HowTo: RICOH THETA V and Z1 4K Live Streaming Driver For Windows 10

So, there is a limitation: hardware.

I have a mobile graphics card(r(R9 M375) (not integrated graphics) and a I7 6700HQ. Capturing data at 4K and trying to stream 4K? VERY DIFFERENT. It doesn’t have the memory to handle 4K encoding.

My machine was pegged at 90% on CPU/GPU doing 1080p, and I’m not sure how well USB2 is going to handle 4K, but it’s going to need serious hardware. That being said, records at 4K are amazing so I’m sure 4K livestreams will be as well.

I had a D&D tabletop event I was trying to live broadcast and it didn’t go well/didn’t have enough time to get OBS in line. I had to: update video drivers, update OBS, add video driver/OBS integration, update to that latest windows 10 build. There are clearly a lot of prerequisites. There was an OBS/AMD GPU plugin I had to install to enable this:

What version of OBS are you using. I had high CPU and dropped frame problems with an older version. I tested it on OBS 19 and OBS 20. An earlier version of OBS did not give good results.

My GPU is only a nvidia 750Ti and my CPU is only an i7 4790K.

I need to go to my friend’s office to do more testing.

4K live streaming in 360 is very new, so I think that people would really benefit from tests in the home/office prior to the event. Really appreciate and respect your ambition in trying to get it to work right there at the event show. Love that can-do attitude. :theta::theta_s:

So, latest? Plus the AMD thing from https://obsproject.com/forum/resources/amd-advanced-media-framework-encoder-plugin-for-obs-studio.427/ and updated firmware. I also made sure to assign the app to the gfx card so that my integrated gpu didn’t try to handle it. 750ti might work significantly better.

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Nice find. I didn’t realize that there was a separate plugin for AMD GPUs. That’s great info. Thanks for sharing it.

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So, I have loaded the new driver, updated windows, Loaded the newest Firmware and it seems to be working ok other than randomly shutting off during stream. This happens anywhere between 20 and 50 minutes into my testing. The battery is fine and I am able to manually power back on and continue on my merry way. I have verified in settings via phone app that auto power off is set to “Off”. Could this simply be overheating? Any ideas to try?

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Upgrade for he latest firmware 1.10.1

the API has both sleepDelay and offDelay. is there a way to set both with the app?

Try changing the USB cable and possibly USB port

When you touch your camera, is it hot?

Heat could be a problem, but I would suggest trying the above first. I tested the camera for several hours in live streaming without it shutting off. I did not need to change sleepDelay or offDelay, but it might be a factor. My camera doesn’t get hot to the touch.

The new firmware 1.10.1 improved these:

  • The precision of video slant top/bottom correction has been improved.
  • Still image joining accuracy has been improved.
  • The quality of the still image is improved by modifying the compression ratio.
  • Corrected bugs and improved performance.
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I believe the App only sets Sleepdelay, not offdelay. It just suddenly blinks red on the status lamp and then makes three beeps and powers off. It is over 80 Degrees currently where I am running it and yes it does feel rather warm. I am using an active extension cable (16.4 feet) from my PC with a powered USB hub in line just before the camera to ensure it has enough juice to charge while streaming. I have just moved it to sit directly in the flow of my air conditioning to eliminate the possibility of it being an over-heating issue. Did you use an extension cable for the 2-hour test you ran or direct connect the 1-foot adapter it comes with?

I ran the test with a direct USB cable, longer than 1 foot, but without an extension. It’s about 3 feet long. I tested it indoors in a room with air-conditioning.

From reading the documentation, it should not turn off if it does not sleep, so the sleepDelay is probably enough.

Can you test it without the extension cable first to rule out that possibility.

I have my camera plugged into a USB 3.0 port, which supplies a bit more power.

Overheating is confirmed on my Theta V. I have just placed it in the direct flow of my Air conditioner and it has worked like a champ for almost 3 hours. I am going to try and figure out where the break point is when I can control the room temperature a bit better. But 85 degrees is definitely a problem.

Thanks for the update. Sorry to hear about the heat.

Under certain conditions, the THETA S would also overheat. There are several hacks to try and alleviate the problem. One possible solution is to take a standard household fan and blow it at the camera. Another is to make a fan holder like this:

People have used Raspberry Pi heat sinks on the body of the THETA S.

This heatsink kit is $6.79 and attaches with sticky tape supplied with the heat sink.

It’s also possible that a future firmware upgrade will make the streaming slightly more efficient and help with the heating problem.

Although not ideal, maybe the external heat sinks with an external fan might help.

Hello.I have only a Theta-s. Do you konw the best quality of Theta-s Live Streaming with proper driver?Can it achieve 2K(1920*1080).?Thank you for your answer.

See this for the THETA S
http://theta360.guide/community-document/live-streaming.html

1920x1080 @ 30fps with THETA UVC FullHD Blender which is free software you can download.

Sorry to bother you again.Thanx for your reply some time ago.In Overview, I saw words next:
“HDMI Live Streaming Specifications (RICOH THETA S only)
Dual-Fisheye data in uncompressed YCbCr format is output.
Image size: 1920x1080 / 1280x720 / 720x480
Frame rate: 30fps”
Do you know how to get a video in the form of uncompressed YCbCr(yuv)?I searched for long time but get nowhere.Maybe i must use APi/SDK?If you have some advice ,please share with me . I know it may be not easy,anyway。

Sorry, I don’t know much about this type of video technology or equipment. I’m more of a novice with video standards. The information you’re referring to is here: https://developers.theta360.com/en/docs/introduction/

I don’t have any experience with cards like the Blackmagic Intensity, but I was assuming that you could use those cards to get HDMI video into your computer. I actually don’t know the difference between YCbCr and 4:2:2 YUV myself. I do know that people are using different types of HDMI cards to get the HDMI video into computers, but I don’t know about the technical specifications. The HDMI video is usually popular for people that want to use something like the Teradek VidiU or the Cerevo LiveShell to stream video to something like YouTube without a computer.

Happy to continue the discussion, but just keep in mind that I have limited knowledge of the external HDMI video equipment, so what I mention may not be technically correct.

Maybe someone else can help out here?

Hi guys !
I’m trying to launch a facebook live with a ricoh theta v and Mac OS El Capitan, but my laptop is not reconizing the camera. Anyone can help ?

Did you see this article?

Are you using OBS?

Yes I do but OBS doesn’t recognize ricoh theta v

Does the THETA V work as a webcam in QuickTime?

You have the THETA V in live mode, right?

Are you plugging it into a standard USB port on your Mac, or are you using a USB adapter? I’ve seen some problems with different USB adapters on the Mac. Make sure the connection between the Mac on the THETA V is working by using QuickTime first. If it works in QuickTime, you can move to OBS.

@codetricity Could you please DM me a link to the beta driver for THETA UVC 4K? Thanks, I really appreciate it.

Sent by email and DM. It’s now publicly available from the Ricoh site as well.

https://theta360.com/en/support/faq/c_06_v/304_1/