Choosing SlingStudio project setting options

When creating a new SlingStudio project, it can be confusing to decide which project settings to choose. What are the pros and cons of particular project setting choices?

Let's take a look at the various options that are available in the NEW PROJECT screen when you create a project ... or in the similar PROJECT SETTINGS screen if you want to change project settings later.

Resolution and frame (refresh) rate

The VIDEO PRODUCTION drop-down menu options are a combination of settings for resolution, video scan type (internally, SlingStudio works only with the "p", or progressive scan type) and frame rate.

Here's what you get with the options:

• Pro60 (1080p60): High-definition vertical resolution of 1080 horizontal lines, progressive scan, and a frame rate of 60 frames per second (FPS).
• Pro30 (1080p30): High-definition vertical resolution of 1080 horizontal lines, progressive scan, and a frame rate of 30 FPS.
• Sports (720p60): High-definition vertical resolution of 720 horizontal lines, progressive scan, and a frame rate of 60 FPS.
• Television (1080p30): High-definition vertical resolution of 1080 horizontal lines, progressive scan, and a frame rate of 30 FPS.
• Internet (720p30): High-definition vertical resolution of 720 horizontal lines, progressive scan, and a frame rate of 30 FPS.

Here's a look at lower versus higher resolution and frame rate settings:

Factor	Advantages of setting it higher	Disadvantages of setting it higher	What happens if you set it too high?
Resolution (720p or 1080p)	Higher video quality	Flicker Line Aliasing	Scaling artifacts introduced Wastes bandwidth Potential for compression artifacts
Frame rate (30 FPS or 60 FPS)	Greater Motion Detail	Potential image blurring	FRC artifacts introduced Wastes bandwidth Potential for compression artifacts

Important: You can only choose a VIDEO PRODUCTION option when creating a new project. Once you've selected your choice from the drop-down menu and saved your new project, you cannot change this option. You'll have to create a new project with the different setting that you want.

Bit rate

Below VIDEO PRODUCTION, you see an option for VIDEO SOURCES AND PROGRAM OUTPUT BIT RATE. If you are broadcasting video live, such as to YouTube Live or Facebook Live, then you see separate bit rate sliders for VIDEO SOURCES and PROGRAM OUTPUT.

For this setting, the slider ranges from a low value to high bit rate values, depending on various factors. Often a reasonable setting to try first is about halfway between the lowest and the highest settings.

What do you get by choosing lower or higher settings?

Factor	Advantages of setting it higher	Disadvantages of setting it higher	What happens if you set it too high?
Video bit rate	Higher video quality	Compression Artifacts	Potential for delivery failure (while broadcasting) with no upside

Unlike the VIDEO PRODUCTION option, you can go back into Project Settings and change your bit rate settings.

Sometimes the best approach to take is to give various settings a try and see how you like the results. No two projects are the same, and as you get used to creating video projects with SlingStudio you'll get more comfortable with selecting project settings.