NDI + OBS Setup & Troubleshooting Guide for Mac

Hypno is capable of broadcasting NDI video from its front micro USB port. This allows you to capture, stream and monitor Hypno’s output directly on a Mac without additional hardware. That video input can also be routed into OBS, a popular open-source video recording and live streaming program. Follow this guide to set up Hypno with MacOS, NDI Tools, and finally OBS.

Items needed:

  • Mac-compatible versions of NDI Tools require Mac OS X or better
  • Supplied microUSB cable
  • Hypno
  • Eurorack power supply or USB power supply (optional)

Software needed:

Setting up and testing your NDI connection:

  1. Install NDI Tools for Mac (installer automatically installs Studio Monitor)
  2. Connect Hypno to your PC using a microUSB cable from the front USB port and allow your OS a moment to recognize the device
  3. Open NDI Tools “Studio Monitor”
  4. Click the top left hamburger menu and select Hypno:main
  5. Hypno should now be viewable from Studio Monitor

If you’re unable to view Hypno in Studio Monitor or complete the initial connection/installation, you can attempt the following steps:

  • Some USB ports may not deliver enough power for Hypno to run on alone. Try connecting Hypno to a power source, such as the Eurorack power header or the side USB port.
  • Swap for another microUSB cable & make sure the power supplying cable is less than 6ft. (longer cables cause voltage drops)
  • In some rare cases, VPNs or Firewall conditions might prevent Hypno from displaying properly, disabling them can resolve connectivity problems.

Setting up OBS to use Hypno’s NDI video source

  1. Complete and verify NDI setup above
  2. Install the latest version of OBS from www.obsproject.com/download
  3. Install the latest version of obs-ndi plugin from https://obsproject.com/forum/resources/obs-ndi-newtek-ndi™-integration-into-obs-studio.528/
  4. Restart computer
  5. Open OBS
  6. When adding a new video source, “NDI Source” is now available
    NDI source
  7. After it’s been added, double-click on the NDI Source in the Sources box to bring up the device options. Select HYPNO (main).

  1. Press OK. Hypno should now be viewable in your main output window.

If you have issues using Hypno over NDI in OBS on Mac after following this guide, please bump this thread with a comment! You can also contribute to this thread by sharing your experiences with making OBS and Hypno work together.

Note about M1 Macs

It is a known issue that the NDI plugin has issues working with OBS on the new M1 macs.

  • A temporary solution is to use NDI virtual input and then use a regular camera source in OBS
    This is a temporary workaround and we can’t guarantee it will work until the plugin itself is updated.

Quick tips for OBS and Hypno

  • With no HDMI output connected, Hypno will output 720x480 over NDI. If the HDMI is connected, the NDI output resolution will match the resolution of the HDMI output.
  • You can configure OBS to capture Hypno’s output to any resolution you like in the settings.
  • Use the Transform right-click menu to flip, stretch, fit, rotate and center your image.
  • Experiment with filters from the right-click menu to apply color correction, sharpening, or use masks and keys.
  • Use NDI virtual input (part of NDI tools ) to put Hypno directly into any application that supports webcam input.

Please Note
Hypno Kit built with a Raspberry Pi 4 will not initialize NDI unless an HDMI cable is connected and transmitting signal when the Hypno is powered on.

Using an M1 Mac I was able to monitor Hypno through NDI Video Monitor but unable to view it in OBS with the NDI plug-in packages.

The Virtual Input solution allowed me to run Hypno directly into OBS and Max via USB. I’ve only done basic viewing through these software - no streaming or recording.

Thank you for this updated tutorial

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I’ve had a couple of issues when trying to follow these instructions. When installing NDI tools I did not see an opportunity to check a box for Studio Monitor or Virtual Input. After NDI was installed Studio Monitor was not included, so I did not have the ability to open it. Because of this, I had no idea how to proceed.
Any suggestions?

I think there is a mistake above (@Winston), the mac installer installs everything by default. Also as of NDI 5 they renamed “NDI Studio Monitor” to “NDI Video Monitor”

Should look something like this in your applications folder.
ndi apps

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Thanks Ron! I’ll try it again taking that into account. I apologize in advance for my dumb questions. I’m new to these tools. But I really do want to be able to record Hypno on my Mac.

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Want to let you know that I was able to get everything set up. The main issue was connecting power to the side input and using Video Monitor. I tested it and I’m able to record video and audio.
Thanks again for your help!

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Sorry for bumping this old thread, but this seems like the best place for this question and I cannot find the answer.

So I have a M1 MacBook and a Hypno Kit using a Pi4. I want to record the output of Hypno using my Mac, but also monitor using a TV so I can record a separate video and edit them together later.

Is it the ethernet port that I need to use because I have the kit? Or do I need some adapters and such?

There are lots of options for using Hypno Kit with NDI just connect your network any of the given ways: Ethernet direct to your recording computer (the most stable/reliable option), pi4’s usb c port to laptop for usb ethernet gadget or connect wifi to stream wirelessly (subject to lag spikes dependent on the quality of your wifi gear at home).

Hi there!
A bit late on this thread but I really need some help, so I have a MacBook M1 chip and the Hypno CM4-WS Pi version, I did try all of the above but sadly still didn’t manage to get it to show up on the NDI video monitor. I have it connected to a power brick, and a hdmi and usb to usb c to my lap top( USB port connected to the hypno USB port and the usb c connected to my MacBook) but still nothing, when I connect the hdmi to the hypno I do be getting some signal/electricity to the hypno because some lights do turn on but( left side light green and center light is some kind of weak red, the right light stays off) nothing else, do you guys have any idea what the issue could be?
thank you for the help :))

@VUk Ignoring NDI for now, are you able to boot the Hypno normally with the normal HDMI setup?

If you mean normal hdmi setup like powersource+ hdmi cable going into a projecto/ only monitor, yes. Trying to connect to a laptop was failure everytime, even tried on a laptop of a friend of mine that has windows as it’s OS.

Ah I think I see whats going on here after reading your comment again. The USB-C slot on the Hypno is power only it won’t provide a network connection between your Hypno and laptop.

The way to get a network connection and NDI working with the Hypno CM4-WS Pi version is to use an ethernet cable connected to your computer and to the Hypno. (you can also use wifi but I would recommend the wired option since its more stable). I use a usb A to ethernet adapter for this with my Mac.

BTW if youre looking to just record and not mess with network connections you may just want to get one of those sub 20USD HDMI captures and capture this way to your computer. This thread has info on tested/recommended USB Accessories that work with Hypno

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Hi again! Here I am once again, sadly even after getting the usb-c to ethernet adapter and connecting it to my hypno still no source signal in NDI, the lights on the adapter and on the Hypno ethernet port light up but sadly still nothing :frowning:

You have connected the adapter to your computer and ethernet to the adapter + the Hypno ethernet port? Does your adapter need drivers for your M1 machine? Is the adapter appearing in System Preferences->Network?

We are really just trying to get a LAN connection here so troubleshooting will be like any other LAN.

Yup, that seems to be the problem, I just contacted the shop that sold my adapter and they gave me the wrong info, so this one it dosent work with the m1 MacBooks wohooo, hopefully when I get the correct one it will work! if not you will be hearing from me again hahah, thank you for all the help!

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Got the adapter that is working on my m1machine. Now its appearing in Network and the status of the adapter its saying connected when I connect it to the hypno, when I discconet the hypno but leave the adapter in it goes on disconnected status, so that means my machine somehow recognises the hypno, but it still won’t appear in NDI honestly I don’t know what should I do next, maybe a fresh installation of ndi? I don’t know :/// I’m quite confused, STILL I’m very grateful for all the help I have been receiving, thank you a lot!

this means it should work ok, plz make sure your Hypno has the hdmi plug in when turned on and make sure its booting all the way on the regular screen, it will then start a ndi feed you should be able to see in the ndi video monitor drop down.

you can also try

ping hypno.local

in the command line to see if it can reach hypno, if its working it will show some text popping up periodically when that command is running

I tried to do the ping hypno.local and this was the answer
ping: cannot resolve hypno.local: Unknown host
any idea how to go further?

This is while it is plugged in and the adapter is showing connected and you followed the bootup procedure like I wrote above?

Either way, this return means your Hypno is not connected via the ethernet. Not sure I could help you further I would keep poking around since this is specific to your laptop setup.

If all else fails just get a capture card: List of USB Accessories that work with Hypno

Hey!
I’ve managed to successfully connect Hypno pi3 B+ via NDI to either Resolume and OBS. But in both cases Hypno outputs video in 640x360. I’ve tried to boot the hypno connected to the 1080p monitor through HDMI, but the max NDI output I’ve managed to achieve is still 640x360.

The Hypno manual says that Video is streamed at a max of 720x480. Any ideas how can I reach that? Not that anything isn’t working, I just have a feeling that there’s some unused potential, that I’m missing. Thanks!