Larix Broadcaster is documented as a mobile live-capture and publishing app, including RTMP and RTMPS output to YouTube. The official Larix material reviewed does not document selecting and playing a prerecorded playlist, so you should not rely on Larix itself to run one.
For a prerecorded playlist, use a computer encoder with a documented local-media playlist source, such as OBS Media Source, and send that encoder’s output to YouTube Live. Larix can still be useful for mobile live capture, but it is not a verified playlist player in this workflow.
What Larix Broadcaster is documented to do
Larix Broadcaster is a mobile application from Softvelum for capturing live video and audio on supported iOS and Android devices, then publishing the result to a streaming destination. Its documented publishing methods include RTMP, with SSL support for RTMPS. You can read the current product details on Softvelum’s Larix Broadcaster page, because device and app compatibility can change.
That description matters because the input and output sides of a live workflow are separate. Larix can capture what a phone camera and microphone are producing, then send that live contribution to YouTube. A prerecorded channel needs something different on the input side: software that can open local files, place them in a defined sequence, manage their transitions or playback behaviour, and continue sending the resulting programme.
Softvelum’s YouTube example documents a server address and stream key pattern for publishing. It also uses video plus audio. This supports a mobile live-capture-to-YouTube setup, but it does not establish that Larix can select a folder of videos or play a playlist from local storage.
In practical terms, think of Larix as a mobile encoder. It takes a live source and encodes it for delivery. Do not describe it to yourself as a media player simply because it can publish to YouTube. Those are different capabilities, and confusing them is likely to leave you with a stream that connects but has no supported way to choose the programme you wanted to play.
Can Larix select a prerecorded playlist?
The careful answer is that the reviewed official Larix documentation does not document this feature. That is not the same as proving that no device-specific workaround exists. It means there is no substantiated Larix playlist workflow you should promise to viewers or build an always-on channel around.
A playlist workflow needs evidence for two separate operations:
- The application must be able to select local media files and determine their order.
- The application must be able to publish the resulting audio and video to YouTube’s ingest endpoint.
Larix’s documented RTMP and RTMPS publishing addresses the second operation when the source is a mobile live capture. It does not, in the reviewed material, address the first operation for prerecorded files. An encoder such as OBS addresses both sides more directly when you use its Media Source.
| Approach | Prerecorded playlist input | YouTube output | Suitable use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larix Broadcaster | Not documented in the reviewed official material | RTMP and RTMPS publishing are documented | Mobile live camera and microphone capture |
| Computer encoder with OBS Media Source | Local files, ordered playback and shuffle controls are documented | Configure the encoder with YouTube’s server URL and stream key | A prerecorded playlist that must play as the live programme |
This distinction is especially important for devotional channels, lecture loops, music stations and local information channels. If your programme is already rendered into files, start with software that can play those files in the required order. If your programme is a live phone feed, Larix may be the more natural input and publishing tool.
For a related example of the playlist side of the problem, see this guide to streaming a playlist of lectures with OBS. The same basic separation applies here: the computer encoder plays the files, while YouTube receives its encoded output.
Choose an encoder with a local-media playlist source
OBS is a substantiated route because its documentation describes Media Source as a source for local video files and includes playlist controls. The OBS Media Sources documentation lists common formats such as MP4, TS, MOV, FLV, MKV, AVI, GIF and WebM. The exact result still depends on the installed build, the file codec and the audio tracks in your files, so test the actual clips rather than assuming that a file extension guarantees playback.
Install OBS on the computer that will play the programme, then create a scene for the broadcast. Add a Media Source to that scene and use its file or playlist controls to add the clips. You can keep the files in a defined order or use shuffle where that is appropriate for the channel. For a lecture series, ordered playback is usually easier to audit. For a lofi or ambience station, shuffle may be more useful if the files have been checked for volume and visual continuity.
Before connecting OBS to YouTube, watch the playlist locally. Confirm that the first file starts at the intended point, the next file follows, and the audio does not disappear at a transition. Check both a short clip and a longer item. A playlist can appear correct in the source settings while a particular file still fails because of an unsupported codec, a damaged track or an unusual audio layout.
Do not make the playlist more complicated than the channel requires. If the files already contain the complete visual treatment, one Media Source may be enough. If you need a persistent logo, a text label or a background, add those as separate OBS sources and check their order in the scene. Keep the layout stable so that changing clips does not accidentally hide the audio-producing source.
You can also review how to stream a podcast playlist on YouTube using OBS for the same general arrangement. It is still your responsibility to check the current OBS controls and the behaviour of your own media files.
Configure the playlist source
Open the Media Source properties and add the local files you want to play. Use the documented playlist controls to set the order or shuffle behaviour. Give the source a clear name, such as programme_playlist, rather than leaving several sources with identical names. This makes later troubleshooting less error-prone.
Decide what should happen when the list reaches its end. If your intended programme is a finite event, allow it to finish and end the broadcast cleanly. If it is an always-on channel, enable the relevant looping behaviour in the source and confirm that the final file returns to the first one. Watch the join between those two files. The end of one item and the beginning of the next is where a silent gap, frozen frame or unexpected scene change is most likely to become visible.
Set the canvas and output dimensions to match the files you actually plan to use. If most clips are landscape but one is portrait, decide whether it should be padded, cropped or replaced. Do this before going live. A viewer may accept a consistent frame with side bars, but an unplanned change in composition can make a channel look unfinished and can hide captions or devotional artwork.
Audio deserves its own check. A video file can contain a track that is technically present but effectively silent, or several tracks that do not behave as expected in the encoder. Play each important source through the OBS mixer and look for movement in the level meter. Listen to the transition between at least two files, and check that the programme is not clipping when a quiet item is followed by a louder one.
YouTube’s documented encoder guidance recommends H.264 video, AAC or MP3 audio, constant bitrate, frame rates up to 60 frames per second, and a keyframe interval of two seconds that should not exceed four seconds. These are YouTube recommendations, not a guarantee that every computer or file exposes the same choices. Use the settings available in your encoder and verify the current YouTube encoder settings before publication.
If your files have different frame rates or audio characteristics, do not try to solve every mismatch by changing settings at random. First identify which file causes the problem. Re-encode or replace that item if necessary, then test the revised file in the playlist. A stable, consistent collection is usually easier to operate overnight than a list assembled from unrelated sources.
Connect the encoder output to YouTube Live
Create or schedule the live event in YouTube Studio. In Live Control Room, you can create a new stream or select a configured stream, then obtain the connection details for the encoder. YouTube’s encoder streaming guide states that you enter the YouTube Live server URL and stream key into the encoder.
In OBS, open the stream settings and choose the service or custom server arrangement that matches the details YouTube provides. Paste the server URL into the server field and the stream key into the key field. Use the exact current values from YouTube Studio rather than relying on an old example or a URL copied from a previous event. Keep the key private, in the same way you would protect a password.
YouTube currently recommends RTMPS for live delivery. If the service and encoder settings offer the secure ingest option, use the current server information supplied by YouTube. Do not substitute the example rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2 from an older or third-party setup guide for the values shown in your own Live Control Room. Example addresses can explain the pattern, but your active event details are the ones that matter.
Start the OBS stream only after the scene and playlist are ready. Once YouTube receives the encoder signal, the Live Control Room should show a preview or connection state. A scheduled stream may still require you to select Go live in YouTube Studio. Sending data from OBS is not always the same as making the event public.
If you were considering Larix for this part, the distinction remains important. Softvelum’s documented YouTube connection pattern supports sending a mobile live signal through Larix, including video and audio. It does not turn Larix into the application that selects and sequences your prerecorded files. For this article’s playlist route, OBS is the application playing the media and YouTube is receiving the output.
If YouTube reports that the stream is offline after you have started the encoder, check the basics in order: the correct event is open, the server URL is current, the key has not been replaced, OBS is sending the intended scene, and the network is actually uploading. This guide to an FFmpeg YouTube stream showing offline covers a different encoder, but the checks around YouTube’s ingest state are relevant.
Test the stream before publishing
A local preview is necessary but not sufficient. You need to check the signal after it has travelled through the encoder and YouTube. Start a private or unlisted test event where appropriate, send the playlist from OBS, and open the preview in Live Control Room. Look for the first frame, audio presence, correct aspect ratio and a stable connection state.
Do not test only the opening clip. Let the playlist reach a transition. If the channel contains long lectures or music videos, test a representative change before committing to an overnight run. A source can look healthy while one later item fails to load, loses audio or changes the scene dimensions.
Use a second device or browser to watch the viewer-facing result. Check what a viewer sees rather than relying only on OBS’s preview. Listen for a delay between picture and sound, and confirm that captions, text and logos remain inside the visible frame. If your audience is likely to watch on a phone, include a phone-sized view in the check.
The network should remain available for the whole broadcast. A computer encoder is dependent on the computer, its power, its operating system and its upload connection. Prevent the machine from sleeping, disable disruptive notifications, avoid system updates during the planned broadcast and keep the intended OBS scene selected. These are operating precautions, not guarantees that a long stream will continue without interruption.
YouTube says first-time live-stream enablement may take up to 24 hours. Allow for that before the day you intend to publish, rather than discovering the delay when the playlist is ready. YouTube also says streams shorter than 12 hours are automatically archived. If an archive matters to you, confirm the current YouTube guidance and decide how you will end the stream before starting it.
When the test is complete, stop both sides deliberately. Stop or end the event in YouTube Studio as appropriate, then stop the encoder. For a scheduled public stream, confirm whether the event is waiting for your manual Go live action. A clean close is easier to understand later than leaving OBS running and assuming YouTube will infer your intention.
Decide whether Larix belongs in this setup
For a prerecorded playlist, Larix is not the part of the workflow that has been verified by the reviewed documentation. Use a computer encoder with a documented local-media playlist source for the files, then configure its YouTube output. This is the clearest route when the programme already exists as video files.
Larix makes more sense when the programme is genuinely live: a phone camera at a temple, a local event, a field report or a presenter contributing from outside the studio. In that case, the phone is the capture device and Larix is the mobile encoder that publishes the live signal. It is a different job from playing a prepared sequence of local files.
If your main concern is leaving a computer awake all night, a cloud-based YouTube-only workflow such as StreamNeo removes the need to keep that playback computer switched on after you upload the file, connect the channel and start the broadcast. It does not change the Larix capability question: Larix should still be described as a mobile live encoder, not as a verified prerecorded playlist player.
The practical decision is therefore straightforward. Use Larix when you need mobile live capture and publishing. Use OBS Media Source, or another encoder whose own documentation clearly supports local-media playlists, when the playlist itself is the programme. Keep the two roles separate in your setup notes so that a successful RTMPS connection is not mistaken for proof of playlist playback.
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FAQ
Can Larix Broadcaster play a prerecorded playlist?
The reviewed official Larix material documents mobile live capture and RTMP or RTMPS publishing, but does not document selecting and playing a prerecorded playlist. Use an encoder with a documented local-media playlist source instead, and do not promise a Larix playlist workflow.
What should I use to stream local videos to YouTube Live?
OBS with Media Source is a substantiated route because its documentation describes local media and playlist controls. Add the files, confirm their order and audio locally, then enter the YouTube server URL and stream key in the encoder settings.
Can I use Larix for the YouTube connection anyway?
Larix can publish a documented mobile live-capture signal to YouTube through RTMP or RTMPS. For a prerecorded playlist, however, let the computer encoder play and sequence the files; Larix does not become the verified playlist source merely because YouTube accepts its output.
How early should I enable YouTube live streaming?
YouTube says first-time live-stream enablement may take up to 24 hours. Enable it before your planned broadcast and use a private or unlisted test to confirm that the encoder, playlist and YouTube event work together.