->>SS: RTMP connection
    SS->>Platform: Forward stream
    SS-->>User: Status: "Live"
Loading

Startup sequence for streaming.

Start OBS

  1. In OBS, click Start Streaming
  2. OBS should connect within seconds
  3. SpiritStream status changes to "Live"

Step 4: Monitor Your Stream

Dashboard Statistics

The Dashboard shows real-time metrics:

Stat Description Healthy Range
Active Streams Number of live output targets Your target count
Total Bitrate Combined bitrate to all platforms Sum of configured bitrates
Dropped Frames Frames lost due to network/CPU 0 (any drops indicate issues)
Uptime Time since stream started N/A

Stream Target Status

Each target card shows:

  • Status indicator: Green (live), Yellow (connecting), Red (error)
  • Bitrate: Current output bitrate
  • FPS: Frames per second being sent

Logs

For detailed diagnostics, check Logs in the sidebar. Look for:

  • [INFO] Stream started — Normal startup
  • [WARN] Dropped frames — Network or CPU issue
  • [ERROR] Connection failed — Platform rejected connection

Step 5: Stop Streaming

Always stop in the correct order to avoid issues.

Stop OBS First

  1. In OBS, click Stop Streaming
  2. Wait for OBS to confirm the stream has stopped

Stop SpiritStream

  1. In SpiritStream, click Stop Stream
  2. All target statuses return to "Offline"

Why this order? Stopping SpiritStream first while OBS is still sending can cause OBS to show errors and may result in incomplete stream endings on platforms.

Troubleshooting

No Video Reaching Platforms

Symptom Cause Solution
OBS shows "Disconnected" SpiritStream not running Start SpiritStream first
SpiritStream shows "Waiting" OBS not streaming Start streaming in OBS
Platform shows offline Invalid stream key Verify key in Stream Targets

Audio Issues

Symptom Cause Solution
No audio on stream OBS audio not configured Check OBS Audio settings
Audio out of sync Encoder settings Set audio to AAC, 128-320 kbps
Crackling audio Bitrate too low Increase audio bitrate to 160+ kbps

Connection Refused

If OBS shows "Failed to connect to server":

  1. Check SpiritStream is running — The RTMP server only starts when you click Start Stream
  2. Verify the URL — Must be exactly rtmp://localhost:1935/live
  3. Check port availability — Another application may be using port 1935
  4. Firewall — Ensure SpiritStream is allowed through your firewall

High CPU Usage

Cause Solution
Software encoding (x264) Switch to hardware encoder (NVENC/QuickSync)
High preset in OBS Use "veryfast" or "faster" preset
Re-encoding in SpiritStream Use "Passthrough" mode if quality matches

Quick Reference

Default URLs

Service Server URL
SpiritStream Ingest rtmp://localhost:1935/live
YouTube rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2
Twitch rtmp://live.twitch.tv/app
Kick rtmps://fa723fc1b171.global-contribute.live-video.net/app

Startup Checklist

  • SpiritStream installed and FFmpeg working
  • Profile created with stream targets
  • Stream keys entered for each platform
  • OBS configured with custom server
  • SpiritStream started first
  • OBS streaming to localhost

Next Steps

Now that you've completed your first stream:

  1. Multi-Platform — Stream to multiple platforms simultaneously
  2. Custom Encoding — Optimize quality per platform

Related: Getting Started | Multi-Platform | FFmpeg Integration