Optimal Video Formats for Dacast
The optimal format is:
- MP4
- H.264
- AAC
This ensures great delivery over the widest range of devices. However, other formats can be uploaded and then transcoded over the system to become compatible.
All Video Formats Supported
Dacast currently supports the following video file formats:
- mp4 — MPEG-4
- .mov, .qt — Apple QuickTime
- .flv, .f4v — Adobe Flash
- .wmv, .asf — Windows Media 9
- .mpg, .vob, .m2v, .mp2 — MPEG-2
- .m4v — Apple iTunes
- .avi — A/V Interleave
- .webm — WebM (Vorbis audio only)
- .ogv, .ogg — Ogg
- .mxf — MXF
- .mts — AVCHD
- .mkv — Matroska
- .r3d, .rm — Red Raw Video
- .flac — Native Flac
- .mj2 — Motion JPEG2000
Please check out a more inclusive list from our third-party encoding partner.
How Do I Convert a Video File?
If your video is not in one of these formats, you will need to convert it before we can accept the file. Luckily there are a number of free encoding applications that will do this for you.
What is Encoding?
Encoding is a process used to convert the RAW video files captured by a camera into one of the digital file types that we listed above so that it’s suitable for streaming over the internet. In the situation of live streaming, the encoder feeds digital video files to the streaming platform in real-time.
Required Encoder Settings
The following encoder settings are required for live streaming with Dacast, regardless of your selected resolution and bitrate:
VIDEO CODEC | H.264 (x264 may work) |
FRAME RATE | 25 or 30 |
KEYFRAME INTERVAL | 3 secs (or 3x frame rate) |
SCANNING | Progressive |
ENCODING BITRATE | Constant (CBR) |
AUDIO CODEC | AAC |
AUDIO BITRATE | 128 kbps |
AUDIO CHANNELS | 2 (Stereo) |
AUDIO SAMPLE RATE | 48 kHz (48,000 Hz) |
Not yet a Dacast user, and interested in trying Dacast risk-free for 14 days? Sign up today to get started.