A dual streaming system utilizes two separate computers simultaneously, the first PC is dedicated solely for gaming, while the other is used for broadcasting.
However, setting up this configuration can be a little tricky. In this article, we’ll go over the perks of dual streaming, the hardware you’ll be needing, and the step by step configuration guide. Let’s jump right into it.
Advantages of Dual-PC Streaming
Could you imagine how insanely taxing it could be on your rig to stream your gameplay when both the streaming and gaming tasks are extremely intensive by themselves on even high-end PCs? You’re looking at a combination of the OBS, camera software, and other background software, in addition to the video game itself, talk about some serious frame rate drops.
To untangle such mess, many streamers tend to use a second rig for their broadcasting purposes, leaving the primary computer focused solely on the video game and on providing the most amount of frame rates that it could muster. While it’s less than likely to encounter this hassle if you have a heavy-duty, multi-core computer, a dual-pc streaming setup is a more cost-effective way you can go about streaming your gameplay, rather than replacing your current computer with a newer one.
Streaming that’s supported by high-quality capture cards is produced at a very high quality and is completely lag-free. Not only that, but a capture card can also assist you in the creation and easy management of your video library, even on external storage. Also, these cards provide users with the opportunity to use custom streaming overlays and it helps add value to their content.
Hardware You’ll Need
Obviously, you’ll be needing two computers. The first computer which will be dedicated to gaming should be heavily GPU-intensive, while the other computer intended for streaming should be more CPU-intensive.
If you’re not so delved into the world of computer hardware, we’d recommend that you get some assistance from an expert in helping you build both your gaming and streaming PCs according to your budget.
Also, note that you’ll need at least a single monitor for each PC.
The most important hardware that you’ll be needing for this setup is a capture card. Capture cards provide the ultimate facility for capturing signals from an external device via an HDMI connection. Basically, the capture card is connected onto the streaming computer and it functions as the input data receiver to which the GPU unit of the gaming-dedicated rig will continuously transfer data. The card will then capture, record, and encode the signal per need, and then the signal can be uploaded to streaming sites such as Twitch.
There are a number of capture cards that are designed with their very own built-in encoder which helps them perform as a CPU while streaming. Moreover, capture cards come in both internal and external formats. Some of the best capture cards available on the market today include the Elgato Game Capture HD60 Pro, AVerMedia Live Gamer Portable 2, and the Epiphan AV.io 4K.
Software You'll Need
You’ll need to have the Voicemeeter Banana software on both the streaming and gaming rigs as it will help you manage the audio better.
You’ll also need a streaming software. We recommend using Online Broadcasting Software as it’s a free streaming software. Other options include NVIDIA’s ShadowPlay and XSplit. Note that there are two versions of Online Broadcasting Software: the Original (Windows-Only) version and the Multiplatform (Windows/Mac/Linux) version.
Hardware Setup
Step 1: Have both the streaming and gaming PCs close to each other.
Step 2: Grab the HDMI cable and plug it into your GPU unit. If you happen to not have an HDMI port, you can try a Display Port to the HDMI cable.
Step 3: Plug the other end of the HDMI cable and the RCA into the HDMI audio extractor.
Step 4: Plug the 3.5mm into the Line In of the sound card then plug the other HDMI from the extractor right into the capture card.
Final Words
Now that you have both of your PCs ready, along with the capture card and other equipment such as a microphone and a webcam all set, you’re ready to start streaming your gaming experience for everyone to see and hopefully become the next Ninja or Dr. DisRespect. If you’re facing trouble regarding the streaming process or the software configuration, kindly visit this link for further more in-depth assistance.
