The Tool Desk
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What you need for a YouTube HDR live stream
- A real HDR source: an HDR-enabled game and capture path, or a camera that supports PQ or HLG. An “HDR” label by itself does not make SDR footage HDR.
- An encoder that supports YouTube Live HDR: YouTube currently specifies H.265/HEVC for live HDR. The output must carry 10-bit color and accurate HDR signaling.
- A supported ingest path: YouTube supports RTMP(S) and HLS when the encoder is compatible with the required HDR settings. Use the path your encoder supports correctly.
- A viewer device capable of HDR: HDR playback is delivered automatically where supported. Other devices receive SDR.
YouTube Help’s page Stream HDR video on YouTube says that HDR live streaming currently supports only the H.265 (HEVC) video codec. The required signal includes 10-bit video, BT.2020 primaries, a PQ (ST 2084) or HLG transfer function, and a BT.2020 non-constant-luminance matrix. These values must describe the source accurately; changing metadata labels does not convert SDR into HDR.
Choose the right source workflow
HDR gaming
- Enable HDR in the game and in the relevant display or capture chain.
- Confirm that your capture device and encoder preserve HDR rather than converting the image to SDR.
- Set the encoder’s HDR transfer and color metadata to match the game and capture output. Do not select PQ or HLG merely because it is available in a menu.
Camera footage
- Check the exact camera model and recording or output mode for PQ or HLG HDR support.
- Set the encoder to the same transfer function and color primaries as the camera output.
- Verify that every device in the capture chain carries the 10-bit HDR signal through to the encoder.
A camera or game can produce HDR while the final stream is SDR if the capture device, encoder, or metadata handling does not preserve the HDR signal end to end.
Set up the stream in YouTube Live Control Room
- In YouTube Studio, open Create → Go live and create or manage the live stream.
- Choose the ingest protocol supported by your encoder: RTMP(S) or HLS. YouTube’s live settings guidance recommends H.265 over RTMP(S) for HDR; if your encoder cannot send the required HDR capabilities over RTMP(S), consider HLS.
- For HLS, select a stream key configured for HLS. In either workflow, leave Turn on manual resolution unchecked.
- Copy the stream key into the encoder’s YouTube destination settings. Treat it like a password: do not publish it, share it, or expose it in a public screen capture.
- Apply the encoder settings for the selected protocol and source, then start the stream and check the Live Control Room for ingest status. Its preview is not a valid visual confirmation of HDR color.
Configure OBS for HDR
YouTube’s documented OBS setup requires OBS 30.1 or later for its described RTMP configuration, plus a compatible hardware HEVC encoder. The OBS labels can vary with version, operating system, and hardware, so check the current OBS and encoder documentation if a setting is missing.
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- In OBS, open Settings → Output. Set the output encoder to a compatible hardware H.265/HEVC encoder.
- Use the Main 10 profile and a 10-bit format such as P010 (4:2:0), where those options are exposed.
- Open Settings → Advanced → Video and enable HDR, then set the color space to Rec. 2100 PQ or Rec. 2100 HLG to match the source and workflow.
- In OBS’s stream settings, use the YouTube server and stream key for the protocol you selected in Live Control Room. For YouTube HLS, choose the YouTube HLS service option if present and follow the corresponding encoder and color settings.
- Start the stream and verify HDR on a supported playback device as described below.
YouTube’s listed OBS setup recommends HLG, but the transfer setting still needs to match the actual source. A PQ source should not be mislabeled as HLG, or vice versa.
Use HLS when the encoder’s RTMP path cannot carry HDR
HLS is not automatically a better-quality option; it is an alternative ingest path when the encoder supports YouTube’s HDR requirements over HLS but not over RTMP(S). YouTube’s documented hardware HLS requirements include:
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- HEVC video at 10-bit depth.
- BT.2020 primaries, PQ (ST 2084) or HLG transfer as appropriate, and a BT.2020 non-constant-luminance matrix.
- Transport Stream segments from 1 to 4 seconds, without byte ranges.
- A rolling playlist with no more than five outstanding segments.
- HTTPS POST/PUT requests, with no encryption other than HTTPS.
Encoder menus may use different names for these settings. Match the documented output to YouTube’s requirements and the source’s actual color characteristics; do not force a PQ or HLG tag onto footage that was not produced in that format.
Check whether viewers are receiving HDR
- Wait for the stream to be available, then open it on a device and display that support HDR.
- Open the player’s playback quality settings and look for an HDR label beside a quality option.
- If the label is absent, check the same stream on another known HDR-capable device before treating it as an ingest failure.
YouTube states that the Live Control Room preview will not show HDR colors. A preview that looks SDR therefore does not establish that the stream is SDR. Likewise, viewers on unsupported screens normally receive SDR, which is expected fallback behavior.
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Troubleshoot a stream with no HDR badge
Check these items in order. They are diagnostic checks based on YouTube’s published requirements, not a guarantee that every missing badge has the same cause.
- The source is actually HDR: verify HDR is enabled in the game or that the camera output mode is PQ or HLG. An SDR source cannot become HDR by changing encoder metadata.
- The capture chain preserves HDR: confirm the capture device and any conversion or switching hardware do not turn the image into SDR.
- The encoder uses HEVC and 10-bit output: check for H.265/HEVC, Main 10 where applicable, and a 10-bit pixel format such as P010.
- The color signaling matches the source: verify BT.2020 primaries, the correct PQ or HLG transfer, and the BT.2020 non-constant-luminance matrix.
- The ingest settings match: confirm the stream key uses the intended protocol, the encoder is configured for that protocol, and Turn on manual resolution is unchecked.
- The playback test is valid: check playback quality on a supported HDR device, not only the Live Control Room preview or an SDR screen.
Live HDR is different from uploading an HDR video
For a prerecorded upload, YouTube requires HDR metadata in the file’s codec or container so it can play the video correctly. The separate upload workflow supports recommended codecs including VP9 Profile 2, AV1, and HEVC/H.265; live HDR currently specifies HEVC. YouTube’s upload guidance also identifies MOV/QuickTime, MP4, and MKV as tested containers.
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For uploads, metadata should identify PQ or HLG transfer, Rec. 2020 primaries, and the Rec. 2020 non-constant-luminance matrix. YouTube recommends grading in Rec. 2020 with PQ or HLG. Incorrect or mismatched tags can produce poor results, and the metadata tool should not be used to label footage HDR unless it was actually graded with an HDR transfer function. YouTube also says HDR uploads cannot currently be edited with its web editor. See Upload high dynamic range (HDR) videos.
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For a conventional interactive HDR gaming broadcast, use the source-and-encoder workflow above. If your goal is instead to keep uploaded video looping as a YouTube live stream, StreamNeo is a separate cloud option; it plays uploaded videos, not a live camera or game capture.
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