Tomo Nogi
- Jun 10, 2020
- 3 min read

Live Streaming with GH4 & Video Capture Card

Updated: Jul 9, 2020

As I received some requests to help my musician friends to live stream their show, I started getting into live-streaming their show with GH4 and Canon 6D.

Some stuff was easier than I thought and some are a little tricky. Here, I will show my workflow and comparison of some equipment that I use.

1. Connecting Mic & Camera to Computer

In order to present the best audio possible to the audience, the musicians wanted to use an external microphone. In order to do so, we need a medium tool called Sound Card.

We use the one called Focusrite SCARLETT-2I2.

Similar logic applied, we need a medium tool called Video Capture Card.

Both audio and video will be processed in a software called OBS and connected to FB or Youtube to be live-streamed.

Video Capture Cards function via USB and HDMI cables and this tool can be the biggest investment to live stream with high-quality video.

2. Finding Video Capture Cards

I started looking for a video capture card that would fit to my GH4 and Canon 6D.

I have tried 3 video capture cards so far.

Elgato Cam Link 4K MiraBox Capture Card Wiistar Capture Card

2 conclusions in terms of compatibilities and performances.

Elgato Cam Link 4K has been the best choice for GH4.
Wiistar Capture Card is the best option for Canon EOS 6D as it is the cheapest.

There are some rooms to improve our live streaming show experience.

Elgato Cam Link 4K

Initial Issue with GH4: Delay between video and audio, like 0.5 seconds.

https://youtu.be/2hzdm3IObbE

Solutions: Change in GH4 settings↓

MP4 / HD 10Mbps

1280x720 29.97fps

Down Convert:1080p

https://youtu.be/Pa6VdxQ0r6s

Great card. Very stable connection with very minor delays.

Improved result: https://www.facebook.com/FreemanDre/videos/889811948164356/

MiraBox Capture Card

Issue 1: Canon 6D - Digital glitch and some greeny noise appear sometimes.

Issue 2: GH4 just stopped functioning when it was connected.

Example: https://youtu.be/hNhqPl4ZKdU

The card shows good speed and almost no delay. The visual quality is not really bad too.

The issues above are most likely because of compatibility issues. So I decided to try Elgato Cam Link 4K.

They accepted my return of the product, very nice of them.

Wiistar Capture Card

Issue 1: GH4 goes blackout.

Issue 2: Canon EOS 6D has to use the lowest settings.

Very stable, and not bad for the price if a high-quality video is not needed! This device enabled us to live stream with 2 cameras finally.

GH4 and Elgato, and Canon and Wiistar.

However, when it comes to doing with 2 cameras, we really need to look into the Wifi settings and actual camera functions itself.

3. Live Streaming with 2 Cameras

The problem was that once we switch the camera on OBS, sometimes it was difficult to switch it back. We also experienced some delays, or OBS stopped recognizing Wiistar capture card. So here is a quick review of our circumstantial factors.

A. Wifi: I think we need to test and find out what is the best setting in relation with your Wifi speed and your camera's video quality. So far, the setting above has been the best for GH4. - MP4 / HD 10Mbps - 1280x720 29.97fps I have not tested Canon 6D yet, however I suspect that if the video quality goes higher than this, we will see some delays.

Below is the OBS setting:

B. Computer Capability:

As my Macbook Pro has only 2 USB sockets, I am using a USB Hub.

1 for the sound card, 2 for 2 video capture cards.

This might be the reason why some disconnection happened. Also, below is my Macbook spec overview.

Pretty average spec, and it is okay for editing 4k videos, a little slow I feel recently.

- Memory Slots = 8GB x 2

- SSD 500GB

C. Camera Functions & Capture Cards: GH4 is generally really picky on capture cards. Its battery lasts long enough for 1.5-hour straight shoot though. No matter what capture card you use, Canon EOS 6D seems to show whatever happens in the preview screen. Such as...red recording sign, gridlines, etc...https://youtu.be/hNhqPl4ZKdU