Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 2: Viewing the Stream on a Network Client
• Method 2 of 2: Adjusting the Playback Delay
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

VideoLan Media Player (VLC) is a feature rich media player available for Windows, Linux and other * Nix distributions. Also available for Mac, it provides powerful options for managing and playing media files. Using VLC makes it easy to stream audio and video using Multicast.

Steps

1. 1 Install VLC media player with full set of options. When the installation is over, open the program.
2. 2 From the top menu select “Media” and “Open URL...”.
3. 3 In the "Source" window, click on the "File" tab.
4. 4 Click on the “Add” button and select the file to stream. At the bottom of the window, click the triangle next to the Play button and select Stream.
5. 5 Click Next.
6. 6 In the “Destination Path” section, click on the drop-down menu and select “HTTP”. Click the "Add" button.
7. 7 Make sure port 8080 is open. Check that other software is not using port 8080.
8. 8 Click on the "Stream" button.
9. 9 The streaming has started.

Method 1 of 2: Viewing the Stream on a Network Client

1. 1 Open the VLC media player and click on "Media" then select "Open URL...’.
2. 2 On the Network tab, enter the IP address of the media server and port number. Click the Play button.
3. 3 VLC will start playing streaming media.

Method 2 of 2: Adjusting the Playback Delay

If you listen to the same stream in different rooms and on different devices, the sound may not be synchronized. If you set up streaming with vlc on one computer and listen on others, the result will be different latency from the streaming server. Here's what you can do about it:

1. 1 On the vlc server: Do not check the box next to “Play locally”. You won't hear anything, but streaming will start.
2. 2 On vlc clients: Changing Buffering / Caching Parameters: Start at 20ms and increase by 10 until you achieve audio sync. At the beginning of playback, the player will always cut a lot, but the stream will stabilize after 5 - 10 seconds.
3. 3 To listen to a stream on the server: Open a second vlc client and listen to the stream as you did on other devices, using the same caching / buffering values.
4. 4 Please note that all caching values ​​must be the same.

Tips

• A multicast address is an IP address in a specific range. The range from 224.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255 is automatically detected by your router as multicast (if it supports it). The range from 239.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255 is "administrative", these are not global addresses, so they can be used on a local network without any problems.
• With these settings, you can use a large playlist to stream to your network, where anyone can join in to listen to it. You can also set up a wireless broadcast channel and broadcast TV (yes, you can broadcast TV from the tuner using VLC!), Movies and other video to an unlimited number of users on your network.The program intelligently broadcasts only to those clients that request a stream, so your computer does not receive information after you stop viewing, potentially reducing the load on the network.
• To change the standard period for notification of sent streams, go to Tools, Settings, Stream Output, SAP. Make sure Control SAP Flow is unchecked, then reduce the interval to whatever you want.

Warnings

• While this will work on 95% of devices and networks, in all likelihood, there will be problems with home networking if you only use IPv4. Most modern home routers support this feature. Multicast was developed after the characteristics that are now common were standardized. Of course, options are possible, but they will not work without the use of IPv6, the next generation Internet protocol (which is available and used all over the world, but for some reason is not very popular yet). If your router does not support multicast, you will need to purchase a new one.

What do you need

• Multicast router
• VLC media player
• Video files, audio files or discs
• At least 2 computers