First off, I have to give a HUGE thanks to all the people who have Followed me thus far. I hit the 100 Follower mark a few days ago, and honestly I’m thrilled. And the best part is I actually know many of you, because we’ve interacted on @dlive during my streams. So for me, that’s by far the best part is knowing it’s not all a bunch of bots, but real people. Awesome people.
In the process of all my recent livestreams I’ve played around with a bunch of new tools/platforms and I wanted to sort of round them up so to speak. A guide to taking your livestream on DLive to the next level!
For simplicity let’s assume you already know the basics of DLive (how to set up the RTMP, and the process of creating, posting and starting a livestream). If you’re still in the dark there, then check out this awesome how-to: https://busy.org/whatisdlive/@howtostartablog/what-is-dlive-and-how-do-you-start-streaming
Sound Matters: Get an External Mic
Maybe you’ve got a nice pair of headphones that has a mic. Maybe that’s fine. But, it likely won’t be as good as even a moderately priced external mic. And something to remember is that the video is only half of the equation in streaming. Bad sound will turn anyone off a stream or video.
Additionally, an external mic will allow you to explore different kinds of streams, including doing streams with others in the same room as you.
It doesn’t have to be crazy expensive. The mic I use is the Blue Yeti. It’s a standard started Mic for Podcasters and Streamers, and works via USB, so you won’t have to get an amplifier or any other equipment.
https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Yeti-USB-Microphone-Blackout/dp/B00N1YPXW2
And maybe get a pop filter if your prone to shouting during your streams. Those hard “p”s can kill your sound levels real quick.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008AOH1O6/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_HdEBAbMJ5P2X0
Your Face Matters: Get or Use A Webcam
Certainly, you don’t need to show your face. If that’s your vibe, your style, then do your thing. But if you’re open to it, especially for streaming, I recommend getting a webcam. When people are able to see your face, they are able to connect with you when watching. And we all want to see your reaction when you get headshot from some dude 1000 feet away on PUBG.
This is by far the most popular webcam for streamers. (You can go all out and hook up a DSLR too, but that’s MLG level shit)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07661NX9M/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_IlEBAbHHBQQTD
Lighting Matters: Get a Lamp or Two
This one is obvious to point out, but hard to achieve because most of us have small spaces to game, pushed up against a wall. But if your lighting is shit, it will not only affect how you look on screen, but it can also make things like green screens really difficult to pull off.
I don’t use anything fancy because I’m lucky enough to stream in a room with multiple light sources. If you have the opportunity to simply swap out bulbs to your current room, then I recommend getting some Phillips Hue bulbs (or similar RGB smart bulbs). The great thing here is that you can not only adjust the brightness of each bulb, but also the colors to make them more blue, yellow, or even purple and pink if you want that.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M9AU8MB/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_4iEBAbZZ0XBRE
If you have the space, definitely get a lamp in front of your face. 2 if you can manage it to even out the lighting. And make sure the light is diffused, meaning there is some opaque material covering the light directly. This will soften the lighting out, making it more even across your beautiful mug.
Overlays Overlays Overlays (but not too many)
Something you might notice is that many streamers have additional graphics on screen. While some people can go overboard with this, a few touches here and there can give your stream some personality. This helps your stream stand out from everyone else.
Common Overlays can be your handle for Steemit and framing around your webcam. Those can all be done within OBS directly.
But if you want to get really fancy, and have overlays that trigger based on people Upvoting, Following or Donating, you’ll need to use a few different services for that.
Get All The Overlays: Streamlabs
For your first foray into live overlays, I highly recommend Streamlabs. Their overlays allow you to show when people Follow/Subscribe, when they donate money via your own custom link, Twitch Bits, Chat overlays, and more. There’s a ton to dig into so definitely give them a look.
Alert Overlays for DLive: DLiveLabs
But all those overlays are mostly for Twitch and YouTube right? How can you display people who upvote and Follow on DLive on your stream?
Enter DLiveLabs. http://dlivelabs.com/
This project is very new, as is everything else built around DLive at the moment. So I haven’t been able to play with it too much. But from what I hear, it’s up and running, and will allow you to showcase both Follower Alerts and Upvote Alerts on your stream, which is huge.
Props to @cdhexx for building it. And check out his video tutorial on how to get started: https://www.dlive.io/#/video/cdhexx/531b1c30-0105-11e8-a9a6-f9c43eebbad6
Donation Alerts for DLive: SteemAlerts
Many people may not realize it, but there is a Donate feature on DLive. It’s that little basket icon next to the Thumbs Up icon. And while parting with your hard earned SBD or STEEM might be hard, it’s another great way to tell a streamer that they are fucking awesome.
But, with Streamlabs, when you donate, it shows up on screen, big and bold. How can we encourage #dlivers to donate as well?
Enter SteemAlerts: https://steemalerts.com/#
This project hooks directly into the Streamlabs API, and works with the Alerts feature. So, when someone sends you STEEM or SBD directly during your stream, the value is converted into the USD amount, and then displayed as an Alert on your stream just like donations you might get from Paypal.
It’s a really great project from @wehmoen, so props to him for building that.
Streamlabs OBS
OBS is definitely the most popular streaming platform today. But I doubt many of you have heard of Streamlabs OBS. It’s currently in an open Beta on Windows only (sorry Mac streamers). But personally I prefer the look and feel of the software over regular OBS.
https://streamlabs.com/streamlabs-obs
It definitely takes some getting used to coming from OBS, and the “Import Scenes from OBS” feature is broken, so you’ll have to recreate your scenes. But the benefits are that you can apply the variety of Streamlabs overlays to your video directly from this version of OBS and test all your widgets directly as well.
Not only that, there’s the whole catalog of premade Overlays available as well. And finally, you can keep up with the donations and Twitch chat on the same window as your stream preview while you are LIVE.
There’s so much more that I could cover here, but I’ll save that for my 500 Follower post! (fingers crossed)
Shout outs to @fullygaming, @treflo, @desolator, @deathwing, @kassixo, @jimmylin, @uhatgaming, @acidyo, @jordanx2, & @wehmoen in particular. Seriously, you are all fucking incredible doing what you do for this platform.
And join the DLive Discord to chat with everyone who’s active on the platform and dive even deeper into this community: https://discord.gg/vnXQBsM